David Norris (Independent)

I wish to pay tribute to or note the passing of an old friend who was a very distinguished leader of Irish life. I presume it is permissible to do so. I am not seeking tributes to a former Member, although I understand that sadly there will be a need for such tributes in respect of another individual. I am sure the House will join me in mourning the passing of Kader Asmal, who was a colleague of mine at Trinity College. He was also one of the founders of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, on the board of which I served with him and Mary Robinson for many years. He then went on to serve as Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, a very important role, and Minister of Education in South Africa. I was extremely sorry to hear of his death and I am sure other Senators will join me in mourning his passing.

I wish to request a debate on the Bethany Home. This is the third occasion on which I have raised this matter since the current Seanad came into being. I also raised it during the lifetime of the previous Seanad. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí, has refused to include the survivors of the Bethany Home in the redress scheme. That is quite astonishing, particularly as the former Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, Dr. John Neill, specifically requested that Government to include these people as a matter of urgency. Dr. Neill apologised on behalf of the Church of Ireland to the survivors of the home.

It is remarkable that this appeal from so senior a member of the Church of Ireland has been completely ignored by the Government. That prompts me to wonder whether it is only Roman Catholic institutions which come under the scrutiny of the State. All institutions, regardless of their religious ethos or whether they are secular State institutions, should come under such scrutiny. I attended a ceremony held in Mount Jerome cemetery in the company of one of the survivors of the Bethany Home, Mr. Derek Leinster - I commend him on his courage - at which flowers were laid on a plot containing the unmarked graves of 219 children. We should not brush this matter under the carpet.

I agree with Senator Moran's comments regarding schoolbooks. A huge amount of paper is wasted in this regard. When I attended school, the nice Mr. Murray who worked in Hodges Figgis would exchange books for one. There was a second-hand books department in the basement of the shop and one could hand in one's books for a particular year and receive a discount on the books one needed for the following year. Such recycling would be extremely apt in the current climate and it should not be confined to schoolbooks. Senators receive an enormous number of reports which they do not have time to read. It would be better if we were presented with single page transcripts of these and we could then seek further printed material, if required, or else seek the relevant information online. A massive amount of paper is wasted in these Houses.

I ask the Leader to confirm that the recycling programme previously in place in the Houses has been abandoned. I hope the Government will reinstate it because all the unused material could be placed in green bags and recycled. I do not know why the programme was brought to a halt but that certainly happened during the final session of the previous Oireachtas.