Martin Conway (Fine Gael)

I agree with the Senator and I raised the issue of the missing children's hotline 116000 on the Adjournment debate last September. I am confident, following discussions at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, that the hotline will go live within a short period. I urge all parties to work on it as quickly as possible.

I would like the Minister for Justice and Equality to come to the Seanad for a debate on legal fees even though I know that we are dealing with the Legal Services Regulation Bill at present. However, I read in The Irish Times this morning that payments of €5.8 million were made by the State on foot of claims against gardaí, €4.9 million of which went to the legal profession which is an outrage. Only €900,000 went to the people who were injured as a result of a few gardaí not behaving properly. There is something wrong with a society and a State where legal eagles can receive over 80% of a compensation claim.