Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join my colleagues in urging a balanced debate on the issue of foreign aid. I concur with the comments of Senators Mullins, Quinn and Healy Eames on that. We are all acutely aware that it is an extremely tough time to be a citizen in this country but we are dealing with people who are concerned about mortality. Much of the investment and the money we pay goes towards the fight against child mortality and a good deal of work is being done in the first 20 months of a child's life, including the time from when they are conceived. In dealing with such issues we must be balanced in our approach and I would welcome a debate on the issue in the new year.

I urge caution in the hunt for a new chief executive officer for the National Consumer Agency. It is proposed that that agency be merged with the Competition Authority in the coming months. I understand that legally a CEO is required for the agency but in circumstances where money is tight I would have thought that a job which attracts a sum of between ¤130,000 and ¤137,000 but will be obsolete in a few months may be one we may wish to forgo.

I urge that the merger be expedited rather than continue the hunt for a CEO to take over the National Consumer Agency.