Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Táimid buailte le séasúr na Nollag. Is dóigh, an t-am seo an tseachtain seo chugainn, beidh cuid mhaith turcaí agus ham ite agus mar sin de, ach tá daoine áirithe amuigh ansin nach bhfuil ag súil chomh mór sin leis an Nollaig.

The Christmas season is upon us, but people are concerned that it will not be easy. It was heartening to be at a presentation by the Samaritans who outlined the amazing work they are doing. They launched their impact report for 2011-2012 outlining how they have handled 400,000 phone calls, 258,000 dialogue contacts and up to 57,000 listening hours. A startling fact is that one in six of the calls they have been receiving is due to calls from people who are worried about different situations because of recessionary issues. They have more than 1,400 volunteers working with them, of which more than 100 are in Galway and most branches would have over 100 volunteers who give 15 hours per month. It is very important that we should acknowledge that Christmas will not necessarily be a happy time for everybody but we commend the work of people like the Samaritans who provide help during the Christmas period for those who find this time difficult. Their telephone is 1850609090. May I ask the Leader to arrange a debate in the new years on the supports available for people who are finding it difficult to cope in these times of economic austerity and whether they are adequate to deal with the numbers of people under pressure? The numbers using services such as that provided by the Samaritans are increasing all the time.