Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is ironic to hear Fianna Fáil present itself as champion of the public sector having imposed pay cuts when it was in government and after the failed policy of decentralisation which destroyed morale in large parts of the public sector.

However, as I said in the House last week, I welcome the fact that Mr. Kieran Mulvey has been invited to bring the parties together to see if a renegotiation is possible. We all await the outcome of that process.

I also welcome the announcement today of the creation of 1,000 construction jobs in the planned upgrade of the N7 and N11. As a very welcome consequence, we will see the removal of the bottleneck at Newlands Cross. This is a really important deal. It is worth €282 million and will provide some comfort to those who have lost jobs in the construction sector. It is a very welcome announcement.

I seek a debate on the levels of autism in Ireland. The survey commissioned by Irish Autism Action is examining the prevalence of autism in Ireland. I hope that before long this House will have before it the Private Members' Bill that was accepted in the Dáil, the autism Bill brought forward by my Labour Party colleague, Deputy Michael McCarthy. While I hope there will be a debate on that Bill in the House, we might also have a general debate on the prevalence of autism in Ireland and the best methods of education for children with autism.

Finally, the Cabinet meeting today has adjourned. We understand it was considering the heads of a Bill on the X case, 21 years after the Supreme Court judgment in that case. It is welcome that heads of a Bill have been prepared and are being discussed by the Cabinet with a view to providing clarity, at last, to doctors, pregnant women and their families as to the criteria which may be applied where a doctor needs to intervene to save a woman's life.