Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

No, it is a correction. The statement was made to about 2,000 people in Tullamore and he gave his full support to turf cutters there.

I also congratulate Emily O'Reilly. She has been a fantastic Ombudsman and will be a hard act to follow. I congratulate her wholeheartedly on her appointment as European Ombudsman.

I concur with Senator Landy. I was at the Carers Association presentation. It was a practical and essential submission. I hope when we vote on the social protection Bill he will follow through on his commitment today.

The Leader agreed that there should be a series of prebudget debates in the House. We should not leave that too late because the budget will be announced in October. He indicated he hoped we would have a number of such debates before the recess. I suggest a debate on social protection be one of the starting points because it is one of the most contentious areas of the budget. We could take all of the suggestions made by the Carers Association on board. I call for a debate on prebudget submissions on social protection before the recess, if possible. It would be timely and would give the Minister, Deputy Burton, food for thought over the summer recess to take all of the suggestions in the House on board.