Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, is set to publish the local government reform Bill today. The proposed reforms of our local government system are an issue about which many colleagues have called for a discussion in recent times. I hope the Bill will come before the House as soon as possible.

The Valuation (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012 was debated in the House on 11 October last year. Will the Leader indicate when it will return to the House so that we can see it on its way to completion? Delays in the valuation process are causing problems for businesses, particularly small businesses, throughout the country. The sooner the legislation is debated, enacted and implemented the better.

Continuing Senator Mary Ann O'Brien's good news theme, the Taoiseach is in Limerick today to launch a €55 million project at the University of Limerick which is the first of its type in the world. It brings together philanthropy, education and government and will avail of the expertise of ten leading professors in the biomedical, pharmaceutical and research fields from all over the world. I congratulate the university on its success in creating such an impressive hub for education, research and product development.