Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I second the amendment to the Order of Business proposed by Senator Mark Daly. I commend him on tabling the amendment.

I welcome the members of the Irish Deaf Society to the Visitors Gallery and thank the sign language expert for being here. This highlights the difficulties faced by deaf people in this country. Their situation has been made more difficult by the harsh decision, or recommendation, to remove funding worth €100,000 from the advocacy service. No organisation deserves funding more than the Irish Deaf Society because it is essential for it to have an advocacy service in order to communicate with Government. The society is not in a position to communicate as directly as they would like or as we are fortunate to be able to do so. It seems very wrong that people with all their faculties, like the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, deem it appropriate to withdraw a service from an organisation and from people who need an advocate. That is why I am delighted to see that Senator Mark Daly has put so much effort into this matter. He is the Irish Deaf Society's Seanad nominee on the administrative panel. He is a good advocate for it and has shown his commitment to deaf people in this society. That is why I think today is a very special day. It is one of the most significant days in this House and on the Order of the Business because of this debate and for having experts in the House that were facilitated by the Cathaoirleach and the Leader of the House.

I ask the Leader of the House to arrange on our return in September but before the budget for the new Minister for Health to attend and outline his health budget for 2015. I wish Deputy Leo Varadkar well in his Ministry. I know it is a difficult Ministry because I was in Hawkins House for a number of years. I also want him to indicate the exact position regarding the restoration of an accident and emergency service at Roscommon County Hospital. The service was removed by Deputy James Reilly and the Taoiseach prior to the by-election in Roscommon-South Leitrim. In fact, I represented the constituency from 1977 to 1981 along with the late Sean Doherty and Joan Burke, who is in good form. I am one of the last representatives for the constituency, indeed from that era, in the House. It is now an appropriate time for the Government to outline its manifesto for the constituency which has been deprived of a Minister of State by appointing-----