Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I also welcome the fact that we will see an announcement this afternoon by the Government on revisions to the charging proposals for Irish Water. We do not know the full package but we have seen a good deal of information about them in recent days in the newspapers. The revisions are a sign of responsiveness by the Government to the concerns expressed by people through peaceful demonstrations. I welcome the suggestion that there may be moves taken, not just to reassure people on price affordability and certainty of pricing, but also on the need to reassure people that Irish Water will stay in public ownership. The latter is a hugely important issue about which there is a great deal of concern. Yesterday, the Leader said we would have a debate in this House on the package of measures this afternoon which is welcome. I know he is seeking to arrange the debate.

I ask the Leader to arrange a debate, in due course, on crime statistics and crime rates in Ireland. I will also raise this matter with the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality. It is a matter of great concern to see that the Garda Inspectorate's report raised issues about inconsistencies in recording of offences reported to the Garda. This situation is not unique to Ireland and we have seen it happen in a number of other jurisdictions. This week in Britain this subject has also been in the news as serious concerns have been expressed that one in five crimes reported to police are not recorded as such. There is a general concern about the matter but the Garda Inspectorate's report raised a number of specific issues. In yesterday's newspapers there was an announcement by the CSO that it may have to defer its publication of crime statistics because of these concerns, which is a worrying development. Over the years we have had a lot of problems, generally, with the way in which we record crime statistics with changes made making comparisons between years very difficult. This is a difficult matter for statisticians but it is also a difficult one for policymakers when trying to judge different rates of decrease or increase in particular crimes. I would like us to have a comprehensive debate on the matter once the Oireachtas justice committee has reviewed the issue.

Yesterday, in light of the decision in the case taken by Dr. Sheehy Skeffington against the National University of Galway, I asked the Leader for a debate on gender and promotions in third level education. In the New Year I would also like us to have a debate on third level education more generally. A number of us heard a very good briefing from the HEA last week about this matter and on different plans for the development of third level, in particular the changes within the IT sector to develop technological universities. I know the Leader has an interest in this topic and I would like him to arrange a debate on same in the New Year.