Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I express my deep sympathy to the families of the Irish citizens and all those who were murdered or injured in the appalling attack in Tunisia on Friday. It was a most disturbing and brutal day. Not only were 38 people killed in Tunisia in that barbaric attack on the beach but also on the same day, a large number of people were killed in Kuwait, also apparently by ISIS extremists, and there was the particularly brutal killing of a man in France. It is fitting that we would express sympathy to all those affected by those dreadful atrocities.

I express the hope, even at this eleventh hour, of some success in the attempts to forestall Greek default and a resumption of negotiations. The Taoiseach has written to the Greek Prime Minister in those terms. The President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has been attempting to resume negotiations.

I call for a debate on crime given the publication today by the CSO of crime statistics. It is a welcome publication as these are the statistics which had been delayed while the CSO addressed issues that had been raised about the reporting and recording of crime statistics by the Garda Inspectorate in last year's report. The CSO has remedied a number of the defects in the reporting and recording of crime that appeared in the Garda Inspectorate report. It is welcome that decreases are recorded in most categories of crime, such as a 40% drop in homicide and an 8% decrease in burglaries in the 12 months ending on 31 March 2015. There is a great deal of material in the Garda Inspectorate report around the reporting and recording of crime and it would be good to have a debate on that in due course.

I note the CSO has recorded today that unemployment figures are down to the lowest level, 9.7%, since 2009.It is still too high, but it is a major improvement on last year's figures. It shows a steady decrease in unemployment and is very welcome.

I ask the Leader to find time over the next two weeks to commemorate the genocide in Srebrenica. The 20th anniversary of that appalling genocide is 11 July. It was the single largest atrocity on European soil since the Second World War, when 8,372 men and boys were systematically murdered. I have written to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to ask for an official Irish commemoration of the twentieth anniversary. There will be a commemoration in Belfast on 5 July and on 11 July Srebrenica memorial day will be commemorated across Europe. Quite a number of commemorative events are planned across Britain and Northern Ireland, and we might look for some event here.