Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

On Tuesday, we all expressed our deep horror and condemnation of the attacks on Paris.We will all have been watching with great interest the developments in Paris since then, the raids in the suburb of Saint-Denis yesterday and the resulting arrests. The debate which people sought on Tuesday, and which I said, as Deputy Leader, I would be happy to try to facilitate, on the greater security issues given rise to by the Paris attacks, is one we should have in the new year. We should seek to put in context our concerns about these appalling attacks and the ripple effect they have had in terms of heightened security fears, with flights being diverted and matches being cancelled across Europe in recent days since the attacks.

In two weeks time there will be a major conference in Paris on climate change. I am very hopeful we will have passed the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill by then. On Committee Stage the Minister agreed to take some important amendments which Senator Barrett had tabled with the purpose of ensuring the Seanad would have scrutiny over the annual development plans and the five-year plans on carbon emissions. I am hopeful we will see those amendments before the House on Report Stage and I would like the Leader to confirm the date for the Report Stage debate.

I would like to request two debates on different matters which, given the legislative schedule, we will not have time to facilitate before Christmas but which we might have in the new year. The first is on women in the arts, arising from the experience I had last Thursday chairing the extraordinary debate in the Abbey Theatre, Waking the Feminists. It would be good to have the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Heather Humphreys, in the House in the new year for a more general debate on gender and the arts. I would also like a debate on drugs policy. The Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality has recommended that a new approach be taken to possession of small quantities of drugs for personal use and that a harm reduction or health-based approach be taken in line with that adopted in Portugal. The Minister of State, Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, has expressed support for a similar model and it would be very helpful to have the Minister here in the new year to discuss his proposals and the recommendations of the Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality.