Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is time we had a debate on flooding and on the measures to compensate those affected by the winter storms. We have all seen the footage of the floods, ruined homes and businesses and the Christmas plans that have been destroyed. There have been four Atlantic storms this year. However, there are two things that are predictable, severe weather and the pathetic response from Government. Each time it happens, we get too little, by way of a response, and too late. It seems to have come as a revelation to the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney, that legislation prevents flood relief compensation to businesses and that only households may benefit. This is a Government that prides itself on getting the economy going again and getting people back working. How can it be jobs-friendly if businesses are allowed to suffer in this way?

When this crisis happened last year, along with others, I called on the Government and the then Minister, Mr. Phil Hogan, to take concrete steps to mitigate the harmful effects of future storms. The Government should have applied to the EU solidarity fund but it did not. It should have aided small businesses with a Government subsidised insurance scheme where people are not able to get private sector cover but it did not bother to do that either. The Government has chosen to do nothing for small businesses impacted by flooding. It is too little, too late to be talking about frustration with the situation on the eve of a general election. People are rightly frustrated with the lack of emergency funding for individual home owners and a lack of financial cover for businesses. Any further delay is inexcusable. Like others, I have been driving in east Galway where the flooding has been extremely difficult and frustrating for people. It is time the Government realised it is in government and did something about this.

Many of us grew up enjoying the romanticised versions of private investigators' lives - I think of "Magnum PI" and others. When we look at the reality of what private investigators get up to, however, it can be more sordid and grubby. Senator Craughwell's amendment, which I want to second, calls on the Minister for Justice and Equality to come to the House to tell us what she knows and what she is going to do in regard to the necessary investigation of not just the activity of private investigators but also of officials in the Department of Social Protection. This is an important issue. It is yet another example, perhaps, of the creep that goes on where banks and officials of State collude to subtract from people's rights, in particular, the right to privacy and the privacy of their data. I want to second Senator Craughwell's amendment.