Averil Power (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support the amendment to the Order of Business proposed by my Independent colleague, Senator Mary Ann O'Brien. I also wish to commend the work undertaken on this issue for some time by Senator John Whelan concerning the Environmental Protection Agency in Portlaoise. The arguments have been well set out here, so I urge all Members to support that amendment.

As we are short of time, I will briefly mention two other issues. I call for a debate on the accident and emergency department crisis. I raised this matter directly with the Minister for Health here before the Christmas recess, including the situation in Beaumont Hospital. However, things have deteriorated quite rapidly in the intervening period. Last week, a wheelchair user had to sleep in a wheelchair in Beaumont Hospital for two nights because there were no trolleys or beds available. The situation is very serious, so I ask the Leader to try to schedule a debate on that with the Minister for Health.

I ask the Leader to contact the Minister for Foreign Affairs to express concern about the health of a Palestinian journalist, Muhammad al-Qeq, who is currently on hunger strike. He was sentenced to six months without any trial under Israel's system of administrative detention. His health is deteriorating rapidly and there are serious concerns that he is near death. This is an issue Ireland should raise with the Israeli authorities - not just the individual circumstances but also Israel's blatant violation of international law in its use of administrative detention to send people to prison for months or years on end. Thousands of Palestinians have been sent to prison without charge, trial or due process. It is a very serious issue.It is more than one year since the House unanimously passed a motion calling on the Government to recognise the state of Palestine. Will the Leader speak to the Minister about it and see to it that the will of this House and that of the Dáil, subsequently, is acted upon?