Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The House will be aware of the controversy arising from tapping of the telephones of journalists, supposedly in the national interest. Those of us who follow American television programmes, will be aware of the term "in the interest of national security". I am a great fan of the series "The Good Wife", which tells the story of a political family in Chicago which is dealing with the courts. The issue of the national interest comes up regularly.

In this context and with regard to the recent controversy involving GSOC, I can refer to what I can only describe as the Taoiseach's crocodile tears, a term which was used by Dearbhail McDonald in the Irish Independent.I commend the article to the Members on the Government side, because she states that effectively, that is all the Taoiseach is doing. The Government is operating under a law, the Communications (Retention of Data) Act 2011, which is a direct implementation of an EU directive that has subsequently been shot down by the European Court. That raises questions. The idea that there should be an independent review is kicking the can down the road, as the Fianna Fáil spokesperson on Justice and Equality said earlier today in the other House. I commend the Leader to convey to the Government that a Fianna Fáil Bill being introduced in the Dáil will effectively provide for oversight in this area so that any attempt to tap a person's telephone, not just of journalists but of private citizens, must go before a court.

In the television programme I mentioned, when the US Government is trying to invoke national security, it must go through the court procedure, because there must be an independent judicial oversight. That is what the Fianna Fáil Bill is about. If the Government has the will to protect the basics of democracy and journalist's sources and so on, as it states in its flaky talk, it can take on board the simple solution we have put forward. The idea that we are running out of time is totally unacceptable. I do not believe it is true. If a Government wants to get legislation through the Oireachtas it will get it through in its own way as it has the majority.

Finally, I cannot sit down without commenting on the television programmes on the homeless crisis. What is extraordinary that in spite of all of the criticism of the previous Fianna Fáil-Green Party Government, more money was spent on homelessness in 2008 that this Government has spent in five years. That is a shocking indictment of the Government's lack of compassion and humanity for the more than 800 families and 1,500 children who find themselves homeless as we speak, but the most recent revelation of 100 complaints to the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive about the standard of accommodation - one would not let pigs live in some of the environments that the poor homeless people are living in. It is past time that going into an election, the Government would act on this issue.