Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I raise an issue that I raised in this House before and that is the dangers of cycling on our roads. So far this year five cyclists have died on our roads, including the much loved principal of St. Louis Senior Primary School, Mr. Pádraic Carney. Last week he died on his way to work at the age of 53. Earlier this month the international consultancy firm, Copenhagenize, removed Dublin from its index on the world's 20 most friendly cities. Cycling is increasingly popular in this city. The explosion of community bike schemes, such as Dublin Bikes and BleeperBikes, have added to that. Cycling is healthy, inexpensive and environmentally friendly. We, in Fianna Fáil, believe that this type of sustainable transport needs to be supported properly, which ultimately means more investment. The UN recommends that 20% of a national transport budget should be allocated to cycling and walking yet this Government spends just 2% of its overall transport spending on them. We need to ensure that the capital's roads are safe for anyone who wishes to cycle and make cycling deaths a thing of the past.

I wish to refer to the social media app called Snapchat. The app allows people to send messages or pictures to each other that disappear after a certain period. Snapchat has added a new modification called Snap Map. I ask parents to be vigilant with their teenagers and children who use Snapchat and, more particularly, Snap Map. Essentially, Snap Map allows users to locate a person on a map in real time. Snap Map will broadcast one's exact location to anyone on one's list of friends each time one opens the app. In reality, we know that many users of Snapchat, especially children, will have people on their list of friends who they do not know or have never met in reality. I am concerned that this new technology may put children in a very vulnerable situation where they inadvertently broadcast their location. The function clearly has the potential to put children at risk. I encourage parents to urge their children to use the opt-out option for Snap Map so that their children's welfare is safeguarded and protected.