Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is about ensuring that we have a house building programme and that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. I am referring to the quality and type of build and how we get the mix right in large estates. It is also about ensuring that there is a mix of housing with supports. The Government is committed in Rebuilding Ireland to ensuring that the supply of housing is increased. As I say here regularly, there must be multi-annual funding for Rebuilding Ireland. We must now repair the dysfunctional housing market and the system to ensure that local authorities bring completed housing stock to fruition quickly. This involves the issues of planning, vacant land, disused buildings and vacant sites. Progress is being made, although I accept it is a bit slow.

To be clear and for the benefit of Members of the House, the item that I referred to at the beginning and to which Senator Leyden alluded is the motion regarding the exchange of views with Mr. Guy Verhofstadt in two more joint committees. That is what I was referring to at the beginning of the Order of Business.

Senators Ardagh and Daly referred to the attack on the young Spanish student. Like Senator Ardagh, my thoughts are with the victim and her family. I hope that we will not see a repeat of this random act of thuggery and violence. However, it is important that we understand the importance of community policing but also that people have a role to play in protecting each other, particularly during the summer time when many foreign students come to our cities and into our homes. Senator Boyhan raised the need to have a debate on local government. I would be happy to have the Minister of State, Deputy Phelan, come to the House with the Ministers, Deputies English and Eoghan Murphy, to discuss local authorities. We need meaningful debate on local authorities, their members' roles and the growth of some of the local electoral areas, in terms of municipal districts and so on. My view is that last time, the local government boundary commission did a disservice to local communities by including huge areas in municipal districts. I am happy to have that discussion. He also referred to direct provision. I am happy to hold that debate in the autumn. As I said yesterday, the Government is committed to implement the McMahon report.

Senator Conway-Walsh raised the important issue of agriculture, the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, and rare breeds. I would be happy for the Minister, Deputy Creed, to come to the House to discuss that in the autumn.

Senator Ó Ríordáin raised the issue of the accident and emergency unit of Beaumont Hospital. I would be happy for the Minister to come the House.

Today, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, and Ministers of State, Deputies D'Arcy and O'Donovan, are launching the mid-year expenditure report along with the spending review of 2016-2017. As Senator Colm Burke has stated here many times in the context of our hospitals, that, with the exception of the new children's hospital, we have not built a new hospital in a generation. Senator Burke has long-championed this and I fully agree with him.

Senator Byrne eloquently referred to financial services in Limerick and the importance of locating jobs outside Dublin. She referred to the attractiveness of Limerick. She, along with Senator Devine, if I am correct, referred to the lack of women being promoted in third level institutions. She is correct about that. We need to incentivise -----