Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade on his strong statement to the US Embassy in Dublin regarding the proposed move of the US Embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. President Trump made what amounts to a classic feckless and irresponsible statement and the Tánaiste is to be congratulated on the swiftness of his response to the suggested recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. I understand that the Tánaiste is extremely busy at the moment but perhaps he might to come the House at the earliest opportunity in the new year to discuss Ireland's position regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and how we can be of support to him in his ongoing efforts.

As Christmas approaches, Dublin city centre gets very busy and traffic becomes a major issue. I wish to raise the issue of rickshaws. We are reaching a stage where we must consider banning these vehicles. They are causing untold potential danger to pedestrians, motorists, shoppers and revellers in Dublin city centre. They are completely unregulated. A report in the Irish Independentthis time last year suggested that there was a level of drug dealing and drug transportation involving rickshaws. I respectfully ask the Leader to facilitate a debate with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport as to how we can either regulate rickshaws or ban them outright because it is reaching a stage where we are only waiting for a serious accident to take place in Dublin city centre. I am quite sure that the situation is similar in other cities throughout the country. I ask that the Minister come to the House to deal with this issue, once and for all.