Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are two matters I wish to raise with the Deputy Leader. There is an award from the National Adult Literacy Agency relating to plain English. Plain English is a concept that has operated internationally.Departments and organisations of a similar vein are encouraged to use plain English in their documents and pamphlets so that more people can understand and get the context of what is being proposed or described. English can often be written in a convoluted manner and while some people are able to digest it, others cannot. To ensure Government and other documentation is accessible to as many people as is possible, plain English is desirable. In the good old days when there was a decent President in the United States, former President Obama introduced a plain writing Act which has been of enormous benefit to people with literacy challenges in the United States. The awards are being promoted. I encourage people who come across documents that are complex to ask that they be rewritten in plain English.

The second issue is one I have raised previously with the Leader, namely, gazumping. As the economy improves and house prices spiral, once again buyers who have paid a booking deposit and sale agreed a property are having deposits returned to them a few weeks later and the properties are being put back on the market at increased prices. In most other countries, this is illegal. It should be illegal here too. I suggest that gazumping should be outlawed as part of the suite of measures to deal with the housing crisis affecting so many families.