Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I apologise if I am wrong and would always do so because I am not infallible, but there is plenty of time scheduled for next week and it is not an emergency so I second Senator Leyden's proposal on the adjournment.

I was at a presentation this morning in the Sandyford business district with more than 200 people, including the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Madigan, and the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor, about the future of work, how we work, smart working, remote working and various other issues. Much of the discussion centred around quality of life, not having to spend time commuting and being able to work from home or from a hatch lab as they have in Wexford. That is a service office near to one's home where he or she can work for their employer or a company.

All of this is contingent on having decent broadband in the areas people live. Many of us are lucky enough to live in areas that have good broadband but, equally, many Senators have spoken in this Chamber and I have spoken at regional assemblies as a councillor about how, geographically, half of the country does not have good broadband and people are driving miles to get their email by parking in the car parks or sitting in the lobbies of hotels to get free Wi-Fi, downloading emails, trying to run businesses so I call on the Leader to bring the new Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, Deputy Bruton, to the House to discuss how broadband services will be rolled out.

I regard broadband as being like electricity or running water. It is essential in the 21st century and it would do a lot for the Minister's other portfolio of climate action because people would not be driving long distances to work in offices and incurring massive overheads for those companies when they would be much happier to get up and work at home. Much research has been done to show that many people are more productive at home because they feel that because they are at home they need to prove their output. It is not just about being present as outputs have to be measured. They can do their work efficiently but, at the same time, bring their children to school and collect them and so on. I ask the Leader to schedule the Minister to come in urgently and we can discuss the benefits we would have in terms of climate change by having remote working and allowing people to have a better quality of life.