Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the 11 Members for their contributions to the Order of Business. I dtús báire, ar mo shon féin agus ar son an Rialtas, bronnaim mo chomhbhrón le muintir Dhún na nGall agus go mórmhór leis na clanna Roarty, Harley, Harkin and Scott on a very tragic day for their families in Donegal. We send them our sympathies and our deepest thoughts and regards. The tragedy is unspeakable. I thank the community in Donegal for their support and for rallying around the families.

I welcome to the Public Gallery a very good friend of all of us here in the Oireachtas, Mr. Mike Carroll, who is from New York. He is very welcome and I thank him for being here.

The issue of the nurses' strike was raised by Senators Horkan and Colm Burke. I reiterate the points that I made yesterday. All of us hold all of our nurses in high regard. We value their role, professionalism and commitment that they bring every day in pressurised areas of work, for which we thank them.

A solution and a resolution are needed and the Government is determined to work with the INMO to ensure there is a resolution. Yesterday Senator Devine spoke about 1999 and the nine days of that strike and none of us wants to see a repeat of that. We have a public sector pay deal, however, of which there can be only one. Notwithstanding the legitimacy of the concerns and issues that need to be resolved, the Government cannot break a public sector pay deal because it would have a knock-on effect on other sectors and workers. Equally, if the Government broke the deal, some of the Senators sitting opposite me would express a very different view. The cost of the nurses' demands is projected as €300 million. Senator Colm Burke made a good point that the Government established the Public Service Pay Commission and it made €20 million worth of recommendations for the nursing sector, which will be implemented because the Government has accepted them in full. Rather than giving an adversarial reply, we all agree that there needs to be a resolution. Senators Horkan and Colm Burke made strong points about perhaps finding a roadmap to consider various postgraduate qualifications and the recognition of different specialisations.

The Government has recruited more nurses. There was an increase of 800 last year and 3,000 in the past number of years, which is a significant amount of recruitment. Nobody wants to be in a position where there is a protracted strike. I hope the machinery of the State, such as the Labour Court and the Workplace Relations Commission, will become part of that process to save the country from more cancellations of appointments and inpatient procedures.

Senators Horkan, Boyhan and Feighan raised the issue of Brexit. I join them in commending and paying tribute to our colleague, Senator Richmond, Chairman of the Seanad Special Committee on the Withdrawal of the UK from the EU, which met last week. I do not mean to be patronising but the performance of Senator Richmond, in his role on the Seanad Brexit committee and in media appearances outside Ireland, conveys a positive message and it augurs well for the Chamber. I thank him for that and for his wider work.

As we know, Brexit is not our fault but it is in an issue with which we must contend, by virtue of the vote. As Senators will know, the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister, Mrs. May, spoke to each other yesterday. It is important that the lines of communication are kept open and the dialogue among Ministers and British Cabinet Secretaries continues. I welcome that all the European leaders and the people in key positions have stood with Ireland and continue to do so. Another pivotal day will be 13 February, but our position has not changed and I do not intend to return to the same points that I have already made and that all of us stand by. I offer the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, our support and wish them well.

On Senator Boyhan's question, there will be statements on agriculture the week after next. The Taoiseach was well received at the Irish Farmers Association, IFA, dinner and annual general meeting on Tuesday night. I note that he ate beef, in case some people heckle me in that regard. Joe Healy, the president of the IFA, is a member of the Brexit stakeholders' forum and attends the meetings. He is an important player and if one reads his speech or those of the Taoiseach or the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, at the conference, one will see that on this matter, the Government is determined to work in partnership with the farming organisations. Agrifood exports are critical to our country and account for 8% and 11% of our national income and exports, respectively. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the European Commissioner, Phil Hogan, are working on the issue of CAP, on which there will be a debate, I believe, the week after next.

Senators Boyhan and Humphreys spoke on housing. The Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government will return to the Chamber next Tuesday to finish the debate on the subject. I will accept Senator Warfield's amendment to the Order of Business to accommodate his Bill, and we will have the debate on housing at another time.

On the points made by Senator Horkan, it is my intention as Leader to schedule debates on Brexit contingencies and sectoral or departmental issues over the coming weeks, which will form part of our response.

On the community employment scheme, raised by Senator Conway-Walsh, I am not sure why she said people on this side of the House do not value community employment schemes. I was chairman of my GAA club for six years and I was involved in my community association. I fully understand, as do all my colleagues on this side of the House, the intrinsic value that these schemes bring to our communities. I praise those who work on community employment schemes and their supervisors around the country. I recognise that without community employment schemes, voluntary and sporting organisations in the community could not function, and that they also help people in going back to work. As Senators will be aware, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, is chairing a forum established to consider the issue. The plan to concede pensions to the scheme has the potential to cost the sector €188 million. Nevertheless, I will be happy if the Minister appears before the House in the coming weeks.

Senator Humphreys asked for a debate on the television licence fee and broadcasting, and we hope to arrange that.

Senator Feighan raised the issue of weather, which is important. In the north-east of the USA, where Mr. Carroll comes from, temperatures are plummeting due to a polar vortex. Senator Lawless's city is in the middle of an icy cold spell . In this country, it is important that the local authorities work with the national directorate for fire and emergency management to ensure our roads are gritted and our paths are clear. We must also check in on our elderly neighbours, relatives and friends. When we see weather warnings, we often think, "Here we go again", but Met Éireann issues them for a reason and it has put a yellow warning in place until Saturday. I ask Senators to promulgate those weather warnings on their social media or websites.

Senators Wilson and Paul Daly referred to the invitation to the Taoiseach, and Senator Boyhan also raised the matter before Christmas. I had previously issued an invitation to the Taoiseach to come to the House, and we are working on finding a date on which we can accommodate him. I will inform Senators of the date when it is decided. Brexit is an important issue and it is also important that the Taoiseach appears before the House, not because he is the Minister of Defence - as Deputy Kehoe is the Minister of State with responsibility for defence - but because it is good that the Taoiseach himself speaks to us. I hope that will happen in the coming weeks.

Senator Reilly raised the matter of electric car charge points. I am not sure with whom I should take that matter up but it might be a matter for the Superintendent of the Houses. The Senator made a good point that if we, as Members of the Oireachtas, ask the Government to make changes, we should also make changes.