Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)

It will be up to the other House to decide in relation to that. There will obviously be a thorough debate over the course of two hours on that. From experience at Cabinet and knowing other Ministers who have gone through this, it is a personal strain on them but it is part of the democratic process as well and we respect that.

Senators Craughwell and Joe Conway raised the issue of defence spending and the €1.49 billion being spent on defence. They called for a debate with the Minister, Deputy Harris. I will request that debate. Senator Craughwell also raised the issue of the motion last week in relation to head and neck cancers and his personal experience with his daughter Rebecca. I wish her well in continuously living with the issues that have occurred with her.

Senator Andrews raised the Pearse House redevelopment. I am not sure if the Senator got an opportunity to put down a Commencement debate on this matter for a more direct response. Obviously, that would be an issue for Dublin City Council and the Department of housing. The Senator mentioned the preservation order and the lack of additionality. If there are issues, as the Senator said, in relation to mould and so on then in my view that would certainly be a strong enough case for redevelopment. I urge the Senator to take this up directly with the Department via a Commencement debate.

Senator Cosgrove raised the case of a young girl with Down's syndrome, a very special girl, who died from sepsis. I listened to the interview with her mother, Claire Colum, yesterday on "Today with Claire Byrne". It was very moving and she is a very brave person in raising the issue and making other parents aware of sepsis. A younger child, and in this case a child with Down's syndrome, may not be able to explain what is going on or how they are feeling as easily as other children would. It is a very worthy issue. Ms Colum is looking for additional training for staff and is advocating for that.

Senators Paul Daly and Evanne Ní Chuilinn spoke on Ann Woodlock and her gold medal. I wish her well on that. She certainly sounds like a wonderful lady. Senator Daly has also called for a debate with the Minister for sport on the use of drugs and the enhanced games. He mentioned the much-reported case of Shane Ryan. I am not here to defend that case. All athletes who from a young age pursue a sport, be it track and field, swimming or whatever, put their bodies through a huge amount of physical work, with early starts, diet, weight training and everything else. They should be rewarded. In this case, decisions may have been made for financial reasons and that is a matter for that person. I certainly hope that, whatever happens, his health is not impacted going forward.

Senator Ní Chuilinn also raised the motion of confidence, and she told us the good news about the Loreto Centre, with the allocation of €65,000 in funding. I know the Senator will continue her advocacy in respect of the centre because it sounds like it is not a foregone conclusion that it will continue. That advocacy is needed to ensure the valuable work the centre does will continue.

Senator Boyhan raised the issue of the hunger strike by those who were in residential care. The Senator has called on all of us to continue to highlight that, which I am sure we will. He called for the necessary issues in relation to medical cards or pension recognition payments to be addressed. I will certainly continue to do that. Senator O'Reilly also raised the issue recently.

Senator Brady raised the price war in supermarkets in relation to milk. We know how hard farmers have to work and particularly the liquid milk producers throughout the winter. It is a high-cost business. Using milk as a sort of a loss leader has a direct impact on the suppliers and it devalues the very valuable product our farmers work so hard at. I certainly hope they can come to sense on that matter. I know the Senator will continue to pursue that and keep an eye on those supermarkets in the coming weeks.

Senator O'Donovan raised the motion of confidence and called for the Minister to come to the House regarding infrastructure and Uisce Éireann. A lot of work is being done by Uisce Éireann but certainly there are a lot of plans needed as well as a lot of reinvestment. There is a lot of investment in water and wastewater, which is absolutely vital for house construction and compliance with EPA guidelines. I will certainly request a debate on that with the Minister for housing.

Senator Collins raised the issue of the National Ambulance Service and talked of best practice. The Senator spoke about the charity called CRITICAL and the work it does in bringing in doctors and training volunteers. I will certainly raise that with the Minister for Health. There has been investment in the ambulance service over the years but there are low response times in certain parts of the country. Unfortunately we will always hear of cases where somebody has had to wait an inordinately long period of time. I will request a debate on the National Ambulance Service.

Senator Ahearn raised the issue of the motion of confidence, as did Senator Scahill. Senator Scahill also raised the matter of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy, SUDEP. It is worth raising notice on that and providing coverage on it. The Senator said there is a need for a national strategy. Perhaps the Senator will table the matter for a Commencement debate. It is important that we, and particularly those who suffer from epilepsy and have survived serious issues, continue to advocate, as they do, and raise awareness in relation to the particulars of epilepsy.

Senator Sarah O'Reilly raised the issue of the Private Member's motion on defective concrete blocks brought forward by Deputy Charles Ward in the Dáil today. There is a debate going on and I am not sure what the outcome of that will be. I am not sure of the exact wording of that. Changes were made to that scheme over the years to make it more applicable to the rising costs. There was an increase of 10% last October to the values in the scheme and the cap was increased to €462,000. The ancillary grants and the square footage grant were increased as well. Certainly it is an issue that continues to impact on people's lives. The Senator mentioned the fact that, as well as a person's house crumbling, there may be storms raging outside. There is a real life issue and I certainly hope there is continued drawdown of the grants that have been made available and the financial resources that have been put into this. The work is ongoing across Donegal and other areas.

Senator Joe Conway expressed concern over the 9% VAT rate proposals. The Minister, Deputy Burke, was here yesterday. I am not sure if the Senator got an opportunity to raise this with him directly. A decision was made within the Government on this. There are many small retailers and small businesses that are being put to the pin of their collar in relation to rising costs. We all support that staff should be paid the minimum wage. The report suggested, or recommended, an increase in the minimum wage this year. There are also increased insurance, energy and food costs that all impact on small businesses' ability to keep their doors open and to assist in the bottom line.

The winter fuel payment has been continued and it has been enhanced this year to include a new cohort. There is an increase in the pension, along with the VAT reduction for gas and electricity being maintained for the next five years, which is important for older citizens.

Senator Duffy raised the issue of wind turbine development and called for wind farm guidelines. This has been requested for a long number of years and it has not been forthcoming. I advise the Senator to put it down for a Commencement debate with the Department of the environment. It has been going on for ten years and the issue at stake is the need for a national strategy.

Senator McCarthy raised the Defamation (Amendment) Bill. This is ongoing in the House. The next substantial piece of business will be on the Bill. It might be in order to raise the matters to which he referred directly with the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan. He has been very generous with his time and has been here on all occasions when the Bill has been discussed.We have three hours scheduled for that important Bill today.