Order of Business - 29th June 2005

Mr. Norris: I would like to refer to No. 1, a
motion on the Treaty of Amsterdam and the
exchange of information. The Acting Leader said
he wants to take the matter without debate. It
was tabled, but each day a list of items are tabled
on the back of the Order Paper. Most of these
items go through on the nod. I would like to enter
a caveat here and I would like the Acting Leader
to refer the matter to the appropriate Minister. I
am concerned about any exchange of information
deriving from the use of torture. This matter has
been actively discussed in Britain and some authorities
appear to have very little difficulty with
the referral of prisoners to third countries so that
they can be tortured. It amounts to outsourcing
torture. I would be very concerned about
allowing such a situation to go through on the
nod, therefore, I ask the Acting Leader to raise
my concerns with the appropriate Minister.
I support Senator Brian Hayes in seeking a
debate or holding a protest against what has been
happening in Zimbabwe over many years. Over
the years, I have raised the matter on the
Adjournment. Independent Senators have a
motion down on Zimbabwe. There is an atrocious
situation where a dictator, after a completely
fraudulent election, is now terrorising his own
people. He is creating mass famine. "Operation
clear out the rubbish" is how he describes his own
citizens. This man is a beast who needs to be confronted.
I hope the South African authorities will
do something about the issue. I find it very difficult
to be optimistic about a man like Thabo
Mbeki, who said he thinks AIDS can be cured by
eating spinach. His views on Zimbabwe are just
as out of touch with reality.
I would like to raise the issue of risk equalisation.
It was felt there should be some discussion
on this matter. It appears from what has been said
that the deferral of risk equalisation is part of the
preparation for the possible privatisation of the
VHI. We are entitled to a say in this matter
because it will be a disaster, just as the privatisation
of Telecom Eireann has been a disaster.
Mr. Norris: In the past couple of weeks the
directors of Eircom, including Tony O’Reilly,
took enormous sums of money for running the
worst telecom service in Europe. There is no
investment in it. I am waiting for six months to
get my telephone fixed. I am just one of many
people in this situation. There is growing dissatisfaction
with the service and it is appalling that fat
cats can bleed a company, put no investment into
it and give a lousy service, which is one of the
worst in Europe. The same applies to Bord Gais.
No one will take any responsibility. They outsource
services.
Mr. Norris: We should have a debate not just
on this issue but on the whole ideology of privatisation.