O'Rourke seeks date for referendum

FIANNA FÁIL TD Mary O’Rourke has called on the Government to set a date for a referendum on children’s rights, but Taoiseach Brian Cowen refused to commit to a date when pressed by the Opposition in the Dáil yesterday.

Ms O’Rourke, who chaired the cross-party committee that produced the report proposing a referendum that could result in a new article 42 in the Constitution, said she wanted the referendum to take place this year.

“We honoured the task we were given, now I hope that Government is going to honour the task it told the electorate it was going to do,” she said.

A spokeswoman for Minister for Children Barry Andrews said he presented the report to Government in March.

“All Government departments and offices, including that of the Attorney General, were asked to examine as a matter of priority the proposed wording and report back to Government with a view to further consideration by Government. That process in ongoing,” she said.

The Government yesterday committed itself to publishing 14 new Bills during the Dáil summer session, but Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore asked why promised legislation dealing with the Poolbeg incinerator during the last session had disappeared from the list.

Mr Gilmore said the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, which Minister for the Environment John Gormley had promised would extend the scope of the landfill levy to include incineration, seemed to have disappeared.

“The Minister was relying on this Bill to do something about the incinerator in Ringsend. I am not quite clear what he was planning to do about the incinerator in Ringsend, but he said he would do something about it.

“Does that mean the Minister is not going to do whatever he intended to do about the incinerator in Ringsend because the Bill is gone? Will the Taoiseach tell us what has happened to the Bill?”

Mr Cowen said the Minister had examined a number of approaches to the application of waste facility levies and considered it appropriate to consult key stakeholders having regard to changed circumstances in the waste management market and in the economy.

Among the Bills on the list for this session is the Wildlife (Amendment) Bill to ban stag hunting which was published yesterday.

Also on the list from the Department of the Environment is the Local Government (Dublin Mayor and Regional Authority) Bill, which will provide for the election of a mayor for the Dublin region and for the powers of the mayor and regional authority.

Another piece of legislation is the Criminal Justice (Defence of the Dwelling) Bill, which will amend existing legislation to give greater rights to people taking action to defend the family home.

The Department of Justice is also planning an amendment to the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Bill and a Mental Capacity Bill to reform the relationship between the law and vulnerable adults.

The Education (Patronage) Bill will amend a number of Acts to allow Vocational Education Committees to act as patrons of primary schools. It will also underpin the independent status of a primary school board of management established by the VEC.

A Prescription Charges Bill will allow a charge of 50 cent to be imposed on each item prescribed under the medical card scheme, subject to a monthly cap of €10, while a Nurses and Midwives Bill will modernise the regulatory framework in the area.

Government Chief Whip John Curran said that the Bills being listed for publication reflected the significant policy development which was going on across a range of Government departments.

“Coupled with the legislation currently passing through the Oireachtas, I believe that these pieces of legislation will continue the Government’s work to achieve a stronger society and aid a recovering economy,” he said.