asked the Minister for Finance if he will take steps to ensure that the temperature in all parts of Leinster House will be consistent.

Every effort is made to ensure that even temperatures are maintained in all parts of Leinster House. If the Deputy will indicate any specific area of complaint, it will be investigated.

Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree it would be hard to keep an even temperature in this House? Can it be done here?

We can keep an even temperature all over the House but the tastes of the occupants are not consistent.

Does the Parliamentary Secretary recall that I raised this matter when he was introducing the Estimate and that he said he would try to do something about it?

Every effort is being made to have a consistent temperature all over the House. The new part of the House is air-conditioned. The older part can be manually governed by the radiators. We can have an even temperature in the new part of the House; warm air is the factor there. But if we have a consistency of temperature, then there will be complaints from various occupants of the House that the place is either too hot or too cold.

It is usually too hot up there.

And usually down here, but the Ceann Comhairle can control that. We have tried it out at various temperatures and we get complaints from certain sections of the House, especially those people who are confined to offices. If you are in the corridors walking around, you are heating yourself by internal combustion, but if you are in an office you want an even temperature, usually high. We cannot cater for all tastes of temperature.

It is energy-sapping.

I understand this.