All of us would like to be associated with the remarks Senator James Heffernan and to wish Mr. John Thomas McNamara a speedy recovery.

Following up on the comments of Senator Quinn on the free travel scheme, there is widespread abuse of the system. It is because of a lack of security in the documentation. It is far too easy to forge documentation. There is no photographic identification on the travel pass and no way of proving the person travelling is the person who owns the travel pass. It throws up the issue of social welfare fraud and I asked the Leader for a debate on social welfare fraud and, particularly, social welfare tourism. Recently, three people entered the country on a Ryanair flight to Dublin Airport and visited three post offices in three counties. They left the country with €7,000 and made arrangements for transport to take them to the same locations in a month's time. I am told this is quite common and we need a debate with the Minister for Social Protection. We need to see what processes and procedures are in place to stamp this out. Whatever identification system we have is not working. We need to use fingerprinting to identify people and ensure that the name and photograph of people claiming benefits at the post office comes up on a screen. If there is duplication, which has happened on more than one occasion, it should be identified immediately. This is a major issue and, at a time when everyone is feeling the pinch and the State needs all its resources to fund badly needed services, we need to stamp out this practice.

Will the Leader organise this debate as soon as possible after the Easter recess?

I join my colleagues in saluting Jimmy Walsh. I regret his retirement as he had an acute political intelligence and humane values. He stuck with this House when every other newspaper skedaddled out of it. We will miss him and we need to ensure that The Irish Times, which calls itself the paper of record, continues to report on this House.

I welcome Senator Heffernan most heartily to these benches. He is a splendid man. He is the only one from the Government side, apart from the Taoiseach's Independent nominees, who has shown the moral courage to cross the House to vote in favour of the ordinary people. If some of the others had his guts and courage, this House would have been saved, because it would have been shown to be on the side of the people. I confidently predict that while Fine Gael may well get a belt of the ballot paper at the next election, the Labour Party will be wiped out. It will not be wiped out because of its socialism but because of its lack of socialism.

Who is running this so-called democratic Europe? It is the banks and the ratings agencies. Where are the democratic elements that will stand up and tell the ECB to bugger off with itself? Where are the people who will stand in solidarity with the brave, decent people of Cyprus who have stood up to it? What is happening is appalling. It is appalling to see that the bully boys of the ECB are at it again. They did it to the unfortunate Brian Lenihan. He was wrong and I felt sorry for him. Now Deputy Noonan is our Minister for Finance and I expect we will have Deputy Brian Hayes, the Minister of State, in the House too. Like Brian Lenihan, Deputy Noonan is a good, decent person with similar skills of advocacy, but he is wrong also. Austerity does not work, will not work and cannot work. Even economists are coming around to this view. Why do we continue to punish our people in the interest of institutions and banks? This is unspeakable. Nobody, from the highest levels of the establishment down to the lowest, meanest Minister of State has shown solidarity and identified with the people of Ireland.

I would like to see some of these people visit soup kitchens. In a previous Seanad, somebody who held the position of Leader - not with the dignity, grace and political courage of Senator Cummins - made a fool of this House by proroguing it in order that Members could go off and play golf. I suggest to the Leader that after Easter, we should suspend the Seanad for one day to allow us, as representatives of the people, visit the soup kitchens in Athlone, Tuam, Galway and anywhere else they spring up. If there is an eviction that day, we should go on a fleet of buses and stand in solidarity for once with the people of Ireland.

I support the congratulations and good wishes to Jimmy Walsh. He has been a great servant of this House and I look forward to joining others next week in sending him on his way. We will certainly miss him.

I support Senator Mullins on what he has said here about potential welfare fraud. What he has outlined is very serious and I strongly encourage anyone associated with or who has knowledge of that fraud to report it, because these people are defrauding the entire country. There must be some people aware of what is going on, particularly if transport is being organised for it. I am reliably informed that a secure ID system is being rolled out across the country to resolve this issue, but it would be worthwhile to clarify the situation here with the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton.

My main reason for contributing today is to support those who have raised the issue of the debt situation that continues to haunt countries. Cyprus is now in difficulty and I wish it well. It held the Presidency of Europe immediately before Ireland and did a great job. I hope an agreement can be found between the ECB, the IMF and Cyprus so that Cypriots can live with some semblance of dignity and get on with their lives. Everyone needs to know this is possible.

When we look at the personal debt problems haunting at least half of our population, we know action is needed on the ground. We have the theory. We have the Personal Insolvency Bill and the Minister, Deputy Noonan, is giving the banks targets. However, I am concerned there is no action on the ground on debt resolution. I am aware MABS is carrying out training currently so that it can put some of the strategies and new approaches in place. However, it is so incredibly understaffed that it cannot possibly meet the needs of the droves of people who, now the banks are putting greater pressure on them need someone to whom they can turn. We heard Senator Coghlan speak about receivers working out of hours on this. We must ensure there are staff and appropriately trained counsellors ready to give them assistance.

I welcome the fact the Minister has given the banks targets to achieve. However, I am concerned about what they are offering to do. I am concerned that the record of people who have paid their debts and mortgages for 20 years will not necessarily be taken into account. The banks are only looking at the capacity of these people to pay now and into the future. People can fall on hard times if they lose their jobs, but if they have had a good record for 20 years, they should not be wiped off the screen in a matter of months. The banks must show some heart and we must stand with the people until this debt issue is resolved.

Ba mhaith liom mo thacaíocht a thabhairt do na gártha molta go Jimmy Walsh agus ba mhaith liom chuile ádh a ghuí air agus míle buíochas a ghabháil leis as an seirbhís iontach a thugann sé agus ar thug sé le blianta fada anuas.

I find it quite ironic that Government Senators are standing up today and asking for a crackdown on social welfare fraud, when the Minister for Social Protection was in here and told us she was doing a great job cracking down on it.

She is doing a great job.

It is certainly time that anybody who is defrauding the system is brought to task. The Government Senators need to bring the Minister to task and ask why individual cases like those mentioned are not being tackled. If any of the Senators have information on those cases, they should be providing that information.

They are being tackled.

Everybody relies on information.

Please allow the Senator to continue, without interruption.