I echo the concerns raised by colleagues about the treatment of journalists in Egypt. I welcome the release of Dr. Meriam Ibrahim by a Sudanese court. The EU mission in Sudan appears to have done good work. Her husband being an American citizen, it falls to the American authorities to ensure she and her child are safe when she leaves the country. That does not take away from the continuing questions about respect for freedom of religious and philosophical beliefs in many parts of our world. We must continue to be vigilant about this.

I commend an article by the Rev. Vincent Twomey who was mentioned in this Chamber last week when he wrote about the proposed inquiry into the mother and baby homes. It was a very learned article in The Irish Times last week in which he made two significant points. He asked why the inquiry would not be extended to include the treatment of people in county homes in general. He asked the pertinent question if it was because they were not run by religious organisations that they did not appear to command the same level of interest. Many children, who were the second or subsequent child of mothers who were there were left in those county homes. He also asked whether it would be good to have an independent voice involved in this report to provide a more neutral and calm assessment of the story. The Associated Press has accepted and acknowledged its misrepresentation of this story. It wrote: "The Associated Press was among the media organizations ... repeating incorrect Irish news reports-----

Is the Senator looking for a debate?

----- that suggested the babies who died had never been baptised and that Catholic Church teaching guided priests not to baptise the babies of unwed mothers or give to them Christian burials." It is good to see the media acknowledging its faults and mistakes. I hope that will be replicated by Irish media where they got it wrong.

Their souls are the most important thing.

I echo Senator Kelly’s welcome for the announcement in respect of Grid West-----

The Senator is way over time.

There has to be equality of orality.

-----that consideration is being given to putting cables underground, but we need to be very cautious and to be sure we are not being led into a trap-----

The Senator is ranting on.

-----as Senator Kelly rightly suggests.