I understand that people are very angry after enduring eight years of austerity imposed to get the country back in recovery. First, I join in condemning the recent protest, if that is the correct word, against the visit of President Higgins to Coláiste Eoin in Finglas. It is fair and reasonable to attack ideas in a democracy but it is totally unacceptable to make a personal and vindictive attack. We have seen this as well with the attack on Deputy Mulherin's office which must be condemned, and also with the outrageous treatment of the Tánaiste some weeks ago in Jobstown. We can also point to the almost forgotten incident some months ago when the office of the Minister of State, Deputy Ó Riordáin, was daubed with vile graffiti.

There is a certain level of nastiness creeping into politics which is totally unacceptable. It has to be denounced unambiguously by all democrats. I have heard the use of clever words and phraseology to qualify this abuse in the other House. There has been a silence among some parties in this House too with regard to condemning this awfulness. It is said that all it takes for evil to prevail is for good people to stay quiet. It could not be more apt or timely to remind people of that. As democrats we must remind people to unambiguously denounce every instance of this kind of thuggery when we find it.

I support the comments made on the attacks of the Office of the President. It must be remembered it was not an attack on the person of Michael D. Higgins but an attack on the institution of the presidency. That is something that should give pause for thought to the members of the public who have increasingly become disillusioned with party politics. Perhaps we have a responsibility collectively in that regard. At the same time, however, it is incumbent on us as democrats in the Chambers of the national Parliament that we take each and every opportunity to condemn outright any attempt to undermine the democratic nature of our society. That is essentially what that attack was about. Whether those people thought about it or believed it, that is fundamentally what it was about.

I also support the call by Senator Craughwell for a debate on the Defence Forces. They have always been the Cinderella section of government, despite the fact the majority of the people supports their peacekeeping efforts and the need to have them in all their various facets.

I support Senator Paul Coghlan's call for a debate on the whole housing issue. The Construction Industry Federation has been quoted in the media recently as stating new housebuilding effectively stopped over the last several months because of the uncertainty surrounding the whole issue of mortgage requirements. I do not think that is acceptable. Maybe because it is a lobby organisation, it is spinning a certain story. Essentially, however, if there is a real problem with housebuilding, particularly in the greater Dublin area, then there is a need for the Government and local councils to intervene legislatively, or otherwise, to ensure builders build those houses because the demand is plainly there. I welcome the initiative by Senator Coghlan in this regard and hope the Leader will respond positively to it.