I wish to express concern about correspondence I received earlier this week from the ambassador with the mission of the state of Palestine in Dublin, outlining his serious concerns around the ongoing and continuous approval of construction of settlements by the Israeli Government in the occupied Palestinian state. The construction of 566 new settlement units in occupied east Jerusalem must be condemned. These settlements are illegal and a violation of international law. It is imperative that the Government expresses its condemnation of these settlements and makes it known to the Israeli Government that it will lobby its fellow members of the European Union to bring whatever pressure is necessary to force Israel to abide by Security Council Resolution 2334, which condemns the expansion of settlements and the confiscation of Palestinian land. We know, unfortunately, from previous attempts to halt the expansion of settlements that mere condemnation and resolutions will not deter Israel from its policy of taking over Palestinian land. The treatment of Palestinian people by the Israeli Government is comparable to the actions of the apartheid regime in South Africa and, as such, must be condemned. There must also be the imposition of some penalties if the Israelis insist on ignoring their obligations under international law. I ask the Leader to bring the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan, before the House to outline the measures the Government will take to ensure Israel will abide by Security Council Resolution 2334.

Last Monday morning at first light, machinery moved in to the Harold's Cross greyhound track. They removed the traps, took furniture out from the restaurant and put security on the gates. The 12 staff who work there were locked out. These are the actions of the Irish Greyhound Board, which says it wants to save the greyhound industry. The board held a meeting at the Harold's Cross stadium on the same day they closed it down. The problem within the greyhound industry stems back to a €20 million debt incurred when the new track was built in Limerick. The patrons, dog owners, breeders and trainers who use the Harold's Cross stadium are being made to suffer. There has been an attempt to isolate the patrons and the supporters of the Harold's Cross stadium by saying they are a contrarian group.

This week the Irish Greyhound Owners and Breeders Federation had a meeting in the Horse & Jockey Hotel outside Thurles at which Harold's Cross track got the support of federations across the country from Tipperary to Waterford, Kerry, Cork, the north west, the midlands and Northern Ireland. A protest will be held next Saturday night at Shelbourne Park. No dogs that have run in the Harold's Cross Greyhound Stadium will run in Shelbourne Park. Blocking out staff from work, pulling up traps, dismantling furniture and putting padlocks on gates is no way to deal with a problem. The problem was exacerbated by a statement made by the interim chief executive officer. He stated:

We are committed to making Shelbourne Park perform excellently for all Trainers, Owners, Patrons and Staff, especially for those for whom Harold's Cross was their greyhound home. This will be challenging for all of us but there is a need for all stakeholders to leave aside disagreement and work together through a process of change and opportunity from which improved performance can be extracted.

This is the same person who gave the go-ahead to put the lock on the gate of Harold's Cross stadium. It is like pulling a person down a lane, beating the living daylights out of him and then saying, "Come on, we will be friends, we will have a drink together."

Much reference has been made in this process to the Indecon report, a copy of which I have with me, which is now four years old. It was published in 2014. Reference is made to the need to find ways of saving money through the sale of assets, but the only asset that has been mentioned and acted on is the Harold's Cross track. However, the report states, "Potential asset disposals that should be considered include the site at Meelick, the old Henry Street Head office in Limerick, land in Cork, and the sale of [...] Harold's Cross". Just one has been acted on. The board, including the chair and the interim CEO, have lost the support of the patrons and of the owners and breeders and those involved in the industry want all of them to go.

I share Senator Landy's concerns about the Irish greyhound industry, which has been a traditionally strong industry not only in Dublin where the current controversy surrounds the Harold's Cross track but right around the country where patrons, owners and breeders are concerned about the future of the industry. I agree that we need to have a debate about the greyhound industry in this country, what the board is doing to sustain it and what changes need to be made to assist that industry.

Despite the recent controversies, it is important that we in this House understand and recognise that every citizen in this country has a fundamental right, under our Constitution, to a presumption of innocence unless otherwise proven. I want to put on the record that I, too, welcome the holding of a public inquiry into the recent controversies around the McCabe case. The reputation and integrity of our agencies such as Tusla and, indeed, An Garda Síochána, which has stood by this country since its foundation, are under question until this matter is finally dealt with. I welcome the move by Government to have a public, transparent inquiry under the chairmanship of Mr. Justice Charleton and we will be debating its terms of reference later on.

I wish to raise an issue that has been of interest to me for quite some time, namely, the pyrite issue and the damage that it has done to many homes throughout the country but more especially in the Meath and north Dublin areas. The previous Government increased funding for the pyrite remediation scheme for the carrying out of remediation works to many of the houses that were affected, and strong and solid progress is being made. However, there is another similar problem concerning mica in Donegal and north Mayo. The Minister of State, Deputy Joe McHugh, brought it to my attention a number of years ago and an expert committee was established to closely examine the problems being experienced by the householders affected by mica. I understand this expert committee is due to report soon. It has visited the houses affected which are literally crumbling around the families living in them due to concrete work that was insufficient and not of proper integrity. I ask the Leader to arrange a debate on the pyrite and mica issues and to invite the Minister with responsibility for housing to come into the House in order that we can debate these issues in detail to establish what assistance is being made available and what is planned to assist those families who have been let down by poor regulation in the construction industry.

I support what Senator Black has said. I was in utter shock last night when I saw the off the cuff, almost comical and satirical remarks of President Trump on this issue. He did no favours to anybody on any side.

Hear, hear.