I call on the Minister, or rather the Leader, to respond. I almost elevated him to being a Minister.

I am not sure what that means.

I thank the 12 Members of the House for their contributions on the Order of Business. On foot of your opening remarks, a Chathaoirligh, on my own behalf as Leader of the House and behalf of all Members, I commend you on your discretion, fairness, flexibility and good humour. Those who criticise you for your manner of chairing do you and your office a disservice because I greatly appreciate your impartiality. You do not agree with everything the Government states or does but you maintain the integrity of the office that you hold with the utmost respect. I cherish and value your impartiality, courtesy and absolute integrity. I ask all Members to respect you as Chair.

You have a tough task at times but carry it out in a manner that is fair to everybody. Some Members who criticise you should reflect on their own behaviour because it does a disservice to the House when one's impartiality is questioned. I know that you did not ask for commentary on it but it is important that Members recognise the value of the Chair. The former Cathaoirleach Senator Paddy Burke was the same when he was in the Chair. Keeping 59 other Members in check is not an easy job, never mind Ministers who come here. Members should reflect on their contributions, especially on the Order of Business. I welcome the Cathaoirleach's remarks at the beginning. I will try to keep my remarks short. I know that Senator Craughwell reckons they go on too long but I will do my best.

The Leader only has ten minutes.

I appreciate that. It is important we stand in solidarity with the Cathaoirleach who should not have had to come in this morning to read that information for Members. I ask all Members to reflect on their contributions, especially on the Order of Business. I can take the political battle. The Cathaoirleach is impartial and apolitical. I know that he gets it from all sides.

By way of clarification, I was urged to do it at the start of December but when I had a brief word with the esteemed and learned Clerk, he suggested I leave it until the start of the new year.

That was good advice.

A new year's resolution.

That is a good point.

Senator Horkan raised the issue of Brexit. It is important we all stand with the Government in wearing the green jersey. The Tánaiste, Deputy Coveney, commented that it was about us as a country holding our nerve. It is a matter of ensuring the current backstop proposal relating to the Border is the only option on the table. Michel Barnier said the question of limiting the time for the backstop had already been discussed twice by European leaders. This is the only possible option because an assurance is of no use if it is time limited. It is important to recognise that we need a Brexit withdrawal agreement. That is a matter for the United Kingdom, especially for Prime Minister May and the UK Parliament. The Government has been clear. The Tánaiste outlined time limits for legislative proposals. We will have that debate again in due course.

Senator Horkan also referred to the nurses' strike. I will not speak for long on it. There is a public sector pay agreement. Notwithstanding the fact that we agree on how much we value nurses and the work they do, there is a public service pay agreement. It is important all sides engage and do not use patients as a pawn in the negotiations. We saw what happened yesterday with a breakaway union. We recognise the HSE deals with unions. It is important we have dialogue and maintain that level of engagement.

Usage of mobile phones by younger people is becoming increasingly prevalent. Senator Horkan has mentioned that 40% of all children own one by the age of nine years. It is a high figure and we will have that debate in due course.

I commend Senator Lawless on his work. I was in Washington DC before Christmas and know the respect and value he has brought to this House. His work with Irish immigrants in North America is unbelievable. He referred to the E3 visa. It is disappointing to see what happened. As he said, under the rules, a person can hold it up. I commend Ambassador Mulhall and deputy ambassador Lonergan and also Deputy John Deasy on the work he has done on Capitol Hill and in parts of the United States in opening doors and working to ensure we got to where we wanted to be. The US Commerce Secretary and the Secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, deserve credit for the role they played. It might not be universally popular but they have opened doors for us in a variety of ways. I hope the Minister of State with responsibility for the diaspora will come to the House to have that debate. I commend Senators Lawless and Boyhan on the work they have done.

Senator Conway-Walsh referred to Deputy Pearse Doherty's Bill. I am sure we will have it in this House in time. We all stand for homeowners and those who are fighting the banks. There is no denying that. The Minister has been clear about his role in it. We will have that debate in due course.

Senator Dolan referred to the wheelchair user who was treated poorly by the HSE and the company with the service level agreement. It is important we always show respect to people who are in need of a service because of a disability. The out-of-hours service level agreement should reflect the need for this person to be catered for at all times. As Senator Dolan rightly said, that person has a voice he or she can use. A Commencement matter tabled by Senator Dolan might be a more expeditious way to get an answer. I will be happy to take up the matter with the Senator afterwards.

Senator McFadden called on the Minister with responsibility for Irish Water to come to the House to address the issue of engagement with Irish Water on planning in County Westmeath. I would be happy to have the Minister come to the House to discuss Irish Water. Given the Cabinet decision yesterday, it would perhaps be opportune to have a debate on the role of Irish Water and water usage. We can address this issue as part of that debate.

Senator Murnane O'Connor raised the issue of cancer patients. We had this discussion in the House before Christmas. We all condemn treating cancer patients in this manner. There are, unfortunately, exemptions which need to be followed up by patients. Hospitals need to be sensitive in the way they deal with cancer patients. A code of conduct in that regard is required.

I thank Senator Boyhan for his remarks about the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Zappone, coming to the House. I am sure she will address the issue about which he he spoke with reference to Bethany Home. I think she wants to have the final report before adjudicating further. She will be here to address the issue.

Senator Lombard referred to the joint policing committee meeting in Cork last Monday with reference to the misuse of alcohol and early morning houses hiring extra security to monitor their premises. The Government is committed to introducing minimum unit pricing. In October, after 1,000 days, the Dáil passed the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill, the first time we had used legislation to regulate alcohol misuse. If I may be partisan and familiar for a minute, the comments of Councillor John Buttimer about Cork yesterday were very relevant. They related to the need for a multi-disciplinary task force for Cork and many urban areas with universities and colleges which could bring different stakeholders together to see how we can combat the misuse of alcohol, present an alternative and promote commonsense drinking. I think we all share the desire to reduce the harm caused by alcohol in society.

Senator Warfield raised an important issue, the funding of the Irish Deaf Society. It has a meeting coming up. Many of us are concerned that there will be a potential suspension and withdrawal of many services it provides. I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, to come to the House to address the matter. Perhaps the Senator might submit a Commencement matter. I will endeavour to have the Minister of State come to the House because the issue is important.

We will not go back over the history of the Commonwealth and where we are today. It is fair to say we are part of the European Union that values us as a country but Senator Feighan has done a lot to build bridges between the North and the South, for which he deserves credit.

Senator Paddy Burke raised the issue of tourism in the context of Brexit and the need to see the tourism sector enhanced and strengthened in the light of the challenging international climate. I would be happy to have the Minister of State, Deputy Griffin, or the Minister, Deputy Ross, come to the House to address the issue.