Senator Bacik speaking on the announcement of a Mini-budget and Archbishop Tutu

Order of Business

Senator Ivana Bacik: I welcome the announcement of the mini-budget or whatever the Government will call it. I also welcome the Government's inclusive approach in indicating that it will brief the Opposition on budgetary figures. That is very important, although Senator Ross is right that there is a danger for the Opposition in being brought in too closely. Deputy Joan Burton's call for the publication of the interim papers from the Commission on Taxation to enable Opposition and Government Members to see what the commission proposes to do is a useful recommendation to explore. I echo the calls of other speakers for a debate on the economy in advance of whatever mini-budget or tax increases we face.

On a more positive note, I was privileged to play a part in ensuring that we unanimously passed a cross-party motion calling for the release of Ingrid Betancourt. Will the Deputy Leader consider issuing an invitation from the Seanad to Ingrid Betancourt to address this House? Her release was one of the more positive items of news in the past few gloomy months. FARC is, unfortunately, still holding other hostages and it would be a celebration of her release to invite Ingrid Betancourt, as a former Senator from Colombia, to speak to us. It would also serve a very useful purpose of highlighting the plight of the hostages still held in appalling conditions in Colombia, who do not have the profile that she had. Hearing her speak would put our troubles in context.

I had the privilege of sharing a platform with Archbishop Tutu recently at a meeting in Trinity College where he pointed out, very memorably, that people in South Africa wish they had our economic troubles. To hear a speaker from Colombia — I have heard her speak with passion and eloquence since her release — who was imprisoned for years in conditions that threatened her health and her life, and who was deprived of the company of her family, would be inspiring and would be a very nice gesture on the part of the Seanad. I would welcome the Deputy Leader's thoughts on that suggestion.