Mal O'Hara (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank my colleagues for sharing time. I am delighted to take a few moments to speak to the motion. Our specifics asks are clearly articulated in it. I will touch on some of them in a few minutes. A Chamber just up the road had a very similar debate on Monday. If that is not all-island synergy then I do not know what is. It is great to hear. The lead proposer of that motion was Robbie Butler of the Ulster Unionist Party, whom I met a long time ago with a different hat on, talking about mental health and well-being. He has been very passionate on this issue. Strong contributions were received from all members and all parties represented in the Assembly. They specifically talked about a cross-departmental strategy, which is similar to our asks.

I will talk about some of the specific groups that might be particularly vulnerable to loneliness. Some of this data is from Northern Ireland, some of it is all-island and some of it just relates to the Twenty-six Counties, but the round figure is that one in five people experiences loneliness. That would be a handful of us here in the Chamber if we took a straw poll. I am sure we have all experienced loneliness, whether it was chronic, long-lasting or enduring, and it may have had an impact on our physical health or emotional well-being.

My colleagues referred to the impact of Covid-19 and how that exacerbated many of the fractures and difficulties our society faces, but particularly in the context of loneliness. People feel less safe in a public environment and they are concerned about their health and well-being. They fell out of a pattern of social engagement because of the length of the pandemic and have found it difficult to get back into that. One of my most salient memories relates to the work we did in Belfast at the start of the pandemic. We set up a soup kitchen and fed 17,000 meals to vulnerable people in the first three months. We worked with a local organisation in north Belfast supporting older people. It was really jarring that some of those older, vulnerable people told me that the only social interaction they were having each day was when I or my colleagues turned up with the soup. That sat with us, so we developed a kind of well-being check-in to make sure those people were okay and their needs were being met in a safe and compliant way.

Vulnerable groups include carers, people with disabilities, those with illness and, of course, minority groups. Carers have particular issues relating to their energy, time and capacity. They spend so much energy and time looking after the person for whom they are caring that they may have limited time to look after themselves. For older people there may be issues around moving home, care and bereavement. In particular, the loss of sensory faculties, whether that is sight or hearing, may inhibit them from participating in public life or in social interactions. There is also the lack of transport, how to access community services and of course the tech gap. Statistics from the North tell us that one in three disabled people talks about experiencing loneliness. That is a real challenge. We know from the census the figure for people with disabilities. What are we doing to make sure they can play an equal role in society?

I refer to newcomer communities - people who arrive on the shores of this island seeking refuge and safety - and how we integrate them. In the community that I always talk about, namely, the queer community, some people may be estranged or disenfranchised from their communities or families and, therefore, more at risk of loneliness. Other groups we may think about are black and minority ethnic groups, Roma, Travellers and so forth. Those groups may experience loneliness. I am particularly concerned about young men and emerging evidence in that regard. The risk is that some people will use it as an opportunity to radicalise them or further exacerbate their alienation from mainstream society. We see in other parts of the world what that leads to.

It is weird that we are more virtually connected that we have ever been, but more lonely than ever. How can it be that with access to such opportunity for connection, more of us are not making connections. We are wealthier than ever but we have built our society and much of our economic model on consumerist debt and a view that buying things will make us happy. I am a member of the Green Party, so the disposability of so many of those things enrages me. The issue, however, is how we think money will buy us happiness. Rabbi Hyman Schachtel said happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have. The last time I used that quote was at my younger brother's wedding.

I commend the motion. I hope Members will support all the asks in it. The particular ask I want to draw attention to is around transport. So many of us are sold cars with the idea that they provide freedom. Car advertisements always show empty roads with no congestion. The idea is that we get into this tin and plastic box, we drive to our work and drive home, we drive to the supermarket and drive home. If we walk, cycle or get the bus we meet people and connect to people in our community. I am delighted to see that we are talking about mandating local authorities because local authorities have those connections in the community that can build cohesive communities.

The most important thing is that, when we take our final breaths, we will not think about the things we had or the money we spent; we will think about the people and the connections that we had in our life. I commend the motion to the Chamber.