Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I accept Senator Martin’s amendment to take No. 19 before No. 1 so that we can take Second Stage of his Bill next week.

It has been lovely to listen to all the heartwarming connections with Niamh Bhreathnach. She was a special person who had a special place in life and there is no doubt that this transcended parties. As Chair of the Irish Women's Parliamentary Caucus, when we started the caucus in the last mandate and we opened it to former members, Niamh was certainly a regular attendee and a great supporter, particularly of women in political life.As I said at the start, I will read out a motion when we accept the Order of Business. We will have that for the record and send that on to Niamh's family.

Senators Burke, Conway and Ward raised the issue of drones. A request was made for the Minister for Justice to come to the House for a debate on the issue. A total of 2,500 people have been affected in a very negative and costly way over the past week so there is an urgency about this and it needs to be monitored. Senator Ward spoke about the possibility of registering at point of sale, which is important. We need to ensure there is far better regulation. I will write to the Minister for Justice and ask about the possibility of a debate in the House about the matter.

Senator Crowe and most Members raised the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria and read into the record some very poignant details about an interpreter who was here last week. I have reached out to the Turkish members of the Council of Europe. The messages back are heart-breaking. The husband of a friend of mine in Newbridge who worked with me as a secretarial assistant is Turkish and like so many other families, his family has been affected so it is touching so many people around the world. While we are very grateful that the Tánaiste has already committed €2 million, there will be another call on all of us to do what we can to help all the Irish agencies working on the ground to help all those affected by the earthquakes.

Senator Crowe also raised the sentences handed down by judges and argued that they are too lenient, particularly for sexual offences. He said the sentence must fit the crime and I agree. We need a debate on this issue so, again, I will ask the Minister for Justice to come to the House for such a debate.

Senators Mullen and Clonan raised the issue of nursing home fees and the report by the Attorney General. We know that 30-page report was considered by the Cabinet this morning and that the Minister for Health and the Minister for Social Protection have been tasked with considering it in detail and coming back in three months time regarding any further action. Perhaps at that point, we should have a debate on the matter in the Seanad.

Senator Mullen also raised the two cases involving exclusion zones in England. It is not appropriate for us to comment on another jurisdiction but the Senator did speak about the Private Members' Bill brought forward by Senator Gavan and others, which I support. As Acting Leader, obviously I listened to what Senator Mullen said.

Senators Ó Donnghaile, Blaney and McGreehan spoke about the decision of the UK Supreme Court today, which is really important in the context of the island of Ireland. We will examine this judgment. It is very important regarding the protocol not being in breach of the law and the Good Friday Agreement. I echo the call from the three Members regarding the reinstitution of Stormont. It is hugely important.

Senator McGreehan asked for an update from the Tánaiste on that and the legacy Bill so we will ask the Tánaiste to come to the House to speak about the legacy Bill and Northern Ireland affairs in general.

Senator Sherlock spoke about the legacy of Niamh Breathnach. She also spoke about the safety and security of those fleeing persecution and the lack of progress there.It is important to say that there is a balance of rights in Ireland. It has a huge responsibility to help those who are fleeing from persecution. Regarding the situation of those not having papers and those seeking asylum here, something that we hear quite often – I certainly do about the direct provision centre that is just beside my office – we need to have these situations dealt with in a quicker fashion. We need to have both applications and appeals dealt with in a way that people know where they stand. That is important. It is important, of course, to have communities that are coping with refugees and those who have been displaced. Anything that the Government can do is important.

Senator Black spoke about the health committee this morning and the violence and risk that healthcare workers face. We must show solidarity with healthcare workers. They are doing tremendous work. They support and so often go way beyond the level of care. It is shocking to think that they are not respected in their workplace. As the Senator rightly pointed out, many of these are women, so it is a women’s rights issue also. Shame on those who perpetrate this violence. It is not just a situation of saying we need to help the workers – of course we do. However, we need to call out those who are perpetrating this violence and those who are going in and putting others, including those who are seeking help, at risk. They are causing huge problems both for other patients who need support, and the workers. We must do everything we can to support healthcare workers. We will take that up with the Minister for Health.

Senator Blaney raised the issue of a documentary on Creeslough airing tonight on TG4. I was not aware of that. I would agree with him that it is far too soon to reopen all the wounds for those who are barely starting to cope and get back to life. He mentioned to me just as he was leaving that it is coming up on “Liveline”. We, in the Seanad, should write to the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin, and ask her to contact TG4. At some stage, it can be shown on television. However, it is far too raw and close to the most dreadful tragedy that we have seen in such a long time in our country.

Senator McGahon spoke about vacant and derelict homes and good practice that many local authorities could have that we can share. Well done to Louth County Council for its work on compulsory purchase orders which the Senator mentioned. I agree that we need to look at the case studies. All of us can basically engage with our own local authorities on that. We can ask the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to do that.

Senator Fitzpatrick spoke once again on the need to deploy gardaí on public transport. I think she is 100% correct. She carried out a survey around Dublin and, in fact, I did it in Newbridge as well. I was surprised at the engagement there. People are concerned. She cited statistics that nine in ten people have witnessed and four in ten people have experienced violence. We certainly will ask for that debate with the Minister for Justice.

Senator Joe O’Reilly spoke about the sports capital grants and the need to have conditions of linkages with Northern Ireland with that and other grants. We can certainly bring that to the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. Anything that we can do to engage people on either side of the Border is hugely important. In Kildare, the sports capital partnership is good at doing that. We can certainly bring that to the Minister.

Senator Boylan spoke on the Energy Charter Treaty and energy companies. She mentioned that some European countries have pulled out of the treaty. She looked for clarity on the position. We can ask for a debate on that in this House.

I thank Senator Murphy for his words on Türkiye and Syria.

Senator Ahearn is absolutely right that the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O’Gorman, has done tremendous work supporting parents and families regarding childcare. However, we absolutely have to support the childcare workers as well. There needs to be a balance in supporting families and supporting workers.We need to ensure the terms and conditions under which they work are regulated. I have always felt that those who participate in the ECCE scheme should be more linked in with the Department of Education to ensure they have the same rights and conditions.

Senator Craughwell raised the issue of lump sums for councillors on retirement and said that they should be calculated on the current rate. That should be the case. It is wrong that it should be calculated on a rate that is not pertinent at any given time. It should be at the rate applicable at the time someone retires. He indicated that a Commencement matter will be tabled and it is one we will all support.

Senator Hoey spoke about the national action plan on FGM and I know she is aware of terrific work by former Senators, Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, Jillian Van Turnhout and Ciara Conway. That is something we brought to the desk of the Tánaiste when he was Taoiseach to ask for his support. He agreed at that meeting that there would be a contact point in rolling out the action plan.

We join Senator Byrne in extending our sympathies on the death of former councillor, Seán Broderick. I was listening to Michelle O'Hara from the Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, on "Today with Claire Byrne" this morning. MABS do a tremendous job and it is regrettable that there has been a 25% cut to its funding when it carries out such great work. That is absolutely something that I will bring to the Minister for Finance.

I saw the social media post from Senator Cassells this morning relating to the Hill of Tara being attacked for the third time in ten years. It is shocking and wrong. Anybody who commits such attacks shows a complete lack of respect. I agree that we cannot cut off access to those important parts of our heritage because of the actions of a few. They are inherent to those of us who have county links with whatever that heritage item is. There is also something in our national psyche, which that appeals to as well.

Senator Lombard has asked for the publication of the review of school transport. We are getting to the stage - I had a Commencement matter taken on this earlier - of free school books and how that scheme is going to be rolled out. There is no doubt that within another month we will be talking about preparation for going back to school in September. We support that call and we will look for a debate on it. With regard to the school bus that is breaking down, the company with the contract is failing in its contract in that situation. It cannot just fall back on the Department either. To have, as Senator Lombard said, a school bus that has broken down three times is just not good enough for those who are being served.

Senator Conway spoke about visa fees going up from 0.1% to 1%, which is shocking. We need to raise that, not just with the Minister for Finance, but with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment as well. This will have a negative impact on business, so we will certainly be doing that.

Senator Currie spoke about the windfall tax on oil and gas, and about prioritising that policy. We will certainly ask for that to happen. She also asked us to raise the issue about access to swimming following her meeting with Swim Ireland, and we can ask the Minister to address that.