Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the representatives of the Traveller community in the Visitors Gallery. I fully support this motion. It is a shame on us that it must be debated here at all tonight. Traveller ethnicity should have been recognised years ago, without any debate and without the need for it to be raised in the Dáil tonight.

The tragic events in Carrickmines brought home to many people the conditions in which we, the settled community, force Travellers to live throughout the country.

Traveller men have a life expectancy which is 15 years less than that of the settled community while Traveller women have a life expectancy which is 11 years less. The infant mortality rate in the Traveller community is 3.5 times that of the settled community and the suicide rate in the Traveller community is six times that of the settled community.

That is down to us, the settled community. That is down to every one of the citizens, right across this country, who objects every time proposals are made to help Traveller families. Every one of us has to look at ourselves and look at the decisions we make. When we do this, we are reinforcing the early deaths, the infant mortality and the suicide rate of Travellers across this country. As citizens, we all have to stand up and defend the defenceless in our communities and ensure we provide for everybody. That will be a measure of us as a nation, if we do this properly.

The Government should support the motion, withdraw the amendment and recognise Travellers as an ethnic group within our society. This will then perhaps give Travellers the means to exert those rights and protect themselves.

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