Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The motion is another example of Sinn Féin speaking out of both sides of its mouth. It criticises the Government but wastes valuable time with a charade of a motion that was never going to succeed, using its time to criticise the Government with no clear direction of its own insight. Its only purpose is to cause a pointless drama and an unwelcome distraction when there are so many issues at hand.

As a member of the Government I am proud to stand on our record of working for the people. Nobody on these benches is denying there are challenges but we are determined to tackle these challenges and build a better future. Working with the people, we have come through Covid. We have more than 2.5 million people at work. We are working to tackle the cost of living because we know people are working hard for themselves and their families. We are working to build more homes. We are working to improve our health service.

In my brief I have placed domestic, sexual and gender-based violence at the top of the agenda, recently publishing the zero tolerance plan. It outlines a whole-of-society approach to create an Ireland where gender-based violence, sexual violence and child abuse are not tolerated. I have also introduced new laws to criminalise the distribution of intimate images without consent and to introduce preliminary trial hearings to make the court process less stressful for victims. We have introduced personal injury guidelines to tackle the cost of insurance. Templemore is now open, and with a new recruitment campaign we will see 200 more gardaí coming out of the Garda college and into our communities every 12 weeks. We are working on progress to make new laws on stalking and non-fatal strangulation. There is a new sex offenders Bill to strengthen the monitoring arrangements of convicted sex offenders. There is a family court Bill to put families at the centre of the family justice system. There is a hate crime Bill with tougher sentences for crimes motivated by hate and prejudice. There is a digital recording Bill to improve the use of CCTV. We will introduce body-worn cameras for An Garda Síochána and a new sale of alcohol Bill to modernise our antiquated licensing laws.

This is a Government that is working. Our actions are clear. We will be judged by them. We can only judge Sinn Féin by its actions and let us look at them on one of the most serious issues we could face. As Minister for Justice I take my responsibility towards the security and safety of our State and our people very seriously. Weeks ago, once again, Sinn Féin failed to support the renewal of the Offences Against the State Act and the Special Criminal Court. It was another reminder that Sinn Féin cannot be trusted to protect national security and the institutions of the State. It told us it is willing to ignore very clear security advice from An Garda Síochána and the Garda Commissioner whose unambiguous view, and I put this on the record of the House, is that the Offences Against the State Act and the Special Criminal court are vital in the continued fight against terrorism and organised crime. Sinn Féin ignores these views and prefers to help its own. What other advice from the Garda Commissioner would it ignore if it were in office? What other security and intelligence briefings would it disregard? The truth is it cannot be trusted to protect our people and our State. We in government will continue to work on behalf of the people and we will not be deterred from doing so. I have no doubt we will have the support of the House this evening.

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