Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We all know and recognise that organ and tissue donation is a service that saves lives. It improves lives and has better health benefits, as well as cost benefits. Ireland has the highest rate of donation in the world, at 20.3 donors per million of the population, but there is no doubt but that there has to be an opt-out system. A family must consent to any organ donation. In my view, Ireland has the highest respect for death. This is not bettered anywhere in the world from the moment of death, which is very traumatic for any family. At the moment of death, an undertaker is called and the family's requests are worked on immediately to help it in its time of mourning. It is different in other countries, where the funerals may be put off for weeks. Families have to struggle on with their daily lives and then grieve at a later stage.

Organ donations should be encouraged by all means but body parts should never be used without consent. I did not think this could happen in this country but sadly it looks like it has. Prior to my entering politics, I worked for many years as an undertaker with Arundel's in Schull. In that time, help was given to every family. For all undertakers, each funeral is sacred and the human remains are totally respected. I thank all the kind undertakers throughout west Cork and the rest of the country, whom I meet daily. They have never stopped giving, even during the Covid pandemic and extreme times. The burial and cremation of human remains are sacred, and the grave or location of ashes becomes a place for people to go to give them time to heal, which can take many years in some cases. I would find it sad beyond belief if parts of bodies ended up sent for research without the consent of the family. I find it astonishing to think that babies could be cremated without the knowledge of their parents or with no consent. This is unforgivable, to say the least.

We have to consider other aspects of this. I had a difficulty in west Cork recently when a family wanted to bury a loved one on their own property. I hope this Bill covers this area. There seems to be no one Minister responsible for deciding whether a person can be buried on their own private property and, if so, how. The upset caused to the family I dealt with was not needed at such a delicate time. The matter went without any great clarification, so much so that the family ultimately cremated the remains. This was sad in its own right. I tried to address it through various Ministers but got the run-around, which is very unfair and wrong.

Regarding the benefits of organ donation, we understand that some 600 people in Ireland are on the waiting list for an organ donation. Organ donors are important because they can save the lives of people suffering from organ failure. Someone with organ failure may have only a limited time to live without a transplant. For example, someone with heart failure may need a heart transplant to survive, and someone with kidney failure may need a kidney transplant to survive. Organ donors can provide these lifesaving transplants, which can give recipients the chance to live a normal life.

Additionally, organ donation can improve the quality of life of people suffering from organ failure. It also helps to reduce the waiting list for organ transplantation and decreases the number of deaths due to organ failure. Organ donation is a selfless act that can have a profound impact on the lives of many. I thank each and every person who has donated an organ. It is not an easy decision but one that must give families great satisfaction.

I once again thank each and every undertaker in west Cork. They are fine, decent men and women who work tirelessly to make sure families are respected and they give of their time considerably, day and night, without complaint. I thank all the employees who work with the undertakers in west Cork, including Bandon, Kinsale, Clonakilty, Barryroe, Rosscarbery, Leap, Skibbereen, Ballydehob, Schull, Bantry, Kealkill, Castletownbere, Dunmanway and Drimoleague. I meet each of them regularly. They are fine, decent people.

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