Seanad debates

Wednesday, 28 February 2018

10:30 am

Photo of Kevin HumphreysKevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I pay tribute to the work of my colleague, Senator Ó Clochartaigh. He thanked everybody in the House and I take this opportunity to thank him for the service he has done during the past seven years. I came across the Senator for the first time when I was a Minister of State and was dealing with a Commencement matter he had raised. He taught me a very good lesson, namely, that if one was up against him, irrespective of whether it concerned a Commencement matter or another matter, one came into this House prepared. I mean that in the nicest possible way.

With his retirement from politics today, there are winners and losers. TG4 is one of the winners. However, the citizens of the State are on the losing side because the Senator always presented his arguments, having researched them well, with good humour but one had to be ready for him when one came into the Chamber. That, to me, is a great compliment. The other winner is the Senator's family. They must have missed him greatly while he was up in Dublin when they had to deal with the pressures at home, and he probably missed them deeply.His family and friends, many of whom are in the Gallery today, are the winners. They will have him and his good humour back home with them a bit more often. I wish him the very best of luck. Go n-éirí an bóthar leat. I think that is a good attempt from somebody who has no Irish.

The weather is quite bad outside but the councils have been working extremely hard since last night. Dublin buses have been running on the roads. Those bus men had to get out of their beds early this morning to make sure that the buses were running to enable people to get to work. I compliment them for their diligence and hard work in keeping the city moving today.

Time and again I have raised the issue of short-term lets and the impact they are having on homelessness. A report was published recently about legislation enacted in Berlin which saw just over 4,000 short-term lets put back into use as longer-term residential accommodation for workers and families. The introduction of similar legislation here would have the same effect. I raise this matter because I received an email from correspondents in Cork that referred not just to the loss of such units to the housing stock but also the negative impact that high levels of short-term letting is having on their community. The correspondents referred to the "hollowing out" of a residential housing estate where residents who used to have neighbours now have short-term visitors and holiday makers. That is not in their interests or in the interests of good planning.

I wish Senator Ó Clochartaigh the very best in his new career. I also wish his family the best of luck. They are smiling and are obviously very happy to get him back. I thank them for lending Trevor to the Seanad and to public life over the last seven years.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.