Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank all Members of the House for their contributions. I join with Senators Dolan, Bacik, Byrne, Devine, Higgins, Feighan, Paddy Burke and Coghlan in speaking about the commemorations yesterday. Ar an gcéad dul síos, gabhaim mo fíor buíochas agus mo chomghairdeas le gach duine a bhí páirteach sa chomóradh. Bhí sé an-spioradúil agus inspirational. Yesterday was a wonderful day, lá iontach, stairiúil de cheiliúradh agus lá iontach agus speisialta do gach Ball den Oireachtas. Mar a dúirt an Seanadóir Ó Céidigh, tá suim mór ag a lán daoine, ach go mórmhór ag gach Ball den Teach seo agus den Dáil i gcúrsaí Gaeilge agus beimid ag plé cúrsaí Gaeilge an seachtain seo chugainn. Yesterday was a wonderful occasion to commemorate the first sitting of the First Dáil.

On my behalf and on behalf of the Government, I commend all members of the staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas and all who were páirteach san ócáid speisialta seo. It was a wonderful day. It shows the importance of Oireachtas TV and the need for us to promote and use same as a means of broadcasting the work that is being done in both Houses of the Oireachtas and in committees. In addition, as Senators Warfield and Marie-Louise O'Donnell indirectly referred to in their contributions, it shows the importance of creativity and of what happens within this compound of the Houses of the Oireachtas in terms of visits and being able to re-enact significant moments in our history. Yesterday was one such occasion and I offer my sincere congratulations and thanks to all involved. I will not name people but I welcome and congratulate all for the wonderful event yesterday.

Perhaps the pin that we all received as Members could be replicated and given to all of the Houses of the Oireachtas staff as a token of our appreciation for their contribution. I happened to be in discussion with a member of staff yesterday who I will not name, and that person has been here since 1982.The latter illustrates that the job is not just a job, it is a commitment. This is a place of work but it is also much more than that. Yesterday's event was fantastic. We were all privileged to be elected. Some of the contributions perhaps offered a dystopian view of the world but I reflect on the fact that we have passed transgender and marriage equality legislation and achieved some infrastructural development. The country is near full employment, notwithstanding the challenges we face. The men and women of the First Dáil would be proud of what this and previous Governments have achieved. I want to put that into perspective.

I join all Senators who condemned the car bombing in Derry last weekend. Violence has no place on our island, north, south, east or west. We had all hoped we had left the dark days of violence behind us. As Senator Ardagh stated, we must nurture and inculcate in all a desire to maintain the peace process through upholding the Good Friday Agreement and bringing all communities together. It behoves us to work to ensure that we do not take the peace we now enjoy for granted.

Senator Higgins rightly mentioned the brutal killing of the mayor of Gdansk, Pawe Adamowicz, who was stabbed while speaking. We are democrats and democracy is something we cherish. We must work not only to ensure that it is nurtured, as Senator Ardagh stated, but to protect those who are elected as public representatives. We must also protect the right to speak and to hold a different viewpoint. On behalf of the House, I offer Mr. Adamowicz's wife, Magdalena, and their two young children our deepest sympathies.

Senator Ardagh referred to the lack of green space in Dublin's inner city. I hope we can engage in a debate on that matter in due course. It is important that a city has green spaces and trees, places of refuge away from the concrete jungle, the traffic and the noise. I will be happy to arrange a debate on that matter.

Senators Devine, Murnane O'Connor, Ardagh and Gallagher referred to today's dispute involving ambulance staff. We all recognise the importance of ambulance personnel but the HSE is questioning the right to have a representation heard. The PNA represents 500 ambulance service staff. The HSE recognises SIPTU, which also represents ambulance personnel. I hope we can resolve this issue. It is important that patients are not used as pawns in a dispute. It is also important that all voices are heard. I appeal to those on all sides to come to the table.

Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell raised the very important issue of the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016, elements of which are being refined. Work is ongoing and when it is complete, the Bill will come back to the House. I certainly hope that will happen in the short term, namely, in the spring.

The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, has published the Civil Registration Bill 2019 which will allow for same-sex parents to have the word "parent" recorded on birth certificates. That Bill will come forward in the spring of this year. I do not have the exact timetable. We have asked the Department for more information but we have not got that yet.

I did not understand the Senator's question on the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015.