Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I commend Senator Swanick on his work. I commend him not only on the report he has complied but on his comprehensive undertaking in terms of the preparation of the report, the stories gathered, the recommendations attached and reaching out.

I congratulate the students from Mount Mercy College, who had to leave to get the train to Cork. I had the pleasure of meeting them. I know those in the school are proactive in social engagement. I thank Ellen Carroll, Neasa Goulding, Mary Garvan, Leah Ryan, and their teacher, Geraldine Barrett. They have done tremendous work in reaching out to address the issue of loneliness as part of their transition year project. They are responding to the challenge of loneliness in Ireland. They work with groups in Bishopstown and with Alone, the Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland, the COPE Foundation, and Meals on Wheels. I commend them. We need to continue that intergenerational work. Phil Goodman organises the Young at Heart club in Douglas. There is an intergenerational table quiz and Ms Goodman works with the group.

There are many things I like about the Minister of State. One is his practicality. At the end of his speech, he asked what we can do and what I can do to complement the campaigns already in place in government. The other thing I like about the Minister of State is that he is hands-on.We saw that in west Cork yesterday in his work on mental health with young people and the elderly.

Senator Higgins made a point about respite care, which is not necessarily linked specifically to today's debate on this report but which is something about which we need to have a fundamental collective conversation. I fully agree with her on that. I thank the Minister of State for the work he is doing in that regard.

Senator Swanick brings great insight not only as a general practitioner, but also as a primary care physician who is in the community reaching out and caring for people. The key point is that this about connectivity. It is about having a joined-up approach and removing the silo mentality that may exist in parts of officialdom. I hope that we can build on today's report.

I am going to sound a bit nerdish, and I do not mean to, but did anyone watch the recent episode of "First Dates Ireland" which featured a young man called Tadgh, a member of the LGBT community? Apart from being struck by his personality, we should listen to the story he told as a young man in a modern, evolving Ireland. He had never had a relationship and felt lonely. One gets to a point of loneliness and one feels like "Oh my God." It gets to a person. This was a young man with the world at his feet. What struck me about him was his personality and the way in which he grabbed the nation's attention. Similarly, older people in the LGBT community feel alone and feel a sense of isolation.