Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I also extend my condolences to the family of David Amess. I felt emotional reading all the comments on Twitter. Even after this man's death, there continued to be negative comments. It is shocking to see that someone has no peace even in death. I do not want to turn this into being about us as politicians, but Senator Moynihan spoke about a chill effect in her contribution and this event is having a chilling effect on politics. One does feel a little exposed standing up to speak about something or, indeed, putting oneself forward to participate in politics. I hope people feel that there is a sense of solidarity across the Chamber and across the two islands.

I commend Senator Gavan for the proposed Bill on safe access zones and Senator Moynihan as well. Those on the Government side of the House support the Bill as well and it is good to see that we have that cross-party support for an issue of this importance. Safe access zones should have been a part of the original legislation in 2018, but we are where we are. The Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, has acted on this issue. He told me that I could raise the issue and that Government legislation is being drafted. This is positive news from both sides of the House and I look forward to further debate on the issue. This year's budget contains much feminist healthcare and that is remarkable compared with previous budgets. I refer to the provision of free contraception and menopause centres being established across the country. All I can say is "let us have more of that". I am delighted that we can progress some of these issues, but safe access zones must now be a priority.