Regina Doherty (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank colleagues for raising a wide variety of topics. Senator Martin is right. We are lucky that we do not have, or have not yet had, in this House or in the Dáil the kind of allegations that have been made against our UK colleagues, so we will thank our lucky stars if it remains that way. The Senator highlighted a specific concern that we had over a number of years with regard to the zoning responsibilities of our county council colleagues, and the Office of the Planning Regulator was a direct response to that. To my mind, although this might be out of step, assisting and helping our councillors to make sure the correct zonings are happening as opposed to the actual activities of the planning regulators of minutely dissecting all of our county development plans, which is going on at the moment, might be more of its business.

Senator Craughwell raised the topic he has raised most often in my time in the Seanad: the search and rescue contract. I am very pleased that he has finally found an outlet between our Houses and our committee structure to have his concerns listened to, given I know he encountered closed door after closed door in the past couple of years. I look forward to the Oireachtas committee seeing that business case because maybe the Senator's fears will then be allayed or, indeed, his fears might be realised. I wish him well in his deliberations and thank him again for bringing it to our intention because some of us were not aware of the powers of the Oireachtas committee. I thank him for being so tenacious.

Senator McGahon raised this morning, as Senator Keogan has done in the past, the absolutely heartbreaking visual impact of the loss of the life of Eden Heaslip only four months ago. It was genuinely heartbreaking to watch. Any parent who has ever had any fear with regard to their child could see the broken family and the reality of the lived experience of his mam, his dad, his brother and his sister. They are absolutely a broken family and it is heartbreaking to see people grieving in public, in effect, which it was the other night.

Senator McGahon might be right. I have spoken in this House previously of my own circumstances of bullying with my daughter. I have said previously, including to Senator Keogan, that I do not believe that children - in this case, they were young adults - really get the consequences of their actions. We have talked a lot this week of the culture and society that we have, particularly against women, but bullying, harassment and violence do not just happen to women, and it happens to a tremendous number of our children and to some of our vulnerable men. Unless we have a real conversation about how society treats other people, how we treat each other, how there are real consequences to the actions of our ten-year-olds, 15-year-olds, 20-year-olds and every other person in society, and the impact those actions have, then, if it is not quite that talk is cheap, it is that we are not taking the responsibility ourselves for the outcomes of what is the lived experience of the Heaslip family in the north east. It is heartbreaking. Maybe to see that programme in some of our schools might hit home in the way I know it hit home to most of us to watch it the other night.

I want to put on the record that the family will continue to need the support of the entire community. Every family that has ever been impacted by suicide or by self-harm needs support and I do not think we do enough in this country, by a long shot.Senators Conway and Boyhan talked about the agreement by the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, to meet the survivors of thalidomide and the Irish Thalidomide Association, which is really welcome. For the last two years we have been consumed by Covid and the public response to same, and rightly so. That did not mean that all the other issues we have been talking about here for time immemorial ever went away. It is important that we get back to dealing with the relevant issues that affect smaller numbers of people in our communities but that massively impact their lives.

Senator Joe O’Reilly mentioned the CAMHS waiting list, the gambling regulation Bill and the elective surgeries that have been postponed and cancelled in recent years. I do not have answers to those three questions he has asked but I will come back to him within the next couple of days. He also raised the €1,000 bonus that is being awarded and the decision that was made by Cabinet, which has been welcomed by everybody today.

Senators Ahearn and Carrigy talked about the national development plan and how certain roads have suddenly and miraculously disappeared from the plan for the coming years. It is timely at the beginning of the year for us to have a debate and conversation with the Minister about the plans. It could be something as simple as only €1 billion is available in the coming years because we are spending money on other items such as housing and that the €4 billion is being back ended. We should have that conversation with the Minister so I will try to arrange it as soon as his diary allows.

Senator Seery Kearney normally comes in on a Thursday morning and talks about the Committee on Disability Matters but I am so pleased she did not do so this morning because I know the issue she raised is particularly personal and incredibly important to her and to all the friends and colleagues she has made over the years because of her personal journey and story. The Senator paid particular tribute to Deputy McEntee and to the other Ministers but she should take some of the credit. I do not say that lightly because one can be talking to Ministers until one is blue in the face and if they do not listen it does not work. However, the Senator has a personal story and a passion and commitment to make sure the reality she lives is understood. I do not know if that has been understood because I have said to her before that I have been listening to Ministers for justice talk about that for ten years without us ever moving on. I want to pay tribute to the Senator. She should take a bow because we would not be where we are without her.

Senators Carrigy, Gavan and other colleagues raised the issue of the leaving certificate. I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to have a Commencement matter yesterday which the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, attended, and I was incredibly grateful for that. The first thing that needs to be said is we are all on the same page and the same side, including teachers, the TUI and the ASTI, although I know they are getting a bit of stick for their opposition to the hybrid model. I have no doubt in my head and heart that the compassionate thing to do is to offer the hybrid model to our leaving certificate students this year, not just because I have one at home but I do have one at home. That young man went through an incredibly different two years than his older sister did when she got a hybrid model leaving certificate a couple of years ago. They have had an incredibly abnormal 22 months and there is nothing normal about the educational experience they have had.

I wish the steering committee well and I hope the voices of the students, parents, the Ombudsman for Children, Dr. Niall Muldoon, and everybody are heard as to the extent of their experiences in recent months. It is very difficult to understand how teachers' unions were looking for extended closures before Christmas because of Covid, the lack of teachers and the impact Covid was having on their lives and that they are now turning around and saying we should discount the 22 months of learning experience our young students have had towards what are life changing exams this year. I thank the Senators who raised that issue.