Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

At the outset, I will be proposing a motion with regard to the former Deputy and Senator, Dermot Fitzpatrick. I will read that at the end of the Order of Business, after which we will stand for one minute's silence. There were obviously many expressions of sympathy, which we will get to later. I have already indicated my own sympathies on behalf of the Government. I did not know Dermot but from everything I have heard over the short while since we discovered that, unfortunately, he has passed away, he sounded like an amazing colleague to many Senators here and a father to Mary and Niamh, who also works here. I would also like to extend my sympathies to his wife, Mary.

Senator O'Loughlin raised yesterday's momentous decision that school secretaries will finally be given their dues, will not have to sign on for summers and will have a pay grade that is commensurate with the work they do. I welcome that. As Senator O'Loughlin pointed out, however, we need to do something for caretakers as well. That is really important. A school community is made up of so many people who go into providing a caring and nurturing environment for children.

The issue around the census, which was brought up by Senators Mullen and O'Loughlin, is shocking. It was to be a no-change census but given the length of time between censuses, I do not know why changes would not be made to fully reflect society. Senator Mullen made a very good point that it basically encourages people to break the law, which is a bizarre situation. I will bring back the Senators' sentiments.

Senator Mullen also raised the issue of the abortion review. As the Senator knows, this is a review of the legislation, not of the decision taken by the people of this country with regard to abortion. We had a referendum. My understanding is that this is where the consultation comes from.Various healthcare issues were raised today. Senator Gavan referred to the shocking number of people on hospital trolleys in University Hospital Limerick. In my constituency in Galway, the numbers are equally shocking. When we think about all those Ukrainian people who are now coming into the country, healthcare will be a critical part of what we need to provide for them. They are incredibly welcome, but it is an emergency.

Elective surgery was raised by Senator Cassells. Sometimes the word "elective" makes it sound like it is a choice. Very serious operations have been cancelled throughout the pandemic. We have all raised that, but it is important to raise it again here today.

Senator Black also raised an issue relating to healthcare, namely, the report on the working conditions for doctors and their own views on it, which are shocking to see. Given all the various contributions regarding healthcare, it would be appropriate to ask the Minister for Health to address some of those issues. I thank Members for raising them.

Senator Gavan raised the issue of Saudi Arabia. I share many of his sentiments on the conditions and treatment of people there. I have not spoken to the Minister for Foreign Affairs but I will bring the issue to his attention. Yemen is connected with the issue, which Senator Black also raised. I will ask the Leader's office to write to the Minister to raise those issues.

In response to Senator Buttimer, we are all wearing our daffodils today in recognition of Daffodil Day. I joined some Senators in having coffee downstairs and contributing to the efforts to raise cancer awareness. I thank the former Senator, Averil Power, whose secretarial assistant now works in my office, so we do have connections there which worked very well.

I assure Senator Buttimer that carers is an issue close to my heart. It is very welcome that there is an alliance now, but as he points out, the home care packages have been an issue for a long time. I am Vice Chairman of the Joint Committee on Gender Equality and much of what came out of the Citizens' Assembly on Gender Equality related to care. It probably came to the fore because we were in the middle of a pandemic, in terms of how much care goes on in society. I would welcome any opportunity to discuss it because it touches all of us at various points in our lives, from young, to old, to vulnerable and somewhere in the middle.

Senator Seery Kearney raised the gig economy, which as she said, sounds like something very exciting, but has devastating consequences for those working in it. I know that she has raised the issue a number of times. It is important to state that, as with many issues, the legislation is often behind where society is. The same can be said for employment. I would welcome a discussion on that because we are going to need to change how we manage society.

Senator McGreehan raised energy security and cost. We are all with her on the concerns people have. The situation in Ukraine and in Russia is having an impact right across society. A couple of issues have been raised, such as healthcare, but we would all welcome a conversation around the cost-of-living piece. A lot has been done up to now and various measures have been put in place, but we are looking at an increase in inflation. I do not know about EnergyCloud but I thank the Senator for raising it. A lot of work is going on in demand management and battery storage at the moment. It is a very exciting area but there is an urgency around it. I think I have dealt with everybody's contributions.