Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

First, I welcome the fact that the Minister for Justice will formally unveil her plans to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, DSGBV, later today. That is important. I wish to acknowledge the speed at which the Minister and her officials have progressed the work from the last time she was in the House talking about the package of measures. Central to the strategy is the Government's focus on tackling the issue of service provision. That is to be welcomed. While we do not know the exact detail of the measures, some details have been provided in various briefings today. We know that there will be a five-year plan to tackle DSGBV and that €363 million in resources will be provided for the strategy. That is an important step. It would be important that the Minister to come to the House when she is available to continue the conversation she started. There was major engagement on the issue when she was last in the House. When I was travelling to Leinster House in the car earlier, I heard a representative of one of the women's advocacy groups speaking on "Morning Ireland", and saying that zero tolerance is the destination. I think that sums it up clearly in a simple message. Zero tolerance is the destination. I thank the Minister and her team for the work they have done. I look forward to hearing the details of the strategy later today. I hope that at some stage we will have some engagement on the matter in the House.

On healthcare, I and many other Senators asked for a debate on health services. I ask the Leader to outline how her office's engagement with the Minister for Health is progressing. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, issued a statement this week, highlighting that there is a shortfall of ten nurses in every emergency department. HIQA recently published a damning report on the emergency department at University Hospital Limerick, UHL. It makes for shocking reading. The issue was covered by many media outlets over the weekend. The Central Mental Hospital is still not open, yet the €1.7 million state-of-the-art facility has been built. The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, is deeply unhappy about the situation and has issued statements to that effect. There is uncertainty around the emergency department, the ICU and the provision of emergency care in Our Lady's Hospital in Navan. Last week we had a debate on the shortage of neurological nurses. Therefore, there are many issues around health services. I ask for an opportunity, if it is possible, to focus on those issues in the House and keep the pressure on those responsible. I am not personally attacking the Minister for Health or anyone else. However, there is a will on all sides of this House to focus and crystallise on the importance of healthcare. We must set out the short-, medium- and long-term measures that we can put in place to address the issues. I ask the Leader to provide an update on the progress of her engagement with the Minister of Health in respect of this matter.