Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

First, I highlight World Menopause Day, which Senator Chambers has already mentioned. In May 2021 in the convention centre, I raised the issue of the menopause. I felt a little bit nervous doing so. We speak about all sorts of other issues, but we had not really spoken about the menopause. I received a bit of a backlash following that, because certain members of the medical profession felt that perhaps I was blaming them for the experiences women had when they went to their GPs. While I am certainly not blaming individuals, I am blaming a medical system that let down women for a long time. We know that 50% of this population experience the menopause, which is nothing to be ashamed of, and 91% of women say they experience symptoms.We need to talk about the menopause, and that includes the medical profession. I am pleased to see that the first menopause clinic has opened and that the Minister for Health has taken on this issue. It is welcome to see, under this Government, that we are prioritising women's health. It is welcome we have menopause awareness week. We must also look at the education system when it comes to any medical professional who has contact with women because the first port of call is the person that one goes to and explains one's symptoms as one actually does not know what is wrong. Even today, I read a report where someone said their symptoms made them fear they had early onset Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, the first person one encounters needs to understand fully what the menopause is, to be able to identify it and then say where one needs to go. We have come a long way but we have not reached where we need to be when it comes to the menopause. Lastly, people's careers and professions are deeply impacted by the menopause.

I welcome the decision by An Bord Pleanála to admit that it did not take into consideration the climate action plan. Five months before the decision was made by An Bord Pleanála, it knew that the climate Act had passed and that it was a relevant body for the purposes of that Act. Therefore, it was disingenuous for An Bord Pleanála to write in a letter that the climate action plan had only been published four days before when it knew its full obligations.

We must be honest with people that climate action requires us to take steps that are sometimes a little bit uncomfortable. Many people do not realise that only 3% of the traffic in Galway city tries to get from one side of the city to the other side. In particular around Galway city, there is no consensus that a road is the best solution and I believe a road would push people even further out of the city, thus increasing sprawl. For all kinds of reasons a road is not the best approach. The politicians have probably not been honest with people in Galway for a long time and that is why we are where we are. Thankfully, progress is being made with public transport and cycling options, in particular for Galway city. Let us celebrate that progress and advance these initiatives.