Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Senator Kyne discussed Pobal's social inclusion programme and how great work had been done in funding projects across the country. He spoke about how Galway, being such a large county, should ideally be split in two. That seems to make sense. He also referred to how the closing date was imminent. He would like to see the county being split and has asked for the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, to consider the matter. I will contact the Minister. I understand that the closing date is next week, so time is tight.

Senator Warfield discussed the issue of the EU's fiscal rules and how he would like to see more flexibility for this and other states in funding various projects. He mentioned housing and health. In those respects, €20 billion has been made available over the next five years. I do not believe funding is the issue in housing, though. Rather, it is a matter of getting enough workers to ensure houses are built.

Senator Maria Byrne spoke about her beloved Limerick and the great work being done there by first responders. We are deeply indebted to first responders the length and breadth of the country for their excellent life-saving work. The Senator spoke about how first responders did not have a home in Limerick but had now been facilitated with a temporary home, which is good news. As she said, Limerick City and County Council needs to get them a permanent home.

The Senator also mentioned the person of the year award, which is under way in Limerick. There are 12 nominees and she wished them all the best in the competition.

Senator McDowell raised the Prison Service and the combination of issues obtaining in that respect. He outlined how there were even problems back in his time as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and how they had been exacerbated recently. I understand that the Minister for Justice, Deputy Harris, attended the Prison Officers Association, POA, conference this morning, where he spoke about 600 much-needed additional places. Senator McDowell is correct, though, in that we need a debate on the future of the Prison Service, particularly in Dublin. We will do our best to arrange one as soon as possible. We will probably need a purpose-built prison to meet the level of need. As the Senator mentioned, the last thing we want to do is to put people in prison, but where that happens, it is important that we have accommodation to do so.

Senator Keogan asked for the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to attend the House to debate the legislation on birth registration. It was passed many years ago, but sections of it have yet to be commenced, which is having serious repercussions for families across the country. I will do my best to arrange for the Minister to attend for a debate. It is important that people have access to their personal details whenever they want them. Where legislation was passed so long ago, questions need to be asked about what the problem is. Perhaps a debate with the Minister might sort out the issue.

Senator Carrigy discussed autism awareness. I commend the Senator on his excellent work since entering the House on highlighting this issue. He is well versed in it. He wants everyone in Parliament to become more aware of autism. That makes perfect sense. He has undertaken an initiative, and I ask all Members to embrace the idea of an autism-friendly Parliament. We all need to know more about autism.

The Senator also spoke about eligibility criteria for the carer's allowance. Perhaps a debate on the issue would be worthwhile. We are deeply indebted to the many carers the length and breadth of the country. God knows where we would be if we did not have them. In many cases, they are fighting tooth and nail to get a pittance. Any additional money, and any way we could relax the criteria so that more people would be eligible, would be well worth examining.

The Senator also spoke about VRT on vans, particularly large ones. He gave a practical example of a five-seat van as opposed to a three-seater. The difference in VRT between the two seems to be an anomaly. Perhaps the Senator will consider raising it as a Commencement matter in the coming weeks.

Senator Fitzpatrick discussed the housing situation and outlined the progress that had thankfully been made in that regard. Statistics released by the Central Statistics Office, CSO, yesterday show that more than 6,700 new homes were completed in the first three months of this year, representing an increase of more than 19% on the same period in 2022. This is welcome. The Senator also outlined how the Croí Cónaithe scheme had been increased this week. Under it, the vacant property grant has increased from €30,000 to €50,000 and the grant for derelict properties has increased from €50,000 to €70,000. These increases are welcome. The scheme is important to rural constituencies in particular, albeit not exclusively to them, and many people are taking it up. We are all aware that a great deal of work needs to be done on housing. Thankfully, however, we are seeing signs that progress is being made. There are many strands and facets to it. Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet to solve the entire housing problem, but I am happy to report that progress is being made. We look forward to that continuing.

Senator Clonan discussed the events in Sudan and how 100 Irish citizens had been repatriated, with perhaps up to 200 more yet to be. He spoke about how the Defence Forces could do more. His point makes perfect sense and we could become world leaders.We are a neutral country. We could do more, not just to protect our citizens but other citizens as well. A debate on the matter would be very worthwhile. We talked about the Army Ranger Wing and that only 12 people from it are in Sudan at present. That needs to be expanded. There is room for expansion of that service and a debate on the issue would be very worthwhile. I note the 72-hour ceasefire is still in train. Hopefully, that will hold and we will get as many of our people home safely as we possibly can.

Senator Malcolm Byrne talked about the All Ireland Drama Festival about to take place in Athlone. He mentioned the people involved in drama from County Wexford, where he lives. He wished them well as he did all the other participants. I look forward to that event and commend all the people involved in drama. We have a very rich tradition in that regard, as the Senator outlined. I hope that goes well for all concerned. He also talked about the comments made by the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan. In light of the fact we have an ever-increasing population with more than 5.1 million people resident here, which is rising constantly, that brings stresses to our public services, which may have to expand in that regard. The Senator requested a debate that would cover a wide range of areas pertaining to that, which would also be very worthwhile.

We kicked off with Senator Currie who welcomed the news regarding railway stations. We are now seeing signs of a Garda presence there. Many voices have called for that for some time. As the Senator said, it is very welcome development that she would like to see expanded, as we all would. It is very worthwhile and, I suggest, long overdue but welcome nevertheless. It is important people feel safe as they go about travelling. She mentioned the example of Japan, where there is a separate carriage for women, particularly at night-time. That is an excellent idea and one we could possibly look into here and perhaps hold a debate on the issue. We can talk to the Minister about coming to the House regarding that. She also talked about the legacy Bill in the UK, which has been mentioned many times by the Senator in the Chamber, and others, and this Government's total resistance to it. We had another example yesterday, that of Patsy Kelly who was murdered in 1974, where it was found the security forces then had questions to answer. Those questions still remain to this day. That is very unfair on families. The legacy Bill will put a sledgehammer to all of that, which is something none of us in this House can allow happen.

I again thank all the Senators for their contributions.