Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Senator O'Loughlin proposed an amendment to the Order of Business, that No. 17, which is the domestic violence register Bill, be taken before No. 1. This was seconded by Senator Fitzpatrick. I am happy to accept the amendment to the Order of Business. I commend Senator O'Loughlin on her work on this Bill. It is important, timely and links in very well with the programme of work the Minister for Justice has done in this really important area. A transformative body of work has been done in the Department of Justice relating to sexual and gender-based violence. It is a fantastic addition to that work. I commend also Jason Poole, whom I have had the pleasure of meeting. He is a fantastic advocate and he is still grieving the loss of his sister, Jennifer. She left two children behind, as Senator Fitzpatrick also mentioned. It is an area we have to get to grips with. Unfortunately, domestic violence is a scourge in our society. It was often behind closed doors, but we are now making it a public issue. It is an issue everybody in the country needs to deal with. I commend Senator O'Loughlin on her work on this Bill. We look forward to debating it in the House. I have not made the request yet, but I have no doubt the Minister herself will take the legislation. She has been very hands-on in dealing with the issue of domestic violence.

Senator O'Loughlin also raised the issue of drug crime, which is linked to the drug seizure off the west coast of Cork, and requested a debate with the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, about drugs. We will request that debate at the earliest opportunity. Certainly, the topic is now more widely discussed, given the events of last week. People have become more aware of how prevalent and available drugs are on the streets of every town and village in the country.

The Senator also made a very important point about the cross-border healthcare directive and access to healthcare in Northern Ireland and abroad that greater flexibility is needed. It is an unusual situation that you can purchase private healthcare in the North but you cannot purchase it here. However, it does alleviate some of the pressure on the system. It is a good scheme and it has helped a lot of people, but it can be a significant outlay at the beginning for patients who are looking for treatment.

Senator Keogan raised the issue of migrants and Ukrainian refugees coming to our shores, as well as the conditions in Stradbally. I agree with the Senator that the conditions there are very poor. I have seen footage of the flooding and the storm last week. I have been to Electric Picnic. When you are vacating the tents after the three-day festival, the ground conditions are poor because they have been trodden on by thousands of people over three days. I can imagine that when they arrived the conditions would have been poor, simply because the place had been extensively used before that. Despite the tents being nice, they are not suitable.

The Minister has made the point this is for the short term, and we have to acknowledge the unprecedented numbers who have come into the country in a relatively short time. In the space of a year, approximately 100,000 people have come in. It is a lot for us as a small island nation to deal with. Overall, we have done a good job of accommodating people in extraordinary circumstances, with those pressures. Every member state has felt the pressure. Certainly, those bordering Ukraine have felt the most pressure. We have a moral and ethical obligation and duty to take people in when they arrive, to look after them as best we can, and to try to do better in accommodating them where we do fall short on occasion. The issue was raised yesterday in terms of using hotel accommodation. That has brought its own challenges because it has impacted on our tourism sector and small businesses. No matter which way you go, you are going to find pressure. A call was made yesterday by Senator Dooley, and this is also a call I have made, for the tourism sector in rural areas to be addressed for next year's season. Without accommodation, we will not have tourists, and it will be the coffee shop, the pub and the restaurant that will be impacted. We were always going to feel the impacts of such large numbers coming in. It is a matter of managing that challenge and pressure as best as we can.

Senator Martin spoke about the planning and development Bill the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, will publish shortly and which will be debated over the coming weeks in this House and in the Dáil. It is landmark legislation. It is the largest overhaul of the planning laws in this country that has taken place in many years. It is long overdue. People will accept the planning process that is currently in place is slow, cumbersome, does not serve citizens very well and can at times be hijacked by individuals who have an agenda or purposes that are not in line with the public interest. It is the intention of the Government and the Minister to overhaul the planning process. I note what the Senator said in relation to the comments made by the former Chief Justice Frank Clarke. He warned there was the potential to create unintended consequences. However, you could say that about any legislation, and until it is passed, is in operation and is potentially challenged through the courts system, there will always be that risk. However, it is a risk that is worth taking to deal with the challenges in the planning system, which we have been discussing for years. I commend the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, on his work on this and I look forward to debating the legislation. I look forward to a more streamlined planning process that will serve our people and our country well and will allow us to get on with the business of running the country as well.