Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It was very quiet and I think people missed the action. How to strike the right balance while ensuring both safety and openness is something for us to reflect on for the coming years. We do not have the answer just yet but everyone is doing their best to respond to the safety concerns that have been raised, which the Cathaoirleach has pointed out, and to ensure that staff in the Houses are safe in doing their jobs.

Senators Maria Byrne and Conway both spoke about the health budget, University Hospital Limerick and the ongoing challenges there. The persisting challenges at the hospital seem to come up regularly. It has been acknowledged that significant investment has been made in the hospital and that the Minister of Health and the Department have engaged seriously with hospital management. I understand that admissions to the emergency department are up 7% or 8% on pre-Covid levels. In the over-75 cohort, they are up 21%. There is increased demand at University Hospital Limerick in addition to the normal challenges. That is proving tricky to solve despite the increased bed capacity the Senator has outlined on previous occasions. Every effort is being made to address the issue. As we know, we are now seeing the spike we normally get during winter throughout the year. It is spreading out more evenly and hospitals are facing a challenge. However, we have never had a bigger health budget. Funding and resources are not the problem. There is money for the posts. It is a question of attracting people to work in the health service to fill the posts that have been funded and which are vacant. Our biggest challenge is getting people to work in the health service because we are competing on an international stage. We are struggling to hire staff at different levels in our health service. That is an ongoing challenge, not just in University Hospital Limerick, but right across the health service.

I acknowledge the comments Senator Maria Byrne made about Chuck Feeney. A couple of Senators also mentioned him and his fantastic work in higher education and research and development yesterday. He transformed funding for higher education and left a fantastic legacy.

Senator Vincent Martin spoke about Israel. We will have statements with the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs in the House next Thursday morning. The Tánaiste will address the Chamber and hear from Members. The debate will be concluded by the Minister of State. We will have an hour and a half next Thursday morning to have that debate in the House. Despite it being budget day yesterday, the conflict between Israel and Palestine and what happened over the weekend was the top issue raised by almost everybody who took to their feet. That shows that people are very concerned about what is happening in the Middle East and the atrocities inflicted upon the Israeli people on Saturday but also about the atrocities on both sides and the deaths of civilians. I also note the request for a minute's silence. We will facilitate that at the end of the Order of Business. It would be appropriate to acknowledge all those innocent civilians who have lost their lives on both sides in the conflict.

Senator Clifford-Lee welcomed members of the Lusk Irish Countrywomen's Association, ICA, to the Chamber.

Senator Moynihan spoke about the section 39, section 56 and section 10 workers who are to strike next Tuesday. Every effort is being made to resolve the issue. The point was well made that they perform absolutely vital and essential work right across the health and disability sector. Without them, we would be really lacking in services. Every effort will be made to resolve that issue and to ensure that people are properly remunerated and looked after.

Senator Murphy also spoke about Israel. He also spoke about the agricultural aspects of yesterday's budget and the suggestion that the budget in this area was reduced. He is right to point out that it was not. The Brexit measures were finite and once-off but the ongoing agriculture budget was not reduced. I take on board the Senator's point about the cost of fuel in rural areas. This is always going to be a challenge because we do not have sufficient levels of public transport. As the Senator rightly pointed out, public transport would not be an option for farmers and other work purposes anyway. When the price of fuel goes up, it is always a challenge but I wish to acknowledge that the Ministers for Finance and Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform delayed the reinstatement of the final tranche of excise duty on fuel until next year in acknowledgement of the fact that prices are still quite high. That will be of some help, as will all of the other cost-of-living measures that were announced yesterday.

As well as speaking about University Hospital Limerick, Senator Conway welcomed the extension of the free travel scheme to those with a disability. He spoke about the visually impaired who are not able to drive. Senator McGreehan raised the same issue. That was a really great achievement in yesterday's budget.

Senator Craughwell spoke about the defence budget and what he sees as the deficiencies in what was announced yesterday. It is important to acknowledge that an extra €55 million in defence spending was announced yesterday. That will be put towards the development of a new radar system and the hiring of 400 additional personnel. Negotiations are ongoing. Defence will get additional funding but that is being negotiated after the budget. This will bring us closer to level of ambition 2, which is stated Government policy. We are still on track to increase our defence spending by 50% by 2028. That stated ambition and Government policy is being achieved on an incremental basis. That is still the position. Yesterday did see an increase in defence spending. It may not be all that we want but that was never going to happen all in one budget and, as I have said, there is more to come in that regard.I note the Senator's comments around the need for an Oireachtas committee on defence and security. Our joint Oireachtas committees mirror our Cabinet Ministers and their Departments, so that would require a change there as well potentially.

Senator McGreehan spoke about the sheep sector, and the securing of an additional €8 per ewe yesterday, which is up to €20. It is really welcome. It has been well highlighted that the sheep sector is under significant pressure, and the increase from €12 to €20 per ewe will be a huge help and will alleviate a lot of the pressures on the sector right across the country, particularly as there are more rural areas along the west coast and even around the Cooley Peninsula, where there is a lot of sheep farming.

Senator Garret Ahearn spoke about the €250 million grant to businesses secured yesterday by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. It is really welcome, and that was in direct acknowledgment that the increase in the minimum wage by €1.40 will put pressure on small and medium enterprises, which has been well highlighted and articulated by the business representative associations. That grant will come in quarter 1 of 2024 and it is really to help offset that next year, and to assist businesses in that transition. We have asked a great deal of business in the last few years in terms of statutory sick pay, increased parental leave and the increase in the minimum wage. There has been a lot of change for business in a very short period of time. This was all very necessary change and good for workers and society. However, yesterday's budget was a pro-business budget, and there is funding for business next year to help support it through that transition. The business organisations have worked very well with our Ministers in ironing out how that transition can happen in a smooth way to protect jobs, which is really important. The same issue was highlighted by Senator McGahon, who spoke about the positive feedback he received this morning at the Dundalk Chamber business breakfast that he attended.

Senator Cassells spoke about the UEFA Euro 2028 announcement yesterday, which was really positive for Ireland. There is now a conversation developing that is not positive, and is trying to draw lines and divisions between communities. That is not acceptable. Yesterday was a positive announcement. It is good for Ireland, for the two islands, and the all-island economy as well. Sense will prevail but it is going to require careful management of that issue and a delivery of the facilities needed to host that event, which will be of huge benefit to our country.

Senator Frances Black very poignantly put on the record the names of Yara and Lara Alagha. I hope I have said that correctly. I understand that Yara worked for Senator Lynn Ruane and that Lara worked for the Green Party, I think in the office of Deputy Francis Noel Duffy. I want to extend my sympathies to both women on the unimaginable loss of so many of their family members. It is just horrific, and it shows how innocent civilians on both sides of the conflict want peace and do not want violence in their name. We will have statements on this issue in the Seanad next week with the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Micheál Martin. We hope that a de-escalation can take place in the region, and some sort of stabilisation. Ireland can be very proud of the work it did to ensure that aid continued to Palestine. That was not the view of all EU member states but Ireland stood out from the crowd with a small few, including Spain and Denmark, to demand that aid still be delivered into Palestine. We are working at an EU level to ensure that a humanitarian corridor is opened up, and that there are no restrictions on the Gazan people affecting food, water and electricity. It is an unimaginable situation, and as I said, we will have a minute's silence for all who have died in the conflict to date at the end of the Order of Business.

Senator Seán Kyne spoke about the budget debate and health. We will try to get a debate on health anyway and with various Departments. We have requested one for housing as well, and it will give us an opportunity to delve into matters. There was so much in yesterday's budget. With all the Departments working together, it is a lot to digest and we are still going through it. It would be a worthwhile debate to have in the House, to try to get into the detail in different Departments, particularly in areas like health, which is so important to all of us. With the colossal health budget that we have, it is important that we make sure it is spent correctly, that we can see existing services not just maintained but improved, and new initiatives as well.

Finally, Senator Malcolm Byrne spoke about the mental health budget, which is €1.3 billion. We have come a long way with our mental health budget. In the past decade, we put a lot of resources and funding into that. CAMHS is a particular difficulty for us. This morning when he was out on the media, the Tánaiste was asked about CAMHS. He pointed out it is not a resourcing issue in terms of money; it is about filling the posts that are there. We are struggling to get psychiatrists and to fill posts in certain parts of the country. We are competing on an international stage to get these individuals. It is not for a lack of funding, as the posts are there to be filled. It is trying to source the qualified persons to go into those jobs to provide the service that we need.

I take on board the Senator's point about investing in our fire services in the budget. Thankfully that matter was resolved to the benefit and satisfaction of fire services personnel. The work they do is hugely important. They put their lives at risk saving and protecting others, and I am glad that this issue was resolved and acknowledged in yesterday's budget. Overall, it was a good and positive budget that delivered for all aspects of our society.