Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Congratulations to the Cathaoirleach and all my colleagues in this room, including people who have been here previously and new Senators like myself. It is such an honour and a privilege to be in this space. It is very humbling to hear everyone speaking and to be here with them. I look forward to serving people throughout this country very diligently in this role for however long it may be. This House has historically had a very collegiate culture. That is something I wish to bring forward. Working with colleagues in the Chamber across the political spectrum is something that is very important to me. I hope to hold the Government to account in my role on issues such as housing, healthcare, disability rights and making sure that we can build resilient communities in this country.

I am a Belfast woman living in the south east. It is incredibly important to me to be a voice for people across this island, when we think about the future of the island and how we can work together in communities from different backgrounds, and make sure people are taken into account in that space. As has been discussed, we live in very uncertain times. These are times of conflict and war in Palestine and Ukraine. There is conflict in the DRC and Sudan. In that space, it is very important that as a neutral country we do not get pulled into political dynamics against the will of the Irish people. I truly believe that Ireland's role in the international space is, and should continue to be, being a leader on issues of peace. We can only credibly do that while we maintain our neutrality.

I am a child of the Good Friday Agreement. It was great to hear the Cathaoirleach talk about the importance of the peace process in Northern Ireland. With that in mind, and I have led my life and worked in peacebuilding, peace must be our ultimate goal in all the work we do, whether that is at home or internationally. Again, when we talk about our neutrality, that can undermine the ultimate objective of peace. Domestically, we cannot have resilient communities that thrive and prosper if people are not able to live in peace. That means they need a safe and secure place to live. They need access to affordable healthcare, disability rights and reliable public services. When 500,000 adult children are living in their childhood home and children are growing up in emergency accommodation, these people are not living at peace.

When I work with colleagues as a Senator, I will be putting in peace in all its various forms so that we can deliver meaningful change for communities in Ireland and abroad.