Joe Conway (Independent)

Today, I show unity with an initiative by Senator Stephenson as regards Gaza. On a day on which we are commemorating the Great Famine - Gorta Mór na hÉireann - a tragedy that shaped our nation and left scars generations later, it reminds us of the deep pain that comes when people are denied their most basic needs. This week, just nine trucks were allowed into Gaza. To meet the basic demands or needs of the population, 500 trucks a day are needed. For nearly 80 days now, food, water and medicine have been severely restricted from entering the region. This has created a state-sponsored humanitarian crisis, with international agencies warning of impending famine. We, the Irish people, know what famine means. We know the devastation it brings, not just in lives lost, but in the trauma carried forward through the succeeding generations. Today, as we remember our own history, we cannot ignore those suffering in Gaza. Let us not look away as a country. Let us remember that ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine - we live in each other's shadow. Our humanity is bound in togetherness. In common with other notable historical greats such as Stalin, Hitler and Pol Pot, Mr. Netanyahu will stand on the wrong side of history in the last analysis. To go from that to something as mundane as helicopters and security around our coasts is an inevitable leap from the sublime to the mundane. I draw attention to the fact we have swapped a good search and rescue service with CHC for a putative service with Bristow Ireland Limited. We are paying €40 million more for a much worse service. In this House, the limitations of the new AW189 helicopter have been well delineated and it is not a pretty story. Who in Government can countenance giving another €40 million to a company that has a dubious record and is giving an infrastructural service that is far less? In Waterford we have the R117 that has a rescue personnel crew of 14. It has a personnel load of 14. The AW189 cannot do anything like that, nor can it allow people stand up to deliver CPR on the helicopter. The Government cannot give €12 million to extend the runway in Waterford, but it can give €40 million to an inferior service. It is very strange.