Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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Glaoim anois chun an Ord Gnó a léamh ag an Leas-Cheannaire, sé sin the Order of Business.

Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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The Order of Business is No. 1, Gambling Regulation Bill 2022 - Committee Stage (resumed), to be taken at 11.45 a.m. and to adjourn at 2.45 p.m., if not previously concluded; and No. 2, Motor Insurance Insolvency and Compensation Bill 2024 - Second Stage, to be taken at 2.45 p.m., with the time allocated for the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes and time can be shared, all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than five minutes to reply to the debate.

Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail)
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I rise today in anger and frustration. I am sure every Member of the House feels the same about the ongoing saga of the spending of taxpayers' money on infrastructure associated with this complex. I am talking about the bike shelter and "security pavilion", as it is being described. It would be laughable if it were not so serious. I am furious and livid over this. I am dealing with community groups, families and individuals who are struggling with the cost of living. It is entirely unacceptable that the OPW or any arm of the State would spend taxpayers' money with such a laissez-faire attitude and abandon. The OPW is charged with looking after our State facilities and has a huge responsibility, within which is the Moore Street national monument, which it has yet to demonstrate real and obvious progress on. This House needs to bring the Minister with responsibility for the OPW in here to engage with us on this very serious matter, which is engaging all of our citizens.

I commend the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, who is today bringing to Cabinet proposals to amend the adaptation grant. These grants are incredibly important for people who are living with disabilities and want to continue to live independently in their own homes. The State steps in and helps them financially to adapt their homes and make them comfortable and fit-for-purpose. Grant and threshold incomes are to be increased and the means test is to be amended. This is welcome news and I commend the Government on it.

I urge the Government to push forward on the great progress it has made on women's health. Over the course of its term, we have had free contraception and IVF, gynaecology clinics and the establishment of menopause clinics. The next step that needs to be taken in respect of women's health is to introduce free HRT in the budget next week. I urge the Minister and Government to introduce free HRT so the continuation of a woman's fertility is supported by the State and Government.

Nikki Bradley (Fine Gael)
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I would like to raise the issue of defective concrete blocks and ask for an update on increased payments. When I became a Senator, the first thing I did was take it upon myself to visit the families affected by this devastation. There were no cameras or fanfare; it was just me sitting down with families. What I saw I will never forget. We need an update and for this to be taken seriously. Every single person in Donegal has been affected by this, my family included. I was led to believe that an update was coming and I am not sure what is happening now. I would welcome any positive news that could come our way because we really needed. Furthermore, I would like to invite the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, to address this issue and have a conversation around it.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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I call for a debate with the Ministers for Health and Justice on concerns about human trafficking and the vulnerability of those engaged in commercial surrogacy.University College Dublin, UCD, released a report earlier on prostitution websites. It has been covered by RTÉ and in the Irish Examiner and the headlines do not make for good reading. One states, "Concern women and girls exploited in online sex trade across Ireland". That should be shocking enough, given it relates to children. The other headline reads, "Sex websites 'are facilitating exploitation of women by pimps and traffickers'". That should get both Ministers exercised.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has warned that the commercial surrogacy industry in many countries is rife with human rights abuses. Ireland has become the first country in the EU to legalise commercial surrogacy, through the assisted human reproduction Act we passed earlier this year. Commercial surrogacy is rife with human trafficking and exploitation. A clinic in Greece that was investigated was offering its commercial surrogacy services on the Internet. It was found the women there had been enticed from significantly poorer countries such as Georgia and Albania. Brenda Power, speaking on Newstalk recently about this Greek clinic, stated that when these Georgian women arrived at the clinic, they were impregnated against their will and that their babies were sold internationally to couples. Women being forced to conceive children is akin to rape.

The most dangerous aspect of the assisted reproduction legislation in Ireland is the risk that women overseas will be taken advantage of. Our law can in no way affect how countries such as Ukraine or India legislate for commercial surrogacy. That is the real danger of facilitating Irish people in engaging in surrogacy services abroad. We are rubber-stamping inhumane practices that are inextricably linked to human trafficking. In Ukraine, surrogacy clinics advertise that there are no legal means by which the surrogate mother can ever change her mind. When we passed this law in June, the Minister stated that the Bill was designed to safeguard against the sale, trafficking and exploitation of children. He went on to say, "The provisions of the Bill are designed to prevent abusive or exploitative practices involving surrogate mothers and to protect their rights, interests and welfare." There is no other way to frame surrogacy. It is the sale of children and the exploitation of vulnerable women from poorer countries. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission wrote twice to the Minister, on 31 January and 11 April of this year, yet had not received a response by the date of drafting of its third evaluation of the implementation of the EU anti-trafficking directive. The Commission stated that it remains concerned that the international surrogacy provisions cannot be regulated to an equivalent extent, leading to a double standard of protections between international and domestic surrogacy arrangements.

I call for a continued debate on this matter in the interests of preventing human trafficking and protecting women and girls in this country.

Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein)
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I raise two issues, the first of which is one I have raised previously. It is a difficult one because it involves the appalling practices of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman’s office. A man lost his life in tragic circumstances related to his work and a €670,000 sum from his pension, which he had earned over his lifetime, has not been passed on to the family. I will not mention the details because that would not be appropriate, but the family have been trying to pursue that money and get what is rightfully theirs. The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman erred in law and denied them, so they took a case to the High Court, which backed the family and agreed that the decision was wrong. The High Court does not have the power, however, to implement its own decision, so it handed back the case to the ombudsman. The family have been left for years since then with no final decision. A further preliminary decision was made backing the original error in law and since then, they have been left waiting for years with no response. When it does come, if the ombudsman upholds its original decision, the family will then be faced with taking a further High Court case to once again make clear that the organisation has erred in law.

I know of other cases like this. The office is just not functioning well. There is a huge turnover of staff, with no continuity or decisions made. I again appeal to the Analog company, a good employer in Limerick, to do the right thing in this case. This was a senior member of its staff who dedicated years of service to the organisation. There is something morally and fundamentally wrong with this issue. I ask that we have a debate on the really poor performance of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman's office because it has clearly failed in this case and it is not the only one.

On the second issue, I have just come from a meeting relating to the occupied territories Bill organised by Senator Black. She will be able to speak to it much more eloquently than I can, but the message from the meeting was clear. There is no legal impediment to passing the occupied territories Bill. What is lacking is the political will to do so. Especially in light of The Ditch’s revelation yesterday in regard to the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, we really need to see Fine Gael stand up on this issue. It is not good enough to sit with our arms folded and say we are waiting for further legal advice. The advice is very clear and a former Attorney General who sits in this House has told us the same. There is no impediment. Belgium has taken this action already. This Government should not end before the occupied territories Bill is passed. I appeal to all Senators. All of us should be on the same side here. Let us take a stand for what is right. Let us pass the occupied territories Bill and we can all be proud of taking that action.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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We are very conscious of the difficult and escalating situation in Lebanon. The Tánaiste and Minister for Defence is in daily contact with those from Ireland who are serving there, and there is every possibility the areas of Lebanon in which Irish peacekeepers operate will be targeted by Israeli Defense Forces missiles. Many local people in my area, south Kildare, take part in such peacekeeping missions and we have a long and proud history of that service. I am told the morale of soldiers serving in UNIFIL is strong, even though they are dealing with very challenging circumstances. We are all very concerned. I acknowledge their service and the sacrifice being made by the soldiers serving in the region. We are thinking of all of them and their families at this time and I know that all my colleagues here will join me in that.

I also wish to give a shoutout for Social Inclusion Week. I have seen some really good events happening in my area, south Kildare. Last night, I attended an event held by the Newbridge Ryston Badminton Club over the weekend. Kare had an excellent exclusion showcase of many types of craft and on Saturday, Newbridge for All had an excellent showcase for all different community and voluntary groups. Over the weekend, in Athy, Maggie Owens and her wonderful Irish sign language, ISL, team will have a weekend of demonstrating different types of communication, especially sign language. In fact, they had visited the House to celebrate Seanad 100. It is wonderful to see all these events celebrating social inclusion.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I raise an issue I have raised frequently over recent years, namely, school transport, and the bizarre scenario that is happening in Cork. I am dealing with two cases, one of which relates to Laragh National School, where we eventually got movement and an agreement that it would go to Bus Éireann to get a bigger bus. Bus Éireann's response now is that the roads are too narrow for a bigger bus, so even though the Department of Education has asked it to look for a solution to the problem in order that 22 children can go to school, Bus Éireann is saying the road network around Bandon is too dangerous for a bigger bus to be put on it. It is roadblock after roadblock.

I have no confidence the Minister's proposals to bring in real change to the school transport system by 2030 will be delivered by Bus Éireann. It is the operator that will not allow 70-year-olds to drive buses. As we all know, there is a shortage of bus drivers throughout this country. It is now saying the road network is not suitable for a 52-seater bus, but there can be a 32-seater bus on the exact same road network. What is happening is bizarre, to say the least.We need to have a debate with the Minister about her confidence in trying to make sure her proposal for our school transportation system by 2030 will mean nearly everyone will be delivered by Bus Éireann. From what I have seen, it is doing nothing to help the cause of trying to deliver that. It is putting up roadblocks. I am disappointed, to say the least, that the children of Laragh National School will not have the bus service they deserve. There is another group of people from Minane Bridge and Nohoval who are trying to get to Kinsale Community School but we cannot even get a response. We need to get movement on the operator. The issue is around who is controlling the entire thing. I fundamentally believe there is a roadblock here. The Minister needs to intervene, otherwise the school transportation system will fall apart in the next few years.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I concur with some of the remarks from Senator Fitzpatrick on the bicycle shelter. It is somewhat disappointing that we have politicians, some of them who are members of the commission here, in the Houses, queuing up to point the blame, saying that the commission had no knowledge or involvement. We have a commission that runs this House and should have known. The construction of it has been under our nose, and the nose of anyone who comes in and out, for the past nine months. We knew what was going on.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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Sorry, Senator Boyhan. Just to clarify, and not to have an argument, the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, as the Senator knows, does not have a capital budget, so has no jurisdiction to spend money. The Ceann Comhairle has made it quite clear. To be fair of all members of the commission who operate on behalf of the Members of the Oireachtas, they were not involved in the spending and the allocation of funding, and there should be no inference that they were.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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There was no inference. I never said anything about spending. I said they should have known what was going on.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I know. Just to clarify-----

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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Let us not start defending the case.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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We are not defending it.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I am talking to the public outside of here. This is a body - the commission - which is paid and has a function, a responsibility and oversight for the running of these Houses. I want to put it on notice that there is a proposal currently before the commission to do extensive changes to our Library beneath this beautiful room. It will cost millions of euro to do and to operate. Let us be on notice so we are not here in another six months, talking about another scandal of waste of public money.

We are seeing this concern. I am not saying who authorised the money but I am saying the commission and the people here should have known what was going on and should have asked questions. It is easy to romp in here after the summer and blame the Office of Public Works and everybody else. Let us, as politicians, take responsibility for things that are going on within our campus. I accept the Cathaoirleach is right in that the commission had no dealings with the funding of it. However, we surely should know what is going on in the centre of Parliament, in the parliamentary complex.

I want a note of fairness. The Office of Public Works does amazing work in keeping this building and the National Botanic Gardens - 30 or 40 buildings around the city. Let us not scapegoat people. This happened because someone wanted it to happen. Let us take our fair share of blame and responsibility. Because the public is outraged, suddenly the politicians are outraged.

I want to finished on this. Let it be a marker. Let us not destroy our Library below this room. Let us not incur any further public expense and make more excuses. We are on notice here today, as we were yesterday by my good colleague, Senator Michael McDowell, who had an extensive piece in The Irish Times, which I recommend that people read. Let us take responsibility for what is under our noses in this place.

Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the changes the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys, is making in respect of jobseeker’s benefit for people who are working to be on a sliding scale in terms of when they lose their job. They will not just go straight onto €220 a week. The job they have is taken into account. The changes that happen for someone who suddenly loses their job and the expenses they have is taken into account for a period of six months. That is extremely welcome. However, I ask that we include people who are undergoing cancer treatment and might be out of work for a period of time. I ask that they be on that sliding scale, as opposed to being on illness benefit of €220. They have the exact same challenges, if not more, than those who lose their job. We are bringing in this really good change in payment for people who are newly unemployed. It would be a shame if we are unintentionally leaving out individuals who are going through cancer treatment.

I always talk about road projects. We need to look long term at people who travel from Munster to Dublin and Northern Ireland. As we all know, for long parts of the day, the M50 is like a car park. I was talking to a colleague of mine, Councillor Peter Doyle, at the weekend in Limerick. He suggested we should look at something like a longer ring road around Dublin, perhaps from Naas to Ashbourne, that would alleviate an awful lot of traffic. The M50 will only get worse, and we should have a long-term view of what can be done. This would make it much easier for people in Munster to travel to Belfast, it would increase tourism from the north to the south of the entire country, and it is something we should look at going forward.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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There is much wisdom in the Senator's conversation with Councillor Peter Doyle. They are dead right.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I was at the finance committee yesterday and the bike shed and the various other buildings were discussed. It was frightening to hear some of the figures being put out. I know we will discuss it further, so I will leave it there. I will have my opportunity at committee.

Regarding carers, €20 billion will be saved a year if there is more investment in carers. I acknowledge that the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, has done so much for carers in terms of pensions, other allowances and allowing part-time carers to come into the system. However, we need to look at carers. Many carers provide 24-7 care to their loved ones. They save the €20 billion by keeping people at home. If people had to go into long-term care, it would cost that amount of money. We need to have a wider debate. There was a vote in Dáil last week to do with the removal of the means test for carers. We need to have a wider debate on the issue of carers and how we can provide for them. Many I have seen say that even though they get an allowance, it does not cover all they have to do. I would like to see this explored, and perhaps we can have a debate when the Minister is free in the future.

Martin Conway (Fine Gael)
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I support Shane Hamilton and Ellie Woods, who are running a campaign with the Department of Education that Irish Sign Language should be part of the leaving certificate curriculum. We have Polish, Chinese and Ukrainian, for example. We have many languages, but we do not have our own Irish Sign Language as a subject for the leaving certificate. I think they are absolutely right. We need to recognise our Irish Sign Language and we need to have it as part of the leaving certificate. I am looking for a debate at some stage generally on Irish Sign Language, but specifically on Irish Sign Language within the education system. We incumbents in this House recognised Irish Sign Language, and it was a great day. It was a great day when President signed the legislation that was initiated here by our Leas-Chathaoirleach. I want to see that happen. It is a great campaign and it would be another step on the road to equality.

I also support arrangements next week for debates on the budget. The budget is next Tuesday. There are many people in small businesses waiting eagerly for what measures will be in the budget to help them through what is a very difficult period with spiralling costs. I particularly want to see something concrete and meaningful done to support the coffee shops, small restaurants and small cafés in this country. There is nothing better for our towns and villages, and our tourism offering, than having many little places where people can go, have a cup of coffee, have a bun, have a sandwich or a bowl of soup, and have an engagement with locals and staff. Unfortunately, we will see many of these close unless something meaningful and practical is done to support them in the budget.The 9% VAT rate for food and beverages would be great, but if that is not going to happen, something meaningful needs to happen for the independently owned small coffee shops that offer a great service to our culture and communities the length and breadth of the country.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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Well said.

Micheál Carrigy (Fine Gael)
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I agree with Senator Conway's comment that ISL should be part of the leaving certificate curriculum. It is important. We want to have a fully inclusive education system, and that is one way of doing it.

I support the calls for supports for the tourism and hospitality sector, particularly small businesses in the sector that are struggling in every single town and village. These are difficult times. I have a small business myself so I understand the challenges that exist. I would like to see supports, particularly for the café and hospitality sector. There has been a campaign for a 9% VAT rate. I realise there is a significant cost but it is important that we support the industry so it will not haemorrhage tens of thousands of jobs.

I apologise for being late. I got caught in traffic.

Today is the first-ever National Special Needs Assistant Appreciation Day. This is an initiative of the education division of Fórsa, the union that represents SNAs. I raise this as the parent of a young son I dropped at preschool this morning with a present to give in appreciation of his SNA, Ms Carroll, who has been his SNA for a number of years, treats him very well and gives him an opportunity to have an equal chance in the education system. It is important to recognise those who work in this field. Special needs assistants make all our schools special, not just the special schools. They are dedicated, compassionate and committed to supporting children with challenges in life. I thank SNAs throughout the country for their dedication, kindness, patience and support for all our children, including my son, and families. It is extremely important. While it is important to appreciate SNAs, it is also important to recognise the investment made by the Government to ensure SNAs are in place to support all the children in our education system.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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We join the Senator in congratulating and thanking all the SNAs in our schools, who do Trojan work. We send our sincere appreciation to them. I thank the Senator for raising the matter.

Barry Ward (Fine Gael)
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Ar dtús báire, is mian liom a rá gur dúirt duine éigin liom cúpla bliain ó shín go raibh níos mó daoine ag labhairt Gaeilge gach lá i mo Dháilcheantar féin ná in aon áit eile sa tír taobh amuigh den Ghaeltacht. Cé nach bhfuil a fhios agam an bhfuil sé sin fíor nó nach bhfuil, níl ach dhá Ghaelscoil i nDáilcheantar Dhún Laoghaire, is iad sin Scoil Lorcáin i mBaile na Manach – an “OG” mar a deirtear – a bunaíodh i 1972, agus Gaelscoil Phadraig i mBaile Breac. We had Gaelscoil Laighean in Deansgrange but it has been moved to a new site in Dublin Rathdown, with which we were delighted to facilitate it. Gaelscoil Phádraig, which is very much the smaller of the two Gaelscoileanna, is in Ballybrack. It serves a small community and is a small school. It has been waiting for a long number of years for a permanent site. I have been in the school and have been involved in activities with it. It is located in prefabs in a housing estate in Ballybrack, which is far from ideal. The school cannot grow and is constrained by the existing buildings. It has a new site in that a place has been identified in Ballyowen Meadows, where the school will move eventually, although we are probably talking about years. The biggest problem the school has is that no survey has taken place identifying what exactly will be built at Ballyowen Meadows, when it will be built and what it will include. As far as I know, it does not include a halla, for example. Any school looking forward to its future needs to have certainty about what is going to be in place because this allows it to plan for enrolment numbers, the types of pupils, the needs of pupils and so on.

We could have a debate in this House on Gaelscoileanna and Gaeloideachas in general. There is another problem in my area around Cherrywood and the Gaelcholáiste that should be located there. When schools are chosen, the electorate, if you like, or the people surveyed, come from a much wider area than the narrow geographical area concerned. I call on the Minister to address the problem of Gaeloideachas and put in place facilities to ensure it is given priority. Where things are actually moving along, as in the case of Gaelscoil Phádraig, surveys should be done in a timely fashion, as requested, to allow schools to plan. The more they can plan, the better the schools built and the better they will serve the wider community, particularly those who want education trí mheán na Gaeilge.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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Míle buíochas. Anois, glaoim ar Leas-Cheannaire an tSeanaid chun freagra a thabhairt ar an Ord Gnó.

Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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I thank all Senators for their contributions on the Order of Business. Senator Fitzpatrick started off by raising Leinster House spending, and Senator Boyhan commented on that as well. Senator Boyhan was right in one regard - we all saw the bike shed being built, yet no one, including him, queried its cost. No one imagined what the costs would be and everybody assumed they would be reasonable. It is not wrong to request a bike shelter in Leinster House. Any place of employment should have or request a bike shelter. A decision was made by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission to approve or engage with the OPW on the construction of a bike shelter, but nobody imagined a bike shelter could cost what it cost, and that includes every Member of these Houses who had an opportunity to raise the matter if he or she had concerns. Representatives of the OPW were before the finance committee during the week answering questions on this. Senator Fitzpatrick called for a debate on this matter with the relevant Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell. I will request that.

Senator Fitzpatrick also welcomed the increase in the adaptation grants due to be announced. I certainly welcome that. It is an issue that has been raised in my own party and, I am sure, the Senator's.

The Senator also called for improved funding and free HRT for women in the forthcoming budget. We eagerly await announcements in that regard. Our colleague Senator Maria Byrne also raised this in the House – last week, I believe.

Senator Nikki Bradley requested an update from the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, which I will seek. She asked that he come to the House to address the ongoing issues pertaining to mica. I was in Donegal during the summer and noted mica is definitely a major issue of concern, particularly in the northern half of the county. A former colleague, the late councillor Bernard McGuinness, was at the forefront in initiating the first schemes put in place, which were welcomed by all parties at the time. The former Minister, Deputy Joe McHugh, was involved in pursuing this with the Government. I know there are concerns over the working of a scheme. A start is being made and houses are undergoing changes, including demolition and reconstruction. Drawing down the grants is a slow process but there are now people benefiting from them. It is important to acknowledge that. However, there are certainly concerns in the county and I will ask the relevant Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, to come to the House to address them.

Senator Keogan quite rightly talked about human trafficking and the reports on RTÉ and in the papers today on prostitution websites, online sex trading across Ireland and the exploitation of women and girls. They say prostitution is the oldest profession in the world, and obviously people are free to make up their own minds as to what they do with their bodies where they have a choice, but this is a matter of where people do not have a choice. Sex trafficking is horrendous and unfortunately the Internet and all that goes with it have made accessing prostitution perhaps different or easier than it was. I acknowledge the Senator's concerns and points and her raising of this matter.

I disagree with the Senator bringing the issue of surrogacy into this. We had a debate on this in these Houses over recent months and have passed surrogacy legislation, which was supported overwhelmingly by all parties. We know of the love and support of mothers, including in this House, for their surrogate children. Our colleague Senator Mary Seery Kearney has outlined, on behalf of so many parents, the necessity of the rights the new legislation affords to those who love their children who have come into this world via surrogacy.

Senator Paul Gavan raised concerns regarding the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman. The case he mentioned sounds very difficult for the family in question. Where the High Court has made a decision, there should be a methodology for the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman to follow it up and, in the case in question, ensure the family of the late gentleman receives the resources from the pension pot he had paid into.I certainly will request the Minister to engage on that. Perhaps the Senator could put down a Commencement matter and we could start a debate on that process. The Senator also talked about the occupied territories Bill. I will again raise this with the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence to see whether he will come into the House to talk on that matter.

Senator Fiona O'Loughlin spoke about the worrying issues for peacekeepers in Lebanon. I note the comments of the Lebanese Prime Minister who has expressed the hope that a ceasefire can be reached soon to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah which has obviously shaken his country. There are fears of a ground invasion. It is important and we also note that there is a debate at the United Nations calling for a 21-day ceasefire across the Israeli-Lebanon border. I am sure the Tánaiste and the Government are keeping under review the safety of our peacekeepers in that part of the world. The Senator also talked about social inclusion week and the groups in County Kildare and elsewhere that do tremendous work in social inclusion.

Senator Lombard raised issues relating to school transport. He has championed that issue over a long number of years. He called for a debate with the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley. We also have to include the Minister for Transport in the provision of buses. There are issues in my constituency with weight limits on bridges, which prohibits larger buses. The Senator spoke about the road network being unsuitable. There are many issues but the Ministers have to take on board the issues and concerns Senator Lombard has raised. I will certainty call for a debate on that.

Senator Ahearn spoke about the changes the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is advocating bringing in for those losing their jobs. Concurrent with what she is doing and what the Senator commented upon regarding that support relates to those who are suffering from cancer. It is said one in two of us will suffer from cancer in our lifetime. It is important that is taken on board when it comes to those who have to leave their jobs because of ongoing cancer treatment. Senator Ahearn also talked about investment in road infrastructure. It is important that, for major road projects, we keep the momentum up and that we do not save a million or two only to set a project back for five years, which will cost money in the long term. With a growing population, we need improved national infrastructure as well as the necessary investment in public transport, whether that be for the DART, cycle lanes, greenways or whatever that assists in getting people out of their cars.

Senator Maria Byrne talked again about the importance of carers and hoped they will be acknowledged and looked after in next week's budget. We can all agree on that. We had a debate here on this matter some months ago.

Senator Conway raised an interesting issue about including Irish Sign Language as a curriculum subject in the leaving certificate. I certainly support that call. That was also supported by Senator Carrigy. Both Senators also called for supports for coffee shops and small businesses that are the heartbeat of many small towns and urban areas. We certainly hope there can be acknowledgement in next week's budget of the role and importance of these businesses.

Senator Carrigy also expressed best wishes to Ms Carroll and all other SNAs throughout the country for the tremendous work they do. It acknowledges the Government investment over a long number of years to increase the number of SNAs, who do tremendous work to give the best chance to every child. That is an important issue. We wish our SNAs well on SNA appreciation day.

Labhair Senator Ward faoi Ghaelscoil Phádraig agus an tábhacht a bhaineann leis na Gaelscoileanna agus na Gaelcholáistí trasna na tíre. Baineann sé seo ach go háirithe lena dháilcheantar féin, Dún Laoghaire. Cuirim fáilte roimh an nuacht go bhfuil suíomh faighte ag Gaelscoil Phádraig anois, ach teastaíonn dul chun cinn maidir leis an méid atá á lorg ag pobal na scoile, mar shampla, áiseanna agus halla. Tá halla fíor-thábhachtach do scoil ar bith agus aontaím leis an méid sin. Tá suirbhé de dhíth faoi na rudaí atá ag teastáil uaidh phobal Ghaelscoil Phádraig. I agree that the Gaelscoil movement and Gaelcholáistí are very important. There is a demand and it is important that demand be recognised and invested in. There are limitations in some ways in ensuring we have enough teachers, particularly in Gaelcholáistí. Planning to ensure there are sufficient places in our school training system would be advantageous. I certainly support the Senator's call for the necessary works in Gaelscoil Pádraig. For a fuller response, he can put down a Commencement matter on that issue with the Minister and it would be hoped he would get a clear response.