Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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The Order of Business is No.1, motion regarding proposed approval by Seanad Éireann of the extension of sections 1 to 7, inclusive, and 9 of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021, No. 14 of 2021, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business, without debate.

Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy Leader is aware, the Oireachtas drugs committee is working to complete its report before the summer recess. As she is also aware, the Minister is producing a new drugs strategy. This week, the Health Research Board, HRB, released its latest report, which shows increasing demand for drug treatment. More than 15,000 individuals sought drug treatment in 2025. The nature of drug use has changed or is changing. It is much more widespread and much more complex. There are multiple drugs. Younger people are using synthetic drugs such as nitrous oxide. Cocaine accounts for 42% of all treatment cases. There has also been a big increase in women using drugs. There is a huge issue. Work is in hand but the House should have an urgent debate on the HRB report. Every Member of the House should seek to understand what is going on with drug use in our country. The nature of it has changed dramatically, and we need to respond accordingly.

I condemn unequivocally the illegal abduction and detainment of the peaceful protesters by Israel. This is a complete violation of international law. It is absolutely unacceptable, as the Taoiseach has indicated. These protesters need to be immediately and unconditionally released. As the Taoiseach stated, the EU must respond.

I add my voice to the many voices offering condolences to the family of Yves Sakila, the man who lost his life on Henry Street last week. It is very sad and tragic for Yves, his family, his community and for the wider community. I urge the authorities to complete the independent review of the incident as swiftly as possible. I offer my condolences to all involved. May Yves rest in eternal peace.

Mark Duffy (Fine Gael)
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This morning, I want to raise the upcoming new round of sports capital grants and the proposed introduction of the arts capital grant. It will be good to have both schemes. The arts capital grant is a new scheme. The sports capital grant benefits every community, town and village throughout the country. I reiterate the point I have made previously about some areas having a low amount of sporting infrastructure. Perhaps an urban area is without all-weather playing fields, for example, AstroTurf pitches, while other parts of a county or area may have an abundance of AstroTurf, athletics tracks and pitches. I ask the Minister for sport and the Government to see to it that a fair weighting is applied in order to make sure that areas which do not have proper sporting infrastructure, be it athletics tracks or all-weather pitches, get preferential treatment and support. There are some towns and villages that have a great supply of sporting infrastructure because they have committees and local authorities that are both on the ball and competent in terms of delivering projects. Other places might not benefit because the same skill set does not exist there. It is very important that we have a fair balance in order that no community or area will be left behind when it comes to sporting infrastructure. I would welcome the Leader's support in having this communicated to the powers that be.

I reiterate my support for the upcoming arts scheme. It will be a great addition for clubs and communities around the country. It is very badly needed. We have a very vibrant amateur dramatics scene that will now be able to avail of it. Choral groups will also be able to benefit from the scheme. It is very welcome.

I want to give a shout out to Tom Bourke and Bryan Hyland from Westport in County Mayo, who will be rowing 3,000 miles across the Atlantic in aid of the Daisy Lodge in Cong, County Mayo. It is an incredible undertaking, and they have been training for some time. They will raise much-needed funds for such an important cause. I wish them the very best and a safe voyage across the Atlantic. All of us in Mayo are very proud of them.

Joe Conway (Independent)
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Last Friday, I was privileged to meet Councillor Lola O'Sullivan and Dr. Karina Daly, the chair and chief executive of Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board.This education and training board aims to be the leader of learning through the delivery of high-quality, inclusive and innovative education and training services in the south east. Its educational and training provision includes a community national school in Wexford; a community special school in Gorey; 12 second-level schools, four of which are in Waterford; a stand-alone post-leaving certificate college called Waterford College of Further Education; a range of training centres and further education centres and services; outdoor training; youth work services; and music generation. Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board is also a significant employer in the south east with over 1,800 staff and in excess of 28,000 students and adult learners. Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board delivers many further education and training programs across Waterford and Wexford, from apprenticeships and industry training programs to English language and adult literacy.

The first national tertiary education strategy will be launched shortly by the Government. The term "tertiary education" refers to any formal education that occurs after the completion of second-level education. It is an umbrella term that covers both higher education and further education and training. With the development of the tertiary education strategy, there is an exciting opportunity for learners across the south east to benefit from closer partnership between the education and training board and South East Technological University, SETU. Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board and SETU are together developing a business case for the establishment of a tertiary campus in Wexford town. It will be the first campus of its kind in Ireland, presenting exciting and long-overdue opportunities for learners across the region. It promises greater access to specialised programmes, stronger links with local industries and a vibrant hub where students can collaborate, innovate and build careers rooted in their community. For many, it means the chance to pursue higher-level skills in areas aligned with Wexford and Waterford's growing economy and presents important opportunities for lifelong learning.

In Waterford, the education and training board is developing a proposal for the consolidation of further education and training at College Street on the site of the current SETU campus. SETU is due to vacate the buildings at College Street in 2029-30, at which point the education and training board will establish a further education and training college there. The education and training board learners, who are currently across a multiple number of programmes and buildings in Waterford city, will then have quality facilities on a campus that can cater for a modern, succinct further education and training program. I was struck by the people in the education and training board last Friday. They were very anxious that the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science would come and see at close quarters the great work that is being done there and I know that he would enjoy such a visit. I am asking if the Deputy Leader could use her good offices and those of her colleagues to impress upon the Minister how anxious we are to meet him down there. He will be given a right good Déise and Bargy welcome.

Chris Andrews (Sinn Fein)
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Amending the Dog Breeding Establishments Act has been on the legislative programme since autumn 2020. Nearly six years since policy change in this area was first considered by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, all that has emerged is a general scheme that has not even been published. The changes currently outlined appear remarkably limited. The most significant oversight in these proposals, and one that cannot be overstated, is the complete absence of a cap on the number of breeding females permitted within a dog breeding establishment. Without such a cap, Ireland risks continuing its long-standing international reputation for industrial-scale puppy farming. Once again, we appear to be legislating in a way that accommodates and legitimises industrial-scale breeding operations rather than phasing them out. There is no place in the modern animal welfare framework for puppy farms. I think everybody would be agreed on that. Any meaningful amendment to the Dog Breeding Establishments Act should begin the work of dismantling this model rather than entrenching it.

A number of weeks ago, four greyhounds were removed from a property in Parteen in County Clare by Greyhound Racing Ireland. Anyone who saw the video of the condition the four dogs were in would have been dismayed and upset at what they saw. The conditions were absolutely shocking. It now seems that the Parteen greyhounds have been returned to their former owners - the Shanakyle syndicate - and are back in those terrible conditions. I believe Greyhound Racing Ireland lied when it stated that they had been surrendered and would be re-homed as family pets. I found out that Shanakyle Valley raced on Wednesday of last week. He is the black greyhound that was shown in the video with no water in his bowl. He appeared to be particularly depressed. Of course, Greyhound Racing Ireland finds it acceptable that such sociable, sensitive and intelligent beings would live in solitary confinement in tiny cages, some without water and one with a cruel anti-bark muzzle so that it could not drink or pant. It is no surprise that these awful conditions are acceptable to Greyhound Racing Ireland given that it thinks surgical artificial insemination is okay. In addition, thousands of greyhounds are killed every year if they cannot run fast enough, hundreds die from injuries on the track and countless others are exported for breeding and hunting. This is an industry that our taxes are funding to the tune of almost €20 million every year. There have to be stronger welfare protections for greyhounds in Ireland and the greyhound racing industry has to be accountable for the vast sums of money it gets. There has to be clear transparency in how it operates and it needs to have a business plan so that the taxpayer can see where the money goes. It cannot be acceptable that the greyhound industry stands and waits with its hand out for the cheque for the transfer from the taxpayer with no transparency and no accountability.

Ollie Crowe (Fianna Fail)
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I want to raise the report this morning that Irish Rail has concluded that a new IT system to control the movement of trains across the country is unlikely to be used and has written down the €50 million value of the project in its accounts. In its 2025 accounts, which have not yet been published but were sent to the Minister for Transport, the rail company said that based on progress to date, it does not have confidence that the planned traffic management system in its current form can be deployed on the rail network. This is obviously a hugely significant write-down for a State-owned company and once the accounts have gone through the approval process by the Department of Transport, I believe it would be beneficial to ask the Minister to address the House on this matter. As Members of the House will be aware, the National Transport Authority ordered an independent review of the new system last month, which is welcome, but the indications are that it will take quite a while to complete and I think we need to provide clarity in the weeks and short months ahead, given the potential waste of taxpayers' money, which has been talked about here. I would be grateful if the Leader of the House will raise the matter with the Minister.

Manus Boyle (Fine Gael)
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I want to raise the issue of self-employed people when they become sick or unable to work. Over the past few months, I have been contacted by a couple of people in my constituency in County Donegal who have worked all their lives. They are self-employed workers who have worked hard, pay their taxes and PRSI contributions and contributed greatly to the economy and local communities. However, when illness strikes, they feel abandoned by the system. Unlike employees, who may have access to sick pay from their employers, many self-employed people have little or no financial protection when they become ill. A person can spend years building up a small business, working long hours and supporting their family only to find themselves under huge financial pressure when they become sick or unable to work. I am hearing from people who are struggling to access illness benefit, struggling to qualify for supports and facing long delays and confusion around medical card eligibility.

One of the biggest concerns is the medical card means test. A self-employed person may have a business, equipment and turnover that appear to be good on paper and appears to be earning a small amount of money but the criteria used do not make sense. Many people feel the system has abandoned them. I am asking the Minister to review this. Let us support self-employed people. They are the people who get up in the morning. They have the drive and determination to own their own business and get out and work for the country and I think we need to look after them.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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I wish to raise concerns brought to my attention today by a constituent regarding the current situation with nursing education in Ireland. She outlined the situation facing her daughter who, like her mother once did, is applying for a general nursing degree. She highlighted a growing sense of frustration among families and within the profession itself.

While nursing is formally a four-year honours degree, in reality it functions very much like an apprenticeship. Students spend long days on clinical placements, often starting early morning shifts working alongside fully qualified staff in high-pressure environments, yet they receive no pay for that labour. At the same time, they are expected to pay full university fees of €3,000 per year with limited grant support. Many students must work evenings and weekends just to afford basic costs such as transport or a car, while also managing the academic demands of the course and their own work placements.

What is unbelievable is how much has changed. There was a time, not that long ago, when student nurses were instead apprentice nurses and they were paid while they trained. They were recognised as part of the workforce. Now we have a situation where the work is the same, the shifts are still early, the pressure is still high, the responsibility is real but the pay is gone. Students are doing essential front-line work and paying for the privilege of doing so. Let me reiterate that: we have student nurses working full, back-breaking shifts and we are having them pay to do that. That is insanity.

If we are serious about addressing the ongoing shortages of nurses, then we need to rethink this model and examine whether nursing should be an apprenticeship. We must also look at retention. Whether through tax breaks, newly qualified nurses or requirements to remain in the public system for a number of years, we need to ensure that Ireland can train and retain its own nurses rather than losing talent abroad.

Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Fianna Fail)
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Today, I wish to talk about organ donor awareness. As the Leas-Cheannaire is aware, this is Organ Donor Awareness Week. We are coming to the end of it. I would like to think especially about the family of all those people who have donated organs. At the moment, there are 550 people awaiting organs in Ireland. I know the opt-out clause is in now, which obviously makes it easier for families to know that their loved ones wished to donate an organ but I think it is very important that people still have that conversation with their loved ones so they would be 100% sure that these were their wishes. I have seen at first hand, at home in Bandon, a friend of mine who received a kidney last year. He is a different man; it is just unreal. His wife said to me that she now has her husband back and I think that sums it up.

Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael)
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I met a lady last week who was looking for some help for her daughter, who is ten years of age and has been diagnosed with dyslexia. The psychologist recommended that she get a laptop for school but she was refused by the special educational needs organiser, SENO. When I asked why, I was told that apparently you need an IQ of 90 to get a laptop for school and she had an IQ of 89. I could not believe what I was hearing and this actually is the case. I thought surely we cannot be getting things this wrong.

I had a look into it and it turns out that a new assistive technology circular was due in the first quarter of this year. It has not come out yet but what it will do is give power to the school. In regard to what it will be based on, I will just read this part out: "The Department aims to shift the scheme from a diagnosis-based approach to a needs-based approach" - music to many parents' ears - "granting schools greater autonomy in determining whether a child requires assistive technology to access the curriculum."

I am calling for this to happen now. Let us ease the pressure on parents and on this mam who cannot this laptop for her daughter. I know the school is advocating for her. The circular was due in quarter 1. Can we please find out from the Minister when this new circular is going to come out in order that the schools can help all these children get their laptops to help them learn at school?

Dee Ryan (Fianna Fail)
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I raise the issue, once again, of dental care for children of schoolgoing age in the mid-west. I asked two weeks ago if we could have the Minister for Health in for a debate on healthcare in general but there are a number of issues specific to Limerick that I would like to raise with her. It has come to my attention that Limerick children are now leaving primary school without ever receiving dental screening. The legislation provides that primary school children are supposed to be offered free dental check-ups in second, fourth and sixth classes. The screenings are incredibly important because they help identify issues early and support better long-term dental health but in Limerick, there were more than 8,500 children due to receive school dental screenings in second, fourth and sixth classes in 2023 and only approximately 1,600 were actually seen. That means fewer than one in five eligible children received the check-up.

Government policy is clear; they should be getting their screenings, so I call on the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill and the Department of Health to address this regional disparity and work with the HSE mid-west to address the capacity, recruitment and retention issues that it faces. Furthermore, I call on the Minister to engage with her colleague the Tánaiste to develop dental credits for families in the upcoming budget, recognising that the cost of private dental visits is an unseen cost-of-living burden being unfairly levied on the majority of parents in Limerick. I urge the Minister to work with the Tánaiste to develop this dental tax credit for working families in the upcoming budget.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I want to touch on the issue of the Ombudsman for Children's report. It was covered very extensively on all social media outlets and on "Morning Ireland" this morning. As always, I am very supportive of the ombudsman. I know we all are here. Some might describe him as a thorn in the side of Government but that is not always a bad thing. We need to be prodded every now and again and challenged on issues around children. There is a very strict protocol and code around the conduct of the work of any ombudsman and he is always within the parameters of that. I welcome all of that and I know he has engaged extensively through the Oireachtas committees on children but also in response to Oireachtas engagement generally. I want to acknowledge that.

However, at the very end of his statement as published today by RTÉ, he raises and mentions the following. These are his words and not really mine. RTÉ reports that "Thirty-four years on from the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child... the Ombudsman for Children has called for full incorporation" of the convention into Irish law. Dr. Muldoon went on to describe Ireland's EU Presidency as "a pivotal moment in time for rights across the board". I agree with him. The Deputy Leader will recall that we had a very extensive and robust engagement in relation to the Mental Health Bill and this particular convention kept coming up. In fairness to the Minister, she pointed out that it is really a challenge across all aspects of Government, not just health, mental health and children. We have ratified this convention and it is important, therefore, that we now take steps to seek its full incorporation into Irish law. I ask if that could be progressed if possible.

Finally, in one sentence, I want to thank Members right across the House who came here last night and engaged in the debate on women in agriculture. There was an exceptionally positive sense of engagement. I met the Minister afterwards and he, too, took away from it that great sense of cross-party engagement in relation to the promotion of the UN designation of the International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026. It showed that when we work together and collaborate with each other, we can get consensus. It is not all about consensus, and I do not really like consensus in politics. It is not necessarily a good thing either but I refer to a sense of positivity about promoting and enhancing equal opportunity for women and men to access all aspects of a meaningful career in agriculture. I thank everyone who spent the time here and actively engaged. It was a really good evening's work and we have had tremendous feedback from it.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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I thank all 11 Senators who spoke this morning. Senator Fitzpatrick spoke initially about the committee work in relation to drugs and the new drug strategy that is upcoming. It is very concerning, listening to some of the media coverage over the past few days in relation to the present-day status regarding drug use and, indeed, the nature of drugs that are used. As the Senator rightly said, the use of drugs now is widespread and complex. There is no street, village, town or city that is free from this. When we look at the statistics, there is a big increase in women taking drugs. We have to appreciate that because there are more people receiving treatment, and the statistics show that, it shows that there is an increase in the treatment and other supports. That is probably the only positive thing that has been emerging. At a meeting recently with Nicola Kelly in Cuan Mhuire outside Athy in Kildare she said that is absolutely borne out in their experience on the ground at Cuan Mhuire, which operates not just in Kildare but around the country. We need to help support all those treatment centres. We need to look for more treatment beds. When somebody is at rock bottom, they are seeking help and their family are encouraging and doing everything they can to help them get the help, the State absolutely has to step in and provide that. The Senator is right about looking for an urgent debate on the HRB report. It is something that every single person in this House will support. We will look for the Minister to do that. It is a crisis.

The Senator also spoke about the illegal abduction of the flotilla. I heard on the radio this morning that they are, thankfully, being released today. It is not before time. It is absolutely shocking to see how they have been treated. It is shocking to see how the Israeli security minister did everything to try to humiliate them. That took it to another level. Like the Senator, I am very glad to see a strong Government response and the Taoiseach coming out very strongly and not just contacting but writing to the EU to say that the EU collectively needs to take a stronger stance. We wish the protestors, who were trying to bring both educational and medical aid to those who are suffering huge challenges, problems and indignities in Gaza, a speedy return home. The issue itself is not going away, so we need to have that EU co-operation. I thank the Taoiseach for leading that response.

She also raised the tragic situation of Yves Sakila who lost his life on Henry Street in very tragic circumstances. We all need to extend our sympathy to Yves's family, the Congolese community and, of course, the community in the area. We need to have that investigation carried out very quickly. We need to have a strong sense of what happened. While the investigation within the Garda is ongoing, because a private security firm was involved initially there is that investigation as well. It was a shocking event. We all need to be very concerned about it.

Senator Duffy spoke about the new round of sports capital community grants and the arts capital grants, which is a new venture. He asked that there would be a consideration of places where there are gaps and places that do not have a lot of investment in sports facilities. From my understanding, there is a mechanism to capture that, and rightly so. Within the past few years, the system that is used to allocate funding has a lot of different measures, including female participation, inclusive measures where people with disabilities are involved, looking at geographical areas that have not received parity in funding and looking at minority sports that have not received parity in funding. The sports partnerships have a key role to play because they do excellent work in relation to trying to ensure that there is a level playing field - excuse the pun. We want to make sure that no community is left behind. We certainly support the Senator on what he said.

He also spoke about the upcoming arts scheme. This is certainly something that I fought hard to have included. There are so many within all the communities that we serve who do not participate in sport for different reasons but are very interested in cultural and arts activities within their communities. Our amateur drama groups around the country are incredible. I got to see a number of plays this year, between the Rathangan Drama Festival and the Kildare Drama Festival. What we see on our stage from amateur drama is incredible. We need to be doing everything we can to support them to have venues. The Senator mentioned the different choral groups. We need to do anything we can to support youth theatre. At the moment, we are undergoing a review at the suggestion of Senator Black in relation to one of our subcommittees here in the Seanad on arts venues across the country. That will throw up some interesting information and recommendations that will go to the Minister for culture and arts.

Senator Duffy also spoke about Tom Bourke and Bryan Hyland from Westport who are undergoing a row across the Atlantic in aid of Daisy Lodge in Cong. We all wish them well.

Senator Conway spoke about Waterford and Wexford ETB and his meeting with the chair and CEO last week. He raised the breadth of work that is going on, between schools, training, music generation and different youth groups. There are 1,800 staff and 28,000 students. The ETBs have taken on a lot around the country and have to be commended on that. He raised the collaboration with SETU and a new campus in Wexford town. He is looking for the Minister, Deputy Lawless, to visit. Although we are very happy to have adopted him in Kildare, the Minister is a very proud Wexford man. His formative roots were in Gorey. I have no doubt that he would be happy to go down. We will certainly ask him to do that.

Senator Andrews spoke about the dog breeding Act. We have been waiting for this for a long time and the Senator has been looking for a debate in the Seanad for a long time. We have sent the request in every single time. We did not get it. Regarding this Act, we will have it. He was negative about the draft legislation. I know he will make salient points when we come to discuss it. It is very welcome that we have the draft legislation there. It is going to look at welfare and breeding, sales and record-keeping, administration and enforcement. The previous update was in 2010. Over the latter few years in particular, there has been a huge growth in the illicit dog-breeding industry. It is about time that we have this. What is welcome is that there will be a minimum number of full-time staff workers with every 20 dogs. There will be strict limits on female breeding, with a maximum of four over the life of a female dog, or six if certified by a vet. For breeding dogs, it can only be one litter per year. We have to welcome that. The main point the Senator was making is that there is not a limit in the draft Act in terms of the number of breeding dogs. I accept that. We will have the opportunity to ensure that goes in as an amendment. I would certainly agree with that at this point in time.

Senator Crowe spoke about a proposed new IT system for trains to make sure that they are running on time. There has to be a huge amount of co-ordination. I use the train when I can - I used it yesterday morning. There is a big issue with trains coming from the north and trains coming from the south and west. The trains from the south and west are using the Phoenix Park tunnel and trying to come into Pearse Street. It is causing problems on both ends. We need this new system and we need it to work.The Senator is telling me now that Iarnród Éireann has said the system cannot be deployed after a significant amount of money has been spent on it. This is the first that I have heard of it. The National Transport Authority has ordered an independent review and we need to have that as soon as possible. The Senator asked whether the Minister could come in to address it and look at it. We will certainly look for that. Effective, affordable and accessible public transport is key to so many things we do. I genuinely feel lucky that I can access that in Kildare. I know so many people who cannot access it in other places. Having said that, the announcement yesterday of the rail link to Navan is really good, so there are good things happening as well, but we will request that.

Senator Manus Boyle spoke about self-employed people and the challenges they have. I absolutely agree with him that we need entrepreneurs in this country. We need people to take risks. They are the people who pay the taxes and who provide the employment that gives the State the money to be able to pay the people it has to, including teachers, nurses, doctors, gardaí and so on. It is very concerning. I come from a family that has been in business so I totally understand the concerns and the stresses. I know very good people in business. There is concern about their pension when they finish. As the Senator said, there are concerns about access to medical cards and so on. These are the people who have been paying the pension contributions and PRSI for their employees. We do need to have a debate with the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. It is a really important point. We have to support our SMEs within the country. We have to see what supports we can put in place for them now that the minimum wage has been raised again, and rightly so. It is another challenge for people to meet. Again, these are the businesses that provide the raffle prizes and supports to local community groups, local schools, local GAA clubs and local sporting clubs. We will look for a debate. I think we need to have it.

Senator Keogan spoke about the current situation in nursing education. Only last week, we spoke about International Nurses Day and how important it is to recognise the 93,000 nurses we have in this country who are working not just in hospital settings but in clinic settings and in nursing homes. Their training is hugely important. Obviously, the placement part is hugely important. Trainee teachers, especially primary school teachers, have the same issues. I have no doubt that it is hard to balance the academic demands with that and then to financially cover the costs of living and learning. That training element ceased when nursing became a degree course. We will ask the Minister, Deputy Lawless, to look at it and we will ask him to come in to have a debate. The Senator also mentioned retention. That is an issue for the Minister for Health, but obviously it is important that we look at ways we can retain our nurses who do such a valuable job. We will bring that to the Minister's attention.

Senator Murphy O'Mahony spoke about Organ Donor Awareness Week, and how we should always remember those who have donated and the families of those who have donated during this week, and of course those recipients whose lives have been changed. It has been life-saving. At the moment there are 550 people waiting for organ donation. It is really interesting that since the opt-out clause came in we have had fewer donations. That is a little bit concerning. We have to have those conversations. The gift of life is hugely important and we all have a job to do on that within our own communities.

Senator Nelson Murray spoke about the situation of somebody who came to her with a child with dyslexia who was refused assistive technology. Assistive technology is hugely important. It has always been a battle to get it and I have never understood that. I have had to undertake battles and had to raise it within the House. While it is a significant amount of money for a laptop or any type of assistive technology, it is going to help a young person not just learn but actually increase their confidence and self-esteem. That is what I came across in the personal situations I was helping with. The children themselves felt they were being looked down on. They felt they were being targeted for low-level bullying and their self-esteem was low. We absolutely have to get this right. We certainly will look to see when that circular will commence. We will ask. Maybe it is worth putting in a Commencement matter with the Minister for education as well. It is important. It transforms lives.

Senator Dee Ryan spoke about dental care, not for the first time. She spoke about the statistics from 2023 within Limerick when 8,500 children were entitled to get it and only 1,600 were seen, which was one in five. It is simply not good enough. There is a regional disparity. It is a very good suggestion that we look at developing dental tax credits for families. As one of 11, my parents were driving us to the dentist every single week. I am sure they would have been delighted with a tax credit at the time. It is a really good suggestion that needs to be taken up. We will ask for the Minister for Health on that regional disparity.

Senator Boyhan spoke about two issues. He spoke about the Ombudsman for Children's report. I heard a little bit of it this morning. Dr. Niall Muldoon is doing an incredible job. We all stand over it, and we respect and support what he says and his observations every year, as we should. As the Senator said, 34 years after ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child we need to ensure that the rights of children are fully incorporated. I say hello to all of the boys and girls here today in the Gallery. It is something that is important to all of them as well. I know that the priorities have not been announced yet and are only being finalised because Ireland does not take over the Presidency until 1 July. We have many competing challenges at this stage but it is something that I will bring to the attention of the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne.

I disagree with Senator Boyhan on one thing. The Senator referred to the debate last night, which I believe was an excellent debate. I thank the Senator for tabling that motion. Senator Boyhan said he thought consensus is not always important among politicians. I think consensus is hugely important. While we will have disagreements and different views on things, working together to have consensus is mature and important. It is what people want to see us doing. The people we represent want to see those in the Opposition and those in the Government working together.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I welcome St. Paul's National School from Ratoath, who are guests of the Minister, Deputy Helen McEntee. They are all very welcome here today. I also give a special shout-out to Eva O'Leary, also with the school, who is the niece of Councillor Keith Connolly who works here in Leinster House. They are very welcome and as is customary here there is no homework for the rest of the week. They are all very welcome. Enjoy your visit.