I thank the Minister of State for coming in to speak with us today on the 2020 Annual Transition Statement. How our society is going to have to adapt to change behaviours in respect of climate is crucial. We know every person in this country will have to change how they live, work, travel and run his or her home. I very much appreciate the very detailed update the Minister of State gave us. I will go through a couple of the points he mentioned in his opening statement. My concern lies with the most vulnerable and a…

I thank the Minister of State for his time.

I want to highlight that the Battle of Aughrim Visitors' Centre was reopened yesterday. Especially after the lockdown and Covid-19, people have been coming back to visit many of our heritage sites all around the country. Although we can travel now, there is still much to see in our local areas. The Battle of Aughrim was an historic battle that took place in 1691 between Williamites and Jacobites. In this visitors' centre, people can see what it was like. It was the single largest loss of Irish life on Irish soil in…

I welcome the Tánaiste to the Seanad. As Minister, he has championed so many policies. His commitment today concerns statutory sick leave. This is about his commitment to achieving his goals for workers' rights. It really shows how Fine Gael's policies are ensuring rights for those on all wages, especially those on the minimum wage. We know that more than half of all businesses provide sick leave. The remainder are more than likely in low-pay sectors. Therefore, it is crucial that this Bill delivers for those in th…

I welcome the Minister. This Government is one for every citizen of our country. Fine Gael is a party that is fighting for all in our society, including the most vulnerable. The Government and our country have welcomed more than 35,000 people from Ukraine, mainly women and children. We are a country which, through a pandemic and a lockdown, introduced unprecedented supports that were brought forward by the Leader of the House in her previous role. Those supports have resulted in the highest ever number of people in…

I acknowledge Senator Currie's contribution and those of many other colleagues. What we are hearing from the UK today is atrocious. Naomi Long, head of the Alliance Party, spoke on Radio 1 this morning. She was very clear that the majority of people in Northern Ireland, and the majority of MLAs, who are the representatives of Northern Ireland, wish to see an operational Northern Ireland protocol. She spoke very clearly about the importance for the communities in Northern Ireland and how it is about quality of life …

I welcome the Minister of State, who has responsibility for communications and the circular economy. This is all about tackling challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste and pollution. As the Minister of State is fully aware, it is based on three principles: eliminating waste and pollution; circulating products and materials; and regenerating nature as well. Design is so important here. We all talk about products and the end user and how when we design a product the end user has to be part of that to…

To clarify, paragraph (f) refers to "information on any medical treatments, procedures or vaccinations". That would include any type of treatment the person would have experienced. That is extremely clear in the legislation we have in front of us.

I ask for clarification on whether the types of institutions Senator Higgins referred to are included under the HSE. Are those areas covered in those parts of the section that relate to the Minister for Health and the HSE? This is something that should be included as part of that.

Like Senator Higgins, I appreciate the importance of this provision. It is contact with the person involved, which is so crucial. As the Minister has previously referenced here, there are concerns about whether one speaks to the correct person, and that the registered letter is not opened by someone in the house who may not be the person that the letter is directed to, which is the essence of why a phone call is crucial as a first step. We must ensure that this matter is handled in a way that makes the person and h…

As my colleagues have mentioned, the announcement of funding for the Government investment in the post office network is absolutely crucial. It is crucial to support our postmasters and post offices all over the country but especially in the west. A report done by the Irish Postmasters' Union with Grant Thornton states that 1.3 million people access services weekly from the post office. It is where people do their banking, pay their bills, save money and collect pensions and social welfare. There is a commitment fr…

We were at a meeting last night with Galway Rural Development. There were more than 400 people in the Raheen Woods Hotel in Athenry for a meeting to assess the rural social scheme, RSS, and the Tús scheme. Many points were raised, one of which was that it is becoming more difficult and challenging for people to get onto the schemes. This is something that has to be raised. We have been talking about it with the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, and with the Department of Social Protection, but we have to look at how thes…

I thank the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, who is here today.

This is amendment No. 1 from Senator Higgins under section 3.

Amendment No. 2 has been ruled out of order as it is in conflict with the principle of the Bill as read a Second Time.

Amendments Nos. 4 to 6, inclusive, have been ruled out of order as they are in conflict with the principle of the Bill as read a Second Time.

Senator, this-----

If the Senator wishes to speak to section 5, she should do so.

I welcome the school groups, in particular the group from County Longford. I know Senator Carrigy's wife, Úna. The latter group has a link to Ballinasloe as Úna Boland is from the town of Ballinasloe. We must give all of the children a big wave because we need them to come here. They will be here in a few years' time. Do they know that women only make up 40% of Senators? We need a few more girls to join us. What do the girls think? Can I have a thumbs up? Yes. I invite everybody to Ballinasloe because the Heritage …

Yesterday, I was invited to attend an IFA briefing in Corofin, County Galway. It was hosted by Mr. Stephen Canavan, who is the new IFA county chair for Galway. Now that things are opening up again, we are getting an opportunity to meet people again. We very much had an opportunity to understand the concerns of farmers at that meeting. The high costs are hitting home. Many farmers are not spreading fertiliser, which is causing issues. Normally farmers spread fertiliser if they are doing a first or second cut but tha…