I wish to speak to amendment No. 55, which is in the same grouping. My amendment No. 55 has a similar purpose to amendment No. 54. It seeks to insert a new section into the Bill, notwithstanding anything in the definition of the foreshore in section 1, and the powers of the Minister to grant a licence under section 3. This is without prejudice to the view that the Bill already provides an obligation to secure a foreshore licence in order to conduct geophysical or geotechnical surveys in the subsoil or water column.…

I move amendment No. 55: In page 10, between lines 17 and 18, to insert the following: “Provisions in respect of foreshore licensing requirements for certain surveying activities 14. The Act of 1933 is amended by the insertion of the following after section 3: “Obligations 3AA. Notwithstanding anything in the definition of the foreshore in section 1, and the powers of the Minister to grant a licence under section 3, and without prejudice to the view that there is already provided an obligation to secure a foreshore…

I move amendment No. 56: In page 11, between lines 5 and 6, to insert the following: “Amendment of Act of 1933 15. The Act of 1933 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 8: “Rights of way 8A. For the avoidance of doubt no provision of this enactment shall be construed as limiting or infringing upon public or private rights of way or any provision of the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009.”.”. This amendment seeks to insert a new section providing that, "For the avoidance of doubt …

I move amendment No. 57: In page 12, after line 20, to insert the following: “Amendment of Act of 1933 18. The Act of 1933 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 13AA: “Regulations on undersea noise and sonar 13AB. Any licenses or leases issued in respect of the foreshore and the associated column of water shall include conditions and regulations pertaining to undersea noise arising from human activity on the foreshore, including in respect of the use of sonar technology, and shall refle…

I formally object to the Order of Business and in particular to the sitting arrangements for Thursday. That is in respect of the-----

Yes, it is tomorrow but the motion is being taken today. I formally object to the inclusion in the Order of Business of the motion in respect of the sitting arrangements for Thursday. I will object to the motion on the sitting arrangements in due course. This is in the context of the Planning and Development and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022, which is being pushed and rushed through. It comes after the very bad practice we saw last July going into the summer recess. I am very worried that has now become an effect…

I move recommendation No. 6: In page 66, between lines 8 and 9, to insert the following: “Report on wealth tax 25. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, lay before both Houses of the Oireachtas a report on the potential revenue raised from, and distributional impact of, a wealth tax of 1 per cent on all households with assets of over 10 million euro.”. We have been hearing many warnings about the precariousness of the sustainability of the bumper corporate tax intakes we have had for the…

I thank the Minister for his response. I will continue to pursue the issue because it is significant. I am glad we are getting more data. That is progress. I am aware that our transfer system does redistributive work regarding our extraordinary high levels of income inequality. In this regard, there is a discussion to be had on the Social Welfare Bill, which is touched upon. I would be concerned if proposals for the social protection system reduced its redistributive focus, leading to a cementing of wealth in certa…

I move recommendation No. 7: In page 66, between lines 8 and 9, to insert the following: “Report on private pension tax reliefs 25. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, lay before both Houses of the Oireachtas a report on private pension tax relief including: (a) an assessment of the cost to the exchequer; (b) a comparative gender analysis of tax reliefs; (c) the distributional impact; and (d) the potential impacts or benefits of a shift from a marginal rate to a 30% standard rate appro…

Yes but some 70% of the benefits go to the top 20%-----

The key point is the cash, which the Minister himself mentioned. The fact is that 70% of the money - an extremely large amount of money - is going to the top 20%. The fact that smaller amounts are going to the majority of people in that scheme should not be used as a shield for what is effectively a trickle-up effect. The cap is clearly not adequate if 70% of the benefit is going to top 20% of earners. There are lots of workers in this State who are on the standard rate and who pay 20% of tax and they will only get…

I welcome President von der Leyen to the Oireachtas on the 50th anniversary of Ireland's accession to the EU. One important early benefit of accession was the impetus it created for more progressive national policies in areas such as gender equality, the environment, employment, ending the marriage bar and the working time directive. That version of Europe, as a collective momentum for the raising of social standards and promotion of fundamental rights, is one which still resonates deeply with citizens in many coun…

I welcome President von der Leyen to the Oireachtas on the 50th anniversary of Ireland's accession to the EU. One important early benefit of accession was the impetus it created for more progressive national policies in areas such as gender equality, the environment, employment, ending the marriage bar and the working time directive. That version of Europe, as a collective momentum for the raising of social standards and promotion of fundamental rights, is one which still resonates deeply with citizens in many coun…

I thank the Cathaoirleach for selecting the matter and the Minister of State for attending. It has been reported, as the Minister of State is aware, that in the negotiations on the long and eagerly-awaited new EU corporate sustainability due diligence directive Ireland has taken a position to seek the exclusion of asset managers and institutional investors and certain products associated with asset managers and institutional investors from the provisions of the proposed directive. The Minister of State is aware tha…

This effectively includes the actors but not their products. The products are where the money is. I noted from one of the reports on Ireland's submission to the early negotiation process – I appreciate that the process has moved on since – that Ireland raised concerns about the significant administrative and cost burdens on, for example, pension schemes. This is where the money is. How an asset manager runs his or her office is included in the directive but the products he or she sells are not, even though those pr…

I echo the calls on the Minister to consider or accept some of the amendments that have been tabled by a number of groups. I have my own amendments, which I will go through one by one. Constructive proposals have been put forward by other parties. If accepted, they would mean we will be in a better position next year. I say that after a number of years of rolling through this issue. Again and again, the same issues come up and they are not being properly addressed. It would be good to see something different come t…

I apologise. I would like the Minister to look at amendment No. 6 as a constructive proposal for more community engagement and making this a more meaningful fund in terms of horse racing.

I move amendment No. 4: To insert the following after "October, 2022": "; - that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine shall, within 3 months following the passing of this motion, lay a report before both Houses of the Oireachtas outlining the manner in which the obligation for rehoming under section 29 of the Greyhound Racing Act 2019 is being complied with".

I move amendment No. 5: To insert the following after "October, 2022": "; - that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine shall, within 3 months following the passing of this motion, lay a report before both Houses of the Oireachtas outlining the potential for future regulations to split the Horse and Greyhound Fund into two separate funds".

I move amendment No. 6: To insert the following after "October, 2022": "; - that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine shall, within 6 months following the passing of this motion, lay a report before both Houses of the Oireachtas outlining the manner in which the operation and dispersal of the Horse and Greyhound Fund has reflected the obligations under section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Act 2014".