Fáiltím roimh an deis atá agam an Ghaeilge a phlé anseo inniu. Tá sé fíorthábhachtach go bhfuil Seachtain na Gaeilge againn. Tá a fhios agam go bhfuil an Ghaeilge mar chuid lárnach dár gcultúr náisiúnta. Feicimid inár gceantar féin an stair a bhaineann lenár teanga féin agus is rud fíorthábhachtach é. I welcome the opportunity to try to speak in and talk about the Irish language, recognising how important it is for us for our nation and for our culture, recognising as well that it is something that links us to the …

Many have spoken about how we will next week see Ministers travelling across the world for St. Patrick's Day. There has been a lot of focus on, and many have spoken about, the visit of Micheál Martin to the President of the United States. There is hope that he would speak against some of the language of raw colonialism and that he would stand up for the importance of climate action. There is hope that he might advocate for the importance of a genuinely just peace, not only in Ukraine but also in Gaza for the Palest…

There is much in the Minister's speech that I welcome, including the focus on women being heard. That has come across again and again. Where endometriosis is concerned, our services are very far behind because there is a need for a culture shift in them. There is also the question of having a voice and choice in respect of maternal health. There is huge pressure on older women to have inductions, and the pressure around inductions in maternal health is an issue. The question of when women get listened to persists b…

I request that we have a debate with the Minister for the environment on a report that Ireland will face fines up to €26 billion if we fail to meet our EU climate targets. That is an extraordinary amount. It is equivalent to all of the money that we might take in corporate tax receipts for one year that we hear of. It is equivalent to the entire health budget. Those are the kinds of fines we face if we fail to produce radical and significant policies in climate change. I would like a debate on that. Perhaps the Lea…

I hope the Minister of State will speak to us about a matter of great urgency. My Commencement matter concerns what steps Ireland is taking to ensure there is a proper process for the very alarming proposal by the European Commission for what is called the "omnibus Bill", which has been called the "bonfire of regulation", to open up the corporate sustainability due diligence directive. This directive was agreed just last year after a lengthy process of many years in which our own Government played an important role…

As the Minister of State can see, I am very concerned. I would like to know what position Ireland is taking. Ireland played a positive role in the original negotiation. What are we doing now about this alarming development?

The alarming thing is that the proposal is to bring this back to level 1. We take a process that took years and go back to the drawing board. Those are years we do not have. We are at the end of the ten hottest years on record. It is frankly patronising to the public that the word “simplification” gets used again and again when what is being done is clearly deregulation and a move away from sustainability and acting on climate. Whatever the threats to Europe we hear about, let us be clear what the threats to the wo…

Will we reward those companies that have been acting responsibly? Will we show leadership by implementing the CSDDD during the period of time before this new version, which may be years?

I would like to know that. That is a direct question to the Minister of State. Will we be going ahead with implementation as planned and promised?

You have answered about simplification and not about sustainability.

Sustainability is the issue, not simplification. We need to hear about that. I understand the Minister of State has been given what he has been given but it does not answer it.

With regard to some of the comments made earlier, the triple lock is actually one of the very important things that link us to the United Nations, which is one of the great prizes we have had in terms of building and maintaining peace on this planet. Far from undermining our capacity to say "No", I would be very worried that without the triple lock those who get so embarrassed that they are not generally part of armies, as we have heard, who feel disapproval from other countries and believe they should act immediat…

I will pick up where the previous speaker ended on the warnings we have had from Dr. Tara Shine and others. These extreme weather events are happening more often right across the world. I have spoken about the ten warmest years on record, but right across the world we are seeing an increase in the frequency and intensity of storms, drought, the wildfires that come with drought, of mud slides and the huge shifts in climate and the environment. These are the emergency events but there are also many other slightly slo…

I want to raise an issue that occurred in the past 24 hours. We heard how a former Member of this House, Lynn Boylan, who is now an MEP, was refused entry and deported when attempting to visit Israel as a part of an official EU delegation in an official capacity on an Irish diplomatic passport. Two Members of the European Parliament and their officials were denied entry to Israel and denied the right to perform their roles in terms of international observation and international diplomacy. This points to a time when…

I will come to my conclusion.

As I come to it-----

Okay.

I will conclude.

That is fine. I join with what Senator Clonan said. We need policies that are clear and we do not need to dismantle our triple lock if Ireland is going to show leadership. That we are doing it because other countries were embarrassed sends a sign we need a triple lock and we cannot trust our Government to say "No" when it needs to say "No" and to say "Yes" in terms of the implementation of international law when it needs to say "Yes".

I was not going to speak but I am moved to do so. I am very proud to be supporting Senator Flynn. She is an outstanding candidate. We celebrated during the previous Oireachtas term the centenary of the Seanad. One of the themes was minority voices, major changes, as the Seanad has a record of bringing forward minority and different perspectives. I do not mean in a geographical way, but in a way that cuts across and captures the different experiences and perspectives throughout Ireland as well as major changes. When…