I thank Sinn Féin for tabling this important motion. I welcome those in the Public Gallery who are directly affected by this issue. I can only imagine what they are thinking listening to this debate. Possibly, it is that they have heard all of this before. It is difficult to think of another national scandal that displays the worst of what Ireland is and has been. Moneyed developers maximised their profits, often by lobbying for the political system to bow to them. In many instances, they constructed fire traps. Th…

I accept that, but we have to be careful. When we speak about timelines, we need to be sure that we can bring people on board and they can have a level of hope. I agree with other Deputies who stated that we must discuss absolute redress and consider the situation retrospectively over the past 30 years or so. We must also ensure as a collective that this scandal never happens again. In the current discourse, it appears that a political representative cannot have an opinion on any planned apartment complex in any pa…

I move: That Dáil Éireann: notes that: — during the past 25 years of a law-enforcement approach to drug abuse, drug-related deaths have increased by 225 per cent, compared to a 68 per cent reduction in road deaths in the same period, with the total number of such deaths well exceeding 10,500; — Ireland now has the joint-highest rate of drug-induced deaths among 16 to 64-year-olds in the European Union (EU); — the number of people prosecuted for possession for personal use has increased over that period by 484 per c…

Hear, hear.

I appreciate that the issue of the accusations of abuse in Blackrock College has to be dealt with sensitively. I believe that the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and other members of the Government are dealing with it with the greatest of sensitivity. There is an acknowledgement that an investigation or inquiry is needed. What is the Minister's view on the necessity of such an inquiry? What type of form would such an inquiry take, seeing as the Department of Education would be to the forefront of any inquiry into what happ…

I appreciate the Minister's response but, in tabling this question, I had assumed there would be a good chance that by the time we spoke today an inquiry would have been announced. I understand that she is to make contact with Opposition spokespeople as to how best this inquiry could be formulated. I also understand that it is the Government's intention to have an inquiry. I am happy that the Minister is committed to having a survivor-led inquiry. It is important that the Government takes advice on any ongoing Gard…

I reiterate that I believe the Government is dealing with this in a proper manner. The Minister is dealing with it with the sensitivity it demands. However, weeks have passed and there needs to be a sense of when this inquiry will take place and what its nature will be. We must also ensure that none of this can ever happen again. While the Minister rightly points to changes in the system over the past number of years and decades, this needs to feed into the citizen' assembly on education to ensure that this deferen…

The Minister of State will know that in October a lot of disquiet was expressed by school communities about the potential change in the assessment of need, AON, process. I understand from her negotiations with the INTO that a pause was put on that process. I want to get a sense of where the process now stands.

The reaction I and other Deputies involved in this sphere got was very negative regarding the new responsibility schools felt they had to oversee, the workload being imposed on them and the lack of expertise teachers and principals have in terms of overseeing the process, especially when trying to account for a child's disability, including motor skills. On that basis, the issue has been raised in the House. Various education partners raised concerns with the Minister of State and Minister. In fairness, a conversat…

The Minister of State was coming to the second point I raised. It is not just about the workload, but also the expertise. Every Deputy in the Chamber will appreciate that principals, teachers, special needs assistants, SNAs, and everyone else who works in a school community are heroes. They are often undervalued, the first to be criticised and face a great deal of negativity, but what they do for children of all backgrounds every day of the week is inspirational. If one ever wants to be uplifted in one's political …

Next week, the Labour Party will bring forward a Private Members' motion on the issue of drugs and the decriminalisation of the drug user. The Government has promised a citizens' assembly on drugs for early next year. Is the Tánaiste in a position to clarify when the proposed citizens' assembly on drugs will take place? It is needed. In many communities, the drugs crisis is spiralling out of control.

The Minister for Education was in touch with my office to state she has other commitments this evening. Therefore, I appreciate the attendance of the Minister of State. I am interested in hearing what he has to say on behalf of the Government. The Minister of State will appreciate that when Deputies get 20 or 30 emails on a particular issue, they know something has gone drastically wrong. A review of the schools in Raheny parish is taking place. When I made contact with the office of the archbishop, the representat…

There are two issues. One is that the independent facilitator has indicated that he will "read the room". No matter what side of the debate one is on, whether one wants divestment, co-educational schools or for things to remain exactly as they are, an independent facilitator saying to a group of parents or anybody that it will be his determination what the temperature is by just reading the room is not particularly scientific and does not give anybody any sense that this will be done in a fair manner. Second, I con…

Ar son Pháirtí an Lucht Oibre, déanaim comhbhrón ó chroí le muintir an iar-Theachta Hillery. My sympathies and those of my Labour Party colleagues are with the family of former TD and Senator Brian Hillery, who died in January 2021. From conversations with a Fianna Fáil Member of this House, I know that the news of his death brought much sadness to all those who knew him during his long years of public service. Professor Hillery began his political career in the Seanad. He served there for many years until he conte…

I thank the Minister for her presentation, for her presence and for her interest in this issue. I am from Dublin. I love the city, I believe in it and I want to see a vision for it. Dublin city houses people from all over the world and, indeed, people from all over this country. On that note, may I state my disgust at any Member of this House suggesting that this country or any part of this country is being overrun by anybody. I think that if a Member of this Oireachtas comes in and makes statements like that, we h…

I love Dublin. It is where I am from and it is where my child is from. One does not have to have a heritage in the city to be a Dub, however. A person or his or her family can be from anywhere in the world but have the added advantage of being a Dub as well. We need to think strategically and have a vision for what we want the city to be like in 20 years. Let us decarbonise the place, put civic engagement and community at the heart of it, fund it properly and give it civic leadership. When it comes to basic infrast…

I thank the Minister of State for his presentation. One of the very few legacies of Covid that could perhaps be regarded as positive is the vast improvement in the availability of outdoor dining and socialising, provided for by the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, which this motion seeks to extend. The effect of the Act was that pubs and restaurants were specifically allowed access to and use of outdoor spaces for eating and drinking. This was done by emergency legislation, effectively sidelining by-laws a…

We had a pandemic over the last three years and it was science that helped us find our way through it. We are facing a climate disaster and it will hopefully be science that helps us through that. We have to facilitate the scientists of the future through our education system. We need to empower the teachers in the teaching profession and the colleges of education to ensure they are equipped to bring the joy and love of science into the classroom. There is a gender element to this, as the Minister will appreciate. …

We welcome the legislation. We have been campaigning for it for many years. Previous Ministers for Justice said there was no need for it because of the 1989 Act which, as the Minister has just admitted, was ineffective. We welcome this debate and opportunity and we welcome the legislation, which we have to get right. I want to start on a positive note. I have just come from the Irish Traveller Movement Yellow Flag Awards in the Ark in Temple Bar. I saw all the children. If any of us wants to have any hope for the f…

It is not agreed.