I am very grateful to the Minister for his response. I am very encouraged by what he has said about potentially looking at this again in the future. Regarding what he said about the S2S route, I must disagree with him, although I agree with him on the frustration caused by that small laneway next to the platform at the DART station in Blackrock. It is not the pinch point for the S2S route because it is outside the DART line; it is a coastal route. It is uninterrupted and it could be built in very short order, parti…

To a large extent, I made the points I wanted to make on Second Stage. Even the Title of this Bill refers to "Health and Criminal Justice", two uncomfortable bedfellows. It is important to acknowledge this legislation is not desired by anybody. The Minister made it clear in his Second Stage speech that this was an undesirable situation to be in. We would all like for this situation to be finished. I have great sympathy with these amendments and with the frustration of Members who want this to be brought forward. I …

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire agus ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leis as an méid oibre atá déanta go dtí seo ar an ábhar seo, ábhar atá an-tábhachtach ar fad dúinn. I congratulate the Minister. From the word go, he has been in a very difficult position and we now see the fruits of the labour in which he has been involved over recent years. Many Senators mentioned the vaccination programme and there is no doubt it is tremendously important, as I have seen with my parents. My mother got her second dose on Sat…

We know the importance of giving blood. It is tremendously important that people give of their time and their blood to feed the reserves of blood that are needed for operations, emergencies, etc. During the Covid pandemic, the Irish Blood Transfusion Service has had great difficulty on the one hand in abiding by the advice of the health authorities and keeping people safe and, on the other hand, continuing to provide a safe and constant supply of blood for our hospitals and emergency services. The reason I raise th…

Tuigim go soiléir an áit óna bhfuil an Seanadóir ag teacht. The provisions of section 6, which we have already approved, give fairly wide latitude to judges dealing with preliminary trial hearings to address issues like this. The proposed section 7(1) from Senator McDowell clarifies what the court may permit in terms of cross-examination but I am not sure it is necessary. The wide purvey that is available in section 6 of the Bill probably covers that and there is fairly wide discretion afforded to a judge in a prel…

My amendment No. 5 from the initial list of amendments, which proposes to delete “erroneously” in page 11, line 19, largely does the same thing that Senator McDowell's amendment proposes to do. The word "erroneously" suggests that before an appeal can be taken there has to be some form of establishment that the evidence was excluded erroneously. It is, of course, a subject of contention by the prosecution. I discussed this with the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, after the last Committee Stage discussion, and wha…

I move amendment No. 7: In page 14, after line 34, to insert the following: “PART 3 AMENDMENT OF THE JUDGES’ RULES Definitions 12 . In this Part, “the Judges’ Rules” refers to nine common law rules of guidance set out by a 1972 decision of the Supreme Court. Power for Minister to amend the Judges’ Rules by regulation 13 . The Minister may, where she feels it is in the interests of justice and efficiency, make regulations under this section, to amend Rule 9 of the Judges’ Rules to allow for the taking of statements …

I appreciate what the Minister of State said and I am happy to engage with the Department. This proposal is also contained in a Private Members' Bill, namely, the Criminal Procedure and Related Matters Bill 2021, which is in my name. I am happy to engage with the Department and, on that basis, to withdraw the amendment.

I move amendment No. 8: In page 15, to delete lines 16 and 17. Section 12(2)(b) states that a judge may provide specific documents or audio recordings of statements made in the course of a trial to the jury at the time of its deliberations. That includes a transcript of the opening speeches of counsel, a transcript of the whole or any part of evidence given in the trial, a transcript of the closing speeches and a transcript of the judge's charge. There is a case to be made for the importance of the second and fourt…

No, I will withdraw it.

I move amendment No. 9: In page 15, to delete lines 20 and 21.

I move amendment No. 10: In page 16, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following: “Amendment of section 4A of Act of 1967 13. Section 4A of the Act of 1967 is amended— (a) by the substitution of the following for subsection (1): “(1) Where an accused person is before the District Court charged with an indictable offence, the Court shall send the accused forward for trial to the court before which he is to stand trial (the trial court) unless— (a) the case is being tried summarily, or (b) the case is being deal…

I move amendment No. 11: In page 16, between lines 12 and 13, to insert the following: “Amendment of section 4B of Act of 1967 14. Section 4B of the Act of 1967 is amended in subsection (1)(a), by the insertion of the following new subparagraph after subparagraph (ii): “(iii) in the case of an offence that may be tried on indictment only, the prosecutor directs that the accused should be sent forward for trial, or”.”. This is a proposal to amend section 4B of the Criminal Procedure Act 1967, a very important provis…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I have had the privilege of visiting Israel on 14 or 15 occasions over the past 20 years. I remember the first time I visited I got a bus from Tel Aviv to Cairo through Gaza City and Rafah at the border during the intifada . It is so different. It seems that we have travelled so far backwards since then. As Irish people we, to a certain extent, understand more than many other countries conflict, different traditions and how people can hate one another in real terms. I have been in Gaza …

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I really hope that the Bill is going to do what it says on the tin. I have listened to what the Minister has had to say and what other speakers have had to say. It is tremendously important legislation. It is not an easy portfolio and notwithstanding things that have been said in this House we have actually made a lot of progress in housing. That is not the popular thing, however. It amused me that the last speaker stood up and said at the very beginning that one knows when one is in tr…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit freisin. Tá mé an-bhuíoch di as ucht teacht anseo chun labhairt linn ar an ábhar tábhachtach seo. Tá a fhios agam go gcuirfidh sí an t-eolas os comhair an Aire Oideachais freisin. As the Minister of State will be aware, Gaelscoil Laighean, the only non-denominational Gaelscoil in the Dún Laoghaire area, opened in September 2019. It was the result of a plebiscite that took place in the Blackrock-Booterstown area on foot of a decision by the Department to establish a primary school i…

I appreciate what the Minister of State said. In fact, her office is the only one that has been able to give me any kind of concrete information on this matter, so I am grateful to her for that. However, I cannot accept the official response that the Eblana Avenue site is suitable for the reasons I mentioned. I acknowledge the Deansgrange site was always meant to be an interim one. The school authorities know that and nobody is denying it. My understanding is that identification of another primary school for the Dú…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. Aontaím go hiomlán leis na Seanadóirí a dúirt gur ceart go mbeadh daoine agus custaiméirí in ann a gcuid gnó a dhéanamh leis na mbainc trí Ghaeilge, más féidir. Tá sé an-éasca do na bainc rudaí a chur ar bun do dhaoine mar sin. Tá sé sin an-tábhachtach ar fad. At one level or another, our banking system is dysfunctional. The Minister and I have had this discussion a number of times. Part of the dysfunction is that we also protect people in their homes. That is tremendously important, bu…

In the first instance, I seek leave of the House to move an amendment to the Order of Business to take No. 11, which is the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2021, before No. 1. The Leader will be aware of recent moves in parliaments throughout the world in terms of Taiwan and China's attitude towards Taiwan. Last night, I attended a meeting of the co-chairs of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China and we heard about motions that had been passed in parliaments like France. Last night, the French Sénat pass…

I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 to modify evidential presumptions in a Tenancy Tribunal and to clarify where the burden of proof lies at such a tribunal.