I am sorry, a Cheann Comhairle. I was not sure where I was on the list. Sometimes I am never sure where I am. Before the summer recess I raised the serious health concerns of an 11-year-old scoliosis patient, Sophie Redmond, with the Taoiseach. Sophie is in need of urgent spinal surgery but she also desperately requires surgery on her knees. At the time, the Taoiseach mentioned the gravity of the situation and said he understood the time-sensitive nature of it. Sophie is no closer now to getting her surgery than wh…

I congratulate the Minister on his elevation and wish him the best. It is a great honour and a huge responsibility. Early in the pandemic, front-line hospital staff in the Dublin City Council area were given free parking when they were near particular hospitals. This was a very fair and welcome gesture. This decision was made by the Government and Dublin City Council implemented it. This measure should be reintroduced while Dublin is in level 3. Given that teachers are now effectively front-line workers, this measu…

I welcome this motion put forward by my colleague, Deputy Ward. Two weeks ago, a young woman in the park in Ringsend was hit in the forehead by rocket. When I say there was a hole in her head, I am not exaggerating. It was horrendous. It was an image that could not be unseen and was hard to get out of one's mind. It was traumatic, I imagine, for the poor woman. This year, the community development section in Dublin City Council has not been able to plan community activities around Hallowe'en, as it has done in rece…

I congratulate the Minister of State on her appointment. I have not had an opportunity to do so before now and I wish her well in that journey. It is going to be a challenging one and it is very important for us all that she succeeds. Earlier, the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, mentioned the words "solidarity" and "confidence". Not too far from here, however, St. Mary's nursing home, on the Merrion Road, is being closed. The closure was announced in June and at present, 20 very vulnerable individuals…

Sinn Féin welcomes this Bill. Last night, several Deputies mentioned issues relating to conditions, training and pay in the Defence Forces. It is in the context of conditions that I raise the issue of 12 homes in Cathal Brugha Barracks in Rathmines. An example is one 70-year-old woman who has lived there for 47 years. Her husband was a member of the Defence Forces and her son, who has also been an active member of the Defence Forces for the past 20 years, lives with her. They are referred to by the Defence Forces a…

Schools will be seeking to remediate classrooms and to construct different extensions to classrooms and buildings to ensure that they open again and that the children can return. Can the provision of autism classes be included in those remediation works so children with autism can get back to school as well? There is only one autism class in the postal codes of Dublin 2, Dublin 4, Dublin 6 and Dublin 6W. It is important for the parents that children have classes to which they can return. If schools were able to inc…

Can the Minister compel the schools to do this because parents of children with autism-----

In 2017, the then Minister for Health said on an RTÉ programme that by the end of that year, no child would be waiting for longer than four months for a scoliosis procedure. In July 2020, children with scoliosis are still waiting longer than four months. I was contacted by the parents of a wonderful and brave 11 year old named Sophie Redmond. She has scoliosis resulting in a 70% curvature of her spine, which is pressing on her lung. When will children who, like Sophie, have scoliosis get the treatment they badly ne…

While I appreciate that affordable housing and rents are major issues, another serious issue for people living in the inner city, such as in complexes on Pearse Street and Kevin Street, is the need for the upgrading and renovation of flat complexes across the city. In many cases, they are like modern-day tenements. Glistening ten and 12-storey buildings are going up around flat complexes which have dirty stairwells and are not properly maintained. In some complexes, the wiring is poor and flats are flooding. There …

The section of the programme for Government relating to disability refers to accessibility for people with disabilities and getting access to services that suit their needs. Throughout the country, school places for children with autism are particularly difficult to secure. There are zero autism spectrum disorder, ASD, classes in Dublin 2, 4, and 6, there is one such class in Dublin 6W and there are no early intervention classes in any of these areas. Despite the need to establish ASD classes in Dublin 2, 4 and 6, …

I congratulate the Minister of State and wish him well in his new role. It is a great honour and responsibility. Trying to get the balance right between saving lives and opening up the economy is going to be difficult and challenging, and we have to strike that balance. Microenterprises and SMEs have experienced shocks that are putting their very existence in doubt. I heard John Moran on "Morning Ireland" last week or the week before say that €6.5 billion of funding for SMEs was announced, but only €100 million was…

Being here is a bit like being at a cinema and at a poor movie, unfortunately. I would like to congratulate the Tánaiste on his appointment. It is a huge honour and a huge responsibility. I wish him success in his new role and his new Department. Trying to get the balance right between saving lives and opening up the economy will be very difficult and challenging. It is in all of our interests that he succeeds. I heard John Moran on "Morning Ireland" today. He said that €6.5 billion in funding for SMEs was announce…

The unjustifiable murder of George Floyd has sparked a long overdue conversation on an important issue, that is, racism. While prejudice, discrimination and antagonism are evidently indisputable in the US, the Irish are not as innocent as we make ourselves out to be. In recent months, I have been disappointed to hear people saying that racism does not exist in Ireland. Have they forgotten about the thousands of people who are living in direct provision and are marginalised in those centres? Have they forgotten thos…

I have five minutes. I think the clock is wrong.

I understood that I had five minutes of the time allocated.

With the House's indulgence, I will take another minute. We must challenge the annexation of more Palestinian land. How can we say we want to end racism if we do not stand up to racist Israel? I have to think that we did not want to upset anyone in advance of the United Nations Security Council vote. Not including Senator Frances Black's Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018 in the programme for Government is a huge setback and a kick in the teeth for Palestinians and all those who campaigne…

I thank the Ministers. Prior to the pandemic, the League of Ireland and the clubs were making really positive progress. The underage structures were developing really well and were coming on. One could start to see the benefits at underage international level. The women's football was developing very strongly as well. One element was the active engagement of clubs with community projects. It is hard to match the level of community activity in which clubs were involved. My club, Shamrock Rovers, is very much involve…

There is a sense among the football community, and I do not know if the Minister got anything from the meeting today between the FAI and the clubs-----

It is welcome that the Minister will reassure clubs that they will not go out of existence. They are a vital part of the community.

In the coming weeks and months we will have an opportunity to create a much fairer society. There are many opportunities as we move out of the pandemic, but in order to achieve that we must make choices because it is about choices. For instance, we must choose a one-tier health system, which will allow equal access for everybody so that access is not determined by the size of one's wallet but by one's medical need. We must also choose a housing policy that will tackle homelessness and the lack of social and afforda…