I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."

I doubt I will take the 15 minutes. I welcome the Minister. This is a Bill I moved a number of years ago, I think in 2019 - the name of the Bill is the Broadcasting (Amendment) (Protection of Journalism) Bill 2019 - responding to particular circumstances of which I am sure the Minister is aware. It was in the lottery of Bills and I am happy it has been selected. I introduced the Bill, as I said, in 2019, following Communicorp Media's outrageous act of blacklisting in 2017 from its radio stations certain journalists…

I thank the Minister for her response. I also thank the Members who spoke in support of the Bill. Drafting legislation is complex. We have to call a spade a spade here because we have all been in this position. We have not yet been in government and, hopefully, at some point we will be. We certainly have been in opposition as has the Minister. Others have been in government and in opposition. When we are in opposition we have very limited staff, as the Minister knows. It is very difficult to draft legislation. I do…

It is the political block he is talking about.

I am indeed. I have ten minutes and Deputy Ward will have 15.

Ten and five, apologies. It is 15 minutes in total.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle. First, I want to say that it is important for us to reflect on what we have achieved over the past 20 months and on the difficult and traumatic experience that society and people have gone through. It is hard to believe that the first case of Covid-19 was reported 20 months ago. It has been more than 19 months since the first restrictions were imposed. We all remember that we were hopeful that the restrictions would be lifted in a matter of weeks, or maybe in a matter of months. At that…

The last set of questions were very important. The Minister is right to be cautious and make sure the correct information is put on the public record. It is very important to establish exactly what families were told at all times. That is what needs to happen. We know that body organs of children who were deceased were incinerated in Belgium with medical waste. I know there will be an investigation and a review. I believe in due process and the investigation has to be given time to do its work and report back. I we…

It is clear there was a breach in the guidelines. It goes back to what Deputy Carthy was saying about establishing the actual facts and what exactly the breaches were, documenting them and then taking whatever appropriate action is necessary. That is very important because there has to be accountability. I welcome that the Minister has broadened the scope of the review to all maternity hospitals so that we can have certainty this was an outlier and was not happening anywhere else. That is important. The Joint Commi…

There were a lot of distressing parts in the "Prime Time Investigates" programme and I am very sensitive in putting the questions to the Minister given that families might be listening in. There was a report that the burial space for the interment of organs in this State is full. Obviously, there are capacity issues there. Unsuccessful attempts were made to find an alternative plot. It was decided that cremation was not an option. While we need to conduct a review around what happened, we also must ensure that it d…

They are waiting for years.

I move: That Dáil Éireann: recognises that: —there was an alarming rise in healthcare waiting lists from 461,908 in 2014 to 740,712 in January 2020; —waiting lists have spiralled out of control since January 2020 to 814,345 in August 2021, rising to 907,648 including planned procedures; —210,740 people are waiting more than 18 months on inpatient and outpatient waiting lists; —a further 203,976 people are on radiology diagnostic waiting lists for CT, MRI and ultrasound scans; —more than 98,000 children are on hospi…

I had intended to respond to the debate by going through the Minister's opening speech and unpicking much of what he said. I will not do so, however, because I want to make a number of other points instead. Many Deputies have spoken tonight, from both Government parties and the Opposition, who obviously care about our health services. I care very deeply about healthcare. It is an issue in which I have taken an interest throughout my political career. For the 20 years I have been involved in politics, I have been in…

Not delivered.

Some €300 million was not spent.

You promised 15,000.

Before the recess, the Dáil unanimously passed a motion calling for a permanent solution for our student nurses and midwives and for the publication of the independent report looking into the issue. My understanding is that the report could be with the Minister. If it is, it needs to be published. Those very same student nurses and midwives are going to be starting their placements again. Indeed, some of them have started. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, has called for fourth years to have their p…

I welcome the opportunity to discuss the public health restrictions. The motion has been tabled at a time when emergency legislation is being rammed through the Dáil today and will be rammed through the Seanad tomorrow. What we have seen in recent weeks is absolutely unacceptable. Two weeks ago, the people of Ireland were expecting a plan from the Taoiseach. The hospitality sector was expecting a plan. The Taoiseach took to a podium and essentially said that he was sorry, but the public health advice had only just …

I want hospitality opened. I want it opened safely, as quickly as possible and for everybody. There is something rotten at the core of the message we got from the Tánaiste's contribution. There is something very unfair about it given that over the past year, the Opposition in this State and in this House has been very supportive of public health measures. I would say to the Government that they have been the envy of many countries in Europe. By and large, the political system has bought into the need to keep people…

Everything Deputy Tóibín has said reinforces the need for a public inquiry into what happened in nursing homes.