I would like to open by expressing our sincere condolences with the family of Saoírse Ruane. Young Saoírse touched the heart of the nation when she appeared on the "Late Late Toy Show" in 2020 and spoke about her experience with cancer. Cancer is a disease that has impacted every family in some manner. We need to do everything possible to work towards a world in which this is not the case. This means we need a strong, funded national cancer strategy. This is a priority of the Oireachtas cross-party group on cancer.…

On a point of order, in relation to Deputy O'Donoghue's contribution, whatever about the slings and arrows and banter back and forth, there was a number of references to straitjackets there. This House has done a lot of work in relation to mental health.

We have debates on mental health. I would ask that the Deputy withdraw that remark.

The Deputy should withdraw-----

It is not befitting of this House.

It is not befitting of this House.

Last week, I met with the Alliance of Rare Diseases Companies Ireland, which made one thing very clear: the current reimbursement system is not fit for purpose. We need a system that is clear, predictable and time-bound, with fixed assessment criteria and, most important, one that facilitates immediate or early access to rare disease therapies. As the Minister mentioned in his own speech, it is a misnomer to call them “rare diseases”, because they are in fact not that rare, with one in 17 people in the country suff…

I thank Sinn Féin for introducing this important motion. Every time we debate disabilities and carers in the Dáil, a structural issue arises. We have an issue like we had in UHL today, for example. The matter is the responsibility of the Minister for Health. If we are talking about taxation reform, the Minister for Finance is responsible, and so on, but responsibility for disabilities and carers cuts across a host of portfolios. We need the Minister for Health here in addition to the Minister for housing, the Minis…

It is seven months since the Mental Health Commission published its final report on CAMHS. Earlier this week, we heard that the Government does not want to regulate CAMHS now, choosing instead to wait until the summer session of the Dáil to introduce its own Bill for that purpose. We do not yet have sight of that Bill. Those of us involved in health matters have gone through a number of years in which complex health-related legislation has been published late in the summer session and has not really been looked at …

I thank Deputies Cullinane and Ward for bringing forward the Bill and acknowledge the work of Deputy Ward in the field of young persons' mental health over recent years. The Mental Health Commission's report into CAMHS highlighted a multitude of concerning issues on which we have seen too little action from this Government. To list some of the issues highlighted, we have seen children being lost to follow-up care or unable to access care in the first place, a lack of monitoring of psychiatric medicines and unaccept…

I also want to extend my sympathies and those of the Labour Party to Deputy Collins on his loss. I thank the Rural Independent Group for bringing forward this motion on GP numbers and rural healthcare. I will send the Minister of State a note on this, but there is a situation with a community nursing home in Nenagh that has been in development for seven years. My colleague Deputy Kelly has been instrumental in pushing this forward. The facility has been built and is ready to go. The Deputy received a communication …

I informed the Whip's office that I would not be taking my full 20 minutes.

The Labour Party and I welcome this Bill. It provides the mechanism to allow us to can make regulations that will enable pharmacists to sell and supply approved medicines without the need for prescriptions. This is a positive step in addressing the increased pressure that is placed on GPs and GP services. During a Private Members' debate this morning, I spoke about the lack of GP services not only in rural areas but also in cities and in my constituency of Fingal. Many people still face waiting times of up to two w…

I thank Deputy Cullinane and Sinn Féin for tabling this motion. I welcome the children and parents in the Public Gallery who are watching the debate. Waiting lists remain a national disgrace. That has been the case for a long time. While the Government has made efforts to address them, the fact that they are so long should illustrate how those efforts have failed. Last week, the Taoiseach stated that waiting lists in Irish hospitals are going down. That is not entirely true. The fact is that waiting lists for child…

We know that road deaths have increased, and have increased significantly, so I not only welcome the opportunity to speak on the Bill but welcome the Bill itself. The legislation will mark a good step forward in what needs to be an ongoing effort to ensure the safety and well-being of every individual on our roads, including drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and all road users. However, I feel this Bill cannot stand alone in the bid to address road safety. Ireland has witnessed far too many tragedies resulting from ro…

I welcome the opportunity to make a statement on the issue of service provision for international protection applicants and recipients, and, indeed, on the topic of immigration, and, more broadly, our international protection system. Certain Deputies have recently given the impression that they believe that this topic is off limits, that having the debate is somehow being stifled by some grand conspiracy and that we must simply accept Government policy and move along. Of course, that is not the case. Deputies are f…

Is the Minister satisfied with the systems in place to monitor pollution in the form of odour and particulate matter as it relates to aviation in the vicinity of Dublin Airport?

I thank the Minister. I am familiar with all of those websites. The problem is that for residents, particularly in south Swords and in estates like Ridgewood, Boroimhe and River Valley - huge estates with large populations - there has been a huge increase in both the smell of aviation fuel and particulate matter being visible on sills, curtains and walls in these estates. The monitoring stations are all over the north of the county. They are not in the areas we are asking them to be. We are getting poor responses a…

I appreciate that. All of this is taking place in a couple of contexts. The DAA has changed its complaints mechanism, which has actually made it more difficult for residents and local communities to make any number of complaints, not just in this area. Also, we know the air quality in our city and all over the county is struggling. We have a huge problem and we have articulated that. The Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, has also articulated it really well, and has stated that as many as one in five deaths ca…

No, I will stick to the order.