We all need to be mindful of our language in this House, as do our colleagues in the Dáil. I will not repeat any of what was said last week because doing so is not the answer and will only ensure more people hear it. My mother used to say that you can tie a knot with your tongue that you are not able to open with your hands. She meant by this that people can get themselves into big positions where others are looking to them to be a leader and they should not use inappropriate language. Many members of my community …

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

Ha.

We often hear mention made of looking after our own. This is exactly what this motion is seeking to do. It is about looking after the proposers' own. I support it, however, because for me it is about assisting with whatever supports I can and doing whatever I can do in my power to support people. The Minister knows we talk a lot in this House about putting money into people's pockets. None of us are looking to do that so that people will have money in their pockets to spend on a night out or anything like that. We …

I also welcome the ambassador to the House. I hope he is enjoying the experience.

Pretend you did not see it for a minute.

My poster highlights accountability for Traveller mental health. I will put it down now.

I am very grateful that the Taoiseach nominated me because of all the work I have done in the past as an activist, a person on the ground and, most importantly, as somebody from the Traveller community. I will have been in the House two years on 27 June. For the two years I have been here, I have called numerous times for action on Traveller mental health. The National Traveller Mental Health Network has also been calling for action on Traveller mental health. I will have to go through these figures again. I ask th…

I have been there and it did not work. I suggest another way.

I want to make some brief points on section 5. To say-----

This will follow on from what Senator Higgins said. This is about using our public spending power as a force for good. Senator Higgins spoke about the Netherlands and we have seen that this model has been working there since 2016. She also spoke about SMEs and this provides equality for small businesses and puts them at the centre. Those are the two points I wanted to make on section 4.

Senator Boyhan touched on Traveller, migrant and disadvantaged children. I want to make clear that those children are not the problem. Sometimes it is not what we say but the way we say it. We need to be careful around funding and equal access. I thank the Senator for bringing that to my attention today. While we are talking about childcare, we are not talking about equal access to childcare services for poor people or those from ethnic minority groups. I and my colleagues in the Civil Engagement Group, Senators Bl…

I wish to raise an important issue on the Order of Business that I brought to the attention of this House in January 2021 concerning cases of hepatitis. At the time, I genuinely thought it was unique to have cases of hepatitis in Ireland. Today it was reported on RTÉ News that unfortunately, a young child has died from hepatitis. Another young child needs a liver transplant due to hepatitis. In the case in Labre Park that I was speaking about, and in many other cases, there are people living in marginalised accommo…

I have spoken in this House time and again about the continued failure of some local authorities. To name just one issue, I will focus a little on their failure to provide Traveller accommodation year after year. During my ten years of working in this area with members of the Traveller community and in the area of accommodation, I have found that things in local authorities fall apart more often than they fall together. Government does not hold local authorities to account. In the two years I have been a Senator, I…

I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach. I also welcome the students from St. Joseph's College, Lucan. It is always brilliant to see young people in the House. I am going to put a different spin on marking Europe Day. I would like all of us to look at this as a day of reflection, as Senator Chambers has already said. Ireland, as a small nation, has made our voice heard at the highest level during our 50 years in the EU. We have benefited from membership of the EU in many ways. The EU and the Council of Europe have been…

The Traveller community is facing a mental health crisis. This is not the first time I have raised the issue in the House. The previous Minister of State with responsibility for mental health, former Deputy Jim Daly, recognised more than two years ago that there was a mental health crisis among the members of the Traveller community. The programme for Government promised a national Traveller mental health strategy. We are now two years into this Government's term. Without meaning any disrespect to the Minister of S…