May I say one more thing?

I thank the Cathaoirleach. The voluntary hospital at St. Vincent's is already carrying out observerships and it would be great if the HSE could catch up.

I welcome the Minister to the House. I will focus on the work-life balance aspect of this Bill and the transposition of the directive, which the Minister has overseen. Additionally, I will comment on the inclusion of the right to request remote working, which is now contained under this legislation and was inherited from the Tánaiste's Department. It is a good move to have all this under one Bill. I very much welcome the inclusion of leave for victims of domestic abuse, the extension of breastfeeding breaks to two …

I am sorry, Acting Chair, I did not hear the bell.

I am concerned about the amendment to section 13E, which relates to the termination in certain circumstances of flexible working arrangements. It seems quite hefty. I would also like to know whether the decision can be overturned by the WRC or if it is just a case of providing compensation. I will stop now as I have gone way over time.

The Minister of State with responsibility for disability services, Deputy Rabbitte, has described community healthcare organisation, CHO, 9, which covers Dublin West, as the most challenging of all areas when it comes to implementing reforms under the progressing disability services, PDS, programme. The children's disability network team, CDNT, in my area either cannot give a timeframe for when a child will be seen or it is saying it could take up to three years. In October, the Minister of State advised me there w…

We know that we need to increase capacity in the areas of therapy and psychology. It is not just good for the children and people who need the service but blowing up those pathways will also allow entry to people who did not see that this was a path they might want to take when they were sitting the leaving certificate. There are major opportunities. I ask the Minister of State to bring back to the Minister the point that we want to see therapies as part of opening up opportunities and pathways for people. We must …

I express my deep sorrow and sympathies to the family of Matthew McCallan in Fintona, County Tyrone, who tragically died. As it happens, his grandfather is a cousin of my late father's, which just shows how close all these losses are. It is important we mark this tragic loss in this House and put it on record. There was also the loss of Stella-Lily McCorkindale, aged five, in Belfast, who also died from a strep A infection. These are two tragic losses of young lives in recent days and the families will have to cope…

It is an honour to stand here today and to recognise Senator Terry Brennan and all the work he did as well as his colleague, former Councillor Peter Savage, and I see Councillor Anna Grainger here too. We in Fine Gael are a family and we need those people who will call us out when we need calling out and who will support us when we need that. I have been listening to everyone's collective memories. That environment, that craic, that support and that ethos is what I grew up with in my house and it is what encouraged…

I concur with my colleague on the overall description of the success of the Bill. I want to raise two aspects of it. I cannot stay as I have to head out to Hartstown for a meeting; that is why Senator Burke has kindly given me some of his time. The first thing I want to raise is the hot school meals. This is one of the best initiatives this Government has introduced because it is practical, both in its effect on people's pockets and from a learning and health perspective. The Minister has overseen it from a pilot o…

I welcome any opportunity to debate childcare. The motion and the response to it are interesting to read through. They show that there has been progress. We have to acknowledge the national childcare scheme. The numbers show we are moving from being the highest in Europe. We are beginning to address that and we are on a journey. We are also lifting more children out of poverty through it. The core funding is a very important pillar in that as it gives stability to parents around fees and freezing the fees. Progress…

I warmly welcome our Fine Gael colleague, Councillor Barry Sweeny, from Ballyshannon in County Donegal. I will be generous and say I have found an irregularity in car parking charges at commuter train stations in Dublin West. All of the County Dublin train station car parks charge €30 per month, but the Navan Road Parkway in Dublin West charges €70 per month. It is a privately owned facility. I have appealed to the owner to reduce the tariffs but have not had a positive result. I ask about this matter again, partic…

I thank the Minister. I very much welcome this Bill and the increased availability of capital. I worked for Fáilte Ireland. It was my client when I worked in advertising and marketing. I was part of the team that started the process of marketing home holidays with the Right Here, Right Now and The Fun Starts Here campaigns, so I recognise the multiplier effect and how much our tourism proposition has changed over the years. It is not just about attractions but also about experiences and packaging them in light of t…

I commend Senator Carrigy and the autism committee on their work on the interim report on summer provision. It is an excellent report which sets out the ambitions we need to have in relation to supporting families with consistent summer provision. There was an article today in the Irish Examiner about fire safety defects in the phase 1 Phoenix Park Racecourse apartments, which were completed around 2008. They join about 90,000 or 100,00 other apartments and duplexes affected by fire safety, water ingress and struct…

Today I want to raise the announcement of a public consultation on the EPSEN Act, of which I am hugely in favour. The EPSEN Act deals with education for persons with special educational needs. The Minister said she wants that Act to be up to date, operational, and reflective of the lived experience of children with special education needs, because we are not meeting their needs at the moment. We have to find a way to cater for the growing needs that exist. I welcome what Dr. Niall Muldoon, as Ombudsman for Children…

I thank the Minister of State for the opportunity to speak on the Finance Bill, which is a continuation of the supports that we provided during Covid. In the round, this budget has been accepted positively by the public. We are showing that we are as committed to helping families, businesses and people through this crisis like we did the last. In addition, it shows that we are responding to poverty and the needs of families and businesses under pressure. I am reminded of the Tesco jingle “every little helps”, becau…

I appreciate the Minister coming in today. I watched with interest last night the Second Reading of the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill in the House of Lords. Lord Caine gave an overview of the British Government's amendments that will be brought forward on Committee Stage. As the Minister will be aware, the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, of which I am a member, last week visited Westminster and we had the opportunity to meet Lord Caine. The committee,…

If the intent of a Bill is rotten at the core, then the Bill, even with amendments, remains rotten at the core, and I personally do not believe there are any amendments that would fix this. I think the only way to proceed is to bring people with you, and for the Irish Government, the British government, all the parties and the victims to work together and to learn that lesson that you have to bring people with you. All of the parties are against it, as well as NGOs such as Amnesty International, our Government, the…

I will make just one very basic point. I completely agree that the increase in antisocial behaviour we are seeing in communities cannot be tackled by policing alone. However, policing is a very important pillar. We are seeing things in Dublin 15 such as playgrounds and other public property being damaged and increased levels of drug taking in public and family areas. It is happening across the board in all communities. It is brilliant we have targeted supports. The youth diversion projects and local community safet…

I commend the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, and the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, on the publication of the Gambling Regulation Bill. I sincerely hope that it is the beginning of our laws and regulations catching up with what has become the normalisation of gambling and its intrusiveness. We are probably all aware of the families in our communities and our friends who have been affected by gambling addiction. Gambling is a €6 billion to €10 billion industry which has used every tactic imaginable t…