It is important that Horse Sport Ireland be ambitious and we certainly want it to be. It is important to note that it does need to move from its present premises, but I have no confidence, from what the Minister of State has said, that he is going to fight for it to be retained in Kildare for all the reasons I and Senator Martin have outlined. We had a good Fianna Fáil Minister in Kildare, Mr. Charlie McCreevy, who delivered for the equestrian world and delivered for Punchestown. There is absolutely no reason there…

Hear, hear.

May I add my words to yours, Acting Chairperson, in your very dignified and emotive response last week to this report? I know it was deeply personal. We all learned from your dignity, so thank you, Senator Boyhan. When we talk about the mother and baby homes, we are talking about our mothers, our aunts, our cousins, our sisters and our neighbours. We are talking about people within our own communities. These women were incarcerated, tortured, forced into servitude and systematically degraded. They were denied ident…

I wish the Cathaoirleach, Members and the entire staff of the House a happy and peaceful 2021. This year has already had a very rocky start internationally and nationally. It was a difficult start but it was also an emotional one considering the mother and baby homes report that was published last week, about which we will hear more later in our debate. Since we last met, which was only a few short weeks ago, Covid numbers have risen. The vaccination programme has been rolled out, thankfully, and we are back in cir…

Where is Santa for the councillors?

Effective local democracy is the absolute cornerstone of a functioning society and that respecting and valuing the work that local councillors do is very important, as is supporting with resources the work that needs to happen at local government level.

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, who is present, and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, for absolutely prioritising this legislation. It is among the most important legislation to come before the Houses this year. The fact that it was prioritised in the programme for Government sends a very strong message to the perpetrators of these vile online crimes that their actions are not just wrong and immoral, but that they are now illegal and that they will be criminalised for these activities. There is one …

I thank the Minister of State for being present to take the matter but I must express my disappointment that the Minister for Defence is not here to listen to our points and give us the basis for his reason to not include the Department of Defence in the terms of reference. When this commission was announced it was good news. It was in the programme for Government and it was something that we in Fianna Fáil had fought for. I am grateful to those who have agreed to serve on the commission and give their time, experi…

May I just come in for a moment?

I appreciate that. The relationship between a Minister and his or her Department is completely different from the relationship between a Department and those whom it purports to serve. It is not good enough for the Minister to simply state he has always had a good experience. If this issue is not addressed, the commission will be made unworkable. I accept the point the Minister of State made with regard to the Minister, Deputy Coveney. I know it is a very busy time for both. On behalf of all of us in the country, I…

I again acknowledge how difficult this time during the Covid-19 pandemic is on those people impacted in respect of their health or financially, as well as for those at the forefront in the workplace in dealing with the health problems which arise. We cannot lose sight of the small things which would make a difference in respect of what our country is going through now. We spoke previously about the importance of supporting mental health, particularly among young people, and the importance of sport in that context. …

The issue I want to raise before the House, and it is not the first time that I have spoken about it here, is the area of hereditary amyloidosis. Like many Members, I would not have heard about this very debilitating and difficult disease if it had not affected somebody that I know very well. Pat Tinsley is a well known and well loved member of the Newbridge community whose life has been absolutely destroyed by this degenerative disease. This debilitating and fatal illness attacks the heart and nervous system of pa…

I have listened closely to what the Minister of State has said and I accept that last February and July, a decision was made in the negative on patisiran but things have changed rapidly. The fact that an extra €50 million was included in the budget in order to treat rare diseases is important and an absolute game changer. I accept, of course, that there has to be criteria for the spending of public money on medicines. However, the 30 people who we are speaking about are lucky that we know that there is a drug that …

There is one woman on my mind this morning. Indeed, she has been on my mind all night since I saw her last night on "Prime Time". Anybody who saw and heard Geraldine Mullan from Moville in Donegal either last night or this morning could not have been but so incredibly moved by her loss, grief and sense of dignity and the very strong message she wanted to give to everybody. Geraldine lost her husband and two children on 20 August in a car accident and is now all alone with no family. The message she sent out last ni…

I thank the Senator who finished with one second to go. That is absolutely superb timekeeping. I completely agree with him on trying to make things easy. Affordable accessible public transport, as well as ensuring those who use electric vehicles do not have to suffer that charging panic, is hugely important.

It is always tricky for a gentleman to buy for his wife.

The Senator should speak through the Chair, but I will allow it.

I cannot allow anyone in. We were supposed to finish at 6 p.m. but it has gone past 6 p.m.

Of course. I thank the Minister for his interest, his openness and his commitment to consulting. It is very important. When we talk about social justice and people who do not have cars, we have to talk about the social choice as well. Many people make a choice not to have a car and, therefore, need public transport and so on.

I raise the issue of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017, which will be coming before us soon. I spoke about this issue some weeks ago, and I also acknowledge the role of the Labour Party, and Deputy Howlin in particular, in tabling this legislation, which is also known as Coco's law. This Bill is hugely important for banning cyberbullying, stalking and the sharing of intimate images without consent. This measure is overdue in our legislation, particularly given the huge dump of im…