I move amendment No. 27: In page 86, line 4, to delete “2006;”,” and substitute the following: “2006; (hb) in the performance of its functions as the independent monitoring mechanism under the Convention, to ensure extensive and meaningful engagement with all persons with disabilities in the State, in accordance with Articles 1, 4(3), and 33 of the Convention;”,”.

I thank the Minister for considering the amendment we brought on Committee Stage with regard to the proportion of positions on the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission's, IHREC, disability advisory board reserved for people with disabilities. The amendment seeks to use the UNCRPD definition of "disability" for the criteria of membership of IHREC's disability advisory committee rather than the more antiquated definition contained in the Disability Act 2005. The Minister refused to accept this amendment on Comm…

I move amendment No. 28: In page 86, line 17, to delete “at least half” and substitute “two-thirds”.

I move amendment No. 30: In page 86, lines 18 and 19, to delete all words from and including “have,” in line 18 down to and including line 19 and substitute the following: “be persons with disabilities within the meaning of Article 1, United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.”.”.

I just want to say well done to the Minister. He worked very hard on this and took it very seriously. We did not agree on a few things but his engagement and communication with us was appreciated. I again thank him and his officials. I also thank all the campaigners who worked extremely hard on this and are very passionate about this Bill. I mentioned them earlier but I would refer again to Ber Grogan from Mental Health Reform, Professor Eilionóir Flynn, Fiona Walsh, who is extremely passionate and has spoken about…

I congratulate Senators Ardagh, Buttimer and Gavan, and the entire membership of the Oireachtas cross-party cancer group, on the introduction of this legislation. I also pay tribute to the work that group does in general. It does phenomenal work. This Bill is the kind of thoughtful, compassionate and subtle legislation that this Chamber specialises in, which I hope will attract cross-party support. It is vital that this Bill is looked at today and I would love to see it passed. The operations of this House often fl…

I warmly welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber and thank her for the work she has done in this area. I acknowledge the great work she has done. I am aware that she is passionate about this. I am glad that we are having these statements on the nursing home sector. Caring is the future of work. While Ireland remains one of the youngest European populations, our demographics are changing as we live to greater ages and birth rates fall. Our ageing population means that we need to think about how we make jobs car…

We must also speak about the protection and empowerment of older people living in nursing homes. People living in residential care communities often need support in asserting their autonomy and expressing their desires and concerns. This requires robust regulatory, advocacy and decision support frameworks to operate in tandem with one another. It is vital that the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Bill be enacted as soon as possible to facilitate the long-awaited operation of the decision support serv…

I wish to raise a powerful briefing I attended yesterday by Comhar na nOileán CTR, which was facilitated by Deputies Connolly and Ó Cuív. The group came in to speak about a campaign that is being run by the islands of Ireland for the past 38 years. They want the islands to be recognised as a specific sub-regional area. The briefing actually blew me away and I believe that such recognition would allow for targeted and ring-fenced supports to facilitate the economic and community development necessary to ensure that …

I warmly welcome the Minister to the Chamber. I agree with my colleague regarding disabled artists and it would be great if we could start up the conversation around getting those extra supports. I am really pleased to be able to speak on this incredibly important issue. I pay tribute to the incredible creative activists who brought this issue to the public's attention. Theirs is a struggle that has required bravery, integrity and solidarity and we owe them a great debt.

As a woman, a musician and a politician, the stories that have come out about the harassment, bullying and mistreatment have had a deep impact on me. I am thankful I never experienced abusive treatment during my own music career. I was surrounded by many caring and protective people, including members of my family. I felt very safe but it is sad to say I was probably one of the lucky ones. It is sad to think that way; even though I was safe, I was just one of the lucky ones. It is heartbreaking to hear about young …

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. Like my colleagues who spoke before me, I would love to see Housing for All work. I believe the housing crisis is probably the largest single failure of the modern Irish State. It is difficult to speak about it because it feels as if we are in a state of perpetual dysfunction. The debate in this House can sometimes feel a bit like a stage play that has been running for far too long. The exchanges between Government and us in opposition can feel repetitive, exhausted and…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. The tourism and hospitality sectors are extremely important parts of the Irish economy. It is good to see that the Government has recognised this and assisted the sector by imposing a reduced VAT rate. That rate was further reduced during the pandemic to support these sectors which were some of the worst-impacted sectors during Covid-19. This was an important measure, however the future is in doubt. The problem is that there are bad actors charging outrageous prices who…

I second this motion. I am glad to be here to be able to second this powerful motion tabled by my friend and colleague, Senator Ruane. Poverty is a scourge. It afflicts the lives of a shameful number of people. Living in poverty makes everything so much harder. Deprivation robs people of the peace and security they need to relax, to enjoy themselves and to plan for the future. Every day is a challenge to acquire what is needed to live. It is an endurance test to see how long people can cope. The Preamble to our Con…

She is just writing her speech.

I want to welcome Senator O'Loughlin's mam to the Chamber and all our visitors today. They are very welcome. I also want to send condolences to the family of Rory Mason from Kildare, the young man who died in Ukraine in its army. Like my previous colleague, Senator Ó Donnghaile, I want to thank the more than 5,000 people who came from all corners of the island to the 3Arena last Saturday for the Together We Can conference organised by Ireland's Future. I thank all the volunteers who made it happen. They did a pheno…

I am very pleased to welcome the Lord Speaker to Ireland and to this Chamber on behalf of the Civil Engagement Group. In my capacity as a member of the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, we are in regular contact with British and Northern Irish parliamentarians. I have found the engagement between our institutions to be stimulating and fruitful. I know that developing a relationship is a major concern of Lord McFall. I find his work in this area to be incredibly valuable. He knows h…

The Minister is welcome to the House. I am very grateful to Ber Grogan of Mental Health Reform for helping out with much of this over the past few months. I am also very grateful to Dr. Fiona Morrissey of NUIG, who has also been very helpful to me. An advance healthcare directive is a statement set out by someone when he or she has the capacity to make decisions about his or her will and preferences for care and treatment in the future. The directive comes into effect if and when the person becomes unwell and no lo…

That would be helpful. There is no reason this provision cannot be removed. Will the Minister give a little more explanation in this regard? It impacts everyone but especially those who are vulnerable. Dealing with it must be a priority. Is that something he will consider as we go forward? We need a full discussion on it before Report Stage. The provision needs to be taken out and it would be helpful if we could discuss it further.

I move amendment No. 3: In page 8, between lines 6 and 7, to insert the following: “(e) section 85(7);”. Amendment No. 42, which was tabled by the Minister, will mandate compliance with AHDs made by some people detained under the Mental Health Act but not others. Those admitted under section 31(b), because the clinician believes that they will deteriorate or substantively improve if detained will have their wishes respected. Those detained under section 31(a) who are deemed to be a risk to themselves and others wil…