I thank the Cathaoirleach, his office and the Seanad Office for their engagement over recent weeks, and the Deputy Leader, Senator O’Loughlin, for her constructive encouragement and engagement throughout the process. It is a real privilege to take questions as Leader. The Order of Business is No. 1, Údarás na Gaeltachta (Amendment) Bill 2024 - Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken at 3.45 p.m. and to adjourn at 4.45 p.m. if not previously concluded; No. 2, Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) (Amendment) Bil…

Schools finish on Friday.

I thank everyone for the lovely comments today. I have definitely got a big head after the past hour of kind words. I am not sure they were all true, but they were really appreciated. I am very grateful. I thank in particular my Fine Gael colleagues for their support over the last number of weeks and in general. We have a great bunch here in the Seanad and it is a privilege to work with all of them. I also thank the Opposition Members for their comments, but particularly for their restraint before I was appointed. …

The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding the proposed approval by Seanad Éireann of the Data Protection Act 2018, section 60(6) and section 51(3) regulations 2026, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business without debate; No. 2, motion regarding the proposed approval by Seanad Éireann for an amending EU directive to combat firearms trafficking and other firearms' related offences, to be taken at 12.45 p.m. and to conclude no later than 1.45 p.m., with the time allocated to the opening remarks of th…

I thank the 16 Senators who contributed this morning. Senator Comyn spoke about the increase in shoplifting and mentioned the 41 court cases at the moment in Dún Laoghaire. That is replicated right across the country. If you speak to owners of shops like Centra and Spar, they will tell you that shoplifting happens on a daily basis and nearly on an hourly basis. The kinds of things that are taken are normally day-to-day items that people just need. It is important that we have a debate in this House on the matter be…

If he could sing like Rory Gallagher-----

Senator Gallagher, along with Senators Sarah O'Reilly, Mullen and McCarthy, spoke on the eighth amendment. There is a vote on a Bill on this matter in the Dáil tonight. We do not have a vote on it in the Seanad, but it might come at some point. Senator Gallagher and the other Senators raised some very valid personal views they have on tonight's decision. We all know it is a personal decision for everyone and we have to respect everyone's view on it. It is very hard to disagree with some of the points that were expr…

On the referendum, people certainly felt protected by having that three-day cushion in place but that is a wider debate we can have. The vote tonight is one for it to continue to Committee Stage. Perhaps it is at that point where those discussions can be had. However, at all times we need to be respectful of everyone’s personal opinions on that. We are always good to do that in this House. Senator Noel O’Donovan spoke about social media and the UK ban, which was brought in because of what happened in the last numbe…

I did not hear the comment on that-----

-----but I know the Minister of State is very supportive of international aid.

If the Senator wants detail on that, she can put down a Commencement matter on it. Senator Mullen spoke on the eighth amendment. I spoke on that at the start. He spoke about empathy for little children. I think most people have empathy in general but people have different viewpoints. Some people have empathy for women going through difficult pregnancies.

I have both. However, I understand and take the Senator’s view and concerns genuinely, and his consistency on the matter. Senator McCarthy spoke about small businesses and rising costs. That is a real challenge for businesses. A lot of businesses are under huge pressure but want to continue because they do not want their staff to lose their jobs. Often, they are hardly making ends meet and just surviving. We have made a lot of changes for employees in recent years in relation to the minimum wage, sick pay and pensi…

I move: That Seanad Éireann approves the following Regulations in draft: Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Scoping Exercise in Response to Requests from Dignity4Patients) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 51(3)) (Scoping Exercise in Response to Requests from Dignity4Patients) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, copies of which were laid in draft form before Seanad Éireann on 11th June, 2026.”

Tomorrow at 9.30 a.m.

The Order of Business is No. 1, Health (Amendment) (Home Support Providers) Bill 2025 – Second Stage, to be taken at 4.45 p.m. and to conclude no later than 6 p.m., with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed eight minutes, all Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than five minutes to reply to the debate; No. 2, Domestic Violence Judgments Register Bill 2026 – Order for Second Stage and Second Stage, to be taken at 6 p.m. and to conclude no later …

Do not say anything.

Every time.

I thank the 11 Senators who made contributions this morning. Senator O'Loughlin aptly spoke about men's mental health after I just went up four flights of stairs to speak here so it was perfect timing when it came to speaking about it, particularly in relation to mental health. It is a real problem for men right across the country. An awful lot of good work is being done by organisations such as See Change or Jigsaw. Jigsaw has been operating in my county of Tipperary over the past number of years and we have seen …

I can contact the Department to see if he is willing to come in for statements. We have four or five weeks left before the recess, but I will put that on the agenda, if I can.

The Order of Business is No. 1, Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) (Amendment) Bill 2025 - Committee Stage, to be taken at 1 p.m. and to adjourn at 3 p.m. if not previously concluded; No. 2, statements on rural planning, to be taken at 3 p.m. and to conclude at 4.30 p.m. if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no le…