I move: That, pursuant to subsection 2° of section 2 of Article 25 of the Constitution, Seanad Éireann concurs with the Government in a request to the President to sign the Social Welfare Bill 2021 on a date which is earlier than the fifth day after the date on which the Bill shall have been presented to him.

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber today. Senator Lombard and I put down this matter for the Commencement to outline Fine Gael's view on the agriculture industry, the agrifood sector and, in particular, young farmers. It has been Fine Gael's policy as long as it has been in government, for as long as I can remember anyway, that we have been very supportive of the farming sector and young farmers especially. I remember the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, negotiations in 2011 and 2012 when decis…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I acknowledge that people are allowed to have individual opinions, and I have no problem with that, but they should not relay individual "facts" that are not true. Is there any other sector that would see a high-profile politician write to a bank to say it should not give those people loans? Could we imagine if somebody wrote to banks asking them not to give plumbers loans because it is not right? It is just not acceptable and as far as I am concerned, it is an attack on…

I wish to follow on the sentiments of all Members today and wish the Cathaoirleach and everyone here a very happy Christmas and to thank him, the Leas-Chathaoirleach, Martin Groves and Bridget Doody and every staff member who works for the Seanad and in the Oireachtas for the work that they do and the contribution that they all make in making the work we do as good as possible. As it is a case of being the Acting Leader for the third day in a row, is it still "acting" any more this week? Can the Acting Leader arran…

I am sharing time with Senator Kyne. I welcome the Minister. This is the largest budget that has been delivered by the Department for years. I think it amounts to €23.5 billion in total, a phenomenal achievement. I acknowledge the Minister, her Department and the officials in the Department. I know she is very proud of the work they have done, especially over the past 18 months. Along with the Department of Health, no other Department has been under as much pressure to get support immediately to people who have nee…

The Dean Maxwell home in Roscrea is a residence for long-term residents. There is real concern within the community and the area about a deadline for long-term residents of 1 January 2022. There has been much confusion and many promises made. There is real concern within the Roscrea community development council. In fairness, Mr. Steve Crofton sent a letter to Deputies outlining the concerns of the council about the matter with a request that the deadline of 1 January 2022 be extended. Promises were made in Tippera…

Now.

Now.

I welcome some funding Tipperary received from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, over the weekend for Christmas lights. As most people in politics know, one of those questions we all get asked over this period is whether towns and villages across our counties can get more Christmas lights. Tipperary has been lucky. It is getting €35,000, €16,000 of which will go towards Clonmel with the remainder going to Cahir, Cashel and Tipperary town. It goes…

Senator Ruane has had to withdraw her Commencement matter so we will go to Senator Malcolm Byrne.

It was rigged.

I think the Cathaoirleach is losing control. I want first to follow on from Senator Lombard's comments regarding RTÉ, the national broadcaster, and an agriculture correspondent. It is hugely important, especially at this time in terms of the volatility in the agriculture industry and the CAP negotiations. To be honest, farmers work their day around news programming. They do their best to be at home at 6 o'clock to listen to the news to find out what is happening. An agriculture correspondent is hugely important for…

I acknowledge and congratulate the 12 all-stars in Limerick. It is a great honour for the 12 individuals and their families. In Tipperary, there are hundreds of players who have won it over the years and that is hugely significant, and they have all been honoured. We wish the 12 in Limerick well and also the hundreds in Tipperary and Kerry who have won it previously.

It might not be as significant for us because we have had so many, but I wish Limerick well.

I was listening to the contributions in my office while I was working. I acknowledge the presence of the Minister and thank him for being here. I could not let this go without making a contribution on the role of secretarial assistants. I have been a Senator for a year and a half, like many others, and have seen at first hand the quality of staff in this Chamber and staff who work for people in this Chamber. Like everyone has said, the work secretarial assistants do is the exact same as that of parliamentary assist…

I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. The Bill is part of a package of measures designed to ensure that Ireland's reputation as a top-tier country in terms of its business environment is underpinned by a robust company law enforcement framework. The policy approach underpinning the Bill is that enforcement bodies, in order to be effective, must be statutorily independent, appropriately resourced, accountable and with a well-defined mandate. I refer to increased funding. In our pre-legislative scrutiny rep…

Next Tuesday.

Next Tuesday at 10.30 a.m.

I welcome the announcement made a few minutes ago by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin, about a €50 million tourism business continuity programme, which is to help tourism businesses throughout 2022. The programme is going to support strategic tourism, transport businesses, Irish-based inbound agents, attractions and activity providers, and tourism accommodation providers. It will build on a five-phase €55 million tourism business continuity scheme that was…

How long do I have?