Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire as ucht teacht chun an tSeanaid arís chun an t-ábhar seo a phlé. Is dócha go bhfuil sé mínithe go soiléir ag an Aire agus ag Seanadóir Ó Gallchobhair díreach cad atá i gceist againn anseo inniu. As the Minister outlined in his opening remarks, following the illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ireland has been very strong and generous in the response to the invasion. We have seen more than 117,000 Ukrainians come to Ireland. Of those 117,000, almost half of them - slightly over …

I welcome the Minister to the House and second the proposal for a six-month period to give us an opportunity to reflect more on what exactly is entailed and to arrive at the conclusion that will best fit us and also take into account the concerns and considerations of victims of crime and of survivors, as Senator Ruane articulated in her opening remarks. In the more than 100 years since the establishment of An Garda Síochána in 1923, we have seen the service be of immense importance in protecting the State and her …

Ar an gcéad dul síos, cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Dlí agus Cirt atá istigh sa Seanad inniu chun an t-ábhar seo a mhíniú agus a phlé linn. Gabhaim buíochas leis as an méid sin a dhéanamh. I thank the Minister for his opening statement clarifying the advantages to accepting the proposal before us today. As the Minister outlined, the proposal relates to technical updates to Protocol 21 arising from new insolvency proceedings, new insolvency practitioners and changes to national insolvency law in seven member states of…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Byrne, chuig an Seanad chun éisteacht agus labhairt linn inniu mar gheall ar an Aontas Eorpach agus cé chomh tábhachtach is atá sé don tír seo le breis agus 50 bliain anuas. I thank everybody in attendance for coming in for my speech today. There is a massive crowd.

Indeed. Welcome, guests. In a statement to the House in April on the back of the tariff announcements from the new Administration in the United States, I spoke of the importance of the European Union and co-operation with our EU partners in dealing with the challenges we face at a global level. It was in stark contrast to the Paris Peace Conference and subsequent Treaty of Versailles in 1919 in the aftermath of First World War, where leadership and vision was shown by people like Robert Schuman, Jean Monnet, Alcide…

Ar son Fhine Gael, cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Collins, chuig an Seanad chun an t-ábhar tábhachtach seo a phlé - conas is féidir linn daoine óga a atreorú ó ghníomhaíocht choiriúil. Ó toghadh mé chuig an Teach seo i mí Feabhra, tá an-chuid seanfhocal cloiste againn ó Sheanadóirí éagsúla, agus go minic bíonn an-chiall ag baint leo. Is iad an dá cheann a sheasann amach dom agus a théann go mór i bhfeidhm orm ná "mol an óige agus tiocfaidh sí" agus "tús maith leath na hoibre". Is fíor an dá sheanfhoc…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, an Teachta O'Sullivan, agus an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Cummins, a bhí sa Teach níos luaithe, as ucht teacht isteach chun an rún seo a phlé. It should be noted that Ireland is one of only a small number of European countries with a coherent and overarching plan for sustainable development. In general terms, I am supportive of both the revised national planning framework and Project Ireland 2040. With the significant population growth Ireland has been experiencing in recent decades a…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Ó Múineacháin, as teacht chuig an Teach inniu chun an t-ábhar tábhachtach seo a phlé. As the Minister of State is aware, Scoil Eoin in Ballincollig is the oldest primary school in our rapidly expanding town and can trace its roots back to the establishment of a school on Station Road in 1862. It is a primary school that caters for the educational and developmental needs of boys in our community, and the school's principal and management team work in close co-operation…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I emphasise the importance of direct engagement with the school on the issue of available funding. Much of the school's current accommodation is outdated and not fit for purpose. For example, the building that currently accommodates fourth, fifth and sixth classes does not have a wheelchair-accessible toilet, which has meant these classrooms cannot accommodate the needs of some pupils in the school. Of the school's junior infants intake for the coming 2025-26 school y…

There is an unintended loophole in the Public Health (Alcohol) Act, which came into effect in January 2022 and needs to be amended. The stated intention of the legislation was twofold, namely, to reduce alcohol consumption nationally in a country where we lose an estimated average of four people per day to alcohol-related deaths, and to provide protection for children throughout the country from the exploitative and predatory marketing practices of the drinks industry. The loophole to which I refer is the targeted …

Cuirim fáilte mhór roimh an Aire Stáit agus an Tánaiste chuig an Seanad inniu. Táimid an-bhuíoch díobh as ucht a bheith anseo chun cúrsaí idirnáisiúnta agus trádála a phlé linn. Guímid gach rath orthu lena gcuid oibre don téarma Rialtais atá faoi lánseol anois. I will speak about the importance of the basic concepts of co-operation and working together. In our local Tidy Towns group in Ballincollig, we speak about the importance of a bheith ag obair le chéile dá chéile and doing the best we can collectively for our…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit, an Teachta O’Donnell, as ucht teacht isteach chun buaileadh linn chun na hábhair thábhachtacha seo mar gheall ar chúram tacaíochta agus seirbhísí níos láidre a chur ar fáil do dhaoine aosta. Cuirimid go léir fíorfháilte roimhe. It was Mahatma Gandhi who said the true measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable. That point was made by a previous speaker. At a time of budgetary surpluses and relative economic prosperity it is incumbent upon us to ensure that we do ev…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Cathaoirleach Gníomhach.

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. Ar an gcéad dul síos, déanaim comhghairdeas leat as a bheith tofa don dara huair. Tá súil agam go n-éireoidh go geal leat i do dara tréimhse mar Chathaoirleach an tSeanaid. Like everybody else, I congratulate Senators on their election or appointment to the Seanad. I have been very encouraged and heartened by the contributions that have been made to date. While it is interesting to hear of topics that are of particular concern to individual Members, it is very clear we also hav…