I support the Bill in the fullest and congratulate Sinn Féin on proposing it. We will be supporting it fully and hope it goes through. The Bill seeks to ban the coercion of minors into drug dealing. We see the full effects of this activity in many of our communities every week and every day. When you think about the coercion of minors into the drug trade or try to describe it to somebody else who may not be as familiar with it, you often think it is achieved in a subtle way and that kids are somehow enticed into th…

It can become overwhelming when we stop to consider the full enormity of what we are here to discuss today. That enormity is that for four fifths of just over the 100-year history of this Republic, a collusion of church and State saw fit to incarcerate en masse women and girls of all ages and backgrounds, and young working-class boys, who committed no wrong other than to be in the way of a cruel war of morality that was waged upon them. This same collusion of church and State permitted vaccine trials to be performe…

I find it appropriate that the Taoiseach is joined by the Minister for Health, the Minister for Justice and the Minister with responsibility for local government. Last night's "RTÉ Investigates" programme highlighted a plethora of complex issues related to O'Connell Street. While the matter has already been raised, does the Taoiseach not believe a good starting point would be to establish a task force to address the issues raised? Each of the Ministers has a responsibility. It relates to health because of the level…

That is not true.

I said it is an illusion of democracy.

Are you going to go back to Dublin City Council then?

The Taoiseach needs to get control.

There is a responsibility to get control.

Get control. Show some leadership.

I wish to ask the Taoiseach about a possible date for the proposed citizens' assembly on drugs. The issue of drugs has been once again brought to the fore by two matters in particular, the first being the episode of "Prime Time" broadcast last night which discussed the matter in detail and the second being the unfortunate comments yesterday of a Government Deputy which reduced people suffering serious addiction abuse to a single derogatory and hateful term that I will not repeat. We need a new approach to drugs. So…

I begin by welcoming the Georgian ambassador, Mr. George Zurabashvili, to the Chamber. His presence is very welcome. Our last pre-European Council statements coincided with the restrictions based on Georgia's accession to the European Union, following the advanced status given to Ukraine and Moldova. In that time, 12 recommendations were attached to Georgia's candidacy. It is very welcome that the Parliament of Georgia has established nine different working groups to advance those aims. There is an onus on Ireland,…

For over a year, I have been writing to the Business Committee to request statements on the city of Dublin specifically. Tonight, "RTÉ Investigates" will lay bare the reason I have been doing so in a programme on our nation's capital, its main thoroughfare and all the related issues. This Chamber needs to take an interest in the capital city. There are issues there that go across Departments and strike at the very heart of problems like the absence of local government, health and how we treat people who are in the …

We criminalised-----

This is a short but technical Bill but it is also important, and we intend to support it. It gives us an opportunity to talk about all the aspects of tourism. Fáilte Ireland recently launched a €600,000 campaign stating, "Winter in Dublin, it's magic". I do not disagree with that in the slightest. I am an extraordinarily proud Dub but we have issues that may impact on the people who come here to visit. I want to touch on them. The magic that Fáilte Ireland refers to will take the form of live music, events, family …

I thank Deputy O'Rourke for tabling this important and timely motion. The Government's refusal to extend the moratorium on disconnections to households with prepay meters typifies its cavalier approach to this unprecedented crisis. When this issue arose a number of weeks ago, the Government appeared taken aback. The Taoiseach had done an interview at the weekend in which he gave a solemn commitment that no one would be disconnected this winter. There was no equivocation, no caveat. There was no room for confusion. …

I will pick up where Deputy Cairns left off on the previous occasion. The Bill has defects in respect of the sharing of personal information, especially in the requirement to share third-party information with an employer to seek medical care leave or flexible working arrangements for care purposes. This issue also arose in recent newspaper accounts of IBEC’s submission on domestic violence leave. The Joint Committee on Children, Disability, Equality, Integration and Youth discussed domestic violence leave in refer…

On three occasions today, the last of which was at 1.41 p.m., I was contacted by people, one of whom asked "Can you help me? I'm in desperate need of help." Does anyone around this Chamber have any doubt about the content of that message? It was the third person today telling me they were about to be made homeless. The children of each of the three families by which I was contacted will join the 3,220 children in this country who are experiencing homelessness. I listened to the Taoiseach's earlier exchange on Leade…

Their notices are up.

Let us have an eviction ban.

That is the issue I am raising.