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In 2006, hospital overcrowding was declared a national crisis. Declarations were made by the then Fianna Fáil-led Government. Each Fianna Fáil- and Fine Gael-led Government since then swore that this would be resolved. Despite that declaration, and all the statements on resolving hospital overcrowding from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael health Ministers, and Fianna Fáil-led Governments, 17 years on we are looking at what could be considered a bad, repetitive joke, if it was not so serious. It is like Groundhog Day. It i…

I raise the lack of dental care for medical card patients. I have raised this matter so often with this Government that it is deeply frustrating for me. I can only imagine how bad it is for patients affected. For almost two years now, patients with medical cards cannot access dental care. This includes patients who are seriously ill with diabetes and even with cancer. To give an example, Drogheda, the largest town in Ireland, has not one single dentist treating patients with medical cards. That is replicated across…

The scheme is not fit for purpose and I have already told the Minister that.

I want the Minister to picture this chaos. Last Saturday night, which was a normal Saturday night, 11 ambulances were forced to queue outside Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda. There was not a single bed or trolley available in the emergency department. Some ambulance crews had to keep patients in the ambulance for up to five hours. They could not respond to any other 999 calls. There was not a single ambulance crew available for the entire region. This was no fault of the ambulance crew. It was a normal Satur…

-----and if he does not listen to the medical professionals, is he actually fit to be the Minister for Health?

I am glad the Minister has recognised the need to include community television as well as community radio. We submitted amendments in that regard on Committee Stage and I am glad that she has accepted the spirit of those amendments.

I add my voice in support of the amendment. There is a strong argument for a reduction in the levy given the service provided by local radio and the role it plays within communities the length and breadth of the State as part of its public service remit. There is also an argument to be made that a reduction in the levy is justified for local radio stations given that they pay the exact same levy as other stations with a much bigger audience and much greater resources. It seems unfair that they should be penalised b…

I move amendment No. 34: In page 36, line 27, to delete “and” and substitute the following: “(ca) include specific detail, which shall be made available in the Irish language, on objectives, intended outcomes, strategies and performance assessment of previous and future strategies, relating to progressing the increased visibility use of Irish as a spoken language in media, and”.

I move amendment No. 35: In page 38, between lines 34 and 35, to insert the following: “(5A) The Commission will produce a report to examine and make recommendations on the issue of access to data from online service providers for public interest research by independent researchers and academics, the terms of reference for which will be decided by the Minister and Oireachtas Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media, to be laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas within a year of the establishment …

I move amendment No. 36: In page 38, after line 42, to insert the following: “(8) (a) The Commission shall, following consultation with organisations involved in the provision of radio services in the Irish language and the Irish speaking community, no later than one year following its establishment, prepare and publish a report, to be laid before the Minister, both Houses of the Oireachtas, and the Joint Oireachtas Committee upon its publication, outlining options and recommendations for the provision of a nationa…

I move amendment No. 38: In page 41, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following: “(1A) Provision made for the purpose referred to in subsection (1) shall not include regulation of commercial communications.”. When I raised this issue on Committee Stage the Minister was not in favour of it, but it remains a very important issue. Allowing the advertisers to self-regulate is something most people would see as ridiculous. It is bad practice, and it causes harm to people, especially children. I resubmitted the ame…

I do not know how many groups we had before the committee who made the argument about the importance of ensuring advertisers were not allowed to self-regulate, in particular when it comes to marketing to children, whether it relates to food or other issues. It makes sense to take such an approach. One does not have to put up much of an argument against it. It is important in framing the legislation that we get things right from the get-go. I hoped the Minister would support the amendment.

I move amendment No. 44: In page 51, line 10, to delete “undue offence”. I will speak to amendment No. 44. We spoke about this on Committee Stage and we pointed out that "undue offence" can mean anything to anybody. The phrase is so broad that we asked that it not be included in the Bill. We sought clarity on the issue on Committee Stage but, unfortunately, none was forthcoming and the Minister could not provide a definition for the phrase when we asked for one, which is why we are seeking to make the amendment now…

I am completely uncomfortable with the phrase "undue offence". As I said, that could mean anything to anybody. No definition or clarity has been given. Can the Minister give me an example of what would be deemed "undue offence"? If somebody were to give an opinion, whether it be political, non-political or anything at all, what constitutes "undue offence"? We are seeking to put something in legislation and there is no clarity around it. The Chair could say something to me and I might take offence, but the person si…

There is, therefore, no definition. It is for the BAI to interpret it whatever way it wants. There is nothing definitive about "undue offence". It is whether the BAI decides one day that something is offensive and then makes a similar remark another day that something has been taken out of context. There is nothing definitive about it. To write it into law is a serious matter when no clarity has been given on it. It is too vague to put into law.

I move amendment No. 52: In page 54, line 8, to delete “unduly offensive”.

I move amendment No. 53: In page 54, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “(iii) increase the visibility and use of the Irish language in media and commercial life,”.

I move amendment No. 57: In page 54, line 36, to delete “offence”.