I move amendment No. 5: In page 6, between lines 26 and 27, to insert the following: “(6) Nothing in this Act prevents a licensee from putting in issue or a court from determining, in subsequent legal proceedings to which the question is or may be relevant— (a) whether the member who gave the direction in respect of the premises concerned had reasonable cause for suspecting the contravention of a relevant provision in respect of those premises, (b) whether the steps which the member directed to be taken were reason…

I ask the Deputy Leader for a debate on climate change in light of the Supreme Court this morning finding in favour of the activists involved in Climate Case Ireland, whom I congratulate. I understand the court has found that the national climate change mitigation plan falls well short of the level of specificity required to comply with the law. This is a very serious finding and we need a debate on the matter urgently after the recess. I also wish to raise the very serious matter of the proposed closure of a nursi…

I move amendment No. 11: In page 6, between lines 23 and 24, to insert the following: “(7) A tenant may serve a declaration referred to in subsection (1) whether before or after the service by the landlord concerned on the tenant of notice of termination or of an increase in rent.”.

I move amendment No. 15: 15. In page 8, between lines 2 and 3, to insert the following: “Definition of landlord 8. Section 5 of the Act of 2004 is amended by the substitution of the following for the definition of ‘landlord’: “ ‘landlord’ means— (a) the person for the time being entitled to receive (otherwise than as an agent for another person) the rent paid in respect of a dwelling by the tenant thereof and, where the context so admits, includes a person who has ceased to be so entitled by reason of the terminati…

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to give that response. In light of what he said I will not press the amendment on behalf of my colleague, Senator Moynihan, I thank him for engaging with us on this important issue.

I join with Senator Seery Kearney in marking World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. I also second the proposal from Senator Ó Donnghaile to amend the Order of Business to call in the relevant Minister to debate with us and explain the appalling conditions in the Skellig Star direct provision centre and to explain what it is proposed to do, urgently, about those conditions. As Senator Wall said, Senator Hoey raised this issue yesterday, and all of us who have been reading the reports have been distressed and conc…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and the opportunity to speak on this important Bill for the financial or July stimulus package which, as we all know, seeks to address the enormous challenge that is confronting our society and economy at present. We all appreciate the enormous scale of that challenge, and those of us on the Opposition benches speak in the spirit of being constructive from Opposition in seeking to ensure that we will be able to get through the crisis as a country. Having said that, and n…

Perhaps it will be in the budget.

I move recommendation No. 5: In page 32, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “Need for harmonious industrial relations and avoidance of industrial unrest 7. The Act of 2020 as amended by this Act, in so far as it relates to the wage subsidy scheme and to special warehousing and interest provisions, shall not apply to an employer unless he or she demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners that he or she— (a) does or will engage in collective bargaining with his or her employees, with…

I take the Minister of State's point about the powers of the Revenue Commissioners but I believe that there would have been a way of working with us - as already stated, we aim to work constructively - to, perhaps, have arrived at a changed wording to ensure the sort of protections we seek could have been included in the legislation. I very much welcome the wording already in section 28B, which the Minister of State quoted, on protections against people being laid off. However, I am of the view that here would have…

As I said earlier, I take the Minister of State's point about the Revenue Commissioners' powers. I pay tribute to the Revenue Commissioners for the speed with which they turned the scheme around in the first place. We are all conscious of the immense work done by public servants in Revenue, in the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and elsewhere to ensure that schemes and supports were in place for people who were left bereft and economically devastated by the Covid-19 pandemic. While I take the…

I did not say that.

I wish to share time with Senator Hoey.

I thank the Minister for coming to the House at such short notice in response to our amendment to the Order of Business this morning. We appreciate it. I welcome the Minister and commend her on her appointment. It is well deserved and it has always been a pleasure to listen to her in the House, both now and when she had a previous role. I wish to briefly express our support for the residents of the Cahersiveen centre, as outlined by my colleagues, Senator Hoey, yesterday, and Senator Wall, this morning. The news em…

I thank the Minister of State, Senator Casey and other Senators for engaging on this matter. I acknowledge Senator Casey's good faith and bona fides in respect of it. I did not wish to suggest that workers' rights are not protected in primary legislation. I am very well aware of the wide range of primary legislation that is protective of workers' rights, and we can be proud of that. However, there is an anomaly where there is no protection of the right to collective bargaining, as Senator Gavan said, which is what …

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to address that point. I am grateful to him. Clearly, it is a point of widespread concern. Senator Buttimer also raised it on Second Stage after I had done so. I hope that a resolution might be found more swiftly. There was some indication that it might be done through administrative means and not necessarily through legislation. Everyone appreciates that the position of proprietary directors, often small family businesses and so on, is a really pressing concern. I …

I move recommendation No. 6: In page 32, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “Layoffs and short-time 7. If and for so long as— (a) an employer is the beneficiary of the wage subsidy scheme or of special warehousing and interest provisions under the Act of 2020 as amended by this Act, and (b) one or more employees of the employer have been laid off or placed on shorttime due to the effects of measures required to be taken by his or her employer ino order to comply with, or as a consequence of, Governme…

I support and speak now in support of Senator Gavan's point. As my colleague, Deputy Nash, said in the Dáil we see this as a deadweight to the help-to-buy policies described in section 8 which will simply push up profits and is what concerns us as it will be effectively be subsidising home purchase. I have also received an email concerned about what happens if someone has already signed a contract prior to 23 July in which case he or she will not be covered by it. We are also opposed to the section.

I also welcome the Minister of State to the House and I wish him well in his new portfolio on behalf of the Labour Party group of Senators. Like others, we are supportive of the Bill and we accept the need for urgency. As the Minister of State has pointed out, there is urgency regarding the difficulties being faced by SMEs. Many companies and co-operatives are considering delaying annual general meetings, AGMs, because of concerns about potential technical breaches of the companies legislation arising from the Covi…

I thank the Minister of State.