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 Electricity Costs (Emergency Measures) Domestic Accounts Bill 2023 on a date which is earlier than the fifth day after the date on which the Bill shall have been presented to him.

Naturally enough, I will speak of the tough time people in north Louth, on the Cooley Peninsula and in certain parts of Dundalk, had last week. I commend the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan, and the Minister for Community and Rural Development, Deputy Humphreys. Both were on the phone to me straight away. The Minister promised that the humanitarian assistance scheme would be opened immediately. The Minister of State promised that he would come to County Louth as soon as possible and compile a full report, in co…

In Dundalk the flooding was not as severe as elsewhere. However, if one went north of the Ballymac roundabout last week, it was like a bomb had hit the Cooley Peninsula, it was that terrible compared to other parts of County Louth. However, in parts of Dundalk like Cluan Enda and Bay Estate in particular, there was also bad flooding because there is a problem with the drainage system. This has been a recurring problem over the last five to ten years. It is now time that people got proper answers from the local auth…

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, for a tour de force on four Commencement matters this morning. It is really appreciated. I welcome the Austrian ambassador to Ireland, H. E., Thomas Nader, and his colleague. I thank them so much for being here. It is a great privilege to them in Seanad Éireann today and I thank them for their presence.

Last night, I spoke to Bernie Quinn from Dundalk. She has done tremendous work with Dundalk Outcomers over the past three decades in County Louth. Dundalk Outcomers provides a service that stretches from Skerries right up into County Monaghan and throughout all of County Meath. It is a very serious issue that funding for an outreach officer was not approved by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. This was funding providing to support LGBTI+ community organisations in the delivery…

I will be brief because this is a straightforward Bill initiated by the European Union. The Russian invasion of Ukraine was where the issue with electricity prices started. In the early days of 2022, we did not know how long the war in Ukraine or the fluctuation in energy prices was going to last. What was clear within the first six months of the war was the huge profits that energy companies were making off people. Substantial profits were made, rather than profits that were normal in that type of economic market.…

Next Tuesday.

At 1 p.m. on Tuesday, 7 November 2023.

Like Senator Blaney and others, I met Lord Caine as a member of the Good Friday committee and a member of the British-Irish friendship group recently. When we were downstairs, beneath this Chamber, speaking to Lord Caine, 95% of the discussion was about the legacy Act - rightly so - and how horrific we as Irish parliamentarians find it to be. I pointed out to him that I was sitting at one end of the room and John Finucane, the Member of Parliament for Belfast North, was sitting on the other end and that I disagree …

I call for a debate on large-scale sports facilities similar to the one that took place in Dáil Éireann last week. A debate in this House with the Minister would be very welcome. Dundalk is the biggest town in Ireland, with one of the most successful football teams in the country and, in the case of Dundalk Football Club, a long and proud footballing tradition. Its stadium at Oriel Park, however, is reminiscent of a football ground in the 1960s or 1970s and that is why I am calling for a debate on large-scale infra…

I want to move on to another equally serious issue, namely, that of missing people in Ireland. As many people in this House will know, I am holding a meeting with the families of missing people today in the audiovisual room at 1 p.m. I would appreciate it if as many as possible could come along. According to the Department of Justice, as of July of this year there are 840 missing people in Ireland. There are also 44 people who are buried in graveyards around Ireland and are totally unidentified. I am holding the me…

Today's debate has focused on the budget. I will follow on from a lot of the points made by Senator Ahearn. My points are on the basis of my visit this morning to the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce business breakfast. It is a successful event held on the morning after every budget. More than 250 people attended today from a whole variety of businesses in Dundalk to hear a presentation on the business aspects of the budget. This reminds me of how far this country has come in the past ten years in really building that s…

I am the last Senator to speak on this debate, which has been going on for an hour and a half. I have to start by commending Senators Warfield, Keoghan and Craughwell. Out of 19 Opposition Senators, three turned up. If this budget was as bad as Senator Warfield would have us believe, I guarantee all 18 Opposition Senators would be in here shouting and screaming for their two-minute social media clips, but they are not. Perhaps there will be a flood of them in the next two or three minutes before I finish and they w…

When is it proposed to sit again?

What I want to discuss today may be more appropriate for a Commencement debate, but I will have to submit that request after the budget is finished. It concerns a tax scheme for shared mobility, based on what is used in France. How it works, essentially, is that employees are able to choose from a list of approved shared mobility schemes, whether it is cargo bikes, bikes, taxis, buses or GoCars. There is a whole range of options. The employer can then buy a credit voucher for the employee. It is a tax-free initiati…

Before I call Senator Gavan, I welcome Commandant Leo Quinlan to the Distinguished Visitors Gallery. As we all know, he is the son of Commandant Pat Quinlan, who was the commanding officer at the battle of Jadotville in 1961 when 155 Irish soldiers repelled a force of 3,000 enemy soldiers over five days, with all 155 Irish soldiers coming home alive, which was an outstanding achievement. Commandant Quinlan was also an Irish cadet guard at the funeral of the 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kenne…

As we will all be aware, we are having many meetings at the moment with different constituents and groups ahead of budget 2024. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting with Aoibheann Lynch, who is the principal of St. Peter's National School, Dromiskin, along with Andre O'Connell, who is a primary school teacher in St. Joseph's National School, Dundalk. Both Aoibheann and Andre outlined some of the priorities of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, INTO, and, in particular, of teachers in County Louth. I wan…

I was just speaking to my colleague, Senator Gallagher, about this issue. It is one of which Border politicians will be very much aware. People coming from a Border area who are involved in business have always had to deal with price discrepancies on either side of the Border. Entrepreneurs in businesses on both sides of the Border have always had to have a certain level of ingenuity to make sure their businesses are operating at a good margin. In recent weeks, I have spoken to a number of people involved in servic…

A number of weeks ago, I raised the issue of train delays, particularly on the Enterprise service between Dundalk and Belfast where there were 21 individual delays over a 13-day period. I did some research about what happens on the Continent and discovered that the Danish system is really effective in the context of train delays, travel guarantees and the money given back to customers. In Denmark, if a train is delayed by 30 minutes, passengers get a 25% discount on the value of their tickets. If it is 60 minutes l…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. I have raised this issue previously in Commencement debates over the years and I am taking this opportunity to do so again. Diabetes patients can only access FreeStyle Libre if they are under 18 years of age, rather than on the basis of clinical need. This product is widely available for those with diabetes up to the age of 18. Once the patient reaches this threshold, he or she is removed from this treatment, other than in exceptional circumstances, and is prov…