The point I was making is that many representatives-----

-----across parties consistently raise this issue in this House. The Minister for Health has taken a very strong interest in the issue. Many measures have been put in place. I am not saying it is solved but it would be nice on occasion to acknowledge the good work that is happening. The message consistently going out is that-----

If the Senator does not want to hear my response, he should not ask the question. The message consistently going out from this House is that there is nothing good happening in University Hospital Limerick and that is simply not factually correct. That is the point I am making. Many good things are happening there as well. Senator Dooley requested a debate on forestry. That has been scheduled for 15 November. I agree with his comments about having one licence to plant and to fell. Obviously if you are doing one, you…

I move: That the proposal that Seanad Éireann approves the following Regulations in draft: Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Corporate Enforcement Authority) Regulations 2022, Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Competition and Consumer Protection Commission) Regulations 2022, Data Protection Act 2018 (Section 60(6)) (Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority) Regulations 2022, copies of which has been laid in draft form before Seanad Éireann on 18th October, 2022, be referred to the Joint C…

The Order of Business is No. 1, Eighteenth Report of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight on the amendment of Standing Orders 57A and 190, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business, without debate; No. 2, Consumer Rights Bill 2022 [Dáil] - Committee Stage, to be taken at 1 p.m. and adjourn at 3 p.m., if not previously concluded; No. 3, statements on the 9% VAT rate for the tourism and hospitality sectors, to be taken at 3.30 p.m. and to conclude at 5 p.m., if not previously concluded, wi…

It is a brand new Department. He is the first Minister in the Department.

It is just for the purposes of the record.

I thank all Members who contributed to the Order of Business today. Senator O'Loughlin spoke this morning and congratulated Noeline Blackwell on her recent award for her work in campaigning for victims of domestic violence, and for all of the good work that she has done. I concur with the Senator's remarks. They were also concurred with by Senator Dooley. I wish Ms Blackwell the very best. Senator O'Loughlin also alerted members to an Bainne Beatha briefing at 4 p.m. I assume it is in the audiovisual room. This wil…

I am just not aware of the debate this morning at the committee. We will make that debate request to the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, at the earliest opportunity. I take on board Senator Gavan's comments. In this House in particular, we are very good at debating human rights issues across the globe. Last week we had a motion on Iran, which I tabled. It received cross-party support. Nobody is suggesting that there is not a problem in Yemen. There is a massive crisis there. We know of the numbers of people who…

I move: That the Eighteenth Report of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight on the amendment of Standing Orders 57A and 190 be adopted, laid before the House and printed.

The Minister of State is welcome. I tabled this matter in order to ask the Government to consider increasing the income threshold for housing assistance supports from the current rate of €30,000 for a family in band 3 - which includes those in my county of Mayo - to €50,000. I have tabled this matter on foot of a motion that was passed by councillors in Mayo calling for just that. We have been looking for this for a very long time. It is quite obvious that the income thresholds that are currently in place are extre…

I welcome the Minister of State's response. It is good to see that the Government is finally moving on this and that a review has been conducted. There should be a greater level of urgency. It is hoped to have it in quarter 1 in 2023, but we should be demanding to have it at that stage. People are struggling to meet their housing needs and we know there are particular challenges in all counties. I welcome that some counties have moved up from band 3 to band 2. One could say that maybe other counties should have bee…

Thank you, a Chathaoirligh. I agree with the Order of Business, as outlined by the Leader of the House. There are a number of issues to raise. I express my concern at the apparent disappearance of Elnaz Rekabi, who then re-appeared on Instagram a number of days later. She is the Iranian rock climber who was pictured competing in one of the rock climbing events without her hijab or headscarf and later could not be found. Her passport had apparently been confiscated. A number of days later, she appeared on Instagram …

I join with the Leader's comments in regard to Creeslough, Donegal. On behalf of the Fianna Fáil group I extend our deepest sympathies to the families, those who have lost loved ones and to the entire community. I strongly commend the fantastic work done by the emergency services who were on the scene dealing with what was an unthinkable tragedy. The scale of it is phenomenal. I also commend those working in the hospital. They had to step up their emergency response. The scale of what they had to deal with in a sho…

I move: That Seanad Éireann: condemns: - the abuse of Mahsa Amini by the Iranian morality police and her death in custody; recognises that: - following Mahsa Amini’s abuse by the morality police and her death in custody, women and men across Iran have exercised their fundamental right to assemble and protest; - despite repeated calls for restraint, the response of the Iranian security and police forces to demonstrations has been disproportionate, resulting in the loss of lives as well as a large number of injuries;…

I thank the Minister for that comprehensive and detailed reply. I thank all Members for contributing to the debate. Its quality was excellent. Senators are very informed on the issue. It is important that the Oireachtas debate these issues. We have spoken a lot this evening about the actions Ireland can take. Even having this debate to call out the human rights abuses for what they are is an important action. The abuses are unacceptable and disgraceful and will not be tolerated. That is a powerful message to send f…

Tomorrow at 10.30 a.m.

Yesterday, at the Wild Atlantic Words festival hosted in Castlebar, I met a remarkable young woman who I went to school with, Geraldine Lavelle. Geraldine sustained a very serious injury in an accident a number of years ago and is now paralysed from the neck down. She was an active fitness person and she cycled and went to the gym regularly. She was a fantastic athlete as well as being a scientist and an exceptional young woman. She remains all of those things and has fought her way back from what was a devastating…

Mary, Fiona's mum, is most welcome to the Chamber. It is great to have her here. The Order of Business is No. 1, address to Seanad Éireann by Lord John McFall of Alcluith, Lord Speaker of the House of Lords, to be taken at 12.45 p.m. in accordance with the arrangements set out in the motion agreed by the House on Wednesday, 28 September 2022; No. 2, Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2022 - Second Stage, to be taken at 2.30 p.m. and to adjourn at 4.30 p.m. if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to …

We are a little constrained on time because Lord McFall is coming in. Senator O'Loughlin spoke about her meeting with Jason Poole regarding his sister, who lost her life to domestic violence. The Senator reiterated the call for a domestic violence register of offenders that would be accessed by An Garda Síochána and possibly potential victims. It is the strong belief of Jason Poole that Jennifer would not have lost her life had that register been available. A debate with the Minister for Justice has been requested.…