-----that are on the Seanad record for all to read and all to see from two months ago.

Yes. All I pointed out was the Senator's own words.

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 Education (Leaving Certificate 2021) (Accredited Grades) Bill 2021 on a date which is earlier than the fifth day after the date on which the Bill shall have been presented to him.

I move: That, pursuant to Standing Order 98, the recommendations of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight contained in the report entitled ‘ Report of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight: Amendment of Committee names, matters relating to remit and Orders of Reference of Committees, and amendments to Standing Orders relating to Committees’ , dated 20th May, 2021, and laid before Seanad Éireann on that date, are hereby agreed to, and accordingly, as provided for in the report-- (…

I welcome the Minister. It is great we have the Bill coming to the House and have an opportunity to talk about the transformative impact the Department and the Minister are having on housing policy in the country. The Bill and the Land Development Agency Bill are two landmark Bills that will make a real difference to many citizens across the country in delivering real homes, real houses and keys in people's hands, which is what it is all about. We have had a decade of difficulty in housing and it has built up to bo…

I agree with the Order of Business. I thank the Leader for reacting so quickly and timely to organise a debate today on Palestine, Israel and the occupied territories. Many of us in this House will welcome the opportunity to say what we feel and think about the situation. I commend the Minister for Foreign Affairs on his performance at the meeting of the UN Security Council and his strong comments. It is a shame that the US Administration was not as strong in its response. I condemn utterly the killing of what we k…

The Minister is welcome. I commend him on his strong words, comments and actions in respect of this issue to date. He has represented Ireland very well on it. Senator McDowell put it well when he said that Gaza is a living hell. More than 2 million people are, essentially, being suffocated, crammed into tight spaces without basic living conditions. They are living in conditions with which none of us would be able to live. The ongoing escalation of violence in Gaza and the West Bank is completely abhorrent. We have …

I agree with the Order of Business, as outlined by the Leader of the House. I wish to raise two issues, the first being the maternity restrictions that remain ongoing. I raised in the House last Friday, as did other colleagues, the ongoing restrictions on partners attending for all the scans, for labour in the antenatal ward right up to birth and on visiting hours after the birth has taken place. The restrictions vary across hospitals. There is a postcode lottery. The chief executive of the HSE, Paul Reid, said las…

Banking in Ireland is changing at a rapid rate. The pandemic has accelerated that pace of change. People of all ages, from the personal user to the large commercial customer, are banking online. The banks are responding to this change, understandably, but the impact on customers is already evident. A reduction in face-to-face service and less competition for products like business loans and mortgages are really concerning customers because they wonder about the future of the banking sector in their country. The Sta…

I wish to raise today the ongoing restrictions in maternity hospitals. A number of Members have raised this, as have I. I am really not sure who is making the rules or what exactly is going on across the country because it appears to be a postcode lottery. We have varying degrees of restrictions, but it seems to be the general rule of thumb that a partner can now attend the anomaly scan but no scan before that; can attend for the birth of the baby but not for the active labour before that; and that there are limite…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, to the Chamber. It is great to have him here and it is nice to be having a positive discussion connected to the pandemic about reopening and getting back to travelling. This is good not just for the economic benefits for the country, but it is also good for people to get to see family and friends and to be able to move more freely. Freedom of movement across the EU is something that we took for granted before the pandemic and I believe we will place an even greater val…

Today marks the next stage of the reopening of the country and economy. Listening to the radio as I drove up from Mayo this morning, I felt I was missing out on getting into golf. Between RTÉ and Newstalk, there were reports from across the country of membership increasing in every club, with people being encouraged to join their local golf club. I am definitely thinking about it as it seems to be the thing to do these days. It is also great to see kids' sports back in the smaller pods. They have lost out on a lot.…

I disagree with much of what Senator Mullen said. There is nothing meek about this motion. From the perspective of the Fianna Fáil Party, protecting and advocating for our post office network is something we have been doing for many years. That is the reason it is still on the agenda. There is a Government commitment to maintain and modernise the post office network and ensure that it is sustainable and that post offices can survive in the changing environment through which the country is moving. I take umbrage wit…

The fair deal scheme at its heart should be fair. We know from speaking to small business owners and farming families that the scheme is not fair to them. Whereas the contribution by the private dwelling house towards nursing home care is capped at three years, the charge put against the family farm or small business continues for the entirety of the person's stay in a nursing home. The 7% is deducted annually, meaning that someone who is in nursing home care for up to 14 years will lose the farm completely. That i…

I am thrilled and this is fantastic news. It is exactly the start to the week we needed to know that in the next two weeks this will go before the Cabinet. I have no doubt it will get approval right across both Houses. It is great to be able to inform farming families and small business owners that this battle and campaign will finally come to an end. It is really important for a Government to acknowledge that a scheme put in place has been reviewed and assessed. We have acknowledged there are deficiencies and the …

I begin my contribution this morning by acknowledging Jennifer Poole, a lady who lost her life at the weekend at the hands of her partner, a man. Once again, yet another woman has died in this country because of domestic violence and the violence of a man - her partner, someone she trusted and knew. She leaves behind her two children, family, friends and neighbours, who are all devastated by her loss. I take this opportunity to extend my deepest sympathies to her family, friends and children on their huge loss. I a…

Today the Government launched Our Rural Future, a new plan for rural Ireland. It is an exciting day. The potential of this plan to transform rural communities throughout the country really is something of which to take note. The plan envisages more than 400 remote working hubs across regional towns and villages, co-working and hot-desking for public servants in regional towns, for the public sector to go to 20% remote working and for that figure to increase over the next five years. It also envisages encouraging th…

That is difficult to follow. I thank Senator Ruane and her daughter. What really struck me was Senator Ruane's comment that her daughter asked whether her stuff was in there. That tells us that one our first jobs is to now reassure every child who has sought help that his or her stuff is not in there and will not be used. I put the Department on notice that this issue must be tackled immediately. I thank the Minister of State for making herself available today. She only received our request last Friday and her atte…

I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. It is great to have her here. It is good to have an opportunity to discuss the vaccine roll-out because as the Minister of State has said, vaccinating an entire population against a virus which, as far as we are aware, only came into existence just over a year ago is probably the most important public health initiative in living memory. It is quite remarkable, so we must acknowledge the good work that has been done in extremely difficult times. It is worth noting we a…

I welcome the Minister. We are only three months into this new Brexit environment but it feels much longer. It is fair to say that a lot has happened in the short few months that the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement has been in operation. There is still a bedding-in period to go yet. There will inevitably be further teething problems. I take this opportunity to relay some of the thoughts, ideas and challenges brought to the Brexit committee, as well as the difficulties that different stakeholders are having w…