Next Tuesday.

Can we speak?

We have not got to the amendments with the proposals yet.

There was considerable discussion at the justice committee on what constitutes legal advice versus legal counsel. The definition proposed by the Minister in amendment No. 14 see here today is somewhat similar to what is required under the EU pact itself. However, it has significant additional add-ons. I will make some general observations on those add-ons to the definition set out in the amendment from subparagraph (iv) onwards. It appears that this has to do with determining what member state is responsible for de…

I want to put it in more practical terms and to understand it in a step-by-step manner for my own understanding. Amendment No. 14, at paragraph (c)(iv), provides for "guidance on and explanation of the criteria and procedure for determining the Member State responsible in accordance with Part 4". Are we saying that in a scenario where somebody is provided with legal counselling and where that person is not a regulated barrister or solicitor, in the contact between that legal counsel and the individual who is seekin…

Amendment No. 269 seeks the deletion of “and the same social welfare”, and the substitution of ", social welfare”. Can I clarify that this is in relation to successful IP applications? Are we then removing the equality of social welfare access by removing “and the same social welfare”, and substituting ", social welfare” even though the applications are successful? What is intended by the removal of “and the same social welfare”?

It does not remove the bar on giving a varied, reduced amount of social welfare depending on someone being an applicant. I am wondering why the word "same" is being removed.

Okay.

I will briefly reiterate some of the points made by Senator Higgins. Whatever the intention of what we do here, it is obviously about how it can be applied, even without that being the intent. It is very worrying for me that the State or the Department can enter into contracts in relation to immigration officers. I think it needs to be said on this floor but also captured in the legislation that we do not end up with a system of privatised immigration officers. I know it feels hard to imagine a scenario here, but w…

I want to put on the record today some good news for legislation that started here in the Seanad in 2018. There are two areas to which I have committed my time in politics. The first was, is and will continue to be drug decriminalisation and the other is spent convictions. In Ireland, we introduced spent convictions legislation in a rushed way because we were lagging behind other European countries in ensuring that we have legislation. The commentary at the time around spent convictions was that we knew the regime …

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I move: "That the Bill be read a Second Time".

I will share time, roughly eight minutes each.

I begin my contribution on this Bill by recognising the ongoing work at Tuam, the careful, painstaking, deeply sensitive work that is unfolding there. It is difficult but necessary work which asks something of us all. A Zora Neale Hurston quote came to mind this week for me, "There are years that ask questions and years that answer". Survivors, family members and society more broadly have asked their questions and it is beyond time for us to fully answer them. How does a country that is still living its history, no…

I thank everyone for their contributions. I will try to give responses to the different contributions of today. There are some on a language theme that I cannot help but be stirred by. We have talked about what is normal and what is not normal, and there was a suggestion that the high mortality rates were ordinary at that time in congregated settings and that they were something to be expected, accepted or understood within a particular timeframe. I want to challenge that to the highest degree. First, to go back a …

It is not okay and it is not normal. We need to be very careful about how we rewrite history and how we speak about it here in the present.

The draft publication of the new national drugs strategy was announced last week. I preface my comments by acknowledging that a public consultation will follow the publication of the draft strategy. It is extremely positive that the proposals will be opened up to a wider input. However, after reading the document several times, I have lots of concerns. There is positive language in it and positive measures that can be added to and built upon. However, readers who have spent a long time working in drugs policy and a…

I raise the "RTÉ Investigates" programme last night. I am quite surprised it has not been a common feature throughout the Order of Business. A few weeks ago, I came into this Chamber and spoke quite graphically, not wanting to but sometimes speaking graphically is necessary for effect and hoping that it will land, about the number of people who have walked out of emergency departments and taken their own lives because of the lack of support and continuum in any sort of care they had or the experience they had while…