I echo the compliments to the Cathaoirleach and the staff at the Seanad on the address by US Congressman Richie Neal and the warm welcome that was extended to him by this House. I compliment the Cathaoirleach on his ongoing engagement with the United States. Yesterday's interaction was important. I also welcome the decision to allow temporary associate membership to PDFORRA of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU. It is important that members of our Defence Forces have a voice in the forthcoming pay talks. I ap…

We are seeing the ongoing repression of human rights in Hong Kong, in Tibet and of other minorities. Yet, the images that have now emerged of the Uyghur community are particularly frightening. I ask again that this House communicate those messages to the Minister for Foreign Affairs in order that he in turn communicate them to the Chinese ambassador. Once again, we should express our abhorrence at the ongoing abuse of human rights by the Chinese Communist Party.

I endorse the principle of what Senator Sherlock is trying to achieve, but the practicalities of how it will operate present a challenge. I wonder if this would not be better serviced in the area of codes that can be drawn up. Part of it is also going to be about encouraging radio stations to take action. As she mentioned, quite a number of them have done that. One of the difficulties is in the area of classical music, where there is a big challenge about getting more women performing. I was at a wonderful piece in…

There is no difficulty, in that we all agree with what the amendment is trying to achieve, but it comes back to the fact that a broadcaster is competing with a streamer. I just happened to look up the Top 10 charts at the moment and they are predominantly dominated by men. Harry Styles is in it and Elton John is even in there. The difficulty is that if we enforce a rule to the effect that radio stations must play 50% of female artists - I am very much in support of playing more female voices - or we put in a requir…

I join my colleague Senator O'Loughlin in calling for a debate on the World Meteorological Organization's annual report on the state of the climate. Yesterday evening, I had the opportunity to read elements of the report. In many ways, it does not tell us anything new other than clearly emphasising the seriousness of the threats we continue to face. It is important that in these Houses we are prepared to face up to some of the challenges and to talk about the serious impacts they have on our communities. Where I li…

I am open to all opportunities.

I am perfectly open to all energy opportunities, including hydrogen and fusion. Let us explore whatever is coming down the line, but it should be an open debate. One of those coastal communities I will mention is Courtown-Riverchapel. I pay tribute to the local Riverchapel Community Complex group. It has worked very hard, its chair Mr. Craig Lang in particular, and in the context of responding to some of the challenges for our coastal communities, has now opened a new community complex. If we are talking about vibr…

One of the big successes in Irish society has been the rapid expansion of higher education in recent decades. It has gone from where we had one in five of those aged between 18 and 28 in 1980 going on to higher education to now having more than three in five, with many others going into apprenticeships and further education and training. It has become much more accessible. Even in financially difficult times during the 2010s we saw the number of places expand from 200,000 to 245,000. In response to the challenges f…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I appreciate that it is not his portfolio, but the commitment is welcome. It is notable that, as he said, the €307 million the Minister has referred to is about addressing current challenges around core funding, rather than dealing with future challenges. That is why it is essential that if the additional places in further and higher education are created, we have to make sure every single one is funded sustainably. We cannot continue to say that we have solved the pr…

I will raise three issues. I welcome the three-year strategy on research and development announced this morning by the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris. It is a comprehensive document. It places greater emphasis on interdisciplinarity in research and refers to how we need to learn from the experience of Covid-19. The Minister is also committed to introducing underpinning legislation to strengthen our research capability. Given the enormous changes we will se…

The Acting Leader will be aware that today is International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. We have made enormous progress in tackling homophobia. It was particularly welcome to hear overnight of Blackpool's Jake Daniels becoming the first professional football player in England to come out in 32 years. It was a very brave move, given the context. He is a young man who should be saluted for his bravery and honesty. At a meeting of the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media last…

Is the Senator referring to the Green Party or to the barracks?

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit chuig an Seanad. I, too, commend Senators Pauline O'Reilly and Garvey on bringing forward this important debate about the future of our democracy. I have sympathy with many of the points that have been made, including some of those excellently advanced by Senator Ward, because although everyone gets tired of seeing places festooned with posters, there are crucial questions that need to be asked in respect of the purpose of posters and whether they have an impact. I agree that poste…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. The Minister of State always comes into this House with good intention, and he will be delivering an answer on behalf of the HSE. As the Minister of State knows, the north Wexford area is one of the fastest growing in the country when it comes to population and that has meant there has been a lot of pressure on healthcare. There was a commitment by the HSE to develop a primary care centre there and excellent medical services are provided by the GPs in the Gorey and north Wexford a…

I thought I was on time.

I welcome that the Minister of State will pursue this matter with the HSE. There is excellent healthcare provision from the local GPs in north Wexford but we have been promised this additional primary care centre in Gorey and have been waiting a long time, and there does not seem to be progress. I would be particularly grateful for anything the Minister of State can do to expedite the matter. On the building in Camolin, I am very concerned that the Minister of State's answer, and I appreciate that he is only readin…

I agree with Senator Kyne about using those assets to which he referred. Ba mhaith liom dhá ábhar a ardú. I was fortunate enough to be at the launch last week of Pandemonium , the book by Jack Horgan-Jones and Hugh O'Connell. I have started to read the book, which is quite well written, and tells the story of the events of the past two years. Unlike certain other journalists, they do not put themselves at the heart of the story and they allow others to tell it. It does stress again the importance of trusted journal…

It is longer. It is 18 months.

It is quite momentous to mark Ireland's 50-year membership of the European Union. From a Fianna Fáil perspective, this is something of which we have always been very proud. It is something that Seán Lemass and Jack Lynch led on. It is interesting that the only two parties sitting here are the only two parties that have consistently supported our membership of the European Union over those 50 years and campaigned for its enlargement and for enhanced co-operation. As colleagues have said, it is very much a union base…

I am in broad agreement around the principles these amendments are trying to achieve. We need to move away from self-regulatory codes. It is important, though, that when the new regulator, the media commission, is established that it does not operate entirely behind an Iron Curtain. It needs to understand the industry and the sectors and how they work. It would be useful, perhaps, if we could get clarity. I can understand where this system may be relevant, where, for instance, there may be systems of arbitration an…