That is an outrageous accusation the Senator is making, that I have an issue with women.

That is an accusation and I am asking for it to be withdrawn.

Withdraw it.

Now we are seeing the resumption of inter-county travel and I hope we will start to see people holidaying at home this summer. However, I want to raise an issue that affects many of our coastal communities and the wonderful beaches we have, and that is coastal erosion. Because of climate change, we have seen this problem manifest itself to a far greater degree over recent years. There are estimates that 300 km of road is currently at risk of falling into the sea. Three years ago there was an estimate that up to 800…

I thank the Minister for coming to the House for this discussion. The theme of the statements is the future of banking but, with the exception of Senator Keogan's comments, much of the discussion has been about the banking model that has existed during the 19th and 20th centuries. If the pillar banks of Bank of Ireland, AIB and Permanent TSB continue to operate as they do now, I predict that they will not exist in the 2030s. Those banks will be finished; they will be the Kodak of the financial sector. The challenge…

I propose to share time with Senator O'Loughlin.

I have been privileged to listen to the contributions of a number of colleagues this evening. I slightly disagree with Senator McGahon. It is important that we hear Border voices, but we need to hear more voices on this island from people from a diverse range of backgrounds. We often hear the same voices in this debate again and again. The more voices we can hear on this discussion, the healthier the debate will be. I agree strongly with my colleague, Senator Gallagher, on the need for the vision of John Hume to in…

I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin. We are all looking forward to seeing our museums and galleries opening next week, but I am hoping that it will not be too long before we see our other centres of culture, such as music, drama and entertainment venues, throughout the country opening as well. The pandemic has made us realise, far more than we ever did before, how important music, the arts, dra…

It is important when the Department of Health makes announcements around the reopening that the arts and culture are not forgotten. It is right and important when one talks about what is happening in sport that the sporting organisations have clarity. Unfortunately, when many of the national announcements are made, those in the artistic and music community do not seem to receive the same level of detail. In any future announcements there must be much more clarity around that. As those pilots have operated safely, w…

I thank the Minister for coming to the House today. I agree with what Senator Ruane has said. We should be ambitious in these Houses, in this country and in the Department of Education. We should make this the best little country in the world in which to be a young person and a student and to provide those opportunities. From the Minister’s own experience as a teacher and as a Minister, she can achieve that ambition. Speaking to Senator Ruane’s point I have no doubt that if one looks at the Minister’s record to dat…

I join others in welcoming the Tánaiste. I agree with Senator Keogan about the importance of social enterprise because as part of our recovery we do not just need an economic recovery, we also need to look at a social and community recovery. At the heart of that, I ask that we put young people first. That is important. Young people have made major contributions to help us through the pandemic. We know the levels of youth employment are temporarily off the charts but it is essential, as part of the recovery, that we…

I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. North Wexford is one of the fastest growing areas in the country outside of the main urban centres. Gorey town grew from about 4,500 to 11,000 in the 1996-2016 intercensal period. We have continued to see rapid growth since. Many people from Dublin know Courtown as a small seaside village but the Courtown-Riverchapel area has exploded to become the fifth largest urban ce…

I am glad that the Minister of State has reasserted that this is not a case of the Government failing to deliver resources. The Government is committing money towards these projects. However, I am disappointed that even though we have a commitment that by mid-2022 Wexford County Council will provide houses at Ramsfort Park, we are still awaiting the master plan for St. Waleran's. This is something we have been sitting on for two years. There is strong support from the elected representatives locally, but I ask the …

I echo the calls made by my colleague, Senator Warfield, for a debate on sex education. Such a debate would be useful. Equally, I echo the remarks made by Senators Carrigy and Blaney. It happens only occasionally that an interview comes on the radio and stops you in your tracks. Ryan Tubridy handled the interview with Andrew Geary, about his son Calum, this morning quite well. We should celebrate the contribution of deaf people and those with hearing difficulties to Irish society, but we need a broader debate aroun…

I thank the Minister of State and his officials for their work on this long-needed reform of our gambling legislation. I know he is personally committed to it. My colleague, Senator O'Loughlin, has underlined many of the challenges around addiction and I will speak around some of the regulatory issues that will arise. It is important the new regulator's office will cover advertising, gambling, and social responsibility. We also need to address the taxation of gambling, which should also form part of the discussion.…

I thank the Minister of State for coming into the House to take this matter. When I tabled this Commencement matter prior to Easter, I was reflecting a frustration as I have been continuously raising this issue about the pension scheme for community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors, along with others, for quite some time but I am glad that we now see that we have had progress over this weekend. I hope that a deal will be in place. I understand that SIPTU will be considering the matter today. I thank…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I appreciate that agreement must be reached with the trade unions, which will consider the matter today. It will be important that there is, as I said, clarity around the tax implications and what will happen for those who continue to be in place. I am happy that this looks like the end of a very long journey for nearly 1,300 supervisors and assistant supervisors who are impacted by this. I ask - I know the Minister of State is personally committed to this - that as p…

I wish to follow on from the remarks of the Minister of State, Senator Hackett. Having seen the departure of KBC Bank from significant parts of the Irish market and following the planned closure of quite a number of retail bank branches, it is very clear we are lacking competition in the Irish market. We know that Irish consumers are already paying interest rates roughly double those of other European countries. Therefore, I welcome the call for a full debate around banking and finance in Ireland. However, it needs…

I welcome the Minister of State, who is passionate about trying to address the issues in the motion. I do not think there is any Senator, as Senator Martin said, who is more passionate about water and water quality than Senator Garvey. The Minister of State will recall that she and I tabled a Commencement matter on this last year. The commitment in the programme for Government on water and water quality, as Senator Boyhan has said, is very strong. It is very clear the Government will have to deliver. It is pretty c…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Chathaoirleach agus is mian liom trí ábhar a ardú le toil an Leas-Chathaoirligh. First, I would like to raise the report of the Higher Education Authority this morning on completion rates for undergraduate programmes. It is to be celebrated that three out of every four undergraduates complete their courses. There is a concern, however, that students from disadvantaged backgrounds, in particular male students who enter with lower leaving certificate points, are not completing, and this …