I welcome to the Chamber the Minister of State, Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan.

Before I move on to the next speaker, I welcome the students from New York University to the Gallery today. They are very welcome. I hope they enjoy their visit to Leinster House and Ireland.

I welcome Deputy Michael Murphy and his guest to the Gallery.

Sorry, Senator, but it is not actually a matter for the Order of Business.

Will the Acting Leader to move the suspension of proceedings until after the vote in the Dáil?

Before I call Senator Gallagher I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Grealish, and his guests to the Gallery this afternoon. I hope they enjoy their visit to Leinster House. They are very welcome.

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to discuss this all-important issue. I raised this back in August 2024 and I am raising it again. It is on the removal of VAT from sunscreen products. Sunscreen is considered a cosmetic product whereas in actual fact it is a healthcare product, in that it protects against skin cancer. In Ireland, we have 13,000 diagnoses of skin cancer per year. It is one of the highest numbers in terms of types of cancer diagnoses and it is expected to double by 2045. This is a…

While I understand we must comply with European law, perhaps I need to raise directly with the Minister for Health and suggest that sunscreen be added to the medicines list or be listed as a preventative cure. Ireland has a high rate of skin cancer and the VAT rate makes it so prohibitive that many people cannot afford to buy sunscreen. It can be quite expensive, especially the better products which have extra ingredients that prevent skin cancer. In the long term, it would be a cost-saving measure because if you c…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, and thank her for coming.

Before I call the Minister of State, I welcome members of the historical society from Oldcastle, who are Deputy Guirke's guests. I hope they enjoy their visit to Leinster House.

I thank the Minister so much for coming to the House to discuss this all-important issue. I compliment her and the Department for their work to date. It has been very proactive. If we look back ten years ago, we can see the difference now. The Minister highlighted the fact that more cancers are being resolved, and it is down to that collaboration between research and science but also with the specialists and teams that are working. There are so many people working in cancer care, from the nurses to the support grou…

I am afraid you have run out of time. I have to bring in all of the other speakers.

Before I move to the next speaker, I thank the Tánaiste for coming here to address this important issue this morning and for his commitment to bringing forward a Bill as soon as possible.

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne.

I thank the Senator. Before I call our next speaker I wish to welcome to the Public Gallery the IADT retirement group who are guests of Deputy Cormac Devlin. I hope you enjoy your visit to Leinster House today and especially to the Seanad. You are welcome.

If the Minister of State runs over time, I will not stop him.

The Minister of State should be allowed to speak without interruption.

I thank the Minister of State for being here. I acknowledge that both the Tánaiste and Deputy Thomas Byrne, also a Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, were also present. I thank them in their absence, and Deputy John Lahart, Chairman of the foreign affairs committee. I acknowledge the work of Senator Frances Black. I welcome the group from Coole National School, who are guests of Senator Linda Nelson Murray. I hope they enjoy their visit to Leinster House, especially the Seanad. It is customary …

Is that agreed? Agreed.

I welcome the Minister.