I also welcome the visitors from Laois. It is great to have them in the Chamber. I am going to speak about Laois once again. I will raise the issue of a deeply concerning report that landed on my desk this morning. It related to a HSE internal audit of doctor recruitment. The audit examined the files of 20 doctors employed across the HSE Dublin and Midlands region, which includes Portlaoise hospital. According to the report, only 14 files contained evidence of Garda vetting, 15 contained overseas police clearance a…

I commend the joint committee on all the work that went into this report. It really was extensive and is very well done. I especially commend my colleagues, Senators Ní Chuilinn and Harmon, for their fantastic work. I welcome the opportunity to speak on the report, Inclusion in Sport. I love its central message that being told you are welcome means very little if you cannot get a facility, afford to take part, find a coach who understands your needs or secure a place to play. That is where a lot of the barriers com…

My condolences to Senator Gerard Craughwell. I thank him for sharing those details of his wife, Helen. I am really delighted to be back. The most important issue and what I have been listening to people talking about in rural Ireland all over the summer and especially at the ploughing match in Screggan last week is the cost of fuels, including home heating oil, petrol and diesel. We are up at €2.20 a litre in the midlands for diesel. This cannot be sustained and green diesel has gone through the roof. Today, my col…

The first issue I would like to raise is a matter of growing concern locally around the design of cycle lanes. The National Transport Authority's guidelines for councils need to be reviewed. Many residents, families and businesses in Graiguecullen are baffled by the proposed Church Street pedestrian and cycle scheme. I absolutely support investment in active travel, safer roads, better footpaths and cycling infrastructure where it is needed and where it is backed by evidence and by the local community. That is exac…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. This Bill comprises a long, technical and complex series of amendments to the Planning and Development Act 2024. It is unfortunate that it is being rushed through the Houses at breakneck speed and without proper scrutiny. It is a really bad way to make planning law and it likely will lead to errors, unintended consequences, legal challenges and delays to much-need infrastructure, housing and public services. There are aspects of the Bill to which Sinn Féin is n…

I thank the Minister for coming in. I note that the aim of this Bill is to take the current eligibility criteria for social housing and put them on a statutory footing, and to create a new appeals mechanism for those refused access to social housing. Sinn Féin is not against this Bill in principle, but it must be said that the Minister has made a bit of a mess of this legislation and, on that basis, we cannot support it. The Bill does not adequately address the challenges facing returning Irish migrants. We are con…

I welcome the Minister and thank her for coming here to take this matter regarding the important issue of endometriosis. It has been almost a year now since the publication of the national endometriosis framework. I acknowledge that publishing the framework was an important step forward. I really appreciate the constructive engagement I have had with the Minister on endometriosis care over the last year. Today is about taking stock. Patients want to know what has actually changed since the framework was published. …

Go raibh maith agat. This is fantastic. So much good work has gone on here. The two education officers recruited, Kathleen King and Cate O’Connor, are absolutely fantastic. The MISE programme is outstanding. Ms King is a medical scientist who has 30 years' experience researching endometriosis. MISE is a fantastic initiative. There are so many positives here. Education and awareness is massive, and it is great that one of the ministerial conferences is being used for endometriosis. We have come so far on this journe…

I welcome the opportunity to contribute on this motion, but I am disappointed by the manner in which the legislation has been handled by the Government. The Criminal Law, Civil Law and Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill before us is significantly different from the Bill that was first introduced in the Dáil. At every Stage of its fast passage, the Minister has brought forward substantial new amendments, including at this late stage of debate in the Seanad. These are not simply technical changes; they are signi…

I spoke on this already but I welcome the Government's acceptance of the amendment put forward by our justice spokesperson, Deputy Matt Carthy. It is an important amendment. It is an important reform that will strengthen fairness and accountability in the courts. That is what is really important here. As the Minister said, this amendment requires character references for all indictable offences to be given under oath or by affidavit. It extends protections that previously applied only in sexual offence cases. I am …

I move amendment No. 18: In page 19, to delete lines 9 to 25 and substitute the following: "40B. Nothing in this Part shall be construed as conferring any new or additional power on the Minister to direct the deployment of members of the Defence Forces in aid of the civil power beyond those that exist apart from this Part.".

I will discuss amendment No. 18 first. This amendment seeks to annul the provision in relation to aid to the civil power. Despite what the Minister said to me on Committee Stage as to the reasons for the inclusion of these provisions in this Bill, today we have no explanation whatsoever as to what prompted the Government to bring forward these provisions. The Minister for foreign affairs and for Defence was completely evasive on this matter when this was discussed in the Dáil select committee. I looked back over th…

I thank the Minister. I am still not entirely satisfied with the reasons for bringing in this measure. I understand he is saying that this legislation needed reform because it was over 60 years old. Why did it just happen at that time? It seems to be a strange coincidence that the exact wording in this new legislation seems to be the same wording that the Minister used when he was going to call in the Defence Forces. The provision refers to "approval for the deployment of a member of the Defence Forces in aid of th…

I move amendment No. 23: In page 19, after line 40, to insert the following: “Review of operation of Part IIIA 40D. (1) The Minister shall carry out a review of the operation of this Part not later than 2 years after the commencement of this section. (2) The Minister shall, following the review referred to in subsection (1), carry out further reviews of the operation of this Part at intervals not exceeding 5 years. (3) A review under this section shall include an assessment of the exercise of powers under sections …

I move amendment No. 26: In page 23, to delete lines 18 to 35, and to delete pages 24 to 27 and in page 28 to delete lines 1 to 3 and substitute the following: “Amendment of section 19A of Criminal Evidence Act 1992 22. The Criminal Evidence Act 1992 is amended by the deletion of section 19A and the substitution of the following: “19A. (1) In this section— “competent person” means a person with relevant training, study or experience in counselling; “counselling” means the provision of support, advice, therapy or tr…

I listened back to the Minister's comments on counselling notes in last week's debate, and I listened again to the lived experiences of people who have given their testimonies. They have been read out throughout these debates in the Houses and in committee. Banning the disclosure of counselling notes is about recognising that they are hearsay evidence and rebalancing our justice system so that there is not only a fair trial but a fair justice system for victims and survivors. I welcome the victims and survivors to …

There has been movement and I have to acknowledge that. I do appreciate the Minister's feedback. Once again, I have to commend Paula Doyle here in the Chamber with us and everybody who is with her and who has campaigned. Although she may feel like it is not a win when it is not a full ban, there is movement here and the process going forward is not going to be as straightforward for people. I thank the Minister but I do hope he will review this very carefully-----

-----given the information we have heard, everything that has come into the public domain and, as Senator Andrews noted, that victims and survivors are coming forward telling us they are having to choose between going to court or to counselling. We cannot have this situation and the mental health and impact of trauma this is having on society is detrimental. It is such a serious issue that I hope what the Minister is saying is correct and that this will start a reform of the justice system for victims and survivors…

Not agreed.

I welcome the Minister back to the Upper House for the final Stages of this debate. Once again, I welcome David French and his family to the Chamber. I will make a brief contribution because Senator Keogan has covered the issue in a lot of detail. I will discuss our amendments Nos. 16 and 19. Amendment No. 16 ensures that all relevant parties are notified of court applications affecting a child, including the next of kin of a deceased guardian. It is similar to Senator Keogan's amendments. It is important that the …