Hear, hear.

I support amendment No. 2 and what Senator Gavan said. This Bill needed to do three things. The first concerns improving the provision of information to employees and creditors more generally. The second concerns the special recognition of workers, specifically with regard to existing collective agreements, implicit or express. The third concerns tightening up section 610 of the Companies Act with regard to the movement of assets to minimise losses and payments to workers. While the Bill does well on the first obje…

I welcome the Minister. I sincerely thank Fine Gael and Senator Seery Kearney for using their Private Members' time to discuss this really serious public health issue this evening. I compliment what is a very detailed motion. Of course, social media has a lot of positives and we all use it. However, we are also talking about a device and social media platforms that are addictive by design. The recommender systems and algorithms that are part and parcel of the social media platforms most of us here use on a daily ba…

I thank the Minister of State. My question today relates to the Government's clean air strategy. As the Government has told us, air pollution is the silent killer in our environment and our society. We know where air quality is poor that those with an underlying condition are at greater risk of stroke, lung disease, lung cancer, asthma and dementia and that those conditions are exacerbated. We also see a growing body of research that suggests that poor air quality has an impact on cognitive and mental health. While…

There are two fundamental points we are not seeing here. There is a degree of urgency we are not seeing here. There is a lot of talk about the plans the Government intends to put in place and the Minister of State said it is a priority for Government, but the Government has millions of priorities. What is it actually going to do? I do not see the urgency here. We still have a target of 2040 to meet what he describes as the non-binding WHO guidelines. We are hiding behind non-binding WHO guidelines when we know the …

I, too, offer my condolences to the family, colleagues and friends of the late Senator Dowling. I wish to raise the issue of the school transport scheme, which is now open for applications but which will close later this month, and how it is designed. The rules of the scheme, particularly the criteria that students need to live 3.2 km away from a primary school or 4.8 km from a secondary school in order to qualify, demonstrate that it is very much designed with rural schools and communities in mind. There is no att…

I thank the Minister of State for coming here, in the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman's place, today. Any of us who are fortunate to have had babies know the immense value of maternity leave. It is a way of society saying to women to take time with their newborn babies. Approximately 60 women in this country each year are diagnosed with cancer during their pregnancy and, of course, their maternity leave is taken up, not solely with the care of their baby but with the life-saving treatment for themselves. There is a small…

I thank the Minister of State for the reply. What is going on here? I see from the reply that departmental officials have been considering this proposal and the Minister hopes to bring it to Cabinet shortly. It is now April. He said he was going to do it by the end of 2023. The Minister of State referred to the pregnancy loss report. We have been given to understand that the Minister is keen to legislate. I would like to hear what is actually happening within the Government. Is Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael blocking the…

Comhghairdeas ó chroí do Sheanadóir Malachai O'Hara. I wish the Senator the best in the Seanad. It is wonderful to have another working-class voice in the Chamber. I will raise with the Leader an issue related to An Post and ask for a debate with either of the two shareholders in An Post, namely, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform. An Post is pursuing a cost-saving programme under which it wants to close…

I welcome the Minister. My question today relates to the State supports for the brilliant home visiting services that operate across many communities in Ireland. Across this country, approximately 170 people go into the homes of about 4,500 children each year and provide a vital parenting, learning and development support to parents and to children. Any of us with young children know the challenges of trying to figure out play, discipline and looking after the emotional needs of the parent and child. In households …

I welcome the establishment of the national home visiting programme. I am struck, however, by the fact the research into home visiting services was commissioned in 2022 and was supposed to be completed in 2023. We hear now it is going to be completed this year. There is only one year left of this Government. I very much hope the outcomes from that research will be acted upon this year. I am concerned about the full understanding within the Department about home visiting. The Minister of State talked at the start of…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. Last weekend marked the 125th anniversary of Dublin Fire Brigade's dual ambulance and fire emergency response service. The fire brigade obviously plays a crucial role in keeping the people of this city and county safe and I pay tribute to the immense professionalism, commitment and care that firefighters give to their work every day of the week. It is important that we acknowledge there has been very significant progress with regard to training standards and fa…

I thank the Minister of State for the response. He set out what should happen but we do not have any detail as to how the Department ever follows up with the individual fire services, how comprehensive the preparation of PIP cards is, whether that information in any way exists within the Department or whether there are reporting mechanisms for fire services internally or to the local authorities. Ultimately, if the public is to have confidence in its fire services going forward, particularly in Dublin, where the ci…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach agus fáiltím roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Seanad. Tacaím leis na focail maidir le Niall Ó Donnghaile, who is very much missed in this Chamber. Tá áthas an domhain orm nach bhfuil ceiliúradh amháin ach dhá ceann againn inniu, Seachtain na Gaeilge agus Lá Idirnáisiúnta na mBan. Tá toghcháin i mbliana agus ba mhaith liom a rá go bhfuil sé an-tábhachtach go bhfuil daoine le Gaeilge agus go háirithe mná le Gaeilge ag seasamh sna toghcháin. Tuigimid nach bhfuil Gaeilge foirfe ag a…

I ask for a debate in this House to allow the Minister for children to set out what he is doing regarding the expansion of early years places and what he is doing to look after the viability of existing services. Over the past three years, I and other colleagues have repeatedly highlighted in this House the dire shortage of early years places in this country, not only for those aged under one, but also for those aged between one and three. There are similar issues with preschool places. Even in Dublin's north inner…

I thank the Minister for coming to the Chamber for the debate. I thank my colleague Senator Moynihan for all her work on the motion. Three months ago last week, Dublin city went up in flames. It is three months since a few hundred rioters took control of our streets for a few hours until An Garda Síochána from across the country and all levels, including sergeants and inspectors, showed their courage and considerable bravery and came out, fought back and reasserted control over our city that night. The trauma from …

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber and the Civil Engagement Group for its detailed motion. I thank Senator Black for all her advocacy and for continually raising in the House the plight of Palestinians through many years. As Senator Garvey said, this is not just about 7 October and life after that. It is obviously over many years. I also thank Senator Higgins for her work. There are almost 30,000 dead, another 70,000 or more missing or injured and 50,000 pregnant women with little or no healthc…

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. I thank the Minister of State for taking this on behalf of the Minister for Education today. I am very conscious that there has been a lot of attention this week on the Department of Education's failure to properly plan for secondary school places in certain areas in greater Dublin, in Kildare and Wicklow. We have a long-running issue regarding the massive shortage of special school places and special class places right across the country. We had the damning report from the Omb…

I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I welcome the work that is being done. It has been a scramble, but I will wholeheartedly support every expansion of special needs places. Having said that, there is a big difference between announcements and delivery. Even in Dublin 7, we have seen a delay in the opening of a new special school. These things happen. As adults, we can wait, but children cannot. Weeks and months matter, not least for a child with an additional need. We need to ensure their families will be…

To follow that last contribution, the call from this House is that the Israeli basketball team should be called out and pulled out of the International Basketball Federation because the pressure on the players has been shocking. I wholeheartedly agree with Senator O'Donovan about the stance that many have rightly taken but it is not fair to put players in that awful situation. I agree with Senator Maria Byrne on UHL. I have had a lot of personal experience with UHL over the last few months. While my personal experi…