I congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, on his appointment. This Commencement matter relates to the promise of additional substitute teachers in the primary school system. I am seeking details with regard to the number of additional substitute teachers provided, their location and the ratio of substitutes to schools and the teachers in those schools. I am conscious that the Government has made a clear and welcome commitment to keeping schools open, where possible, even if we have to go to level 5.…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply and for his commitment to relay my concerns directly to the Minister. The response provided did not answer my question with regard to the precise locations and the ratio of substitutes to teachers in the schools. Having 100 base schools covering 2,300 schools does not seem in any way adequate to deal with that is facing schools over the coming months. I ask the Minister of State to relay back to the Minister for Education and Skills that we need to see a much broader expa…

I move: "That Seanad Éireann: acknowledges that: - Ireland is one of only five countries in the European Union in which employees have no statutory right to be paid by their employer if absent from work due to illness; - the decision whether to provide sick pay is entirely in the hands of employers under current legislation; - standard illness benefit is only paid to full-time PAYE workers from the seventh day of an illness, provided 104 weeks of PRSI contributions have been built up plus a minimum number of paymen…

I thank all the Senators who contributed on our motion, particularly those who so eloquently indicated their support for it. Senator Craughwell used the phrase "lip service" regarding the issue of sick pay for workers. It is extraordinary that Government Senators and a Minister of State would come into this House to express support for the introduction of paid sick leave and in the same breath indicate support for an amendment to the motion. Let us call a spade a spade: there is no word of commitment to the introdu…

I thank the Minister of State and I congratulate her on her appointment. This is the first opportunity I have had to do so. This question relates to the eligibility for the Covid illness payment, which is an enhanced illness benefit. There is a large degree of confusion as to the difference between persons who have to self-isolate and those who have to restrict their movements and, by extension, confusion about their entitlements from the State, in particular when they find themselves in a situation when they need …

I welcome the Minister of State's clarification that if a person has to self-isolate or restrict his or movements, he or she is entitled to the illness benefit payment. There is an important question with regard to the certification that a person requires to be eligible for that payment. For example, is a doctor's note required? Currently, when a person presents for a test and is diagnosed with Covid-19 there is a paper trail, but this is much less the case where a person has a negative result but is still required…

I extend my congratulations to the Leas-Chathaoirleach. He is a long-serving Member of the Oireachtas and it is fitting that he now fulfils the role of Leas-Chathaoirleach. I also extend my congratulations to the Minister of State in his new role and thank him for bringing forward this legislation. I share the concerns articulated by Senator Gavan about the timing of the Bill and the use of valuable Seanad and Dáil time to debate it. I acknowledge that there are sections within it that are long awaited by those wor…

On behalf of the Labour Party, I echo the sentiments expressed by Senators Chambers and Boyhan in welcoming yesterday's announcement by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy O'Gorman, on the intake of four unaccompanied minors from Lesbos to Ireland. As we know, Ireland's record in the context of taking migrants has been patchy. We have had promises but the numbers have been lowered than promised in recent years, so we welcome the development. Médecins Sans Frontières is seeking that Ireland would do …

I thank the Minister for coming before the House and wish her well in her new role. A number of major challenges face the Department: pensions, the sustainability of the Social Insurance Fund, and how we will get people into work who want to work but cannot for a whole variety of reasons, including childcare, other caring responsibilities or disability. Disability is a very significant challenge facing the country. We faced it before Covid and will face it all the more post Covid. I have a specific question about t…

I congratulate the Minister on her new role. I am conscious that she appeared in the House for another Bill, but this is my first time speaking on a justice Bill and I want to wish her well. The Labour Party is happy to support the Bill, which contains several measures that have been long sought after by the legal profession. One of those measures is the introduction of electronic filing and the issuing of documents from court offices. This positive change will save solicitors and others significant costs and time.…

I refer to the July stimulus package that was published yesterday. In advance of the Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020 and the Financial Provisions (Covid-19) (No. 2) Bill 2020 coming to the House next week, I have serious questions about what was announced yesterday. There can be no doubt that the injection of €5 billion in additional spending into our economy is badly needed, but let us be clear as to what needs to be fixed and what the July stimulus does and does not do. There is no doubt that busi…

This is really important. There is an important question here-----

That is grand. We need to see detail on certain matters in advance of the aforementioned Bills coming to the House next week, with regard to those in the arts sector in particular. They are now facing a dual uncertainty, due to the pandemic unemployment payment and the freezing of rents and the eviction ban, as a disproportionate share of people in the arts sector are renting and are not paying mortgages. I ask for that detail on the €10 million performance fund and for certainty on how it will be distributed in th…

I congratulate the Minister on his appointment and wish him well in his new role. This is the first Bill he has brought to this House, and what a Bill it is. It is welcome to see this Bill before the Seanad and the Labour Party and I will be supporting it. We will be doing so because the Labour Party has a long-standing commitment to free and accessible healthcare. We will be supporting it because we believe, as a party, that healthcare is a human right and should not only be expanded to those under the age of eigh…

I want to raise an important and urgent matter with regard to planning regulations and to ask the Leader to ask the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to come to the House to set out his plans with regard to co-living. Across Dublin city at the moment, a number of planning applications for co-living units are under consideration by Dublin City Council. In my constituency alone, four planning applications have gone through in the last nine months, the latest being a protected structure, Hendrons, in…

I congratulate the Minister of State on his appointment. The Labour group looks forward to engaging with him on very serious and important issues, particularly those relating to insurance and the credit unions, in due course. The Labour group in the Seanad will be supporting the Bill. In contrast with the previous major crisis the EU experienced, at least there is now a recognition - albeit belated - by Union's institutions of the need to respond on a scale that will have an impact. We welcome the SURE initiative a…

I am delighted to hear such a focus in so many of the contributions on the employment rights of women. I sincerely hope we can continue in that vein by focusing on several issues raised today. Senator Bacik referred to the gender pay gap and Senator Ward spoke about maternity leave arrangements for councillors. I want to support the call by Senator Gavan for a debate on the terms, conditions and rights of those who went out to work every day to ensure we were kept safe in our homes at the height of the Covid-19 cri…

I congratulate the Cathaoirleach on his election today. Much has been spoken about Kerry today. As a Cork woman by birth, but now living in that great melting pot of Dublin Central, I wish him the very best in his work as Cathaoirleach. I am very honoured and privileged to have been elected a Member of the Twenty-sixth Seanad as a Senator for the Labour Party on the labour panel. I am particularly delighted to be joined by my four colleagues. We have a Labour Party group in the Seanad which includes Senators Bacik,…