I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." I wish to acknowledge Deputy Mitchell and Deputy Martin Kenny, who introduced this Bill with me on First Stage. I also thank the Minister of State for taking the time to stay for the late shift on a Thursday. I appreciate him taking the time to be here. The thrust of this Bill is to make it more difficult for older, more experienced criminals to groom children into criminality. The cycle of poverty and disadvantage leading to children being vulnerable to grooming b…

I welcome that the Government will not oppose this Bill. I acknowledge that the Minister has issues with some of the ways the legislation is laid out, but this is why we have pre-legislative scrutiny; it is there to iron all of this out. As the Opposition, we do not have the services of the Attorney General. We would love to have the services of the Attorney General when drafting legislation. Maybe in the coming years we will have the opportunity ourselves over this side of the House to have that service. I acknowl…

As the Minister knows, I am on the Joint Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth with Deputy Cairns. I thank her for tabling this important motion. The mother and baby homes are a dark stain on the history of the State. I am on the committee that was tasked with the pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bill. Listening to the testimonies at the committee of those who were personally affected was absolutely heart-wrenching. I met several survivors and it was very traumatising for me to hear thei…

I am just back from a wonderful briefing relating to the High Five Boxing Academy for children with additional needs. The briefing was hosted by Deputy Ó Snodaigh and me in the audiovisual room. I ask the Tánaiste to join me in welcoming the children, the parents, and the coaching staff of the High Five Boxing Academy for children with additional needs to the Gallery. This initiative is supported by the Irish Athletic Boxing Association and includes all children, regardless of their abilities. It was started by Pat…

I also thank the Labour Party for the opportunity to speak on this really important issue. Last week, I was a member of the Sinn Féin team that met community employment supervisors in Leinster House. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael Governments have refused to give any pay increases to these workers for the past 14 years. The starting rate of pay for an assistant community employment supervisor is €11.01, which works out at less than the proposed minimum wage. You think of the crucial roles these workers play in our commu…

This Bill is timely and welcome. While the Covid-19 restrictions were in place, we saw how those created a greater need for flexible working arrangements. While Covid-19 was and still is an extremely serious issue, the lessons we have learned from it should be key to our future approach to issues around caring, disabilities and equality. This Bill sets out a framework for flexible working arrangements which offers many benefits for employees and employers. These are important tools for better assisting women and pe…

The cost-of-living crisis is one of the main issues raised in my constituency office every day. The rising cost of energy and the fear that people will not be able to keep the lights on should be a priority for Government. I acknowledge the measures in the Bill in respect of the energy credits to be given over the coming months but my constituents are telling me that, despite these measures, they do not have certainty. What good is the credit if the bills continue to rise? For those on prepay meters, what good is t…

I want to start by talking about the cost of disability. Enormous extra expenses are faced by people with disabilities that are not covered by social welfare payments. Not all people with disabilities are on social welfare. Many people with disabilities work. People with disabilities are often at a higher risk of poverty. I can testify, as a person and a worker with a disability who has lived experience, that many of the barriers one faces as a person with a disability are really challenging. The marginal increases…

We have discussed the cost-of-living issue and the increase in the cost of living countless times in the Chamber. I want to bring to the Taoiseach's attention an unexpected new bill that workers in Liffey Valley shopping centre are facing. Later this month, the owners of Liffey Valley plan to introduce paid car parking for customers and staff. Staff will be expected to pay up to €650 a year to park their car. Retail, security and cleaning staff are often poorly paid. There are up to 2,500 staff working in Liffey Va…

Will the Minister report on the affordable housing scheme in Kilcarbery in my area? Have the problems with the banks been resolved? How much are these affordable homes and what is the equity stake buyers will have to pay back to the State?

For clarity, was the delay in people getting approval from the banks down to the lack of communication on the part of the Department? There were more than 300 eligible applications for these 16 homes. There is clearly a need for affordable housing. People in my area have been blocked out of the housing market for years as a result of high prices and unaffordable rents. They are just trying to get a place they can afford. They want to live in their area and bring up their children there. I do not think that is too m…

I was on the council when these decisions were made. We did not procrastinate. We sent the matter back to the Minister's predecessor, Eoghan Murphy, to get 100% public homes on public land, with affordable purchase, rental and social units. There is no way that the cost would have been €285,000 had it been done at the time. We were given assurances, as far as the council could do so, that the private homes would cost €260,000, which is less than the affordable housing. That is what we were told. I checked this morn…

There have been more smoke and mirrors tactics from the Minister in the mental health budget this year. I listened intently yesterday as his colleagues announced an increase of €57.8 million in mental health spending overall but of that, only €14 million is for additional funding for new measures. A total of €43 million is for existing levels of services. That is basically standing-still money. After the €57.8 million figure was read in the Dáil, the Minister tweeted that €72.8 million was actually allocated and he…

I thank the Rural Independent Group for the opportunity to speak on this important matter. As the previous speaker said, one of the areas the Government has refused so far to consider is the decoupling of gas from electricity prices. Currently, the price of gas dictates the price of all electricity. This is pushing bills through the roof, even for renewable electricity. While we can produce electricity from wind and solar at relatively low prices, the current system means that this energy is sold at the same rate a…

I have only trí nóiméad, so I will not be long.

I will speak on the regulation of counsellors and psychotherapists under the auspices of CORU. The Minister of State will be aware these regulations were made by her predecessor in 2018. Members were appointed to the Counsellors and Psychotherapists Registration Board in May 2019. The board has 12 very experienced members and it met three times in 2019, four times in 2020 seven times in 2021 and has met six times so far in 2022. Therefore, the board has met 20 times since 2019. Four years after the Minister of Stat…

I thank People Before Profit for the opportunity to discuss rents today. Already put to the pin of their collar, renters struggling with exorbitant rents are now even worse off during this cost-of-living crisis. Families simply cannot afford high rents on top of the increases in the cost of childcare, food and energy. What is the solution to reduce sky-high rents? One solution is to increase the supply of social, affordable purchase and affordable rental homes - public homes on public land. I listened to the dog wh…

Deputy Carthy had 50 seconds to ask it.

I welcome Charlotte and her mother, Emma, who are mental health youth campaigners, to the Public Gallery as guests of Deputy Martin Browne. Yesterday, during the debate, the Taoiseach praised the Government for being "extraordinarily diligent and dedicated" in the area of mental health. I will quote the Taoiseach some facts. Under his Government, there has been a 40% increase in the number of children presenting to emergency departments for mental healthcare; more than 4,000 children are waiting for appointments wi…

There has been a staggering 40% increase in the number of children presenting to emergency departments for mental health care. Emergency departments are not the place for those suffering from mental ill health, especially children. Early intervention is key, but these children are simply not getting that. There are currently 4,000 children on a waiting list for appointments with child and adolescent mental health services. Some 560 of them have been waiting more than six months. More than 2,000 children are awaitin…