What we must bear in mind when discussing this Bill is whether its provisions reflect the needs of survivors of institutional abuse. They are the ones whose lives were changed due to the conditions and treatment to which they were subject. We cannot forget that their lives have also been shaped by the disregard shown to them in the decades subsequent to their confinement in places like Sean Ross Abbey in Roscrea. Those decades involved further disregard and the withholding of personal information they would have ta…

One of the issues we generally come across when responding to the needs of farmers is the delay in appropriately addressing things as they happen. The particularly wet weather at the end of last year and to date in 2024 has extended the season in which farmers have had to keep their livestock housed and, as a result, has had a significant impact on feeding costs. Despite the signals that were apparent during the final quarter of last year and that continued through subsequent months, the Department of agriculture s…

As other speakers have said, we all appreciate the importance of this Bill as regards gambling, especially the online part of it. There is not a TD in this Chamber who has not been approached by some charity, GAA club or school raising money. It is unbelievable that this is being brought in when there is so much uncertainty out there. We are asking for it to be referred back to the committee to get all these concerns out of the way. I could just think of my own town. Two of the big projects I was involved in raisin…

We need an all-round approach to road safety to reverse the worrying trend of road deaths we have seen recently. The last time I spoke about this, in February, I drew attention to the fact that the manned deterrent on the roads needs to be increased, yet the ability to provide that increased Garda presence is hamstrung by the shortage of available gardaí. This was pointedly outlined in the recent confirmation to Deputy Martin Kenny that there has been an increase of just four gardaí on the roads policing unit since…

We are living in an ageing society, and it is important we get auto-enrolment right. It is important to provide a financial vehicle to help people to supplement the State pension to enable them greater financial security in retirement, so we must get it right. It is to reward workers and improve their lives post retirement. I refer to the mandatory nature of the automatic opt-in for six months. As devised, this Bill gives little recognition to the challenges faced by people on lower incomes, especially when the hig…

I also want to thank Deputy Cullinane for tabling the motion. The Minister of State said in her contribution that she would give figures; I am also going to give figures. First, we have had 13 years with Deputies Harris, Varadkar and Stephen Donnelly as Minister for Health that have made the health service worse, with higher hospital overcrowding, hospital waiting times and wasteful spending. Cancer services are one sector that the Government has not funded properly, because it has failed to fund the cancer strateg…

Sinn Féin is supportive of establishing a sovereign wealth fund. With the significant growth in corporation tax receipts in recent years, it is important that the moneys collected in this regard are treated in a manner that protects them in order that they can be used to combat future challenges and crises as they may arise. The design of such a fund must take various factors into account, including how moneys are accrued and invested and the circumstances in which they can be drawn down and the purposes for which …

I note that the inadequate response to the Israeli Government's actions in Gaza has given the Israeli Government the feeling it can do what it likes and act with impunity. We have seen this all along and we have seen it result in the death of 40,000 Palestinians, which is unbelievable. It is happening in front of our eyes on social media. Most recently we have heard the Israeli Government publicly state its intention to conduct further military operations without any hesitation or concern about international worrie…

Yesterday the Taoiseach indicated that the Government would not be opposing this motion but I take it that is just for appearance. Many of the ambitions in the motion are in stark contrast to the view of the value of a home beyond that of a commodity. The motion calls for an EU plan that will end the financialisation of housing and tackle speculation in the housing system. This is clearly an obscure notion to those in government, given their stated preference for increasing housing costs and their opposition to the…

I wish to raise with the Minister of State a meeting I attended last night regarding Mr. Sean Meehan, who is facing homelessness and legal action because he has been ordered to demolish his current residence. This is absolutely crazy in the middle of the housing crisis we have. Does the Government actually believe that people who have had to house themselves should be made homeless at this stage? There are a couple of small things that went awry with the planning. I know the Minister of State has asked certain loca…

I also thank Deputy Collins for bringing this legislation to the House. The Bill aims to standardise the deductions of trade union subscriptions at wage source for presentation to the union. This would be a positive development for workers who may encounter employers who take advantage of trade union disputes, seek to prevent the establishment of trade unions or attempt other trade union-busting measures. The Government has tabled an amendment to frustrate it by declining a Second Reading for a number of reasons. I…

Let me be clear - arson cannot be tolerated or justified and it cannot be seen as any form of protest. Arson is not a way to express frustration. Its only purpose is to sow division, fear and distrust in our communities. For the people who do this and who seek to do the same in other forums, the truth is secondary. It is not a primary concern for them because if the truth and accuracy of information were important to them, those bad actors would try to find that out. They do not, though. In the situations we have s…

I want to raise the issue of the 60-bed community nursing unit that was to be built in St. Patrick's Hospital in Cashel. In 2022 I raised this issue in the Dáil and was told that the site was not going to be used. The project has dragged on and on, even though the money has been approved for it because the site is not suitable. I was then told that there are two fields in Palmer's Hill owned by the HSE. I warned the Minister that this site is not suitable because of access issues and the site itself. Now I have bee…

There are issues with road access.

The HSE owns two fields on Palmer's Hill but has told the Minister that site is not accessible by road and it will not be built on. The HSE is about to purchase another field adjoining that, which is a waste of money.

I only answered the question I was asked.

The case I want to address today concerns a young man, Stephen, whose lack of adequate home help support arrangements is something I raised in this House in December 2021. At the time, he was in receipt of one hour per week of home help and two hours per week from the local independent living centre. Since then, he has been left short. Let me give some background to Stephen's case. This young man has muscular dystrophy. He lives in the same house as his parents with his own quarters where he can live as independent…

I will make it clear that the family, including Stephen, Nicola and Donal, and I, want to praise the staff that are there. It is just that some of them are not trained to use particular equipment. This is not just being faced by Stephen and his family; there are similar situations throughout the country. There is no doubt that families such as this need the extra hours, but they need to be tailored to suit the patient and family. As I said, families such as Stephen's cannot plan anything ahead of time because if th…

From the inability to find a GP with the capacity to take on new patients, to dental services being unable to provide the most urgent procedures within an acceptable timeframe, to home support hours being inadequate, rural Ireland is being left behind. After being contacted by yet another constituent who is experiencing difficulties in getting orthodontic treatment for their child I was told that in the second quarter of 2020, 859 children classed as being in grade five of that index were waiting for orthodontic tr…

I was in before her.