Today the Cabinet is meeting to discuss what will happen in the inflationary situation in which we find ourselves as a country. This is not just an Irish problem; it is an international problem. I want to see the squeezed middle as well as the most vulnerable in society benefit. I was talking yesterday to a person who has a very large mortgage and who told me that childcare is extremely expensive, that the cost of filling the car with diesel to go to work has increased by a third and that they find it very difficul…

I presume the Acting Chairperson will give me the same latitude other speakers have been given.

Thank you. On the specific point Senator Mullen raised regarding the UL Hospitals Group not being notified, it does not mean An Garda Síochána was not notified. If there was activity outside the hospital, the more appropriate people to contact on that issue would have been the gardaí. I respectfully suggest there is more than one source to which a complaint can be made. If the hospital said what it said, I do not argue or dispute it. However, I believe complaints have been made in other ways. People protest in diff…

I thank Senator Higgins for her constructive contribution. Can I clarify with the Minister exactly what he is proposing in terms of the Joint Committee on Health? In December my understanding was that the Minister then intended to bring a memo to Cabinet in regard to the heads of the legislation, and then to refer the heads of the legislation to the committee for pre-legislative scrutiny, and this would happen at the end of March as the latest possible date. I am looking at the exact quotes, but I have more or less…

I thank the Minister for that. I have no doubt but that this is difficult. As he stated, if it were not, one would hope it would have been done before now. What is the timeline, though? Obviously, the Minister will provide all the advice he has received from the Department which has resulted in his having to make this decision on a way forward. What is the absolute end date by which he expects the legislation to be passed in the Houses of the Oireachtas? That is what people want. Clearly, the process is complex, di…

I know.

Sure. I appreciate that.

I wholeheartedly agree with Senator Ruane on the urgent need to hold a citizens' assembly on drug use in Ireland. It is committed to in the programme for Government and it should have happened by now. It is far more important than a citizens' assembly on whether or not we should have a directly elected Lord Mayor of Dublin.

Let us get our priorities right. In not holding the citizens' assembly on drug use in Ireland we are not getting our priorities right. We need to send out from this House the clear message that we want that citizens' assembly to happen and to happen urgently and not in nine months' time. As rightly stated by Senator Ruane, every day people are losing their lives. By the end of the year, more than 370 people in this country will have lost their lives as a result of drug addiction. That is far more important than the…

I agree wholeheartedly with Senator McDowell's contribution. In terms of the report and collusion - it is reprehensible. There is no other word to describe it, to be frank about it. Everybody who lost their lives on this island, irrespective of what side they were on, were cherished by loved ones. They had families. They had parents. Some of them had children. We need to reflect on that. What happened to the wall in Glasnevin Cemetery is appalling. To think that we have to give up because of vandals is terrible. Th…

It is great to see Senator Pauline O'Reilly in the position of Deputy Leader today, so I say, "Well done". The circumstances that are developing in Northern Ireland warrant an urgent debate in the House next week. We recall when Sinn Féin pulled down the Northern Ireland Executive over the cash-for-ash scandal, which created a wave of unexpected consequences. This time, if the Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, pulls down the Executive, it will be far more complex, with many more challenges, and it will create conside…

I warmly welcome Minister of State, Senator Hackett, to the House. She is a frequent visitor and will be very much aware of the issue and challenges of the Commencement matter I have tabled. I live in a part of west Clare where there is a significant amount of forestry. The west Clare municipal district goes from the Burren down to Kilrush and there is much forestry in that area. There is also much forestry that is ready to be cut over the next couple of years. The problem is when Coillte, for example, goes in and …

I thank the Minister of State for her comprehensive reply. Frankly, however, I am disappointed that it is not stronger. I believe this is a problem. While proper communication, safeguards and so forth work in many places, there are areas where they do not work. Where is the penalty or the consequences when there is no proper communication? Are there situations where these companies are fined if they do not comply? What are the safeguards? What is the auditing of these organisations? Are they spot-checked? Are the l…

It might be necessary to put those guidelines into primary legislation.

I also commend the Acting Leader on her first day taking the Order of Business. I also acknowledge that this is St. Brigid's Day. It is a special day and I am glad that it is now going to be recognised as an official bank holiday. While I am speaking about women, I also wish to talk about a strong courageous lady who appeared on the "Claire Byrne Live" show last night. I do not know if any of the Senators saw the programme, but anyone involved in policymaking or in the legal system should be duty-bound to watch it …

Senator Dolan and others have spoken of the importance of greenways and the connectivity and marketing opportunities they present. It is time to organise a debate in this House on the future of tourism. The last time Ireland was in a recession, back in 2009, 2010 and 2011, tourism was the first industry to help kick-start our economy. Pre-pandemic, some 10 million people visited this country from abroad every year. We need to constantly upgrade our tourism offering and invest in our gold-plated tourism attractions,…

The Minister is very welcome to the House for what is one of the most important debates we have had here in a long time. The murder of Ashling Murphy has brought a focus on this issue. It should not have taken such an event for this to happen. I commend the Minister on her very much hands-on approach to this issue, not just in the past couple of weeks but since she took up her position as Minister for Justice. We are very lucky to have her in that role. I believe she will ensure a difference is made. It is critical…

I spoke here yesterday on the number of people on trolleys in the hospital in Limerick. It was 97 yesterday and it is 111 today. The call I made yesterday for an immediate independent investigation has been strengthened by the sad news of 111 people on trolleys in Limerick. January is cervical cancer awareness month. We all know how important the HPV vaccine is. Thankfully, there is a greater culture in this country of taking vaccines as a result of Covid-19. If greater numbers of people are embracing vaccination a…

I assure the House I will not get involved in the Kilkenny-Waterford battle. We have enough problems of our own in Clare. Decisions were made and decisions are made for various reasons. One that was made in the mid-1990s - the decision to privatise Eircom - was a fundamental mistake. If that had not happened, we would have the infrastructure to provide high-speed broadband to every home in the country. However, it did happen. The decision made in 2017-2018 by the previous Government to sign the national broadband p…

The Minister of State is welcome to the House. This is an excellent Bill. It equips councils to do their job more successfully. It will also equip our environmental patrol wardens who, by and large, do a great job. The problem they have is that the level of proof required to bring a conviction is significant and this Bill will help that. I come from a nice part of the country, namely, County Clare. I live near the beach and, unfortunately, there are people in our society who believe it is appropriate to dump rubbis…