I will certainly bring the Deputy's thoughts and comments back to the Minister. I will touch on the issue of transitioning the fleet. The Department of Transport remains committed to supporting the transition of the SPSV fleet towards zero and low-emission vehicles. It has made funding available to the NTA to provide grants for the provision and conversion of vehicles to make them wheelchair accessible, which is a requirement for new entrants, and a grant is also provided to convert the SPSV fleet to lower emission…

I thank both Deputies for raising this really serious issue. I am here with my colleague from Waterford who is Acting Chairman tonight. We could talk about cath labs all day long. My very first speech after being elected in 2016 related to cath lab services in Waterford. As the Deputies will know, mobile cardiac cath lab services have been provided at Sligo University Hospital by a private company. I am informed by the HSE that the company concerned is to cease its provision of mobile cath lab services at SUH and o…

I can understand how upset, annoyed and disappointed the Deputies are about what has transpired. We have had many conversations about cardiac supports and how important they are. As I outlined earlier, the HSE has advised that all options have been explored regarding the continued provision of cath lab services in Sligo University Hospital after the cessation by the current service provider later this month. It will exit the Irish market completely at the end of June which is very disappointing. I know the Deputies…

I thank the Deputy very much for raising this important issue. As he knows, since I became the Minister of State responsible for mental health, we have had a new vision – Sharing the Vision – and a strategy. We have a national implementation monitoring committee to ensure the vision is realised. As part of this, I have tasked a subcommittee in CAMHS to investigate exactly what the Deputy is talking about, namely the ageing out of people at 18. In a case like the one mentioned or that of someone with an eating disor…

I thank Deputy Donnelly for raising this issue. He is quite right. There was a protest outside Leinster House on Tuesday. There is an action plan, which will be published very shortly. The action plan will not relate only to mental health. It has to relate to educational prospects, to prospects for apprenticeships and to education and social protection. All of those key factors exacerbate the challenges Travellers have in regard to their mental health. I hope this will be published before the summer recess. That is…

I thank Deputy Stanton for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. He has asked me to pass on his apologies to the Deputy for being unavailable to take this matter himself. The Housing for All strategy delivers on the programme for Government commitment to step up housing supply and to put affordability at the heart of the housing system, with an ambitious target of 300,000 homes to be built over the next decade, including …

I thank the Deputy again for the points he raised. I will pick up on some of the aspects mentioned, starting with Irish Water. We hear about these challenges, and I hear about them in my constituency as well. In fairness to the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, significant funding was allocated to Irish Water. I think it is €1.5 billion annually for the next four years to enable the company to address these issues. We must have the correct infrastructure in place, whether that is for wastewater or water supply, to …

As the Deputy said, Erkina House is a high-support residence that provides a rehabilitation and recovery service for people with mental health difficulties. There are currently 12 residents in the house, which is situated in the village of Rathdowney, County Laois, in the Deputy's constituency. The first I heard of this matter was when Deputy Stanley, the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, and Deputy Flanagan made contact with my office. The HSE was then in contact with my office on 19 April regarding the potential…

I thank the Deputy for his impassioned plea with regard to Erkina House. I will be keeping a very close eye on the developments. The Mental Health Commission visited Erkina House on 15 January 2018. It made recommendations regarding the physical environment, policy development, multidisciplinary team access, individual care planning and medication management. I welcome the fact that the Mental Health Commission also has an interest in the premises. The individual care needs of the residents of Erkina House remain a…

I thank the Deputy for her very important question. I am in a unique situation in that I have a budget that can fund every home care package in the country. My budget for the delivery of home care across the country is €672 million. Every day, 55,000 people receive home care. The problem is that we currently have approximately 5,300 people awaiting home care. The packages are funded but we have a shortage of staff. I have put in place a strategic workforce planning group working with the stakeholders in order to de…

I also was not in a position to attend as I was in the Seanad taking Commencement Matters at noon yesterday. I expect to publish the Traveller health action plan before the summer recess. It does not just relate to mental health; it also covers a suite of measures for Travellers relating to social protection, housing, access to education and access to apprenticeships. Considerable work has been done on the mental health aspect. In December, I allocated €365,000 to the HSE for equipment to support Travellers to work…

I will be making a statement on the future of the Creative Ireland programme on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, who is currently in Cabinet. Many of the questions the Senator has asked are given a comprehensive response. In December 2016, a new all-of-government initiative, entitled clár Éire IIdánach or the Creative Ireland programme, was approved as a legacy project arising from the Ireland 2016 centenary programme and as the main implementation vehicle for national cultural policy priorities. Mo…

The blockage over the past couple of years has been Covid-19 and the fact that a great many organisations were not able to meet as they normally did and had to go online. We missed the benefits of the arts, culture and creativity. They are so important for our well-being, in particular mental health and well-being. It was brought into sharp focus during Covid-19. I firmly believe enhanced collaboration and integration across the arts, health and social care sectors through a focus on creative health and well-being …

I thank Senator Malcolm Byrne for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Naughton, who is currently attending Cabinet. I recognise many of the significant points made by the Senator. He attended in Waterford last Friday afternoon, when we celebrated 20 years of the search and rescue service in the south east located at Waterford regional airport. We must achieve the right balance. We have seen the amount of search and rescue requests at sea a…

As I outlined, the legislative framework includes a range of controls to regulate the operation of jet skis. I refer specifically to the Maritime Safety Act 2005, under which local authorities, harbour authorities and Waterways Ireland may make by-laws to regulate or control the operation of jet skis in their functional areas. Such by-laws may also address matters relating to the launching of craft or the maximum speed limits at which craft may be operated. Under this Act, a range of offences and enforcement provis…

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. She did not say anything I disagreed with. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, who, as the Senator pointed out, is attending meetings on this very issue. What we witnessed at Dublin Airport last weekend was totally unacceptable. The Government and Minister are very dissatisfied with the current situation and the impact that these unacceptable delays are having on passengers. This is an operation…

The passenger experience at Dublin Airport is falling far short of the service our citizens and visitors should expect at our largest State airport. The Government recognises the undue stress these unacceptable delays are causing for passengers. It is like a perfect storm. People have not been able to holiday abroad for the past two and a half years. We have seen similar pressures in the Passport Office. People want to enjoy a holiday if they can at all. Some people are travelling for work. Some people are travelli…

It is always a pleasure to come to the Seanad.

I thank Deputy Ward for his question. The Maskey report contains 35 recommendations, the implementation of which will involve a range of actions by the Cork, Kerry Community Health Organisation, CHO, for Kerry south, as well as national actions. As the Deputy knows, the audit of CAMHS is divided into three separate parts. The procurement process for the national audit of compliance with CAMHS operational guidelines is under way. This had to go out to tender. Proposals were received on 2 May 2022 and following asses…

As the Deputy is aware, we must do due diligence. These audits will cost quite a lot of money. Obviously that is not the issue but they must be done right. We will get real-time data that we have never had before. We have been talking about the waiting lists in CAMHS for so many years and we have been talking about the challenges. I welcome that we will have these data but I want it completed before the end of the year. The six-month timeline was always there. I meet regularly with the HSE to move this along. The M…