I look forward to the Minister of State's response. It is a legitimate issue that has been raised. As I am not a lawyer, I will defer to the legal eagles. However, I ask that we would not lose the context of what we are legislating for. This is the statutory public consultation process. We have more than 31 city and county councils with more than 940 elected representatives. They are not self-appointed. They are not anonymous people. They are living in their communities, dealing with their constituents on a daily b…

I thank the Cathaoirleach. I thank the Minister for coming into the House. This is an important issue to my constituents, his constituents and survivors all over the world. When the Minister came into the House in October of this year, he brought forward legislation to prevent the destruction of the records and the database from the commission of investigation. My colleague and I supported that legislation because we thought it was critically important that the database and records that had been assembled by the co…

I will be brief if I only have 30 seconds. I thank the Minister for his reply. It is welcome that the free phone telephone numbers are there and that supports are being put in place. I am going to move briefly to the final part of the Minister's statement which related to the information and tracing legislation. He flagged that when he came before the committee in October. It is a priority for the Government and I hope it is legislation that will be progressed in the first half of next year, if at all possible. I a…

It is Ní Ghiolla Phádraig. My Irish is not that great but I am catching up. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House and for bringing this important legislation. As a former councillor, I share the view that engagement with the public on all matters for which local authorities are responsible is important. The development plan is made once every five years and this is really important work undertaken by both the elected members and officials. It is a pity when it is disregarded by a Minister in office.…

Standing room only on the north side.

I will be brief. We need to be responsible and constructive in this debate. The legislation that is being brought forward is with the objective of trying to enhance public participation rather than to stymie or restrict it. The narrow interpretation that is being put on the language, which states that the executive functions own the preparation of the pre-draft is not helpful because it is creating the impression that the executive functions will potentially operate in splendid isolation from the elected representa…

I did not-----

It was not part of the development plan.

Next Wednesday.

Diego Maradona died yesterday but two men in our capital city also died. One of them was homeless and living on the streets of Dublin and the other had been homeless and was in sheltered accommodation. I have raised the issue of homelessness many times in this House and at the Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I fully recognise the commitment from the Government in terms of funding for homeless prevention and support for those people who are unfortunate enough to be homeless. More than €230…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House for this important debate. We appreciate his time as there are enormous demands on him and his Department. His Department is to be commended, along with NPHET and all of government, for the continuing efforts and outstanding commitment to helping our country tackle and survive this pandemic. Before I say anything else, it is important to not lose sight of the thousands of people who have lost their lives, and the many thousands of their friends and families who …

Today, 25 November, is the UN's international day for the elimination of violence against women. The UN says violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations in our world today. It remains largely unreported due to the impunity, silence, stigma and shame that surrounds it. In general terms, violence against women and girls manifests itself in physical, sexual and psychological abuse. This includes everything from rape to intimidation, harassment, hum…

I move: "That Second Stage be taken today."

I wish to share time with Senator Byrne with six minutes for me and two minutes for the Senator.

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for bringing this legislation to the Senate first. I am a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage and I appreciate that some members were confused as to the Minister's intentions. I accept the Minister's apology and accept that his intention in bringing forward this legislation is both to support the proper functioning of our local authorities and our planning, development and building control processes and to protect publi…

I apologise to the House. I did not realise that was the case.

I am speaking as a former city councillor and I genuinely understand the enormous time and effort that councillors put into the making of development plans. It is two years' work and requires significant effort on their part. They engage with their constituents, lobby groups and so on. I am not going to repeat my request to the Government; everyone here knows what I want to say, including the Minister. This legislation is important and the Fianna Fáil group will support it. We will also support the amendment as out…

Next Monday.

I welcome the Government's decision announced by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage yesterday to ban co-living. It signals a really decisive and important shift in the policy of the Government and the State towards the provision of housing. When the concept of co-living was introduced in 2018, it was probably well intentioned but it certainly was never going to deliver quality homes for life, homes for families or homes for people living in our cities. I note the recent decision by Dublin city …

I support Senator Currie's call for Government assistance for the zoo in the Phoenix Park. The scariest thing I did in my life was give birth to my three children. I spent the first seven months of my first pregnancy in denial and the final two months saying I genuinely cannot do this. If it had not been for the Rotunda Hospital and the amazing staff, including the midwives, nurses and doctor, I do not believe I would have ever found the courage I managed to find. I would never have imagined I would have such coura…