He is not listening to anything.

The State has a duty of care to Cara, her two brothers, and children like them.

The Tánaiste should answer the question about Cara.

What about the law-breaking?

The HSE is breaking the law.

I too compliment the Regional Group for tabling this motion. It is an issue which we have all been pressing for ages. Carers and people who do home help and caring are the last vestige of humanity left in the HSE and the public health service. Everything else has been stripped away - all the supports such as community welfare are gone. These people need to be respected. As Deputy Healy-Rae said, they get into their cars, travel around and give their time lovingly and with dedication. They are interested in their cl…

Were you on a bike?

I too wish the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, well as leader of the Green Party. I have serious concerns about his attitude and behaviour towards communities in which IPAS centres are opening, however. We have now lost three hotels in Tipperary – Racket Hall in Roscrea, Hearns Hotel in Clonmel and Dundrum House Hotel. The Minister refused steadfastly to meet the people of Dundrum, a village of 200 people in which 286 IPAS people were put. The Taoiseach met Andrea Crowe and Nora O’Dwyer, who are two local people, briefl…

I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Planning and Development Regulations 2001 and for that purpose to remove certain references to An Taisce, the National Trust for Ireland, and to provide for related matters. Ar an gcéad dul síos, I wish a céad míle fáilte do na daoine ó Athlacca. I welcome the Athlacca people here, guests of Deputy O'Donoghue, from County Limerick. They are neighbours of mine. We do not always agree on hurling but have a nice day. I am pleased to present…

I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."

I welcome guests to our Public Gallery. I wish a céad míle fáilte to Yuan Shuhong, vice chair of the Constitution and Law Committee of the 14th National People's Congress and his committee members, who are meeting the justice committee as part of their visit to Ireland. A céad míle fáilte and I hope they enjoy their visit.

The Health Information Bill 2024 is a step towards modernising healthcare in Ireland. It is a big statement and I welcome the Bill because we badly need to modernise the health system in Ireland. The Health Information Bill 2024, which was published on 19 June last, aims to establish a legal framework for digital health records in Ireland and set guidelines for sharing patient data in the interests of care and treatment. It is a significant step forward in addressing Ireland's lag in digital healthcare compared wit…

I too am glad to get a chance to speak on this. It is interesting that we are discussing companies and corporate business when we have seen over the decades what has happened in corporate governance and the lack of it. We could refer to the children's hospital or umpteen cases of poor corporate governance. I have to declare an interest in that I am a director of a small business that employs 25 people. The excessive regulations and the weight on small companies is just unbelievable. I know that everyone has to keep…

The Government could not build a henhouse.

The Rural Independent Group and I tabled a motion in 2018 to have the site for the children's hospital changed from the current site. We brought Dr. Jimmy Sheehan, Fin Breatnach and others from Connolly for Kids in here in 2015 to tell Members that it was the wrong site. They had a 70-acre site out beyond the M50. Dr. Sheehan said that he would build a hospital there in 11 to 13 months for €900 million to €1.1 billion. Here we are and the Government will not take accountability for the appalling mess it has made of…

Sabrina Kelly, a mother of two children with special needs from Clonmel, has been failed by the National Council for Special Education and the Department of Education. She is struggling to get a school place for her youngest son, Josh. He is five years old and was due to start school this month. He was eventually offered a place in Powerstown National School beside Clonmel. However, the school is no longer in a position to cater for Josh's needs. Sabrina met the Taoiseach in Clonmel a number of weeks ago and he pro…

I am. I was at a briefing with the Ceann Comhairle. Interestingly, it was about the security of Members and staff. I certainly want to comment on this situation. It is very important that we try to take all measures to protect all of our citizens, and not only Members of this House and whoever else. The situation is very bad at present. It has deteriorated rapidly under the Minister's watch. A lot of it, but not all of it, is down to the lack of gardaí.

I know that. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. There are a lot of amendments and changes that need to be made. Some of them are here, and some are missing. We can have all the amendments, Bills and legislation that we like, but we do not have basic numbers of members of An Garda Síochána. We should cut out the spin and the announcements of how many gardaí are being recruited because we all accept it has been more difficult to recruit gardaí to Templemore. We all accept that we must have people from diverse backgro…

Of course it is. We have seen the murder of members of An Garda Síochána and different people. Any murder, the taking of life, is the most heinous crime there is. Of course there should be mandatory sentences, and not a slipshod version of it - that is not a life sentence. Life should mean life because after all, somebody has taken another person's life. The situation regarding under-age people who commit murder is a huge issue as well. While there are measures in this Bill to deal with that, it is a very difficult…

Yes, Aoife Johnston's death at UHL was almost certainly avoidable. What is happening day in, day out at UHL presents a shocking, appalling vista, all because the Government closed down Nenagh, St. John's and Ennis emergency departments and expected UHL to do the work without putting in place the necessary beds or staff. I heard the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler, quipping across the floor to Deputy Tóibín that the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, saved Navan. Why did she not save St. Bridget's in Carrick-on-Suir, …