Now.

I understand it is customary to allow a few words to be spoken on the decision that this House has unanimously taken to pass this legislation. I welcome the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, and thank her for her interest and co-operation in the whole process. As I indicated on the first day when this Bill was tendered for Second Stage consideration by the House, I am not here to score political points. The cross-party, united approach of this House is to see that work is done and that the commitments, which were …

I thank the Minister. I note what she says about the apparent concentration of some surgical procedures in Blackrock. I ask her, the Department and the HSE to ask why that is happening and whether there is a differential between patients who have insurance and patients who do not in being seen in that context.

I agree completely with what Senator Fitzpatrick said about what is happening in Gaza. In the past 24 hours, the Palestinian town of Kafr Malik in the West Bank was attacked by illegal Israeli settlers, who burned property. The Israeli army intervened, arrested five of the settlers and killed three Palestinians who were defending their own property. In the past fortnight, while the Iran crisis was brewing, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. They were people simply seeking food supplies, which are be…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, here today and indicate that I, in general, support the two motions which are being brought before the House today. The Offences Against the State Act is a far-reaching Act and the powers conferred by it on An Garda Síochána are far-reaching, including detention and the routing of cases investigated under it to the Special Criminal Court unless there is an intervention to send them to the ordinary courts, as the Minister of State outlined. I think, however, we should …

I raise the important matter brought to public attention by Deputy Allan Kelly at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration yesterday. As court proceedings are still in train in respect of some aspects of the matters raised, I have to be careful in what I say and I will be. However, it appears that three persons, described by the court as "young and naive", were charged with possession of three firearms and ammunition on 2 March 2024 in County Kildare. It further appears that an attempt …

I welcome the Tánaiste, and the substance, tone and inclusivity of his remarks, his identification with the occupied territories Bill and his indication of co-operation with those of us who support it. Senator Frances Black introduced the Bill, which was passed by a majority of the House in 2017. That happened in circumstances where the Israeli Government accused those of us, including myself, Senator Ivana Bacik, as she then was, former Senator David Norris and Senator Frances Black of being antisemites. I will co…

I identify with the calls that have been made for a proper debate on what is happening in Gaza. It is not unforeseeable. A number of us actually foresaw, almost to the detail, what is happening now in the immediate aftermath of the Hamas-inspired atrocity against Israeli citizens. It was shocking that, when we supported the occupied territories Bill, the Irish ambassador was called in in Jerusalem and reprimanded by the Israeli Government. Those of us in this House who supported that Bill were accused of being anti…

I now regret that I did not add my name to the supporters of this legislation because the case that has been made by Senator Keogan and other supporters of the Bill seems to me to be a very strong one. Furthermore, I am of the view that given it is Government policy to go down this road, the question we really face this afternoon is one of timing. I fully accept the Government is entitled to assemble its own evidence. Maybe the particular limits of concentration of various substances and all the rest of it in the B…

I welcome the Minister. I congratulate Senator Ruane on her initiative in tabling this legislation. The Minister's request for more time to consider what is involved is sensible and reasonable in all the circumstances. The whole idea of a special advocate is novel in Irish law. A series of issues arise in respect of restricted evidence confined to legal practitioners who are not in a position to disclose that material to the person on whose behalf they have been appointed to act. It is a concept that is well-known …

Agreed.

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Troy. I indicate my personal support for this legislation. I understand the reasons he and the Department have been obliged to address the issue in the wake of the Zalewski decision as it applied to the ombudsman's procedures. There is a tendency now to set up specialist tribunals and to divide up what used to be the administration of justice and allocate them to bodies such as the Residential Tenancies Board or the Workplace Relations Commission, which replaced the unfair di…

We trust each other. We do not shout each other down. It is a joyful contrast to some other places. I will not put it any further than that.

I thank the Minister of State for being here today. My involvement in this matter arises from a representation made to me by a colleague at work, a parent who has children in the school and received a letter warning him that, as and from 1 April, the school will close its doors and that the parent might attempt distance education. One can imagine what that means for working parents, single parents and the like. It would be a disaster. No parent should be confronted with a letter stating that they have three weeks t…

I thank the Minister of State for her response. I want to emphasise that the Minister of State, as an educationalist, will appreciate that this kind of crisis should not take place. There should be an early warning system rather than a fire brigade action at the end of a period of time. My information is that the crisis emerging at this school was present for some time. I am glad to see that the FSSU has been engaged by the Department now to support the school and that the acceleration of payment of the particular …

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber today and thank her for being present and for making it to this place after all her travels. This legislation is not some exercise in opportunism, nor is it intended to be part of a party-political blame game or a point-scoring exercise. It is simply a measure to ensure a tragedy which unfolded for very many children and their parents comes to a timely end and that the trail of broken promises, missed targets, disappointment, heartbreak and suffering for so many children and th…

I am accepting the amendment.

With the permission of the House, I wish to share my time with Senators Clonan and Keogan.

I am very glad to have the opportunity to contribute to this debate. I welcome the Minister. The progress on women's health issues that she outlined in her statement is very encouraging material. I compliment the Government on all of the initiatives it is taking in this area. I want this to be understood. Women's health is not only an issue for women. It is also an issue for men. Men and women together are affected by women's health issues dramatically and sometimes tragically. We cannot segregate the consideration…

Do not worry, I will not take any offence.