Cuirim fáilte roimh an Tánaiste. We are particularly glad the Tánaiste is back safe after the journey he had last night. I thank the Tánaiste for the speech he has just made. It was quite a strong speech. The Tánaiste was very clear on his position on the legacy Act. My colleagues and I are very pleased about this as we await a positive outcome from a court case taken before the European Court of Human Rights. We are in a very difficult period trying to get an Executive up and running in Northern Ireland. Recently …

Tomorrow at 9.30 a.m.

Next Tuesday.

Try to stay on the subject matter.

I thank Senator Ahearn. Senator Gavan has eight minutes.

As there are no other contributors, I invite the Minister of State to reply.

When is it proposed to take Committee Stage?

Is that agreed? Agreed.

The Taoiseach is most welcome. I will begin by addressing the UK's Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, which is the one issue on this island that unites all in opposition to it. This Act should look after victims and their families. They should be front and centre of that legislation but the complete opposite is the case. In regard to a case before the European Court of Human Rights I believe the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste are currently looking at legal opinion. I wish to impress upon th…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House this morning. I propose to speak to the UK Government's Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023. Over the past year, I have met with Lord Caine, who seemed to take the lead on this on behalf of the UK Government, on three separate occasions. I will say at the outset how disappointed I am in him from what he told us from day one about how he was going to take on the concerns of individuals, families and ourselves. The sad reality is that on…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. Victims will not take a lot from it but what can be taken from it is the statement that the Act undermines the fundamental rights of the people in Northern Ireland and, in so doing, damages the process of reconciliation we have worked so hard to progress. That is absolutely right. The Minister of State is correct that the European Convention on Human Rights is at the heart of the Good Friday Agreement. I reiterate that I would like to see the Government set a timeline…

The Northern and Western Regional Assembly has made a call on behalf of the whole north-west area and the counties it covers - Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Mayo, Galway, Roscommon, Cavan and Monaghan. The Leader is from the area and will be very much aware of the deficit in the whole region, going back to when the EU gave it objective 1 status. That was about levelling up to ensure that we got our spend per capita in line with the rest of the country. That is now over 20 years ago and we are still in the same position …

The Senator, without interruption, please.

I ask the Senator to conclude, without interruption.

Allow the Senator to continue without interruption.

Before I call the next speaker, I am sure the members of the House will wish to join with me in welcoming a parliamentary delegation from Azerbaijan led by Ms Sahiba Gafarova, speaker of the Milli Majlis. On my own behalf and that of all my colleagues in Seanad Éireann, I extend a very warm welcome to the delegation from Azerbaijan. I offer them good wishes for a very successful visit around Ireland. They are very welcome. We have one final speaker. I call on Senator Maria Byrne.

I call Senator Gallagher to reply to the debate.

The Minister of State is welcome. While the wording of my Commencement matter refers to a Garda station in Donegal, a station is not necessarily what we need. This is more to do with the Garda review that is taking place across the country. I am here to pitch on behalf of the people in Donegal and also a representative group that wrote to me recently, namely, the Donegal Public Participation Network chaired by Mr. Joe Boland. The network represents 698 community groups in the county and recently made representation…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I acknowledge the Minister is saying she does not have influence in this but the reality is that Kerry was to be a different model. The outcome there is now different, probably for good reason. In order to expand tourism, we in County Donegal are seeking to go down a similar route to that taken in County Kerry. Donegal is a large county. Responsibility will lie with the Minister for Justice if there is insufficient Garda cover in west Donegal, as is currently the case. G…

The Minister of State is very welcome to the House.