I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs for addressing this Commencement matter on the European health insurance card, EHIC. To be fair to him, he is always keen to come in to address Commencement debates on this issue, so I am appreciative of that. I also acknowledge that there has been a lot of engagement on this issue in recent weeks. I noted the Minister's remarks on it at the recent meeting of the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. I suppose that, 57 days out from Brexit, we h…

I thank the Minister for his response, which was fairly comprehensive in one sense. I am not trying to catch anybody out or trip anybody up because I believe the Minister is committed to this. As he correctly acknowledged, we are 57 days out from the end of the transition period. People need to start hearing detail and have this issue explained to them so they understand it clearly. I appreciate also that there are current restrictions on travel but hopefully we will get through to the other end of that. People nee…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. Silim gurb é seo a chéad seal ag plé ábhair linn ina ról nua. Déanaim comhghairdeas leis. Before I speak to the Bill, I touch on an issue that may appear a bit awkward. I am sure it will not be lost on people that today the Government is bringing through legislation that aims to protect the EU's financial interest while we still have the ongoing saga of Apple's tax affairs. The Government's attitude towards the Commission was to fight it in the courts instead of doing the right th…

Ar dtús báire, gabhaim leithscéal le moltóirí an rúin, an Seanadóir Mullen agus an Seanadóir McDowell. Bhí mé gafa ag vóta thíos staighre sa Choiste um Fhorfheidhmiú Chomhaontú Aoine an Chéasta. Tá ábhar agam os comhair an choiste sin. Cé go bhfuil mé ag fágáil roimh an chuid eile den phlé, beidh Ball eile den ghrúpa seo againn anseo i m'áit. The Minister of State is welcome for this debate on this important motion. I will begin by saying that Sinn Féin is deeply concerned about reports of the treatment of the Uygh…

Ireland works best when it works together. We can see that is the case in many aspects of our lives such as sport, research and development, movements and campaigns for societal change, academia and many other fields. When it comes to the health crisis and Covid-19, it is imperative that we continue to work in unison on our planning, approaches, responses and communications. We should do so because it makes utmost sense. It is the best and most scientifically compliant way to tackle this terrible situation. Ireland…

I second the amendment.

I am sure, like many of us, the Leader will have been deeply concerned and troubled by the news from Bus Éireann this week that it proposes to suspend a number of crucial and vital Expressway bus services from Dublin to a number of key locations throughout the rest of the country. As announced this week, the organisation is minded to cut services from Dublin to Belfast, Galway, Limerick and Cork and it appears that the decision is inevitable. As I am sure everyone will agree, this will have a potentially devastatin…

I am sure many Senators across the House will join me in expressing anger, deep disappointment and sadness at the demolition of The O'Rahilly House yesterday at 6.30 a.m. It is an assault of grave vandalism on our architectural and revolutionary history and heritage that we should proud of, utilise, share, develop and promote to the maximum extent possible. It is an absolute travesty that it was allowed to happen and I hope we can have a debate and hear from the Government on the issue, as well as on how we plan to…

I heard the breadth of support for this amendment, and the Cathaoirleach has heard the breadth of concern expressed about this issue, including from Government Senators. It is an issue of major importance. I appreciate what the Leader is saying but what I always try to do in this House is light a candle rather than curse the dark. This issue is of such urgency and priority that, with the greatest respect to her, she is limited in what she can offer us in terms of information. Given our limitations on the Order of B…

I raise again the case of Emma DeSouza, which I raised consistently in the previous Seanad and will be familiar to many Members of the House. Without going into the complexities of the case, and trying to put it as succinctly as I can, Emma DeSouza was brought to court by the British Home Office for asserting her right under the Good Friday Agreement to identify and be accepted as an Irish citizen for the purposes of ensuring that her husband Jake, a US citizen, could reside with her in their home in Belfast. We, a…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Teachta Chambers. Déanaim comhghairdeas leis an Aire Stáit as a cheapachán. Táim ag dúil go mór le bheith ag obair leis as seo amach, go háirithe i dtaca le cúrsaí Gaeilge agus cúrsaí Gaeltachta de. I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Deputy Jack Chambers, and thank him for coming here this morning. The questions, as laid out in this Commencement matter, are very clear and succinct in terms of what they ask. They reflect a sense of urgency and anticipation most…

On Tuesday, 20 July, in a response to a written question, the Taoiseach stated, "Work on its [the shared island unit's] structure, staffing and work programme is under way and I hope the unit will start this work in the coming weeks." In all of that, we have not been provided with an actual start date. We are all very familiar with the sentiment and the objectives of the Good Friday Agreement and that is why we have an existing committee on the Good Friday Agreement. The Good Friday Agreement, of course, among many…

Yes, we will take four minutes each. I thank the Minister of State for representing the Minister here today and I thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for bringing this important motion before us. We are at a rare moment in the evolving political history of our nation, one which encompasses centuries of history, centuries of injustice, centuries of interference in the affairs of our people, centuries of betrayal by British Governments motivated by the most base of instincts, self-interest, which has resulted in a litany …

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

On Wednesday night, RTÉ1 broadcast the ground-breaking documentary film "Unquiet Graves", the story of the Glenanne gang, which was directed by Seán Murray and features much of the Trojan research carried out by Anne Cadwallader for her book Lethal Allies and by Margaret Urwin, who will be familiar to many Members, for her book A State in Denial . Between 1972 and 1978, more than 120 people were killed by the notorious group known as the Glenanne gang. I commend the film, although I know that many Senators will be …

I move: "That Senator Fintan Warfield be elected Leas-Chathaoirleach." In nominating Senator Warfield, I make the point that we in this House are very lucky and very privileged to have candidates of such calibre before us this afternoon. I echo and agree with the remarks made in respect of our colleague, Senator Joe O'Reilly. I have spoken to the Senator and I know he understands our thinking behind this process this afternoon. I have got to know the Senator since coming into the Seanad in 2016. Apart from his thou…

Senator Wilson is right.