I remind Senators not to make reference to people outside the House. I call Deputy McDowell who has six minutes.

Senators Conway and Ward are sharing time. They have three minutes each.

I have notice from Senator Aisling Dolan that, on the motion for the Commencement of the House today, she proposes to raise the following matter: The need for the Minister for Health to make a statement on funding commitments for Portiuncula University Hospital, Ballinasloe, County Galway. I have also received notice from Senator Victor Boyhan of the following matter: The need for the Minister for Health to make a statement on St. John of God Community Services following notice of termination of its service agreeme…

I call Senator Aisling Dolan who has four minutes.

I now call on the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte. It is my first opportunity in a public session to congratulate her on her appointment as a Minister of State and, equally, to thank her for her work in the recent budget in securing €100 million for disability.

I warmly welcome the Minister. Yesterday, we saw the introduction of the largest budget in the history of the State. It is designed to take us through the greatest challenges faced by the people of Ireland since the formation of the State. Each of these challenges is massive but together they present a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of every man, woman and child in Ireland. Covid-19, Brexit, climate change and our housing crisis are continuing to wreak untold damage on people. This budget, th…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House, although I am disappointed it is not the Minister for Tourism. If I had a planning matter, I would be delighted to see the Minister of State here, but that is not the case today. This Commencement matter relates to the equality of treatment for the hospitality sector. I call on the Minister of State to set out the evidence that clearly shows that the hospitality sector is causing an increase in the rate of transmission over and above that of any other economic sector. A…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. My comments are not directed at him. The response refers to level 3 so it does not even admit that the sector is at level 5. That is where we are. It would be something for the Government to acknowledge that in reality the hospitality sector is at level 5. Being asked to survive with 15 customers outside and for people to stay in a hotel in their own county is absolutely ridiculous. It raises questions about the stay and spend initiative, to which I was looking forwar…

Senators Murphy and Byrne are sharing time.

Senators Seery Kearney and Buttimer are sharing three minutes each.

I am sorry but that is what Senator Buttimer said.

I am running out of time so there is not room for each speaker to have six minutes.

I thank the Minister for the leadership, calmness and empathy she has shown to students, teachers and everybody in the education system at a time when everybody was running around like headless chickens looking for media attention. I also thank her for the respect she has shown the House by always making herself available.

Dáil Éireann agreed on 7 October 2020 to the amendments made by Seanad Éireann to the Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Bill 2019.

Why?

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber and thank Senators Norris, Boyhan and Craughwell for highlighting this campaign again, as that is required to keep it to the fore and in our minds. It is an incredible piece of legislation that is required and I welcome it. Coming from Wicklow, I met Les and his family on a number of occasions. The Senator has set out their position. As Les says, this is not for him, as his two sons have been diagnosed with a terminal disease. His campaign is not for him but for all the other f…

I also disagree with the amendments. While I can accept the genuine thrust behind them, we must all accept we have a planning process with which most people are familiar and the same timeframes are applied in respect of a planning process. This point in the engagement is not the first time the appellant has engaged with the process. He or she is well aware of the process and will have made the original observation with regard to the file. For that reason, I think 28 days is an adequate provision. I wish to make two…

Perhaps I misspoke at the time. The Government brought in legislation that allowed the planning system to extend it by three months. I did not mean to say that this legislation gave the Minister of State this power. There was emergency legislation, however, and part of that legislation took the planning Act into account. It also took into account that individuals were not in a position to make observations on submissions and extended that period by three months or whatever the appropriate period was. I did not inte…

I congratulate the Leas-Chathaoirleach on his appointment last Friday. I was sitting in the office waiting for the vote to be called but, the next minute, I heard people congratulating him. No vote was needed.

Six months after my election to the Seanad, this is my first time speaking in the Chamber. It has taken a while. I welcome this Bill, which will amend the Investment Limited Partnerships Act 1994 in several ways with the main aim of making Ireland a more attractive domicile for private equity funds. Enactment of this investment partnership legislation is also a commitment included in the programme for Government. The main objective is also part of Ireland for Finance, the Government's strategy to develop Ireland's …