CC
2025-12-11 · Seanad
Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed)
I thank Senator McDowell and call Senator Craughwell. We will then hear from Senator Gallagher.
On prevailing side: this member voted with the winning side in 559 of 562 decisive votes (0 abstentions excluded). Read it as a government-or-opposition indicator rather than a measure of influence — the figure is near 100% for members supporting the government of the day and near 0% for those opposing it.
This is the point of the site: contributions keep the party held on the day, not the one held now.
| Party | Recorded as | Contributions | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| CC | Ceann Comhairle / Chair | 501 | 2020-10-08 – 2026-09-24 |
| FF | Fianna Fáil | 315 | 2020-06-29 – 2026-07-14 |
Membership spells on record: FF 2016-03-10–2020-01-14 · FF 2020-03-30–2025-01-29 · FF 2025-01-29–present
I thank Senator McDowell and call Senator Craughwell. We will then hear from Senator Gallagher.
I apologise for intervening. I ask Senator Gallagher to report progress. He will be called on again to complete his contribution on the next occasion.
When is it proposed to take Committee State?
Is that agreed? Agreed.
When is it proposed to take the next Stage?
Is that agreed? Agreed.
When is it proposed to take the next Stage?
Is that agreed? Agreed.
I welcome the students visiting Seanad Éireann today. I hope they are having a good experience anyway.
I warmly welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler.
Before the Minister of State comes back in-----
This is very important legislation and I will not rule out anybody from speaking. However, we should speak to the amendments before us just to ensure we can get through the Bill. Does the Minister of State want to come back in?
Amendments Nos. 2, 12, 24, 161, 162, 172, 176, 178, 198, 222, 236, 237, 245 to 250, inclusive, 252, 254, 255, 259, 262, 269, 270, 272, 274, 275, 278 to 280, inclusive, 292, 293, 307, 340, 342, 344, 345 and 347 are related and may be discussed together by agreement. Is that agreed? Agreed.
Amendments Nos. 6, 8, 11, 14, 18, 20 and 30 to 32, inclusive, are related and may be discussed together by agreement. Is that agreed? Agreed.
Amendments Nos. 7, 25, 27, 28, 153 to 155, inclusive, and 299 to 301, inclusive, are related. Amendment No. 28 is a physical alternative to amendment No. 27. Is it agreed to discuss these amendments together? Agreed.
So that everyone is aware, we are not just discussing amendment No. 7. There are a number of amendments in this grouping and I want to be fair to everybody. Before I move to the Minister of State, does anybody else want to speak on any of the other amendments in this group?
No, we are discussing amendments Nos. 7, 25, 27, 28, 153 to 155, inclusive, and 299 to 301, inclusive.
I am glad somebody is counting.
I will share my time with Senator Daly, if that is agreed.
I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I had the opportunity on budget day to speak on the broader aspects of the budget. I now wish to focus on one specific aspect of this Bill, the help-to-buy scheme. I acknowledge the huge role of the scheme, which has helped over 50,000 families to own their own homes. There is also the first home scheme, which came into operation lately. I want to address two technical issues with the help-to-buy scheme. The first is the loan-to-value ratio of 70%. I raised this with th…