I, too, welcome the Minister of State and I thank him for being here. I compliment my colleague, Senator Eugene Murphy, on the strenuous and hard work he put into bringing this Bill to this Stage. This is just one issue on which Senator Murphy has been to the fore on behalf of his constituents in Roscommon and further afield. Senator Murphy mentioned the people who live, farm and work along the river basin. I live further upstream. When I was being taught geography in school, I learned about Lough Allen, Lough Ree …

I want to raise the policy of Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, of turning off or dimming lights at motorway junctions. This has been a policy for some time and it was brought to my attention again over the weekend. Only in recent days the lights have been turned off at the junction of the M4-M6 at Kinnegad, with which the Deputy Leader will be familiar. The person to whom I spoke is very familiar with the route but almost missed the junction due to the lack of lights. He told me that only for the fact that he…

I join with Senator Gavan in lending my support to the Leader on the email we have been receiving. I stress the singular "email", although we may have been receiving multiple copies of it. Where would we be without the convenience of being able to copy and paste in the world we live in? I wish to raise an issue that has no doubt been raised here previously, regarding scam calls and text messages. At this stage, it is time for the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications or the Minister for Justice t…

I second Senator Murphy's proposed amendment to the Order of Business. In doing so, I compliment him on the great work he has put into that issue. He has come up with a very common-sense approach to what is an ongoing issue. I will raise an issue that both the Leas-Chathaoirleach and the Cathaoirleach will possibly tell me before I am finished is more appropriate to a Commencement matter, but I received a message regarding it last nigh. We are in recess next week and it is important it is brought to the House. My l…

I wish to be associated with the very eloquent tribute - eloquent as always - that Senator Norris paid to Mervyn Taylor. Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam. It will come as no surprise to anybody here that I wholeheartedly agree with and support Senator Kyne's request and statement. I will not respond to every Senator other than to say in response to Senator Mullen that I just wish I was available to accompany him this evening to the famous Hill of Crockafotha and the Bellewstown races. There was a statement post las…

I am speaking to amendment No. 92, which I propose. I will have very little to say in regard to the amendment as my colleague, Senator Lombard, has covered it. The two amendments are very much related but complement each other. The inclusion of amendment No. 92 with the amendment spoken about previously, amendment No. 1, will strengthen the climate action Bill for all the reasons that have been mentioned. It is vitally important from an agricultural sector point of view. Senator Lombard spoke about milking cows. In…

I will be brief because I am aware of the number of amendments and the length of the debate so far. The just transition is the cornerstone of everything we have to achieve to meet the targets we have set. It is something of a buzzword. As Senator Boyhan said, we need actions as well as words. I do not believe any of the amendments will change anything I intend to say. Change is needed but it does not necessarily have to be part of this Bill. This goes back to where Senator Boyhan started with the mushroom and horti…

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, to the House for this Second Stage debate on the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2021. I do not like having to speak to people from behind and I would not like it to appear that I am speaking down on anybody because I am certainly not doing that. I am unable to change the lay-out of the Chamber or my allocated seat. For obvious reasons, I will concentrate more on the agriculture aspects of this Bill than on the vast number of other areas it cover…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I do not think I will need the full time because most of what I have to say has already been covered. I also compliment Senator Fitzpatrick who has taken her brief in the housing role to an extreme. Her work ethic and dedication to the cause has been second to nobody I have known in these Houses since my first election in 2016. She has a weekly sub-committee meeting for anyone in our parliamentary party who wishes to attend. I do not think that is happening under any ot…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach. Ba mhaith liom rud amháin a ardú inniu ar dtús agus buíochas a ghabháil le mo chomhghleacaí agus mo chara, an Seanadóir Ó Murchú, mar tá a lán oibre déanta aige ar an gceist seo. The issue I raise relates to both flooding and insurance, which have been raised in the House on numerous occasions. A case was brought to my attention in the past week. A neighbour of mine, from Cumminstown, Kilbeggan, received planning permission seven years ago and built his house, where he lives…

I am sharing time with Senator Byrne - two and a half minutes each. I welcome the Minister to the House and I welcome the legislation. I know it is a figure of speech when we welcome legislation but I wish I did not have to welcome it. I take umbrage with the argument that this legislation is too late. I firmly believe it is better late than never. The figures prove that 1% of the positive cases can be traced back to travel. This Bill, and the Minister can correct me in his summation if I am wrong, is variant relat…

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber and thank him for his contribution. I warmly welcome the publication of the Ag Climatise roadmap for the agriculture sector. Farmers will probably view it with some scepticism, but it is an excellent document. All of its contents are achievable. While there may be diverse opinions on how the targets will be achieved, I welcome the fact that they are somewhat in parallel with the marginal abatement cost curve, MACC, which was produced by Teagasc and accepted by the broad church …

First, as the chairman of a board of management of a secondary school, I wish to be associated with everything that was said this morning about the current situation with the leaving certificate. I plead with the ASTI to return to the room. Due to what occurred yesterday, the debate is now public. This is not good for the class of 2021. Ultimately, the decision on whatever leaving certificate examination takes place will be made around that table, so I plead with the ASTI to return to the talks and to have them in …

I thank Senator Clifford-Lee for sharing time with me. I welcome the Minister of State and compliment her on the great work she has done since her appointment. Knowing her personally, I would have expected no less. Under such trying and testing times, she has proved herself to be a hands-on Minister of State. The progress she has made in such a short time is admirable. I welcome all the money provided for schemes such as In This Together, Keep Well and the Community Call campaigns. Coming from a rural area, there a…

I declare an interest in this sector, as I am the acting voluntary chairman of Kilbeggan racecourse. I would fit into Senator Boyhan's category of horse breeder, being the owner of one brood mare and her offspring, which I could call very slow horses.

I have a serious interest in this sector, and I take exception to some of the remarks that have been made. I know they were made in good faith and with the best of intentions for the sector, but all those remarks seem to relate to the animal welfare side and to emanate from the famous "RTÉ Investigates" programme. While I cannot, and would not, justify anything that was seen on that programme, that was a rogue element. Some 99.9% of animal owners, including horse and greyhound owners, have more time for animals tha…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank her for coming to address this matter. It is my first opportunity to formally congratulate her on her appointment so I wish her the very best of luck. This topic continues from the matter raised by Senator Keogan, specifically the availability of the flu vaccine in GP practices. A number of GPs have contacted me, including my own GP, who have received their first delivery of the vaccine this year. The national cold chain service, which supplies the vaccine to G…

I thank the Minister of State for her comprehensive reply and I broadly welcome the fact that the number of vaccines coming into the country has increased to the best part of 1.95 million based on the Minister of State's answer. The kernel of my query is about the distribution of those vaccines to the GPs. It is vitally important that the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, or the Department intervene at this early stage with the supply companies to ensure they are not still working off the 2019 numbers for what GPs…

I wish to raise an issue that is of major concern to me and rural Ireland. It is of concern on a broader scale as well. I refer to the control of the noxious weed called ragwort. Anyone who travels on a road will see this yellow weed and to the uninformed, it may look well. It is a nice yellow weed to view but it is a noxious weed. Livestock and horses avoid eating it. If they eat it in a wilted or withered form after it has been cut, it is poisonous. It is the responsibility of the Department of Agriculture, Food …

I support everything Senator Lombard said about farm safety. As Members are aware, I introduced the Farm Safety Agency Bill 2018 in the previous Seanad, which got to Second Stage, and I hope to get it back on the floor of the Houses as soon as it is possible to progress it further. Everybody will have an input on Committee Stage. While it may not be a silver bullet solution to the major problems that exist, I hope it will be a launch pad or a starting point. Before Senator Lombard raised that issue, I had intended …