In that case, I will withdraw the amendment, given the Minister's positive comments.

I move amendment No. 8: In page 23, between lines 33 and 34, to insert the following: “Report in ensuring people aged 65 years of age have right to retire on State Pension Contributory 45. The Minister shall prepare and lay a report before the Houses of the Oireachtas on restoring the option on the right to retire for those aged 65 years of age on a State pension contributory and that the report shall be presented to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Social Protection within 9 months of the enactment of this Act.”.…

Last week I met with a delegation from the Irish Federation of University Teachers. They gave a powerful presentation. I think it was organised by our colleagues in the Labour Party. I was shocked by what they told us. I always assumed that a career in academia would be a pretty good way to make a living. Many of us would have thought that if our kids could end up there, that would be a good space to work. They did an extensive survey which revealed that 36% - more than one in three - of those employed in the secto…

It is always good to see the Minister of State. She is welcome. This Bill is an annual review of the risk-equalisation mechanism that supports the community-based health insurance market. Risk equalisation as a principle ensures costs are constant across the lifespan of an individual. It seeks to ensure, where possible, that age, gender and health status do not influence the cost of an insurance product. Sinn Féin recognises the reliance of many people on health insurance and will support the Bill, as we have in pr…

I appreciate that but I would not be doing my job if I did not raise it.

It is an issue of continuing concern and we are worried about Christmas and, particularly, about the freeze on hiring. That is a massive problem for UHL. The management has said that as well. I will end at that point because we support the Bill and I do not want to delay matters any further.

Actually, we will not be moving these amendments.

I move amendment No. 19: In page 43, between lines 3 and 4, to insert the following: “(n) by the substitution of the following Regulation for Regulation 25: “25. The HSE shall— (a) keep a record of and publish the annual activities of procurement organisations and transplantation centres, at hospital level, including aggregated numbers of living and deceased donors and the types and quantities of organs procured and transplanted, or otherwise disposed of in accordance with European Union and national provisions on …

I welcome the Minister. I wish to express Sinn Féin's support for amendments Nos. 7 to 11. As the Minister knows, we support this Bill but the well-thought-out amendments proposed by the Civil Engagement Group are worthy of support. As Government amendments are pending anyway, there is the opportunity for the Minister to take some of these on board today. I really hope she does so. I also want to take the opportunity to welcome some of the folks in the Visitors Gallery today. They have a particular interest in this…

I move amendment No. 19: In page 27, between lines 24 and 25, to insert the following: “(i) to ensure that the Garda Síochána co-operates with the Office of the Police Ombudsman, with regard to his or her obligations under section 173 (1)(c); (j) to perform any other functions conferred on it by or under this Act or the regulations.”. I will be brief. We support this Bill but we feel it has room for improvements. Our amendment No. 19 simply places an obligation on the Commissioner to co-operate with the Garda Síoch…

I support Senator Clonan's comments on the Green Paper on disability. We saw it at a meeting of the social protection committee and I am really disturbed by it. Unfortunately, I am travelling to Paris on Thursday so I cannot join the Senator for the protest, but I urge the Leader to listen very carefully to what he is saying. The paper is straight out of the fascist playbook of the 1980s. It is horrific and really needs to be put to an end. I want to raise the issue of Palestine once again, starting with a quote fr…

Well said.

The small village.

It is appalling.

I move recommendation No. 8: In page 18, between lines 9 and 10, to insert the following: "Report on relief for renters 12. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on the introduction of a refundable tax credit payable to private rental tenants not already in receipt of any State subsidy, equivalent to 8.3 per cent of annual rent payable, at a minimum value of €750 and maximum value of €2,000, accompanied with the introduction of a ban on rent i…

I move recommendation No. 11: In page 26, between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following: "Report on Mortgage Interest Relief 14. The Minister shall, within one month of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on the introduction of temporary mortgage interest relief, available in respect of mortgages on principal private residences, applied at source on a monthly basis and equivalent to 30 per cent of the difference in interest paid in the relevant month relative to interest paid in t…

We are absolutely opposed to the proposed landlords' tax relief - we want to remove it - so we are opposed to this section.

I move recommendation No. 14: In page 33, between lines 17 and 18, to insert the following: “Report on landlords’ tax relief 22. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on the introduction of the new personal income tax allowance introduced with respect to individual landlords in the private rental sector, assessing its distributional impact, deadweight loss of the relief and implications for social equity within the personal taxation system.”. …

Sinn Féin fully supports this proposal and all the Civil Engagement Group recommendations tabled today. It is noticeable and significant that, whenever proposals are made to tax wealth or claw back some of the reliefs on banks, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are entirely united. They oppose anything that may require those in the wealthiest parts of our society to pay even a small amount more. It is telling of where our politics are at and of what the debate will be in the coming year as we face local and European electi…

I move recommendation No. 23: In page 113, to delete lines 8 to 15 and substitute the following: " " This recommendation seeks to pause any increase in excise or carbon tax on consumer fuels, such as petrol and diesel, for the duration of 2024. It also seeks to reduce the level of excise applied to home heating oil by more than 50% until 1 May 2024, saving households approximately €64 per tank fill. The policy objective of the carbon tax was to establish a price floor on carbon-based fuels. It is acknowledged that …