Well said.

I commend Senator Seery Kearney on that crucial point. The issue has been raised at the Council of Europe a number of times because it is a problem across Europe. I support the Senator's call for a debate. I wish to speak about Paddy Moloney. Unlike Senator Murphy, I did not know him but I suspect that, like a number of people, I felt as if I did. He was such a warm and engaging man whenever he was interviewed on radio or television. What an ambassador he was for our country. I will set out a couple of my memories.…

The Minister of State is very welcome. It is nice to see him. I will start with housing. It is a shame that our good Senator Casey is not here because I was struck by something he said in his speech. Speaking about housing he said that he could finally see some delivery. Those were his words. That is some statement to make. This is the sixth Fianna Fáil-Fine Gael budget and it raises the question, what have they been doing for the last five years? He can finally see some delivery. I do not agree, by the way, about …

Well said.

It is nice to see the Minister of State. I apologise in advance as I need to head to a meeting later but I will take note of his comments at the end. I appreciate his understanding about that. In addressing this budget, I will start by saying that on television last night, RTÉ quoted Government sources as saying this budget was quite socialist. I smiled to myself and thought it was great because we would see taxes on the super-wealthy and the Government finally tackling the rental crisis and committing to capital e…

About 30 years ago Professor Edward Walsh promoted the idea of the Atlantic corridor, linking Cork, Limerick and Galway. It was a fantastic idea to act as a counterweight, or a counterbalance, to the eastern side of the country and to ensure we had balanced regional growth and development. It took quite a while to get the motorway to Galway linked up with Limerick but it has certainly made a significant difference. Thankfully, we now have a rail route to Galway, albeit one that is too slow at the moment. A really d…

It is nice to see the Minister. Before I get to the substance of Sinn Féin's position on this Act, it is important to reflect on what we have achieved nationally in regard to Covid. The current vaccination rate of approximately 87% - it may be slightly higher - is a huge achievement. The political consensus on the importance of science on vaccines has been crucial to that. At the Council of Europe last week I had an opportunity to chat to colleagues from countries that do not have that consensus. For example, in Ar…

I will reference two issues that have already been raised. I fully support the call for St. Brigid's Day as opposed to Thanksgiving Day, which would be a poor choice, frankly. We should stick to our own traditions. I will highlight the fact that Senator Craughwell raised a very important issue. He is correct that no one has addressed it from the Government side and it is shocking. It is about time someone in the Government addressed it. I raise the issue of University Hospital Limerick because a good friend of mine…

I raise the issue of housing in Limerick. According to Daft.ie yesterday, there were only 13 properties available to rent in the whole of the city. Four of those cost over €3,000 per month to rent and one of them is a one-bedroom apartment. That is something, is it not? That tells us the scale of the crisis. There are simply no available properties to rent in Limerick city. That is why almost 6,000 people are on the housing list in Limerick city. Half of those people are availing of the housing assistance payment, …

It is nice to see the Minister and I thank him for coming in. He will recall that last year I thought we had a good exchange on the crisis in the childcare sector and the urgent need to address overall funding and particular funding directed to worker wages in that sector. Currently, it costs parents €186 per week per child in childcare, which is a shocking amount. At the same time we have the worst-paid childcare workers in Europe. It equates to the most expensive childcare and the worst-paid workers in Europe. Ri…

I thank the Minister. I acknowledge that it is a good, positive response from him. It is really important to acknowledge when Ministers engage fully and sincerely with workers and their representatives. I acknowledge that the Minister has done that. Let me outline my key ask. The Minister has put the building blocks in place. A joint labour committee is essential. That is how we address the issue of low pay in the sector in a way that allows for the establishment of a floor in terms of wages and decency for the ver…

Bottom of the league in Europe.

I join you, a Chathaoirligh, in extending congratulations both to Senator Ward and Senator Moynihan. It is nice to be back. This morning I heard an intriguing debate on the radio about budgetary options and whether the Government could afford to raise social welfare rates or whether it should focus on the pension rate. As we know, we are just coming into the run up to the budget. As the Leader knows, I always like to be helpful to the Government. The good news is that it does not have to make that choice. It can ac…

As this is our last day, I extend my thanks to the Cathaoirleach for the way in which he has conducted proceedings throughout the year. I express the appreciation of all the members of our Sinn Féin group in that regard. Equally, I extend my gratitude to the Leader. While it is fair to say that we do not agree a lot of the time, the approach she has taken has always been constructive. It is worthy of recognition and I appreciate it. I again express that sentiment on behalf of our entire group. Most importantly, I t…

As I may not see the Leas-Chathaoirleach later, I would like to wish him well and thank him for all his work this year. It is nice to see the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, in the Chamber. He is very welcome, as always. Sinn Féin is opposed to the local property tax and our reasons are clear. The tax, as designed, is not only a tax on assets but a tax on debts, such that many people who are liable for it may have debts worth as much as 90% of the value of the property against which they are being charged. This …

I move amendment No. 1: In page 9, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following: “(d) a liable person forms a view that the property has been damaged as a result of the use of defective concrete blocks.”. The Minister is very welcome. Section 18 of the Bill purports to provide an exemption for those homeowners whose houses have been affected by mica or pyrite, but does it? It inserts into the Bill a new section 10D which states that residential property damaged as a result of the use of defective concrete block…

We will agree to disagree at this point.

I move amendment No. 2: In page 10, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following: “(d) For the purposes of an application under paragraph (a), the Revenue Commissioners may specify the form of an application and may require that the following information is provided to them: (i) the address of the residential property; (ii) the nature and extent of the damage caused by the use of defective concrete blocks in the construction of the property; (iii) any other particulars the Revenue Commissioners may reasonably r…

I move amendment No. 3: In page 11, between lines 14 and 15, to insert the following: “(5A) Notwithstanding subsection (1), a residential property shall not, for the purposes of section 16(1), be regarded as a relevant residential property, where paragraph (d) of subsection (1) applies, in relation to ten consecutive liability dates commencing where the first liability date falls on or after 1 November 2021.”.

I move amendment No. 1: In page 6, between lines 33 and 34, to insert the following: “(b) The Commission shall not include in a published decision the name of a party to proceedings where it is felt that to do so would detrimentally impact on either party specifically with reference to the capacity of a party to secure employment in the future.”. As the Minister of State knows, we will support the Bill. It is important to pass it and, to be clear, we will not delay it today in any way. He had a good debate with my …