Votáil.

I agree with a number of previous speakers on the issue of the environment. The suggestion that the Bill could start here is an excellent one. It would benefit from constructive cross-party discussion and debate. I will raise two issues briefly, if I may. The first relates to student nurses. I will quote the words of a student nurse, which I read late last night. Just home from unpaid 13 hour shift. I struggle to reach my learning goals on placement because I am carrying out duties that should be carried out by a p…

Today is a good day. It is nice to see the shops open. I was on Grafton Street early this morning picking up a couple of things. At the same time, it struck me that we had some bad news yesterday as we have already heard about the Arcadia Group. I have genuine concerns. Another 500 jobs are at risk with another dubious enterprise in terms of its management and ownership. There is a huge hole in this company's pension fund while the owner enjoys himself on his €100 million yacht. The real concern is that we have bee…

The Minister is very welcome and I stress at the outset that we will support the Bill. I recognise the very hard work the Minister has been undertaking for some time now on this issue. I want to take a couple of minutes to speak about Brexit itself. Far too often when people speak about Brexit we hear a simplistic narrative that pits a wholesome European Union with its much vaunted values of decency and democracy against the dark forces of British politics. While the xenophobic, backward, empire nostalgia of the To…

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. For decades this country placed children behind bars, the vast majority for reasons of poverty and class. Fr. Flanagan of the boy's town schools in the United States visited the Irish industrial schools in 1946 and described them as a national disgrace. That led to a public debate in the Dáil and national media exposure. Their abolition was decades away and exposing the true horror of what went on within the walls was even further away. As the Minister of State…

I thank the Minister of State for the response. I am somewhat concerned. I have had prior dealings with Caranua through the education committee in the last Parliament. I am aware its dealings were far from satisfactory on a number of occasions. I would be concerned at the Minister of State's reference to "a small number" of cases because I certainly do not think 86 is a small number of cases, and that was the position just over two weeks ago when the statement from Caranua confirmed it was 86 cases. I would be almo…

I wish to begin, a Chathaoirligh, by paying tribute to Diego Maradona, who passed away yesterday. For my generation, he was without doubt the greatest footballer we have ever seen. There was so much to the man. He was not just a wonderful footballer who scored the best goal ever seen in football against England in 1986. This was not because it was against England but because of the breathtaking skill that was involved. Who can forget Jimmy Magee’s amazing commentary, "Different class."? The so-called hand of God wa…

And George Best, absolutely. The second issue I raise is altogether different. A very serious report by the Tax Justice Network, which has not received much attention since it was published last week, has shown that Ireland is one of the biggest tax havens in the world, costing other countries, including some of the poorest countries in the world, almost $16 billion, that is, €13.5 billion in lost revenues each year. The only countries ranked worse than Ireland in the overall rankings were the Cayman Islands, the U…

Will the Deputy Leader take a point of information?

She said she would.

No, I asked if she will take a point of information.

No, it is with regard to Eir.

I thank the Deputy Leader.

The Cathaoirleach is being very generous. I will point out to the Deputy Leader that this is what happens when one privatises a good State company.

I understand amendment No. 1, tabled by the Labour Party and which we were going to support, has been ruled out of order. The other day, the Minister of State alluded to trying perhaps to sort out a solution for these non-EEA students. Will he update us on this please?

I thank the Minister of State. We will do just that.

I acknowledge our colleague, John Finucane, and all of the Finucane family for their courage and resilience. It is good to see the Minister and he is very welcome here. So much has been written and spoken about this issue. In terms of reflecting what we know, we know Pat Finucane was a fine lawyer. We know he successfully challenged the British Government at the European Court of Human Rights over its incarceration policies in the mid-1970s. He was instrumental in galvanising opposition to the provisions of the Pre…

I raise the issue of nursing homes and call for a debate on the topic of how we organise our elder care. Members will have seen the very disturbing story last week about a nursing home in Kerry where the HSE had to intervene. Twenty three out of 24 patients in the nursing home had Covid and, regrettably, there were six deaths. This latest tragedy, which was described as a situation of chaos, comes on the back of an appalling rate of deaths earlier this year in our nursing homes. In fact, we had the worst figures an…

Before I begin to deal with this Bill, I must take this opportunity to congratulate the Leas-Chathaoirleach on Cavan's magnificent achievement at the weekend.

I know that the Minister of State is a major sports fan and he will be cognisant of the three major sporting achievements this weekend, namely, Cavan's magnificent victory in Ulster, Tipperary's historic win in Munster and, of course, Tottenham Hotspur, the original London Irish club, moving to the top of the Premiership. It was a fantastic weekend. In terms of this Bill, it is fair to say that the political differences across this House are most acute when we debate issues such as private healthcare and private he…