I echo the comments made by Senators O'Loughlin and Clonan about Conor McGregor. We have many wonderful ambassadors from the worlds of sport, theatre and music and from other fields who could have represented our values in the White House, and he is not one of them. I am loath to mention his name but he does not represent the vast majority of the people of Ireland and should never have got the platform he did. I raise with the Ceannaire a report in the Irish Independent yesterday stating that almost one quarter of …

I welcome Deputy Michael Moynihan and congratulate him on his appointment as Minister of State with responsibility for special education. I know from our time on the disability matters committee that he has an excellent understanding of the requirements in this area. The matter I am raising relates to an extension to Milltown National School in Belturbet, County Cavan. Sanction was first given for the building of a mainstream classroom and two SET rooms in July 2021. The following March, an additional build was san…

I thank the Minister of State. I welcome the fact that his reply acknowledges that the stage 1 report was received in August. He has given a commitment to follow up on this project to get to the next date as soon as possible. It is an important project. It is an inclusive school. The staff are extraordinarily committed and there are two special classes in the school. We know it has sometimes been difficult to get schools to agree to have a special class. The school has been to the forefront in including students wi…

I welcome the Minister and congratulate her on her appointment. I am delighted for her. I intend to raise a number of issues about women's is going to will provide clarity. Will she also provide clarity on whether GP costs will be included in the scheme? I know they are for the contraception scheme.

That will be a barrier for some women because it can sometimes cost €50 or €60 to visit a GP in order to get a prescription. That is unfortunate. Can it be looked at again? The contraception scheme is currently for those aged between 17 and 35. Are there plans to extend the scheme? Many women who get pregnant are over 35. I know one woman who was 49 when she found out, much to her surprise - let me put it that way - she was pregnant. She blamed a certain victory that the Cavan team had and the celebrations afterwar…

I am supporting this motion. There is nothing in it one could not support, although it is perplexing that Fine Gael has tabled this motion. It has been in government since 2011 and has not implemented many of the calls in it even though they were in programmes for Government. I echo the calls of my colleagues that the Minister of State comes back in and gives us a progress report in a number of months. People are living longer. It is projected there will be more than 1 million people aged 65 and over by 2030. That …

I would like to call for a debate on mental health services as soon as possible. I would particularly like to focus on the funding crisis facing SOSAD currently. SOSAD provides a valuable service and has probably saved hundreds of lives. It offers a freephone service, a messaging service and it has two drop-in centres, one of which is in my home town of Cavan, as well as a counselling service. Most of the staff are volunteers. There are only 16 staff, comprising six full-time and ten part-time. They are currently i…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach. I ask that the issue of a school extension at Milltown National School, which is just outside Belturbet, County Cavan, be referred to the Minister for Education, Deputy McEntee, for an update. It requires an extension as its projected enrolment indicates it will not have classrooms to accommodate pupils for the 2026-27 school year. This extension needs to be started immediately. Any available space around the school has already been taken up with modular units. The stage 1 r…

As one of the Senators who called for it on one of the first days after this Seanad met, I welcome this debate on Storm Éowyn. Cavan was badly hit by the storm, as were Monaghan and other counties in the midlands and the west. My neighbours and I were without power for nine days, which was very tough, but I was in a position to hop in the car and go somewhere to find a shower, heat or power. Many vulnerable people were not in that position. Older people, disabled people and people who rely on power for medical devi…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer. When we speak about public transport Cavan does not have a rail service and I will come to this later. This means we are dependent on a bus service. There is a regular hourly bus service to Dublin every day coming from Donegal and through Cavan and Meath and on to Dublin. I have raised this issue on countless occasions and I have received all sorts of promises from the NTA. The capacity on the 109X returning from Dublin to Cavan is a continual problem. People are le…

I attended a meeting last week at a primary school in my constituency. Another meeting that is coming up soon will combine a number of primary and secondary schools. A number of issues were raised at the meeting last week and will be raised at the meeting next week. The first and main issue is the lack of suitable and appropriate school places for children with additional educational needs. That is especially the case for autistic children but applies to all children with additional educational needs. One parent at…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Chathaoirleach and the Minister of State. The opening of new schools and new classes is always welcome and I welcome the new special school in Monaghan. It is badly needed. There was only one school between Cavan and Monaghan. It was definitely needed, although I urge the Minister of State to ensure that school is established in a suitable premises and not one that was deemed unsuitable for students some years ago. There is a lot more work to be done because, as the Minister of State s…

When discussing community safety, we instantly think of Garda numbers. It is well documented that the number of gardaí has declined while our population has increased. I acknowledge that there are recruitment drives to try to increase the number but we know that over 1,600 gardaí are due to retire in the next five years. Efforts have to be made to ensure they will be replaced, to address the issues making gardaí leave the force long before they reach retirement age, and to build up the number of gardaí and Garda ca…

I call for a debate in the House on special education. This week, I attended a meeting in a primary school and the stress among parents and teachers was evident. This was mainly due to the lack of appropriate school places for second level students. Students leaving primary school have applied for places but they still have no indication of whether they will receive appropriate school placements in their locality. There is also an issue with primary school places but it affects more children leaving primary school …

I request a debate on the effects of Storm Éowyn. It particularly affected the midlands and the west, including my county of Cavan, very badly. Some customers were only reconnected with power this week, meaning they were 19 days without power. I was nine days without power, and that was difficult enough. I also particularly mention people who are vulnerable. There were older people, people dependent on oxygen and people dependent on hospital beds and hoists, which are electronically managed, who ended up with bed s…

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. Ar dtús, ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leat agus tú tofa mar Chathaoirleach. I congratulate you, Senator Daly, on your appointment as Cathaoirleach, a position that you have held before. I know that you were very fair and impartial and I trust that you will continue to work in that vein. I also congratulate all Seanadóirí, whether elected or nominated. It is a great privilege to be a Member of this House. Gabhaim buíochas leis na Seanadóirí, na Teachtaí Dála agus na c…

Can we move on to Deputy Cian O'Callaghan?

I am sorry, Tánaiste, your time is up. I call the next speaker, please.

I wish Deputies Howlin and Catherine Murphy well in retirement.

What does Government plan to do regarding what can only be described as a crisis in children's disability services? The progressing disability services model was established. Children's disability network teams, CDNTs, were set up throughout the country in 2021, but they are not working. The delay in addressing this crisis will have knock-on consequences on all of those children who require services and on their ability to live independently. Early intervention is key, yet the delay in this will mean that we are cr…