The ladies are very welcome here this morning. I am really delighted to see so many young women looking at and interested in politics. Hopefully, they will give me and Senator Clifford-Lee a run for our money in the future. They are all very welcome. I thank my colleagues for raising a wide variety of topics this morning. Senator Keogan raised the level of ESB electricity outages we have. I am not really sure about the rest of the country but we certainly get them a lot in north County Dublin. The girls will probab…

I move: That, in accordance with the recommendation of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight pursuant to Standing Order 98(2)( b ), the Orders of Reference of the Seanad Public Consultation Committee, as agreed by Order of the Seanad of 7th December, 2021, as amended on 14th December, 2022 and 22nd March, 2023, be further amended in paragraph (2), by the deletion of ‘eleven’ and the substitution therefor of ‘twelve’.”

I move recommendation No. 24: In page 119, between lines 29 and 30, to insert the following: “(2) The Minister shall, within 6 months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before the Houses of the Oireachtas a report on the impact of this section.”. This recommendation seeks a report on the operation of the section of the finance Bill, which reduced the VAT rate on audiobooks and ebooks to 0%. While this is a most welcome measure, clarification is needed on who will benefit most from it. The main organisation…

I move recommendation No. 25: In page 129, between lines 17 and 18, to insert the following: “79. The Minister shall, within 3 months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before the Houses of the Oireachtas a report on increasing the small gift exemption threshold to €5,000.”. We would like a report because we are not sure what the actual outcome of this particular intended amendment is.

I join the Leas-Chathaoirleach in wishing the ambassador, his colleagues and the tens of thousands of Romanians who live in towns and villages around Ireland, a very happy Romanian national day. I have visited Romania twice and for any colleagues who have not been there, it is an absolutely beautiful country and I suggest they put it on their bucket list. The Order of Business is No. 1, a private Bill entitled the Royal Hibernian Academy (Amendment of Charter) Bill 2023 - Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken…

I thank colleagues for their contributions. On Senator Carrigy's request, I am very happy to send a letter on our behalf thanking the Minister for the inclusion of the additional tests in the heel prick test and asking for expedition in ensuring the change is implemented sooner rather than later. Having had four babies, it was a test I always hated. It is an awful test to do to a child but it definitely has positive outcomes. I also acknowledge Senator Carrigy's support for Senator Cassells's request for a debate o…

I propose an amendment to the Order of Business, that No. 10 be taken before No. 1. We are introducing the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) (Control of Nitrous Oxide) Bill 2023. As most Members are aware, nitrous oxide, more commonly known as laughing gas, is probably the recreational drug most abused by those aged 18 or younger. It is probably apt that we have such an abundant number of young people under the age of 18 with us in the Gallery. It is particularly popular among teenagers due to the temporary buzz it provi…

I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 and to provide for related matters.

Next Tuesday.

I want to raise an issue involving a lovely lady from Rush who is just about to buy one of the new affordable houses we have there. She is a single mom looking after three beautiful children. She has gone through the hoops for the past couple of years and is just about to lose a house that was secured for her, one of the small number of houses that were available. The local authority housing loan as part of Fingal County Council and the affordable housing people who are offering the houses do not seem to be able to…

Not at all. I spent many years working with Ms Hamilton, so it is very nice to see her. The frustration here is that the lady does not breach the earnings cap. The council has assumed that she is going to work for the 52 weeks of the year whereas she takes more than seven or eight weeks of parental leave every year, at her own cost, because she has an eight-year-old son and she cannot get childcare for him during the school holidays. Neither part of Fingal County Council is talking to the other and she is going to …

The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding business items on the Seanad Order Paper, to be taken on the conclusion of the Order of Business without debate; and No. 2, Energy (Windfall Gains in the Energy Sector) (Cap on Market Revenues) Bill 2023 – Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken at 11.30 a.m. or on the conclusion of No. 1, whichever is the later.

I thank colleagues for raising a wide-ranging set of topics. The best thing I can do for Senator Carrigy is to write to the Minister of State. It seems bizarre that we would have a national treasure, one that is particularly important to the Senator’s part of the woods, in storage somewhere. I thought we only stored e-voting machines-----

-----and other stuff we wanted to hide away, not a national treasure. I will send a letter today. I acknowledge the Senator’s welcome of the increased funding for Longford County Council. Regarding the matter raised by Senators Boyhan and Murphy, I welcome yesterday’s announcement of €10 million. Any money that goes into the horticultural industry is welcome. The conditions being applied to it are outrageous, though. I say that with respect to Senator Hackett as a Green Party Minister of State who wants to encourag…

I would like to request a debate in the coming weeks, and sooner rather than later, before we finalise the Finance Bill, on the pension cap. Colleagues may be aware that in the run-up to the budget, along with colleagues in Fórsa and IALPA I started a campaign to try to get the pension cap, which is currently at €2 million, index linked. This was set by the then Minister, Deputy Joan Burton, in 2013 for very good reasons back then. However it now needs to be index linked to allow it to be reflective of what the val…

The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding proposed approval by Seanad Éireann of a proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing minimum standards on the rights, supports and protections of victims of crime, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business, without debate; and No. 2 the Energy (Windfall Gains in the Energy Sector) (Cap on Market Revenues) Bill 2023 - Second Stage to be taken at noon and to conclude after 90 minutes, if not previously concluded, with th…

I know the Senator thinks I think that.

I thank Senator Ahearn for asking for the debate on sports capital grants because it is something that is very important to all of us and to our local councillors up and down the country. We all know the value of our local sporting organisations. I suggest the problem the Senator has in Clonmel is probably replicated in various parts of the country. In my neck of the woods, we have an awful lot more teams than we have pitches for. We have one of the fastest growing populations, which is great to see but the resourc…

It is true of everybody. It is actually quite worrying to hear the Dublin Airport Authority, DAA, talking about managing the cap in the middle of October as if we are going to somehow ration travel in the next eight or ten weeks before Christmas. That debate certainly will be welcome and I will request it as quickly as I can. Senator McGahon raised the very important work that Outcomers does, not just in his home area of Dundalk but all the way across north Dublin, County Meath and most of County Louth. For anybody…

If the Senator texts me, I will talk to the Minister for Education and the Secretary General in the Department to see if there is anything. These things are never as clear as they seem but, whatever is wrong, it would be a shame to see a company that is only new in the last couple of years and doing well to be in trouble because the State will not pay its bills. I will come back to the Senator.