The members of the Women of Honour group say they are not resigned to there being a judge-led review into the allegations of sexual abuse and bullying in the Defence Forces. Our laws need to change to protect our people in the Defence Forces against inappropriate behaviour. This is surely every person’s right. Every member of the Defence Forces has the right to be treated with respect, equality and dignity and to carry out his or her duties in a safe workplace, which is underpinned by a culture of zero tolerance fo…

What is the position with the review of the ambulance service that was promised in November? I highlighted that the training of paramedics and advanced paramedics is quite specialised. Why does the HSE expect paramedics to perform clerical duties and run budgets? I asked at the time for the separation of specialist work and administration duties, as has been done in the Garda. From what I have seen, there are more managers than there are drivers. When will we finally hold the HSE to account so we can have the param…

This amending Bill will recognise that no newly-redundant workers will have lost out on their reckonable service while they were temporarily laid off due to Covid-19 regulations. It also highlights these employees were not necessarily laid off and that they had not qualified for a State payment - the PUP or the jobseeker's allowance. The objective of this amending Bill is to address that gap. It allows the person to qualify for a Social Insurance Fund payment of €1,860. Employers are not liable for this shortfall i…

Yesterday is gone, today is here and tomorrow is yet to come.

Last November, I came to Dublin with truckers and farmers to show unity on the rising cost of fuel. I asked the Government and every Opposition Deputy to come with me and to make one change that would have made a difference for every household, whether they have a car or not. It would have made a difference for every household and every person in the country. If the Government had frozen the tax on the increase in the cost of fuel coming into this country, it would have had €8 billion to play with. What would that …

Higher numbers of late-stage cancers are being diagnosed because of screening delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic according to the Irish Cancer Society. Screening was paused in 2020 and CervicalCheck, BowelScreen and BreastCheck did not get back into operation for some time. BreastCheck cancer screening is currently running one year behind. The Irish Cancer Society has stated that 250,000 fewer people were screened for cancer in 2020 compared with the previous year. We have a cancer crisis in Ireland. My mother …

HSE targets are like a moveable goal. Targets are set at random but are never met. Following a similar debate last year in the House, a target of 100,000 additional outpatient appointments were promised but we were to find that only 33,000 happened. What transpired with the person who set the 100,000 target or what happened to people who only had 33,000 come through the doors? Where is the accountability? In the first four weeks of January 500 procedures were cancelled. I was contacted by the parents of a young gir…

One of the aspirations of this Bill is to facilitate improved engagement with students in order to promote equity in access to, and participation in, higher education. I appeal to the Minister here to consider the word "access" and to ensure that the pathway to an apprenticeship is more transparent and easier to navigate than it is currently so that increased participation will happen. Turas Nua was appointed as a JobPath provider by the Department of Social Protection. The JobPath scheme left a lot to be desired f…

There is not a big fishing industry in Limerick. However, there are industries that are supported by fisheries. My Rural Independent Group colleagues have major fisheries in their counties and I support them. I have listened to everyone who has contributed to the debate. The media are currently asking which Deputies have a second job. I have been self-employed all my life. I understand what the fishers are going through because they have been self-employed all their lives. Most of the Rural Independents have been s…

We are dealing with Northern Ireland and New Decade, New Approach. One of Ireland's legacy issues that I would be concerned about is trade between our country and the UK. Trade between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland has surged ahead. The latest official trade figures show that exports of goods from the Republic to the North increased by almost €2.6 billion between January 2021 and the end of September 2021 compared with the same period a year earlier, while imports from the North to the Republic climb…

I will start by thanking the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, for coming to the Dromcollogher respite centre in County Limerick and taking the time to speak to the management, staff and volunteers who make the centre such a brilliant place. Some 51 people contributed to this debate last week. It was one of the most heartbreaking debates we have seen. It was very sad to see the defeat on so many politicians as they made their contributions on yet another HSE inadequacy. Will we see more of this behaviour and practi…

The following is through the eyes of a teenager: Being without broadband is like being without your voice in today's world. [That was said to me by a teenager recently.] Like it, love it, hate it. It is our window to the world of work, of education, of health, of leisure and just general family catch-up. Unfortunately, this highlights again the big urban-rural divide. We have parts of Ireland that still have no broadband connection. A recent survey conducted by switcher.ie found towns and cities have broadband spee…

I am going to remind the Labour Members here today, and I can talk louder than them if they want me to talk louder. They are the hypocrites of the Dáil.

They are the same people, when I was here in November in a truck, highlighting the fuel costs, who voted for carbon tax.

They are the same. They are the same people who did not go out to the truckers who came up here to protest at the amount it was costing for fuel to feed the people of Ireland.

They are the same people who have been the cause of the rise of inflation in every house in this country.

They are the hypocrites of this Dáil. Where were they when the farmers came up here about the rising costs of farming? Where were they when the fuel costs were rising through the roof?

I asked the Minister to put a freeze on the fuel tax that was being taken in so that if there was a fuel increase, we would not be paying extra tax on it, and these clowns over here are the ones who voted for it.

These clowns that I am looking at here are the ones who are the absolute hypocrites of the Dáil.

Let the whole country see.