Why did this happen at a very peaceful vigil, with displays marking a memorial, in effect, for the people who have been killed in Palestine? These women are nothing but peace-loving. I know many of them personally; one or two live in my constituency.

If I could just say this, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle: why did the gardaí ask the women why they were supporting Hamas? Obviously, they are not supporting Hamas by objecting to a genocide. Why did the gardaí also ask: "What do you think would happen to you if you were outside the White House right now?" Is this an international policing memo that is being sent, emanating from the likes of Germany and the White House?

Is this coming to Ireland as well?

I would like the Taoiseach to object to the way those women were treated.

It was not necessary to do that.

Will the Taoiseach go back to the actual protest he was asked about?

What about the Mother's Day protesters who were strip-searched?

There has been a halving of Taoiseach's Questions, a halving of the Order of Business and extra time for a special group, the Michael Lowry group. I remind the House that the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste took the decision to ram through last week's discussion without debate. Michael Lowry, a taker of bribes and of workers' money, is welcomed back into government. Let us be clear as to what the deal was. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael could not bring him into the Government because that would be a step too far. That would …

They control the agenda-----

-----so they should give it up with the "get on with the work".

Because you did not put that on the agenda.

What about your part in it?

I am sharing time with Deputies Boyd Barrett and O'Gorman. I, too, took a huge interest in this Bill when I saw it come up because of people I know who have been in this situation. I am delighted that there will be a change whereby cohabitees will now be considered equal to people who are married because they feel the exact same impact from a bereavement. I really welcome that. We need to see other changes along those lines. Of course, that change only came about because somebody took a case. That was a very brave …

I will finish by saying that there is no way in which this can go through as it currently stands.

I will just finish by saying that this cannot go through as it currently stands because it is discriminatory. I ask the Minister to look at it again. I believe it will be legally challenged. When we bring forward Bills, the Government often says that they will be legally challenged because they are unconstitutional. This Bill goes against the judgment that brought it about in the first place. It is incomprehensible. I will also say that somebody can be separated or divorced but maintain a good relationship with the…

Today in my Leaders’ Questions, I wanted to raise the absolutely desperate situation in Palestine, the Government’s failure to even meet the UN special rapporteur in Leinster House last week and issues such as the special needs crisis, the health workers and so many other issues but today we have to come back to this again because of what happened yesterday. Comments have been made about the unpleasantness of the protest yesterday. I even heard some claims of misogyny which I found extremely cynical from one of the…

It strikes me that the Ceann Comhairle is a woman who knows her own mind and took a decision yesterday, unfortunately, to co-operate with what was a very co-ordinated move not to allow Order of Business properly, to jettison Questions on Promised Legislation and so on. However, I want to move the focus back on the Taoiseach because he knew that these proposals were opposed by the Opposition and he took a decision to foist them without debate yesterday. What did he think was going to happen? Does he think any of thi…

Is it the Lowry lackies, the Government, or people who actually care about the Palestine solidarity movement? That is who. Who is more likely to really interrogate the Government on a whole range of issues? This is the Government preparing itself for unpopular decisions that it will have to take on water charges, cost of living, the triple lock, militarisation but today and next Wednesday, instead of Taoiseach’s questions, we will have Michael Lowry questioning the Taoiseach. Michael Lowry, I want to remind the Tao…

He is saying we are making a mountain out of a molehill. This is about him cutting the Opposition’s rights and entitlements to interrogate him.

Is there any chance of answering the question about Michael Lowry?