It is nothing to do with the amendments.

I have said it already but I will say it again. I do not like the tone the Tánaiste took. He is acting as if we have not discussed the victims. We have all discussed the victims several times. Sinn Féin has had several meetings with them. This is not in any way to disrespect anybody, certainly not the external oversight group, or the Secretary General - that position is currently held by a woman - or whoever holds the position in future. It is not about that. If the Tánaiste wants the current Secretary General ther…

Why do you want the-----

You are arguing against-----

You are arguing against having the Secretary General there on it at all.

In the initial draft of the Bill, the Tánaiste sought to place a prohibition on certain members of the Defence Forces being members of representative associations. We have talked about this. It was as if the Tánaiste was looking to expand the list. His argument for this was that those involved in the disciplinary process within the military need to be able to be impartial. There are people all across the Civil Service and the public service, such as equality officers, who are not excluded from representation despit…

I am listening to the Tánaiste but believe it is important, for the sake of the dignity and respect we can show to members of the Defence Forces, that those members be entitled to representation regardless of the posts they hold. The Tánaiste mentioned the Chief of Staff. I am sure this could be dealt with in the terms and conditions. Does the Tánaiste accept that, in a modern, functioning republic, a Minister should not be able to take away the right of members of defence forces to representation?

I move amendment No. 11: In page 27, between lines 12 and 13, to insert the following: "(iii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (7): "(8) The Minister shall not seek to prohibit any person from being a member of a representative association on the basis of the post they hold.",".

I move amendment No. 12: In page 27, to delete lines 19 to 38, and in page 28, to delete lines 1 and 2.

As I did not get a chance to speak yesterday, I first thank the Government for the official recognition of the State of Palestine. I also acknowledge that it stood up to the veiled threats from Israel in taking this important step. It is a start. There is a lot more to be done but at least I hope it has given some solace to the people of Palestine and Gaza. I also give my solidarity to the Tánaiste for what is happening on social media. Unfortunately, it is what I have come to expect from the immoral supporters of …

Under this Government, healthcare has become pure hell for those working in the system and those depending on it. Practically every day in North Kildare, people arrive in my office or contact me on the phone in tears due to waiting lists or delays. Since the pain clinic in St. James's was limited so that the space could be used for accident and emergency services, people in agony have been left high and dry. In desperation, I contacted the CEO of the HSE for an appointment for an elderly constituent whose body was …

I also welcome the families and Justice for the Forgotten to the Dáil this evening. We need to shine a bright light on these dark and dirty days on our island. They were days when the dogs in the street knew the collusion between the British state forces and loyalist paramilitaries. They were days when that reality, through which some lived and often died, would not be spoken of in here, in particular by those who brandished a very large political brush and a very large political carpet. Some 50 years on, that carp…

I ask the Tánaiste whether the latest worrying statements by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, on IDF action in Rafah will speed up Ireland's recognition of the state of Palestine. I note that there has been some movement in that regard and I ask him to provide some chink of light to the tortured and beleaguered people of Gaza.

When I put forward this question last week, I hoped we would not find ourselves in a position where Israel had already closed off Rafah. While the real ground offensive has not yet started, Israel certainly has moved in the tanks. The reason the full ground offensive has not started is that the United States is withholding arms and bombs. Today, 9 May, is Europe Day. We in Europe really are at a critical place. When I am out canvassing at the doors for my party's European candidates, a large number of people raise …

I take this opportunity to salute the students at Trinity College for protesting and for rejecting the genocide that is going on in Gaza. This type of protest is really worrying governments, as well it might. It should worry the professors as well who are giving out about the students. It is the students who are giving a bit of learning to the professors. They hit Trinity College where it hurt. They hit it in the purse by blocking people from getting to see the Book of Kells. That is where we should be hitting Isra…

The Government cannot delay it either.

The words "affordable" and "housing" rarely go together when discussing north Kildare. In north Kildare, workers are either beggaring themselves to pay extortionate rents, living at home with their parents if they are lucky, or house sharing into their 30s and 40s, with all the personal and social issues that come with that, for example, a lack of privacy and personal space, the inability to develop their own unit as couples and the inevitable delay in starting their own families. Affordable housing is not just a m…

I raise the case of an 11-year-old constituent of mine who has been three years waiting for a psychologist appointment. That is over a quarter of her young life waiting for an essential service while she struggles every day at home and at school. The HSE ignored her parents' complaints so I escalated it to the regional manager. They wrote saying they will schedule an appointment for May. I asked for the day and time and received no reply, nothing. Now a parents' appointment has been offered, which the family did no…

It is primary care.

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Bill, which sets out to rebuild and restructure our Defence Forces as a modern, confident entity that reflects our modern, confident State. Being straightforward, procedural at times and administrative in nature, the matters within it would ordinarily preclude extensive discussion or debate. Regrettably, the non-straightforward approach means this ordinary situation is not to be. There are three particular areas I wish to address. The first is the external oversight body; s…