The Senator might as well name names.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. On Sunday, 30 May, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Coveney, visited China for a bilateral meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister, Mr. Wang Yi. It did not surprise me that the Minister, Deputy Coveney, did not exactly bang the tables or lay down the law with the Chinese about human rights, the Uyghurs and so forth. Given the nature of the Government’s attitude and behaviour to China for the last decade, this was never likely. However, a couple of things did surprise me.…

I do not think anybody disputes the fact that, from time to time, Ireland raises concerns and even expresses great concerns, but it does not go beyond that. I spoke in this Chamber last week about the mounting evidence that our foreign policy lacks any moral core, because there is so much evidence of that recently. Days after returning from China, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, correctly said that the Belarusian President lacked democratic legitimacy. However, with him having recently returned home from a friendly m…

There is considerable irony in the fact that in recent days there were fears about the future of the national maternity hospital expressed by people whose main concern seems to be that it might not actually provide abortion. I find it perfectly understandable, however, given the dominant cultural attitude in the State, that people would want a national maternity hospital that provides services completely free from any Christian or other religious influence. That is where many people are at and it is the main attitu…

The Minister is very welcome. I support the motion before us today as I have done on each previous occasion on which it has been before us. On the whole, the Special Criminal Court has been an effective tool against subversive elements and in recent years, organised criminal gangs and for this reason, it is worth retaining. However, the case for its retention is far from unanswerable. I am broadly in agreement with much of what Senator Ward has just said. We need to be clear that the ultimate aim of the Oireachtas …

I, too, welcome Dutch "The Giver" O'Brien to the House. This Bill is technical as it allows for various amendments to the Planning and Development Act 2000, and extends time limits for the formulation of development plans among other things. All of this is very relevant and necessary, given how important it is that there is leeway and grieving space in view of the Covid-19 situation and the 18 months of disruption that it has caused. I notice that the main provisions of the Bill will cease to have effect on 1 Janua…

Can I make a quick contribution?

The Minister is absolutely right; it is not always possible to go through the full pre-legislative scrutiny process. That is exactly why we need a full deliberation when it went through the various Stages of legislation.

I thank the Minister.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

Seconded.

Seconded.

I move amendment No. 33: In page 44, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following: "Amendment to Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015 45. The Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015 is amended— (a) in section 5(1), by the insertion of the following paragraph: "(a) the site has, under its present ownership, been the subject of a grant of permission by the planning authority for the development of three or more houses on the site, and that the development has not yet commenced,", (b) in section 5(2), in the de…

As the son of a recently deceased builder, I feel the need to speak up for builders from time to time although I recall that it is not just in this House that there can be suspicion about builders. In "The Naked Gun", Jane asks a guy called Vincent Ludwig how he could have done something so vicious. Ludwig says: "It was easy, my dear. You forget I spent two years as a building contractor." Word seems to have got around. The amendment I propose is an improved version of one I proposed on Committee Stage but which fe…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. Nobody could have any objection to his taking this matter into wider consideration in the context of looking more comprehensively at the vacant site levy how it is working or perhaps not working. That said, tempus fugit and people are waiting. My concern is that when things are being looked at, it can take a long time to look at them. People need housing. There may be an inequity as matters stand between those who are being nabbed for the levy and those who are not. Ther…

Having listened to the contribution made by Senator Eugene Murphy, with which I agree, and the response made by the Minister of State, I was reminded of a line that may have been incorrectly attributed to the late Dr. Garret FitzGerald. He was reputed to have objected, on one occasion, to a policy measure on the basis that while it was all very well in practice that it would not work in theory. As the Minister of State will be aware, the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, PIAB, was established in 2003 to try to di…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. Nobody ever said PIAB was a court. I accept that the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, is just a messenger for another Minister of State but, on a previous occasion, when Deputy Michael McGrath asked a parliamentary question on the same matter, the then Minister, Deputy Humphreys, at least stated baldly there were no penalties involved where false and misleading claims are made to PIAB. On neither occasion has the Government given a reason for this omission. The result i…