I thank the Cathaoirleach for his kind words. I will start by thanking colleagues here for the very kind words of sympathy they expressed in this House last Friday after the death of my father. Our family appreciates that very much indeed. Thank you. Today I would like to say a little bit about the Government's proposed hate speech legislation, the criminal justice (hate crime) Bill 2021, the general scheme of which was published recently. I have concerns around the idea that the penalty for certain crimes increase…

I would like to second that.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I echo some of what Senator O'Loughlin said in terms of welcoming the clarity that this Bill brings to the learnings from last year. We can all recall the various issues that arose last year at a very difficult time for people. Many people will have been somewhat discombobulated as they grew to learn more about the element of sausage making in the processing of leaving certificate results and the standardisation. I think few people would claim to understand it but it was possibly quite …

Well done.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I support this motion, but it is unambitious and it needs the amendment proposed by Senators Boyhan, Craughwell, Norris, McDowell and I, and the Sinn Féin amendments as well. It seems there is little point in us debating the generalities of the problems facing post offices in our rural communities unless we are going to promote concrete action to assist them. If we do not, then motions such as this have all the hallmarks of being those regular inoffensive motions which the Governm…

On 29 March, three weeks ago today, I asked the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, about the precise legal situation relating to the restrictions on public worship, either at the level of organising public worship or at the level of leaving one's house to attend such worship. It was a difficult enough session but the Minister said clearly he would get the Department to respond to me in writing to what he described as a very reasonable and important question I had asked about what was legal and what was a…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I also support this Bill and I agree with much of what Senator Ward just said. This Bill implements one of the many welcome recommendations of the O'Malley report published last August. However, I question why this one issue has been carved out of the report and introduced in a stand-alone Bill, and whether it would not have been better for more of the O'Malley proposals to be introduced in a more comprehensive Bill rather than in piecemeal fashion. Given the extremely constrained amoun…

As of last Thursday, 25 March, just over 211,000 people, about 4% of the population, have been fully vaccinated. Most of these are older people over the age of 80 years, and front-line health workers. I want to discuss what this means for ordinary people who have been fully vaccinated but first I want to address events which occurred yesterday near Our Lady of Lourdes church in Mullahoran, County Cavan. It appears the local parish priest has been levied with a €500 fine by the gardaí for saying mass. Yesterday, The…

I am just making the offer.

We are allowed to do it under the Standing Orders.

It frequently happens that Members give way here. I have made the offer. He is not forced to take it up but I just want to make the offer.

What would be so wrong with that? Is this not about getting clarity?

I am not going to call it censorship. I will speak for myself on this issue. It would be setting a good precedent to give way in this House to allow issues to be clarified. I have great respect for the Minister and the job he is trying to do but there is a-----

This is not a breach of Standing Orders.

I have given way to Senator Buttimer in recent weeks and he was damn glad to avail of the privilege. I commend the Leader, Senator Regina Doherty, and the former Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Charles Flanagan, on comments they made yesterday on this matter. On the roll-out, Professor Liam Fanning of UCC has suggested that fully vaccinated people should be allowed to meet in pods. I wonder whether the Minister has a view on that. There appears to be a difference between how GPs and dentists are treated i…

On a point order, I have been in this House for longer than the Acting Chairperson. I am not going to say she has a better knowledge of-----

On a point of order, I do not think you know-----

Do not abuse your position.

Senator Garvey is not in government when she is in the Chair. Please remember that.

On a point of order-----