Senator Ruane has the last word. She should be very brief because it is 4.30 p.m.

Excellent.

I agree with the Order of Business as outlined by the Leader. We have just had a very poignant moment in Dáil Éireann, where the Ceann Comhairle called for all Members who were present to stand and applaud the presence of Natasha O'Brien in the Gallery. It was a very powerful and striking moment, and the Ceann Comhairle, addressing Natasha, said: “We are on your side.” We know Natasha's name because of her bravery and the stance and public pronouncements that she has had to make over recent days but how many other …

The publication yesterday of the Digital News Report Ireland 2024 made for extremely interesting reading given that, for the first time ever, online outlets are now the main sources of news for people living in Ireland. They now surpass television, radio and newspapers. Indeed, newspapers rank at only 3% in respect of where people access their daily news. This follows examinations in other countries as well. Worldwide, almost four in ten people now say they sometimes actively avoid the news. This figure has risen f…

The Acting Leader left out Senator Pauline O'Reilly.

I welcome the statement from the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, this morning on the decision by the country’s leading mobile phone operators to support her plan for voluntary agreements to keep childhood smartphone-free. Vodafone, Three, Eir, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Media and An Post Mobile have all confirmed that they are supporting the keeping childhood smartphone-free guide for parents and parent associations of primary school aged children. These companies account for some 95% of the Irish mobile phone mark…

Not half enough.

They should get ten times more.

Many politicians have been expressing opinions and showing an interest in the business of the GAA in these Houses over the past week. To all those expressing opinions and asking that games be shown free to air and that GAAGO go be done away with, may I ask three questions? First, are they asking that all the GAA games, including the entire hurling and football championships, be shown free to air on RTÉ? If so, how do they expect RTÉ to facilitate it? Second, if it is not the case that they are demanding that all ga…

I thank the Minister of State for his work on the Bill. I am very happy that this is one of the most significant items of legislation to come before either House. It is in line with the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act 2022 - also delivered during the term of this Oireachtas - which was designed to regulate those other cowboys of the Wild West, namely the social media companies. Indeed, there is a synergy between the social media presence and the pervasiveness of advertising now. The work the Minister of Stat…

I very much welcome the debate and the opportunity to discuss this very important issue. I thank my colleagues for tabling the motion. It is very poignant. I welcome the intervention by the Tánaiste, who used his platform to discuss this and described it as a public health issue. That is exactly what it is. I particularly acknowledge the work of the Minister in dealing with this issue. It was not being dealt with heretofore. There were no mechanisms by which we could address the very serious issues that are being d…

I want to give a cautious welcome to the news overnight that Tara Mines in Navan is to reopen on a gradual basis. This mine, the largest sink mine in Europe, has been closed for nine long months, with more than 600 employees left on minimal support. It has been nine long months when there has been very little goodwill from the company towards this workforce in Navan. It is my sense there has been a strategy to starve these workers into submission and get to this point. I thank the unions for the work they have cond…

I welcome Senator O'Hara. On Tuesday night, a very momentous occasion took place with the hosting of the women's international match between Ireland and England in the Aviva Stadium, which attracted a record crowd of 33,000 people. At a pre-match reception, FAI president Paul Cooke asked the people in the room to lobby their politicians and make sure to tell them they wanted increased funding for the progression of women's football and women's sport in this country. Yesterday former President Mary McAleese attended…

I join with the Cathaoirleach in welcoming the ambassador to the Chamber. Regarding the events yesterday and the resignation of the Taoiseach, I pay tribute to him and his service for the country. It is important to recognise that and the role he has played in this and other Governments. I wish to discuss an interesting piece of research that was launched today and circulated to us, entitled Mammies & Daddies report. It was a study of 500 mums and dads of kids up to 12 years of age, and I find myself in that catego…

I welcome the Minister of State and thank her for taking this Commencement matter in respect of the development of Casement Park in Belfast. Indeed, Senator Micheál Carrigy and I have just come from the Oireachtas sports committee where we launched a report on inclusion in sport. One of the first recommendations in the report in respect of our work concerns the need for the methodology for assessing proposals for State support in the hosting of major sports events to consider inclusion in sport, but nothing could r…

I welcome the fact that today and tomorrow the First Minister, Michelle O'Neill, and the Deputy First Minister of the Executive will meet with the Irish Football Association and UEFA to stress the importance of this for Belfast. Yet, my fear is that the DUP is using the funding of Casement Park as a political football on a football field. This is because it is getting and involved is saying “No more”. Its favourite word is “No”. It is saying there should be no more funding for Casement Park or the GAA. Why has the …

The first newspaper to hit the newsstands with the coverage of John Bruton's passing was quite fittingly his own local newspaper the Meath Chronicle , which hit the shelves in Meath at 6 p.m. last night and carried a front-page picture of the former Taoiseach and Meath man with the headline "Death of a Statesman". John Bruton was every bit a statesman who rose to the highest office in this land and served the people with great dignity and diligence. The passing of a former Taoiseach is always a seismic moment in th…

I welcome the constructive discussion here this afternoon. The one thing that has been pressed by all people as pertaining to this section is to ensure the best outcome for communities. Senator Boyhan said that he wrote to all the councillors who were members of joint policing committees and talked about their positive engagement with this Bill. The Oireachtas Members play a very important role on JPCs as well. I always make sure that I attend the meetings of the policing committees in County Meath. It is great tha…

As echoed by Senator Fitzpatrick, however, you have that in every county. Those policing committees are currently made up of a range of local community representatives. Senator Ruane is right in respect of those leadership figures who are not just elected representatives. They are some of the best attendees and strongest voices at these meetings. I know from the policing committee meetings in my own county that local councillors are extremely diligent in their duties not just when it comes to these meeting but rega…

I thank the Minister for her extensive response and for clarifying how we got to the final positions, as well as the flexibility that will be afforded by the regulations, the composition, the rationale in respect of the various amendments and her clarification regarding the position in respect of the chairs and the membership. That is important in the context of this debate. As has been stated, people are listening to this debate. It is important that they hear this clearly from the Minister in a calm manner. I res…