I welcome this initiative. It is positive that we are using our time in the Seanad to at least highlight matters. I thank the Leader and the Cathaoirleach for arranging it. I want to raise the issue of local government finance. We are aware that our city and county councils are struggling financially. I especially wish to mention local property tax, LPT. Will the Leader extend an invitation and arrange for the Minister for Finance to come to the Seanad to discuss the LPT? One only needs to look at the website of Fi…

As no other Senators are offering, I call the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, to respond to the debate.

When is it proposed to take Committee Stage?

Do not start.

I welcome the Minister of State and I thank Senators O'Reilly, Garvey and Martin for proposing this motion. I would not have expected anything less from those Senators. They have a great slogan and I have a lot of time for green politics, and for the Green Party for that matter. The slogan is "Vote Green, get Green". I think that is an important maxim, not one of which we should lose sight. I try to apply it to everything I do here. The Green Party is in government and that is important. The people elected represen…

I second the amendment.

I thank the Cathaoirleach. I will not be using my five minutes as I am conscious that we are under a great deal of time pressure today. I am also conscious of other Members who have substantial issues they wish to bring to the debate. While I am here, I will not miss the opportunity to welcome the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, the leader of the Green Party, here. It is the first time that I have seen him in the Senate at the same time as myself. I wish him well. I also wish to flag to him my deep concern about the r…

I wish to thank the Minister for coming to the House; he is always welcome here. I recognise that we have a job to do and he has a job to do. I also want to acknowledge the frankness and honesty of the Minister both in his radio interview on RTÉ's "Morning Ireland" this morning, which was refreshing. It was simply honest, and it may have made the Minister appear vulnerable. I think this is the measure of a good politician - a politician who can come back and say that perhaps we underestimated this and are slightly …

I warmly welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, to the Seanad. I am raising the issue of St. John of God Community Services in response to a letter I received from Councillor Paddy McQuillan in Louth County Council. He is involved with the service and is a local representative. He circulated to me a letter he received from the chief executive, as did all of the staff and their colleagues, a copy of which I have passed to the Minister of State, dated 30 September 2020. The substance of this correspondence i…

I thank the Minister of State for her written reply because it is helpful and we can share it. These are difficult times for all of us in terms of our physical and mental well-being. They are particularly difficult for people with disabilities and the type of people being supported by the St. John of God Community Services. I am encouraged by what the Minister of State said. I will write to the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, today to ask him if we can see a speeding up of the engagement. We have a ti…

I thank the Leader for sending on the Order of Business to Members. Although it is somewhat late because there has been a slight change in it, I again appeal to the Leader to make arrangements to provide sufficient time for Members, some of whom are travelling long distances to be present. We need time. The Senator is the Leader of the House and she assured me last week that she would do her best. I believe it is not unreasonable to have available to Members the proposed Order of Business she wishes to bring to the…

-----and the timelines they are up against. I thank them for that. Unfortunately it gives us very little time to consider it or to discuss it with our colleagues. We are a small group of five Senators and other groups have bigger numbers. I ask the Leader to take on board the difficulties and practicalities around that and to use her position as Leader of the House to do something about it going forward. She might also address that point in her response to the House today on the Order of Business. I therefore do no…

I am proposing an amendment. Shall I move it now?

I would like to propose an amendment, which is on the Order Paper, to delete Standing Orders 29 and 30.

Yes.

I move amendment No. 1: To delete “Standing Orders 29 and 30” and substitute “Standing Order 29”.

I move amendment No. 2: That the Schedule be amended as follows: “(i) That Report and Final Stages of the Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) Records, and another Matter, Bill 2020, be taken immediately after the Motion regarding Parliamentary Precincts and Privilege; (ii) That the Motion for Earlier Signature of the Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) Records, and another Matter, Bill 2020, be taken without debate on the conclu…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Butler to the Seanad. I have to remind myself we are in the Dáil Chamber in which the Seanad is sitting for the purposes of this exercise. I read the Minister of State's speech. It is clear and is unambiguous, and I thank her for that. I also acknowledge the enormous work of the ICCL, not only on this legislation, but on other legislation that is coming before the House. These are critical times for all of us. There is a crisis and a pandemic, and an emergency response was ma…

Senator Higgins and I work well together.

I endorse everything that Senator McDowell said and I thank Senator Warfield for agreeing to second that. I would be happy to second it as that is a good gesture of support across the House and it makes a lot of sense. There are many people tuning in to us today, as there were the other day, on this important issue. Many people looking in are not familiar with the legislative process or the Oireachtas but they are concerned and troubled by what they have heard and seen in recent days. I will make an appeal to the L…