On behalf of the Fianna Fáil Party, I extend our deepest sympathies to the family, friends and community of Paddy Cooney. He was an esteemed public representative who served the people well. Today is international Human Rights Day. We have to think of all those all over the world who are denied their basic human rights. The theme for this year is "Human Rights: Our Everyday Essentials", emphasising dignity, equality and freedom as values that shape daily life. We have to honour the vision set forth in 1948 with the…

Like my colleagues, I welcome Councillor Malone and add my voice of gratitude to LAMA and AILG for all the work they do. I speak not only as someone who was elected by councillors but also as someone who served as a town commissioner, a town councillor and a county councillor. I absolutely value the work councillors do. In 1898, my grandfather was on the very first iteration of Kildare County Council. He died when my father was seven. Some 25 years later, my father was elected in one area. Subsequently, I was elect…

Local Link has been a lifeline for people in many rural areas. There was huge investment put into it during the term of office of the previous Government. The service in my area has been a tremendous success. I refer to the 888 route, by means of which people from Athy, Monasterevin and Rathangan can travel to Allenwood. People are using the route on a regular basis. We are also rolling out another service to Suncroft. There are two points about the service that need to be made at national level. While the service …

The Order of Business is No. 1, statements on the HIQA review to inform decision-making on the design and delivery of urgent and emergency healthcare services in HSE mid-west, to be taken at 11.45 a.m. and to conclude at 1 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated for the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed six minutes, all other Senators not to exceed four minutes, time may be shared, and the Minister to be given not less than ten minutes to…

I thank all of the Senators who have contributed to this morning's Order of Business. First, Senator Mary Fitzpatrick spoke about the elimination of violence against women and gave us the horrific statistic that about 35% of women in Ireland have been impacted by gender-based violence. About one in four have experienced sexual violence at the hands of an intimate partner. As we know, more than 100 women have been murdered over the last ten years by a current or former partner. She is correct to raise that. We are i…

The Minister of State, Deputy O’Sullivan, is very welcome to the Seanad. If I had known it was going to be him, I would have a completely different Commencement matter. I appreciate that he is here representing the Minister for Health. It is always important that we have a Minister present. It can be frustrating from our end, and I appreciate it is frustrating for Ministers too when they have to fill in for a different Department. As per the conversation we had the last time the Minister of State was here, I still …

I thank the Minister of State. I appreciate that the numbers are moving in the right way. The former Minister, Stephen Donnelly, did exceptional work on this. We had many conversations about Naas hospital. It is still unacceptable that people are waiting more than 12 months. In this case there are 2%, which is 12 patients. This in itself is shocking. Our older people deserve dignity and urgency. They deserve proper access to care. I appreciate the Minister of State taking an interest in this. For me, the lived expe…

We all know community pharmacies are incredibly important in our communities, villages, towns and cities. Last week, there was a competition to find the best community pharmacy. I am absolutely delighted that Shane Ryan’s pharmacy in Rathangan, County Kildare was the national winner. That was of no surprise to me because Shane and his team are absolutely fantastic. The minute you walk in the door, you get an incredible welcome. That welcome, that service and that friendliness means so much to everybody in the area.…

I thank the Cathaoirleach. We do, indeed, have the executive committee of the Network Ireland here. I was delighted to host its members earlier and to have this opportunity now to recognise the leadership, the expertise and the diverse experiences each one of them brings to the organisation, and not just to the organisation but to public life and to our wider society. From my work, the network's commitment to supporting one another, to championing one another and to opening doors for the next generation is hugely i…

The Order of Business is No.1, statements on Irish Water and water quality, to be taken at 2 p.m. and to conclude at 3.30 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, all other Senators not to exceed five minutes, time may be shared, and the Minister is to be given not less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; No. 2, Irish Film Board (Amendment) Bill 2025 - Order for Second Stage and …

We certainly had a busy Order of Business. We know it is World Toilet Day and World COPD Day. Nobody mentioned it was International Men's Day. I wish all the gentlemen remaining in the Chamber a very happy International Men's Day.

You are very welcome. That is why I am delighted to have my guests from Kildare, Tony O’Halloran, Colm Somers, Alex Byrne and some more, joining us. It is a special day for me, apart from it being International Men's Day. If my dad was alive, he would have been 90 today. Many met him and knew him or knew of him. It is a very special day. I am going to have lunch with Kildare men and have a glass of wine, celebrating International Men's Day. Senator Fitzpatrick spoke about the horrific situation in Ukraine once agai…

I do not.

Senator Pat Casey is calling a vote.

We will rise.

I thank the Minister of State for being here. I am used to having him give me responses and he always genuinely does so with such heart and in a very helpful manner. I know it is not easy when it is a Minister with another portfolio altogether who should be here answering. The issue I raise is a really important one that I came across about two weeks ago. We all know we need a consistent childcare service. Childcare, of course, takes many different forms. We can talk about crèche or preschool, but people who mind c…

I thank the Minister of State for his answer. I still believe there are a lot of grey areas. I accept Tailte Éireann is independent in the exercise of its functions. It would appear that there needs to be an amendment to the legislation regarding the exemption, which I am prepared to work on. The Act makes reference to activities not conducted for the purpose of making a private profit. Registered childminders who care for children in their homes will of course be paid an amount of money for that. If a childminder …

I also welcome our special guests from Iceland. I was privileged to be there for the fourth summit of the Council of Europe. I was the rapporteur, so I worked closely with my colleagues on PACE. I had a wonderful and interesting time, and had the privilege of meeting Vigdís Finnbogadóttir a few times, the first female president in the world. We all have a lot to learn from her. They are welcome. Sunday was a day of two halves. We woke to the shocking and horrific news of five young people killed on their way for a …

We have a small Chamber this morning. The Order of Business is No. 1, Electricity Supply (Amendment) Bill 2025 - Second Stage, to be taken at 12.15 p.m., with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, those of group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, those of all other Senators not to exceed four minutes, time may be shared, and the Minister to be given not less than ten minutes to reply to the debate.

We started the Order of Business with Senator Fitzpatrick, who spoke about the publication of the updated housing plan. She is correct in saying it is a very important plan. She mentioned the key issue of State investment in homes. That is not to forget that under Housing for All 137,000 new builds were put in place and 500 new mortgages for first-time buyers were drawn down every week. I have not read all the detail - as Senator Boyhan said, there is a lot of detail in it. It takes time to absorb it. Every time I …