I too would like to be associated with the tributes to Brian Crowley. I can see how moved the members of the Fianna Fáil group here in the Seanad are. My sympathies go to them as the wider family and to the Crowley family. I did not know the man - I never met him - but any time I ever saw him interviewed or on TV, he seemed a larger-than-life character. As my colleague Senator Boyhan said, his disability certainly did not define him. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. This morning, I spent the morning with members of the…

I second the motion.

The Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, is welcome to the House. I think this is the first time I have addressed him since his elevation so I congratulate him on that. We often speak in this House about the housing crisis. Today we are dealing with a part of that crisis that rarely makes headlines yet it affects every single person trying to buy or sell a home in this country. Our conveyancing system is not just slow; it is fundamentally failing the people it is supposed to serve. The evidence is not vague or …

On behalf of the Independent Group, I express our condolences to the Lynch family on the passing of Gerard. May he rest in peace. There is something that needs to be dispelled. We constantly hear the Zelenskyy visit to Ireland was extremely successful, there was nothing to worry about and everything went perfectly. Everything did not go perfectly. It was a lucky day in that nothing went wrong. We had foreign police - French, Northern Irish and Portuguese police - looking after the man's security. It was not our own…

In fairness to her, the speech the Deputy Leader gave was fantastic. In a recent survey of 6,500 members of the Defence Forces, 58 respondents said they had been subjected to some form of sexual harassment and 40 said they had suffered a sexual assault. We do not know whether the 58 and the 40 are all part of the same group or not. There is something we need to put on the record, and I think the Deputy Leader will agree with me here. Any form of sexual harassment or bullying in any organisation is totally unaccepta…

Hear, hear. Well said.

Yesterday, Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada, spoke at Davos. What a speech and what a strong international world leader. Mr. Carney has finally stood up to the man who is the President of the United States and the greatest bully this world has ever known. Trump moves from one extreme to the other. In 12 months, he has thrown the world, including the world economy, into turmoil. He plays with countries and people. What are we hearing today? We are hearing that world leaders in Davos are waiting to hear what…

I move amendment No. 1: After “acknowledges:”, to insert the following paragraphs: “- Ireland’s naval defences are very weak, and the Government has not ordered any new naval ships; - there is a lack of strategic thinking on the part of the Government, and this has reduced our capability; - many members of the Defence Forces do not get private health care or only receive a few benefits; - Cadets like many in the Defence Forces are underpaid - during training they only get paid €22,000 and after training they will e…

I welcome the Minister to the House. I speak to her as a former member of the Defence Forces and as a nominee of PDFORRA, RACO and the security services in general. The current allowable strength of the Defence Forces is 9,739, all ranks, across all services - Army, Air Corps and Naval Service. The actual strength of the forces on 31 December 2025 was 7,700, which is 2,039 personnel, or 21%, below strength. The net increase in strength from 31 December 2024 to 31 December 2025 was 143 personnel. These facts are ala…

It is irresponsible. There is much I would like to say but, unlike my colleagues, I do not have 15 minutes.

He would be a good old vote in the future.

Thank you, I was sober.

I second the amendment.

I second the amendment.

I move amendment No. 4: After "calls for:", to insert the following paragraph: "- a survey on bullying and harassment in other workplaces such as An Garda Síochána, the Prison Service, the HSE, and the Ambulance Service in order to establish a national picture regarding this issue in order to avoid the Defence Forces being singled out;"

I second the amendment.

In his rebuttal of my colleague's original argument, the Minister seemed to suggest that it would only be plaintiffs who would look for a jury. I can think of many reasons why a defendant in a case might look for a jury trial. I just wanted to put that in for what it is worth.

I second the amendment.

As the Senator has said, my concern is when we enter litigation, we never know the outcome. The serious damage that may not be envisaged by this legislation may actually occur not immediately after the court case, but some time into the future and it is very hard to imagine where that is so. It would be up to the lawyers on behalf of a corporate body to try to ensure any long-term effect to the institution be taken care of in any litigation which takes place. That is just my layman's view on it. My colleague, Senat…

I second the amendment.