At 9.30 a.m. tomorrow.

The Minister of State is very welcome to the Seanad, as always. Balbriggan is the youngest and fastest-growing town in Ireland. It has a population of over 26,000 and is expanding. A lot of housing is going into Balbriggan at the moment. The wider catchment area has a population of over 63,000, including the towns of Skerries, Lusk and Rush. It is the furthest town in Dublin from a hospital, sitting at 32 km from Beaumont Hospital. A minor injuries unit is badly needed in the town of Balbriggan. I attended a very w…

I am very disappointed to hear the response from the Minister of State. I know there are no current plans to open a minor injury hub in Balbriggan. The Minister of State referred to Tallaght, Athlone, Carlow and Ballina, but we need to look to the future and the population demands. For the people of Balbriggan, the Smithfield rapid injury clinic and Connolly Hospital are even further away than Beaumont Hospital. It is completely unacceptable that a large population in north County Dublin is left without a basic ser…

People are not going to be going up to County Mayo for a fracture.

Fianna Fáil opposes this Bill at Second Stage. Ireland has a well-established procedure in place for the diplomatic clearance of the overflight and landing of state aircraft. This diplomatic clearance is subject to strict conditions with full respect to Ireland's policy of military neutrality. These conditions include that the aircraft must be unarmed and carry no arms, ammunition or explosives. The aircraft must not engage in intelligence gathering and the flight in question must not form part of military exercise…

I ask the Senator to withdraw that comment. It is not a fair comment and does not reflect reality.

I just requested the Acting Chairperson to ask the Senator to withdraw her comment in relation to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien.

I point out that we have had two Ministers at the Department of Transport here this evening to represent the Government. They deserve respect for their office and for their work. They regularly show up here, as does the Minister, Deputy O'Brien. I think the Senator has some sort of personal vendetta against the Minister. It is unfair. I note that the Senator is not going to withdraw her statement but, to be honest, I think it is really shoddy behaviour. I will leave it there.

St. Peter's GAA is a juvenile amalgamation of three Gaelic football clubs in rural north County Dublin, namely, Clann Mhuire, Ballyboughal and Garristown. All three clubs have a rich and deep tradition of football. When the players reach minor level, they go back to their home GAA clubs to continue playing at a very high level. St. Peter's GAA is going from strength to strength, but with changing weather patterns it has become apparent the current facilities are not fit for purpose. They are not available when the …

Yesterday, a former garda, Paul Moody, received a sentence for coercive and violent behaviour towards a former partner. Senators will recall that this former garda is currently serving a sentence for coercive control of a partner. This latest incident predated the person who made the report in the case of the sentence he is now serving. The very brave Nicola Hanney reported absolutely horrific abuse and coercive controlling behaviour, following which he received a conviction. Remarkably, the woman in the case dealt…

Gabh mo leithscéal, but I just got a message that the House needs to be suspended so the Minister can go to a Dáil vote.

I very much welcome the opportunity to discuss this important topic. I commend Senator Boyhan on putting it on our schedule and the Minister on coming here to partake in this very important debate in this, the United Nations International Year of the Women Farmer, which aims to recognise and support women working across agriculture and food systems. This is so important when we look at the issue of climate change and increasing food insecurity in many parts of the world. We must examine food security ourselves. Whi…

My father attended Kildalton and met my mother at a dance nearby.

I rise today to talk about the centenary of Fianna Fáil and to say that I am a proud Fianna Fáil member standing here 100 years since our foundation. Our weekend Ard-Fheis was a great opportunity for us all to reflect on the progress we have made as a country and that Fianna Fáil has been central to that progress. While that narrative does not suit everybody, it is the truth. Fianna Fáil has always stood for progressive, centrist politics and politics that brought people together to find real and practical solution…

Hear, hear.

The Minister of State is very welcome to the Seanad. I want to speak specifically about Lusk round tower and belfry. It is a topic we have discussed previously. I want to use this opportunity to talk about it. Lusk community council has been working with the OPW since October 2024. The first challenges it encountered were in getting this beautiful belfry and round tower open. I will touch on the history of the belfry and the round tower. St. Maccullin is connected with the area as one of the early Christians in Ire…

Today is International Nurses Day. It is an opportunity to recognise and pay tribute to nurses and midwives and recognise their contribution to the Irish health system. I particularly want to pay tribute to all the nurses and midwives in north County Dublin. As of June 2025 there were more than 92,000 nurses and midwives on the register in Ireland. This is the highest ever recorded number of nurses and midwives in Ireland. The workforce, as the Leader can imagine, is strongly gendered, with around 90% of registered…

Hear, hear.

And his wife.

I welcome the opportunity to debate this important issue. As most Members of the House know, it is a topic I am passionate about. As has been outlined, domestic and gender-based violence is a scourge on society. We need a whole-of-society approach to eliminating this scourge and we need men involved in the conversation. We need positive role models. We need to highlight and tackle the issue and not sweep it under the carpet as happened here for so many years. The Domestic Violence Act 2018 was groundbreaking legisl…