I thank Deputies Gallagher and Doherty for raising this matter. I will be answering on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. As stated, Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a rare and progressive disease affecting the muscle strength and function of boys almost exclusively, with approximately ten children diagnosed with the condition each year. The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, has engaged with representative groups and the parents of children suffering from this condition several time…

I thank the two Deputies. It is important we understand that negotiations are under way. There is a system and process in place and simply saying that does not cut it from a political perspective is not at all logical. There are children all over Ireland who need this drug. The Minister recognises that. There is a process in place. Italfarmaco, the pharmaceutical company, came with a proposal last Friday and the confidential commercial negotiations are under way. Today is Wednesday. The reason there was a delay bet…

I move: Tuesday's business shall be: - Statements on International Nurses Day (not to exceed 2 hours and 25 minutes) Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Second Stage of the Electricity Regulation (Amendment) Bill 2026, selected by Sinn Féin. Wednesday's business shall be: - Statements on the National Safety Camera Strategy (not to exceed 2 hours and 25 minutes) (Dept of Transport) - Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) (Amendment) Bill 2025 (Report and Final Stages) (to be taken no earlier than 4.30 p.m.…

I thank the Deputies for all of their comments. They have been noted. The Order of Business stands.

It is not opposed.

It is not opposed.

I am pleased to join the Minister for Health today in marking International Nurses Day and in recognising the extraordinary contribution nurses make to our health service and society. I was also pleased as Chief Whip to fulfil the request by Deputy Devine, who wanted these statements held. I was pleased to be able to put this onto the agenda because it is important that we acknowledge the fabulous work nurses do. As the Minister of State with responsibility for mental health, I would like to make special mention of…

I move: Wednesday 's business shall be: - Motion re Proposed approval by Dáil Éireann of the Convention Establishing an International Claims Commission for Ukraine (to conclude within 60 minutes) - Statements on the Scoping Exercise in response to requests from Dignity4Patients on behalf of victims and survivors of Michael Shine (to conclude within 60 minutes) Wednesday 's private members' business shall be the Motion re Dublin City Flat Complex Retrofit and Regeneration, selected by Sinn Féin. Thursday's business …

I noted all the comments and the Order of Business stands.

Hear, hear.

I thank both Deputy O'Sullivan and Deputy O'Hara for raising this important issue. I spoke on this in the Seanad a couple of weeks ago. I acknowledge Deputy O'Sullivan's advocacy on rare diseases in the past six years. As we all know, the State acknowledges the importance of access to new and innovative medicines for patients living with a rare disease. Budgets 2021 to 2025 included dedicated funding for new medicines of €158 million. Budget 2026 allocated an additional €30 million of funding available for new drug…

I concur with both Deputies. We are speaking about this really important drug and 200 people, their families and their parents want to know what is going to happen and are hanging on our every word. I take all that on board. While I know this has been going on for two years, the HSE did not receive the information from Biogen until July 2025. We are still waiting for the commercial proposal from the company. That remains outstanding. That is the situation at the moment. I am glad Deputy O'Sullivan has engaged with …

I thank the Deputy for raising this again and for his continued advocacy in relation to this situation. It is one that I am very familiar with, as our two constituencies align along a border. I have met one of the nurses who works in the service and who has advocated strongly as well. I just happened to meet her one day. On behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health, I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue, which he has highlighted a number of times. As the Deputy is aware from previous replies, ev…

It is disappointing that a post that has been advertised for almost two years has still not been able to be filled for various reasons. It is important to note that recruitment to the consultant post remains ongoing. In parallel, a multidisciplinary working group has been established involving consultants from University Hospital Waterford. The national clinical lead for ophthalmology is that piece of the jigsaw that the Deputy mentioned as regards the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital. That would be the person. …

I am pleased to be here this afternoon for the final Stage of the Mental Health Bill 2024. Following more than 40 hours of debate in both Houses, I am very proud of the final version of the Bill being brought before the Dail today. Following extensive Committee Stage debate in this Chamber and in the Seanad, we have made a number of improvements to the Bill that I think all Deputies will welcome. We have introduced new sections to regulate pharmacological restraint, which was a priority for many Members. We have in…

The amendments in this grouping relate to references to parents and, where relevant, the Child and Family Agency, throughout the Bill. Officials in my Department carried out extensive consultation with their counterparts in the Department of Children, Disability and Equality throughout the legislative process and I brought a number of amendments to the Seanad arising from this consultation. All the amendments in this grouping relate to references to parents and-or Tusla and their right to be informed about the care…

The amendments in this grouping relate to definitions in sections 2 and 11. These definitions are either being moved from one section to another section, or are being introduced because they reference definitions in the Child Care Act 1991. For example, amendment No. 45 introduces a definition of voluntary care arrangement that links directly to its definition in the Child Care Act 1991. Amendment No. 42 does the same thing for supervision orders. Amendment No. 28 moves the definition of permitted absence from sect…

This grouping relates to amendments Nos. 4 and 8, which relate to the definition of "child". The policy behind the definition is not being changed. A child is a person who is under 18 years of age. There is no law in Ireland that defines a child as being younger than 18 years of age. A child is legally considered to be anyone under the age of 18. I am aware that, depending on the type of health service accessed, young people are sometimes considered to be adults from the age of 16 or 18. This Bill only relates to m…

This grouping relates primarily to definitions being inserted that are in the Child Care Act 1991. This is similar to the grouping we discussed before the previous grouping. For example, amendment No. 5 moves the definition of "care order" from Part 4 of the Bill to section 2 instead. Amendments Nos. 11 and 16 insert definitions of "emergency care order" and "interim care order" into the Bill. In both cases, the definitions refer to the existing definition for both in the Child Care Act 1991. The later amendments i…

I believe there are around 180 amendments in this grouping, so I will not repeat them. While there is a significant amount of amendments in this grouping, they all relate to smaller amendments. These amendments are being introduced to provide clarity or for consistency with wording elsewhere. There are no policy changes in this grouping. To pick some examples from this group, amendment No. 55 inserts a comma after the word "means", amendment No. 64 deletes a comma after the word "particular", amendment No. 174 dele…