The engagement has not taken place.

Will engagement take place?

We will be supporting this amendment to the Seanad amendment. As I stated on earlier Stages, Sinn Féin supports the use of biometric recognition technology for serious crime investigations, national security purposes and missing persons cases. However, we have also made it clear at every stage that the use of biometric technology has to be accompanied by strong safeguards to prevent discrimination, excessive surveillance, the misuse of personal data and inadequate oversight. We brought forward amendments in that ve…

As the Minister of State said, this motion facilitates the State opting in to Council Decision (EU) 2023/1076, relating to the EU's ratification of the Istanbul Convention in areas related to judicial co-operation, asylum, and non-refoulement. Sinn Féin will not be opposing this motion. Primarily, as recognised by Ireland having the opt-out under Protocol 21, matters related to justice should be dealt with through domestic law, with the exception being areas where cross-border and international co-operation is requ…

Anois an t-am le haghaidh Éire aontaithe. In one respect, I am stunned. Today I walked past the Mansion House where the First Dáil sat, and I wondered what it would be like to explain to people in that House that now, in 2026, we need to have a discussion on whether there is a case for a united Ireland. What would they think of a Taoiseach and a Tánaiste in a future Dáil essentially saying that 107 years after the First Dáil, 50 years after conflict, 30 years after the Good Friday Agreement and ten years after Brex…

Today, we have every reason to believe that change is within our grasp if the political leadership is there to grasp it. The reunification of Ireland is the democratic right and the unfinished business of the Irish people. It is our right to live in a united country, free from a border imposed without consent and with devastating consequences, especially for Irish citizens North of the Border. As representatives of the Irish people, we have a responsibility to shape the future of this island. Irish unity is not som…

As predicted by many, we now have a chaotic situation in the courts, and in the District Court, in particular, due to the Minister’s new criminal legal aid scheme. It would be helpful if the Minister would outline to the House the assessments he carried out beforehand in respect of the risk of the changes to the criminal legal aid scheme, any potential for reduced participation by solicitors in this work and the implications of any such reductions.

My question was not about whether the Minister thinks this will have an impact but, rather, whether he carried out an assessment prior to introducing this scheme. I have to take it from the Minister's answer that he has not carried out any such assessment. I welcome the Minister's statement that he does not want to aggravate the situation. It would have been helpful if he had given himself that advice a number of days ago. Many solicitors I have spoken to feel the Minister made an allegation of widespread abuse of …

I have engaged with a large number of those from the legal profession regarding these changes to the legal aid scheme, and I really do believe it would be helpful if the Minister took the opportunity to apologise for the manner in which the remarks have been interpreted. It is being generous to him to say he castigated an entire profession and suggested there is widespread abuse of the current system. The representatives of the legal profession have challenged him to provide evidence of that. I certainly have not s…

I will return to the issue of a bilateral returns policy with Britain. The Minister and other Ministers have put on the record of the House on numerous occasions their belief that between 80% and 90% of international protection applicants are travelling here via the common travel area. It would be useful if the House could get a report on any progress that has been made on securing a bilateral arrangement with Britain.

The question was what progress has been made on a returns policy and only in his last four words did the Minister mention "the issue of returns".

I would appreciate if the Minister would outline what progress has been made. He outlined that individuals have had British passports and driving licences in their possession when they have applied for international protection. The Minister has no power to do anything about that because there is no bilateral returns policy in place. I love the Minister's confidence that international protection applicants have been following the passage of his legislation through the Oireachtas and awaiting the President's signatur…

How is the Minister going to deal with that if he does not have an agreement in place on a returns policy?

The Minister knows that I and Sinn Féin support the returns regulation. The big contradiction in everything that the Minister has said is that the returns regulation is important in the context of the EU, but we will manage if we do not have it for the source of 80% or 90% of arrivals. I do not know if the Minister is willing to give a percentage now because a lot of it is pure conjecture and speculation on his part. The Minister says he cannot reach an agreement if the British Government is not willing to agree. I…

-----or is holding back? If the Minister wants it and says that the British Government is not refusing, where is the delay in securing a bilateral arrangement? Does he accept that designating Britain a safe third country is pointless if we do not have a returns agreement in place? What proviso or mechanism in law will the Minister use to implement returns if there is no bilateral agreement?

I am taking this question on behalf Deputy Bennett. It is to ask the Minister for a timeframe in which we will see domestic refuges open in Cavan and Monaghan.

David Maxwell

I welcome that there has been progress.

When I was first elected as a TD and raised this issue, the Minister at the time disputed that there was a need at all. There has been quite significant movement. In fact, after the horrendous killing of Ashling Murphy, there was unanimous agreement in this House that every county should, at a minimum, have one refuge. I am holding Government to that. The process for delivering refuges needs to be speeded up drastically. The suggestion that from the beginning of planning to final completion stage could be three or …

The difficulty when dealing with gender, sexual and domestic violence is that there is not a neat provision. That is why refuges are required. There is not a neat one-size-fits-all approach. I am aware, as I am sure colleagues are, of situations where it is not feasible and certainly not in the victim's interest to return to her home, and it is predominantly her home, particularly in rural areas. Peculiarities about the homestead or home parish need to be taken into account. We know there is demand from Women's Aid…