I thank the Minister of State for his response. The good news is since 2024 the retirement age is up to 62, as he clearly stated. My ask is for the retirement age of 62 to be increased to the pension age of 66. I do not see an answer to my Commencement matter, as such. I ask the Minister of State to take back my seriousness on this matter. He outlined that many personnel have gone into the fire service since the introduction of the new work conditions, contracts and so forth, but my ask is to extend that 62 to 66, …

I ask the Minister for housing and local government to amend regulations governing the retirement age for firefighters to allow those who remain medically and physically fit to continue serving until the State pension age of 66. Approximately 3,300 firefighters are serving in Ireland with more than 2,000 serving as retained firefighters. They staff the vast majority of our 217 fire stations and are the backbone of the fire service in rural and regional Ireland. They respond to fires, road traffic collisions, floodi…

I welcome the Minister of State to the Seanad this morning. My Commencement matter is about the need for the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to make a statement in support of the recent proposals made by the Vintners Federation of Ireland in its pre-budget submission for budget 2027. I was in the audiovisual room last week where there was standing-room only for the presentation by the Vintners Federation of Ireland to Oireachtas Members. It was looking for support for the businesses its members oper…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. It is really encouraging. He said that the proposal merits careful consideration. That is one thing I can take back to the Vintners Federation of Ireland, its members and local families. I grew up in a pub. I have three nephews who are in the pub business. I can see the struggles and the hardship. Every cut goes onto the price of a pint. I will again put this in football terms. Ballymacelligott won the all-Ireland junior club final. There are two pubs in the village. An …

There are too many pubs in Dublin.

On his first day on duty as the Leader of the Seanad, I too congratulate Senator Ahearn on his promotion. It is also a very proud day for his family who are here today including his father, brothers Liam and Scott, Laura, and Jamie and Daniel, who are the sparkle of this guy's eyes when they are not here. We are delighted to have them here as distinguished guests. I ask the Government to recognise the vital role that wet bars and traditional pubs play in communities across Ireland and to provide meaningful support …

It had to be done.

I was unaware of that to be honest. I must get a copy of The Irish Times . I welcome the Minister of State to the Seanad. I wish to raise with him the urgent need for the provision of an additional Road Safety Authority driving test centre in north Kerry to serve communities such as Listowel, Ballybunnion, Tarbert, Moyvane, Ballyduff and surrounding areas. It is a huge area. At present, County Kerry is served by just two main test centres for standard driving tests in Tralee and Killarney. This is despite the fact …

I thank Minister of State for his response. As he can see from my data and his data, it is evidently clear that a driving test centre is needed in the north Kerry area. The Minister of State said that the 14-week wait time in Tralee, which is three and a half months, and the 13 weeks in Killarney are improvements on the 16-week average wait times for both centres. Most of the people who are waiting in those areas are from north Kerry, if the Department wants more data. I urge the Minister of State to contact the RS…

I welcome our distinguished guest, the Portuguese ambassador, to the House this morning. I also welcome Councillor Peter Feeney and his special guests and all of the guests in the Public Gallery this morning. Today I want to raise the issue of limited access to driving test centres in north Kerry and seek a debate with the Minister for Transport on the provision of additional driving test capacity in rural north Kerry and throughout the country. At present residents of north Kerry must travel to Tralee or Killarney…

I welcome the Minister of State and I acknowledge the work that has been done. This is reform. It is the best thing that has happened. We have had a housing issue in this country for the past number of years. I congratulate the Minister of State on the work he has been doing in this Government. With all the toing and froing, this is welcome news. Most importantly, Kerry, which I proudly represent, was said to be, even today, and I circulated this recently, the third best county to live in. It reflects the very stro…

If I could be allowed to come back in again.

I welcome the ambassador to the House. I hope he enjoys his stay. I thank the Minister of State for taking this Commencement matter. I raise the proposed primary care centre for Cahersiveen in deep south Kerry and seek a clear and detailed update on its current status and the next steps. This project is of major strategic importance to the Iveragh Peninsula. The centre will bring a comprehensive range of services together under one roof, including GP care, public health nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy,…

I thank the Minister of State for taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. Indeed, I compliment the response. I look forward to the completion of this process. Obviously, the assessment is the outstanding aspect. I again ask the Minister of State to contact the Department and the Minister to double down on this and bring it to fruition. The next step for the people of Cahersiveen and the Iveragh Peninsula is to find out where this primary care centre will be loc…

As the good weather arrives, people naturally rush to our beaches, lakes and coastline to enjoy the sunshine. Too often, however, many go into the water without fully understanding the real dangers that can exist beneath the surface. Calm waters can change in moments. Strong rip currents like we have in north Kerry, cold water shock, hidden tides and sudden water changes can turn a day out into a tragedy within minutes. Sadly, there has been an incident recently that has devastated a family and shaken a community. …

I welcome the Minister to the House. I thank him and his Department and acknowledge the work they do. For the past 18 months it has probably been one of the best-run Departments, due to many factors, so I want to put that on the record. Many of the commitments that were made during the programme for Government, which include reducing the cost of education, improving access and building a strong and modern third level system, are under way in all Departments. During the past year, real progress has been made. We hav…

I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for coming to the House to take this matter. I tabled it in order to get the Minister with responsibility for sport to make a statement on the growing concern that top-level GAA matches are increasingly being placed behind paywalls despite the significant public funding the GAA receives from the Exchequer. This denies thousands of ordinary supporters access to our national games. There is growing anger and frustration about the GAA's decision to put the major championsh…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I respect everything he said about being proportionate, the GAA and values, broadcasting rights, commercial views and rights and all that. However, the one thing I did not get is that we need to start engagement with the GAA. We need to call it into the sports committee within these Houses and open this conversation up. This Government is doing its best to support the GAA across the country and so has every other government. They have kept pitches and clubhouses open …

It was never about profit, though.

Best of luck to Kerry. The Minister of State did not mention that.