Last Wednesday, the Traveller committee published a damning report on Traveller health inequality. The statistics show extreme levels of inequality due to systemic discrimination, racism and neglect by the State. The statistics speak for themselves. Suicide rates for Travellers are six times higher and infant mortality three and a half times higher, while life expectancy is over a decade shorter for Traveller women and 15 years shorter for Traveller men. These statistics are alarming, but all we have gotten is sile…

This weekend, tens of thousands of people will march through the streets of Dublin for Dublin Pride. Dublin Pride is a really good party, but it is also a protest and a call for progress. Sadly, under the Tánaiste's leadership, we have not seen any progress. We are now consistently ranked 14th in Europe in terms of LGBT human rights and policy protections year after year. I will give one example, namely, the commitment to ban conversion therapy and conversion practices. It was included in the programme for Governme…

I too welcome everyone in the Gallery, including many former colleagues of mine who work in LGBT organisations across the country. They do phenomenal work every single day supporting people in the community. I thank them for their work; it is greatly appreciated. Pride is an important time of year and a very good celebration. It is also a protest and a time to call for progress. Sadly, we have not seen the kind of progress we need to see on these crucial issues. Sometimes when I listen to the speeches of Government…

I move amendment No. 2: In page 27, to delete lines 5 to 39, and in page 28, to delete lines 1 to 7 and substitute the following: “Retail packaging of nicotine inhaling product and nicotine consumption products 32E. (1) Subject to Regulation 29 of the Regulations of 2016 and subsection (6), a unit packet of a nicotine inhaling product or a nicotine consumption product intended for sale by retail in the State shall comply with the following requirements: (a) the outer surface thereof shall be a prescribed colour; (b…

If I understand the Minister of State correctly, what she is suggesting is that the Government did not think about this and neglected to address this part of the legislation, thereby leaving a hole in the law. We now have to proceed because if we address this, we will have to go to the EU to get permission to do so. There is clearly a gap in the Bill, and there is no explanation from the Minister of State as to why this was not dealt with in either the first draft or the original notification to the EU. I accept th…

I am not convinced that we should not be doing this now. As I said, we will be back here trying to do it anyway. I do not see a reason for that, other than the fact that there would be a delay. That seems to be part of the EU process. It appears that we will have to legislate in any event and will be back here with another Bill. I do not accept the argument from the Minister of State that we are only hearing about these matters now. My party and my colleague Deputy Whitmore have raised this point repeatedly in the …

I have.

Yes.

I move amendment No. 3: In page 28, to delete lines 8 to 39, and substitute the following: “Flavour names of nicotine inhaling products and nicotine consumption products 32F . (1) Subject to subsection (2), a person shall not sell by retail a nicotine inhaling product or nicotine consumption product with a flavour name. (2) Subsection (1) shall not apply to the sale by retail of a nicotine inhaling product or nicotine consumption product with a flavour name specified in the Schedule. (3) Subject to subsection (4), …

The proposed public inquiry into Children's Health Ireland is in a state of crisis. At the weekend, two of the advocacy groups representing 900 families pulled out of the scoping inquiry. They did this because they have not been provided with information they need to meaningfully engage with the terms of reference. We called on the Minister to provide this information in March; she has not done so. We need statements in the Dáil this week from the Minister on what steps she will take to get this important public in…

I have very deep concerns about the operation of the Special Criminal Court. The right to a fair trial is a fundamental human right. The lack of juries and the operating provisions of this court are undermining that right to a fair trial. The Minister of State, Deputy Ardagh, and her Government are undermining people's human rights here. The Special Criminal Court was set up in 1972 as an emergency provision. Over 50 years later are we still saying that we are in a state of emergency in the State? There are clear e…

I welcome this debate and thank Sinn Féin for putting forward the motion. It is a really welcome debate and it follows on from the work done by the joint Oireachtas committee and the report we published on this matter. I sometimes wonder if I live in a different country when I hear some speeches from Ministers talking about the money they have invested and that their ongoing investment shows their commitment to delivering services, progressing reforms and addressing challenges. From what we have heard tonight, none…

It is welcome that the issue of rare diseases is on the political agenda. It has been neglected for far too long. In a large part, it is thanks to the advocacy of parents and families as well as political allies within the system here. Members of the health committee, including Deputy O'Sullivan and Senator Teresa Costello, have raised this issue consistently. One of the things I find quite difficult as a health spokesperson is the fact we are constantly hearing from families and individuals who have to come to Lei…

If I picked the Minister up right, I understand the HSE leadership has signed off on that. We want to know when drugs will be in the hands of patients. For those boys, every day without treatment means further loss of muscle functions. Some boys who were able to walk a year ago have since lost that ability. It is heartbreaking for parents to watch as their children's symptoms progress, losing their independence and mobility, especially when effective medications exist. It is also crucial that the eligibility criter…

On behalf of the Social Democrats, I am delighted to welcome this Bill and say we will be supporting it. We support access to free, safe and legal abortion. We need to trust women, listen to them, provide care with compassion and remove barriers to access. There are currently too many barriers to accessing terminations in Ireland, and the three-day wait is a core part of that and needs to be removed. We are strongly in support of that. As others have said, the three-day wait is medically unnecessary and insulting t…

I will speak for two minutes. I welcome the disregard amendments. I was delighted, on behalf of the Social Democrats, to sign the cross-party Opposition Bill, with Deputy Ó Snodaigh and others, to advance this issue. It is also an issue I campaigned on before my election to the Dáil. I welcome these amendments and thank the Minister for bringing them forward. It should not have taken the State 33 years to get to this point; it should have happened much sooner. However, we welcome that it has happened. As I said pre…

At yesterday's health committee we learned something very concerning. Consultants on public-only contracts are continuing to do private work in the Rotunda Hospital. This is despite the fact that treating private patients in public hospitals is a breach of their contracts. It is worth mentioning that these consultants are very well paid for giving up private work, with salaries of up to €260,000, and that is just the basic pay. This is not just about a breach of contract. It is completely at odds with our national …

I move: “That the Bill be now read a Second Time.” I am delighted to bring this Bill to Second Stage. It is pretty straightforward legislation, which would amend the Public Health (Alcohol) Act to ensure that the restrictions on alcohol advertising were fully enforced to the letter and spirit of the law, as intended. Members will remember that, back in 2018, the Oireachtas passed the Public Health (Alcohol) Act. It was landmark legislation that began to change the relationship that we in this State had with alcohol…

Deputy Cummins in her speech said she was disappointed; I am frankly furious. No disrespect to the Minister of State with responsibility for AI, but we have a senior Minister and three junior Ministers in the Department of Health and not one of them could stay for the debate. It shows the lack of interest the Government has in this issue. It shows a complete disrespect for the House and for the issues before us that not a single Minister in the Department of Health could stay here for what has been a debate of abou…

It is three months since the Social Democrats' GP plan was unanimously passed by the Dáil, yet we are still waiting on the Government to progress any real reform of GP services. The strategic review of general practice was to conclude within nine months but it has now taken over three years. The minimal changes introduced in recent years fall far short. Take for example the social deprivation practice grant, which was reformed earlier this year. Under the new grant, none of the Dublin inner city practices in the De…