I have very little time left, but I want to put on record that the woman in question was abused by an Army officer using military equipment and surveillance technology, which is extremely scary. She made a complaint, which has never been pursued. She found out that a court martial was taking place but it was about smaller charges that were nothing to do with the woman or the other woman either. The feeling of the victim was that this was being facilitated, like an organised pay off of this predator. This may not be…

This man said of one woman that he would attach her to a concrete block. He said of another that he would set fire to her. Should this person be getting a pay off from the Army? No, of course, he should not. He should have been put on trial. We have to end a situation where these military prosecutions are secret and where the Minister for Defence does not even have the right to intervene. In a letter to the victim, the Minister said that such matters were internal to the Defence Forces and that she had no statutory…

Next Wednesday, the trial continues of the Ulm five, including the Irish citizen, Daniel Tatlow-Devally. A delegation of TDs and Senators, including me, will attend the trial in Stuttgart next week. The Government was asked to monitor the trial and on 21 May 2026, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, said, "We will ensure that there is fair oversight of this trial." A senior counsel who attended the trial wrote to the Minister and other Ministers on 22 June to state that there is no official record being taken at the tria…

I will cut to the chase here. The reason for the digital divide is that the Department of education has introduced a syllabus, particularly in senior cycle in secondary school, which has such a high level of assessment, 40% in many cases, that school principals have decided that students need laptops. It is because of the new syllabus the Department has introduced. There was a very good article by the RTÉ education correspondent on this in January. What is happening in schools is that Wriggle and other companies ar…

I will deal with two of the amendments in a moment, but first I add my voice to those who have already made the point about the modus operandi of how this Bill was developed and evolved with the adding of extra issues again and again. The last night, on the counselling notes issue, every Opposition party recognised it should have been dealt with as a separate issue because of its importance to survivors and because it was the Minister's first Bill on court processes. He has introduced other legislation, including J…

That did not happen in the recently reported case involving a former Fianna Fáil TD. He was not called up to testify.

I am just asking why it did not happen in that case. Was it because it was about parole? Is there a difference in that case?

It does not seem to have been fully applied. We definitely need to discuss this topic again.

I welcome the introduction of Jennie's law. I commend her brother Jason on all of the campaigning he has done over a number of years to bring this about. My hope it will at least bring a stigma to what is called domestic violence. There has not really been the kind of stigma there should have been over the years. I want to put this in context. Women's Aid released its report recently. It shows a 33% increase in violence in the home against women in 2025. That is a 33% increase in disclosures. We do not know if this…

There have been two femicides this week in Ireland, a femicide being the killing of a woman because she is a woman. The femicide count in this country has officially surpassed the total of last year and it is only July. We send our solidarity to the loved ones of Adina Constantin and Jamey Carney. Yesterday, the Taoiseach said that figures on violence against women are going in the wrong direction, but what has the Government actually done about them? The most basic thing the Government could do is properly fund th…

The Minister said there should be more resources. Why are there not? There is a budget surplus of €10 billion to €12 billion and the Minister is boasting, or saying, that it is sufficient to give €18 million to Cuan, which is the same as the racehorse industry gets. We have seen that this is a public health emergency. The rape crisis services should not be charities. They should be public services in our health service. Why should people have to go bag packing for a 24-hour helpline or whatever it is? The Too Into …

It is terrible.

I thank the Social Democrats for bringing forward this really important topic about older and disabled people, and what kind of home they can have. The current system is completely unsatisfactory. Older and disabled people are generally in private nursing homes run for profit. I spoke to a parent before this debate about the situation in my constituency. Her son, who gets respite four nights per month, was not able to get that respite for months because a client with severe needs was being accommodated and the whol…

The Taoiseach is being very defensive.

Nobody has.

Transgender, non-binary and intersex people face discrimination and persecution worldwide. This Saturday, Trans & Intersex Pride will march in Dublin at 2 p.m. I have drafted a Bill, the non-binary and intersex recognition Bill, which I am hoping the Government will support, to give legal rights to such people. It recognises a non-binary gender in the gender recognition certificate - an X marker. It would allow parents the option of an X marker if their child is born with intersex characteristics, something that fo…

I do not sit on the housing committee, so this has come like a bolt from the blue for anyone who does not because of the suddenness of these changes. I will give some practical examples because this will cause absolute chaos for councillors and TDs who are at the coalface of dealing with the housing crisis. They are the least of my worries, obviously. I am worried about the people who will be affected. I am really shocked to read just now about all of the bodies that have condemned this legislation and the Minister…

Is the Minister saying the parents should be put in an IPAS centre?

You are unbelievable. You really need to get a grip on yourselves, the way you talk to the Opposition.

You are so sexist as well. It is only women you ever say that to.