I call the Acting Leader to announce the Order of Business.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding arrangements for the address to Seanad Éireann by Mrs. Mary Robinson, former President, on Wednesday 12 June 2024, to be taken without debate on conclusion of the Order of Business; No. 2, Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024 - Second Stage, to be taken at 3.15 p.m. and to conclude at 5.30 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed 15 minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed 12 minutes, all other Senators not to exceed six minutes and the Minister to be given no less than 15 minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 3, Research and Innovation Bill 2024 - Report and Final Stages, to be taken at 5.30 p.m. and the proceedings thereon, if not previously concluded, to be brought to a conclusion after two hours by the putting of one question from the Chair which shall, in relation to the amendments, include only those set down or accepted by Government.
Before I call on Senator O'Loughlin, I welcome to the Distinguished Visitors' Gallery Michelle Roberts, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, who is joining us today and is accompanied by her husband, Greg Roberts. They are very welcome this afternoon. Céad míle fáilte go dtí Teach Laighean. Welcome to Leinster House. I thank them and I thank the ambassador, Gary Gray, for his great work in strengthening the friendship between our countries. I thank them for being here this afternoon.
I welcome Breda and Liam Disney from County Kildare, who are guests of Senator O'Loughlin. A little bird has told me that Breda is retiring from her position as a mathematics teacher at Patrician Secondary School in Newbridge. As the clock ticks to the end of the school year, which is always fraught with tension, I can see the years lifting off her face. She is delighted with life. I wish her well. As a former múinteoir myself, I know the feeling of heading towards the summer holidays, but she is not going to go back. I thank her for her dedicated service. I know her students will have benefited from her wisdom, care and ability to teach mathematics. Congratulations, a mhúinteoir, and happy retirement.
I join the Cathaoirleach in his words of welcome to our distinguished guests and, of course, to Breda and Liam. Breda and Liam are here because I supported a cancer fundraising event at Patrician Secondary School in Newbridge that raised €6,000 in memory of a wonderful person who worked in the school, Cathryn Shaw. If you knew Cathryn, you knew somebody who was full of love and full of friendship. She always had the biggest hello, the biggest smile and the biggest heart. The school is bereft without her. She died quite suddenly earlier this year, shortly after receiving a cancer diagnosis. I want to let her family know we are thinking of them. I refer to Sandy, Gary, Mark and all her siblings, and particularly her sister, Mary and her good friend, Dee. Her memory and legacy will live for a long time in Patrician Secondary School and the town of Newbridge.
There was a guy hanging around Dublin this weekend. I got to see him in Croke Park on Sunday night. This was a certain Mr. Bruce Springsteen. There was a debate on the radio this morning about ageism and what we need to do as we grow older, but to see a man of Bruce Springsteen's age giving a concert as he did was something else. I raise this issue because he mentioned my hometown of Rathangan during the concert, because that is where his maternal great-great-grandparents came from. The mayor of Freehold, Kevin Kane, was in Rathangan over the weekend. We planted a copper beech tree there because Bruce Springsteen’s great-great-grandmother, Ann Geraghty, brought a seed of copper beech tree from there. This was the tree he climbed and sat under and which meant a lot in his life. Bruce, of course, visited in the last 12 months. They are building a new museum dedicated to Bruce Springsteen in Freehold, but there is a wonderful opportunity to use some national funding to develop that twinning and friendship so we can mark Rathangan as a spot for tourism and link it with Springsteen.
I also want to give a shout-out to and congratulate 12 parents’ councils of primary schools in south Kildare, which have come together. Today they have launched their campaign to have no smartphones for children in their schools. It is significant that this call is coming from parents. We all know that generally this is a matter of peer pressure and young people say that to their parents. We know the dangers of smartphones for young people in terms of security, content, access and bullying, so I want to commend them. I hope that other schools will join them.
Another issue I want to bring up is in relation to school transport. Curragh Community College is presently taking an extra 35 students from Newbridge and 106 from Kildare town. There was no school bus there. There will be a new school in McKee Barracks to cater for all of these. The tender has gone out, but we need to see a school transport programme in September for these.
I also would like to welcome the Speaker, Michelle Roberts, and her husband, Greg, to the Distinguished Visitors’ Gallery. I briefly had the pleasure of their company earlier this afternoon. I sincerely hope their visit to Leinster House is enjoyable and informative. I say that on my own behalf and, indeed, as chairperson of the Ireland-Australia parliamentary friendship group.
Members of the group will visit County Clare over the next few days. I have no doubt that they will take the opportunity to visit some of the county's lovely attractions. It is on that note that I want to raise the issue of water safety and tourism. I was delighted that the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys, visited Loop Head lighthouse and officially opened the visitor centre at Loop Head lighthouse. The initiative was championed by Councillor Gabriel Keating and it is now a must-see attraction in west Clare. The project very nicely complements what the Minister also opened, which is the Burren Centre in Kilfenora and celebrates the huge tradition, recognised throughout the world, of the Kilfenora Céilí Band The investment and the product interpreting the Burren that people can see when they the Burren Centre in Kilfenora now is incredible. These centres are all part of what I call are gold-plated tourist attractions to complement the world-renowned Cliffs of Moher visitor experience.
However, water safety is one issue we need to debate in the House. I have said for a long time that water safety should be a compulsory module at primary and second level education because young people need to understand the pleasures and enjoyment that swimming and water sports bring but they also need to respect the fact that water is way more powerful than any of us human beings and needs to be respected. In particular, water needs to be respected when there are red weather warnings, and when the emergency services, the Coast Guard and lifeguards advise people not to swim, surf or engage in water sports. We need to consider legislating so that when people ignore warnings that becomes a criminal offence.
It is great to see Senator Clifford-Lee as Acting Leader. I ask that before the recess we have a debate on water sports and water safety. Part of that debate should be about what we should do to legislate to protect people and the people who work in emergency services, and see what we can do through the education system to make young people more aware of not just the beauty of water but to treat water with the respect it deserves and, indeed, the safety that is required.
I join with the Senator in congratulating Councillor Gabriel Keating on his pioneering initiative. He is a wonderful county councillor.
I also welcome our guests from Western Australia. They must be surprised that we enter the water with the temperatures we have here, but we do in great numbers.
I want to raise again the issue of the waiting list for scoliosis surgery and all the multiple issues with Children's Health Ireland. I am very disturbed to read in the newspapers and online accounts of more small boys and girls, who are really suffering because of the extent of their spinal curvature. Their parents are putting up pictures of them because they are absolutely desperate for help and an intervention that does not seem to be coming. One young girl was told that her lung function is now 45% and because there was not a surgical intervention within the therapeutic window, she will never have full lung function. I know, as a parent, when your child's lung function is compromised. How can we accept in this republic, when we are awash with money, that a disabled child is told, "Hard luck, your lung function will remain at 45%"? I ask everyone to think how life altering and life -limiting that is. I am also hearing that there are similar issues with the urology list. Urology surgeons who are trained in the United States to the highest international standards are telling me that the interventional pathways for urology are not being implemented in Ireland and we are outliers. For young disabled men and women who go through adolescence, their little genitals are not developing properly which will lead to infertility, erectile dysfunction and a lack of an ability to have a normal sexual relationship.
This is so cruel. It also rapidly and dramatically increases the risk of colorectal cancer and other cancers. We are doing this to disabled children. What is going on?
I also see under CHI's watch the massive overruns with BAM, the construction company. It has completed its works on time and on budget with Intel and other massive infrastructure projects, so what is going on with CHI? At every level, there needs to be a very thorough risk assessment of the moving of very vulnerable patients from Temple Street and Crumlin hospitals to the new children's hospital. I do not have confidence in that.
I have asked the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, to come to the House for Commencement matters. He does not come into this Chamber. For that reason, we need to table a debate to get in here the Minister or the Taoiseach, Deputy Harris, who has set up a Taoiseach's committee on disability, to answer these questions. The surgeons tell me that if one were to put our children onto an Airbus and fly them to Canada or Boston, it would cause an international scandal because the international medical community would look at them and ask what country would allow children to deteriorate to such an extent. We are complete outliers and we need answers.
I wish to raise a matter of deep disappointment. A news story has broken in the North that the Sinn Féin finance Minister, Caoimhe Archibald, MLA, has rejected all climate change funding bids from her ministerial colleagues - every single one of them. We await the detail of those bids from freedom of information, and we know about the perilous state of finances in the North and, of course, the terrible climate-biodiversity record of the Northern Ireland Executive parties. It is easy, and it is often their refrain, to point at the big island next door and blame the Tories. I accept that austerity, Tory ideology and over a decade of cuts have certainly played their part, but surely there must be some culpability for parties that have been running the place for 26 years. Surely, with 26 years in and out of government between the five-party Executive, those parties must bear some responsibility for both the perilous state of finances and their environmental record.
As for that environmental record, Northern Ireland is the 12th worst place in the world for species loss. We emit the highest per capita emissions on these islands. Zero of our 495 rivers, lakes and coastal plains meet a good standard. We have the largest illegal dump in western Europe, with no investigation into how it happened, despite the Assembly agreeing a Green Party proposal for a public inquiry. That is before we talk about stagnating recycling rates, air pollution deaths and nitrates in our soil. Our environmental record in the North is shameful. Can we look to the big island and blame all that on the Tories? I do not think we can. We have to accept some local culpability for Ministers who have been in and out of government for 26 years.
I raise this issue today in this House because we know that joint action on climate and biodiversity in both jurisdictions of this island is imperative. The climate and biodiversity crises do not recognise man-made borders. We know this island is a single biodiverse unit and we must address, on an all-island basis, the issues of energy transformation, species loss, water and air pollution and transport revolution in order that fewer people are reliant on private cars. The Executive in the North must be our key partners in this approach, and that is why I raise this today in this House. Unfortunately, 108 days in from a returned Executive, there is no programme for government, no finalised budget, despite it being the end of May, and no legislative schedule. Today, we hear that the Sinn Féin finance Minister has rejected a measly £28 million for climate change projects. That is the paucity of ambition from the Northern Executive on taking climate change seriously, and that is the response of a Sinn Féin finance Minister. I try to remain the optimistic hippy but today I find it hard to be.
It is good to see the Acting Leader. I welcome our visitors from Western Australia. I know they are no longer with us. My son is in Australia at the moment. It is very important we continue to have links with Australia, and it is great to see our visitors here.
I also congratulate Breda Disney, as the Cathaoirleach did, on her service in a school in Newbridge. I congratulate her and Liam and wish them the best in retirement.
I want to raise the Housing Commission report, which was leaked or published - we are not sure which - this morning. The report states that this country needs a radical strategic reset of housing policy and calls for emergency action to address the housing deficit. It states we will need between 212,500 and 256,000 homes, based on the 2022 census figures. That is an average of 56,000 homes per year between 2025 and 2034. One of the report's 83 recommendations is that a housing delivery oversight executive needs to be established to drive co-ordination across legislation, regulation and administrative practice. I ask that the Minister for housing come to the House to debate this very important report. Senators on both sides of the House have been raising housing issues for the past four years. We are all out knocking on doors at the moment and housing is the number one issue I am hearing. The lack of housing comes up every evening when I am out canvassing.
I think the Croí Cónaithe grant is a very good scheme but unfortunately only 100 houses were completed under the scheme last year. We need changes to the Croí Cónaithe grant to ensure that the almost 160,000 derelict and vacant homes can be brought back into family use. This is an issue for so many people. For many of the 20,000 young people who have gone to Australia, housing was an issue. That is why this report has called for a radical reset. When Deputy Bacik proposed building 50,000 housing units per annum, it caused a lot of merriment but the Housing Commission has gone further in saying we need 56,000 units per annum. I would welcome it if the Minister for housing were to come to the House to discuss this very important report.
I also wish to raise meals on wheels services. We are all aware of great organisations which run meals on wheels, including in Kildare South. Unfortunately, many of them are stretched beyond their limits. I have encountered families who are considering putting their loved ones in nursing homes, etc. because they cannot cope with their meal demands. What is being offered to some families is a great service but we need to expand it and concentrate on areas where there is a demand for meals on wheels. I congratulate those providing the service at the moment but we need additional funding for those who need to keep their loved ones at home. We all want to do keep them out of hospitals and nursing homes.
I raise the passing of Tony O’Reilly, or Sir Anthony O’Reilly to give him his full title. Ireland’s agriculture and food sector will be forever grateful for his genius in establishing Kerrygold, Ireland’s premier food and international brand. Tony had the vision and ambition for Ireland and understood and recognised the great loyalty of the Irish diaspora. His Kerrygold premium brand used his marketing skills when marketing was not recognised as a science, as it is today. He did so to tell the story of Irish agriculture, the Irish dairy sector, the green isle and the story of Ireland and its food. That connected strongly with the Irish diaspora. To this day, wherever we go in the world, we can pick up Kerrygold. I have picked it up in Germany, Spain and America but it is all over the world.
I had the pleasure of meeting Sir Anthony O’Reilly on several occasions. My abiding memory of him will be of his ambition for Ireland on the international stage, both in business and sport. He worked hard for reconciliation and the importance of prosperity for all. He set up the Ireland Fund with Dan Rooney, president of the Pittsburgh Steelers, which raised millions of pounds for many causes on this island. The fund they established continues to support many cross-community projects today. I extend my sympathies to the O’Reilly family.
I renew my call for statements in the House on the shared island initiative, which Tony O’Reilly was very supportive of.
The Tánaiste and leader of Fianna Fáil and, indeed, the Government have wholly embraced it. It is an important issue. It relates very much to his work but it has gone way beyond that. Again, I ask that we organise to have statements on the all-island initiative.
May I be associated with the Senator's comments about the late Sir Anthony O'Reilly and sympathise with his family on his sad loss? I thank the Senator.
I thank the Cathaoirleach. Unfortunately, Clonmel has been in the news in recent days regarding some incidents that have happened on a site on Heywood Road. This is a site that has been earmarked for 82 modular homes for Ukrainians. Unfortunately, someone who was working on that site was injured, hospitalised and stayed overnight. There have been a number of incidents there. Certainly, the view within Clonmel, from canvassing in the area and meeting locals, is there is huge frustration within the community. No one is condoning what happened or the actions of the people who were on the site and used violence. However, there is a huge level of frustration within the community of Clonmel. Ordinary, decent people are very concerned about what has happened. There has been a huge lack of communication between the Department - whether it is the HSE or the Department of integration - and the community. The council seems to have distanced itself from any decision-making on this. I am not sure whether that is the case but it certainly seems the council believes it has nothing to do with it, that it has to do with the Department and the HSE. There is a real lack of trust within the community in that area that this has been decided upon without any consultation. There is also fear that the only hotel within the town of Clonmel, Hearns Hotel, will be used. It has now been acknowledged, even though the new owners of that hotel denied it a couple of months ago, that it is in the process of being considered for accommodation for international protection applicants or asylum seekers. Clonmel feels as though this is all being done extremely quickly. I refer to these two sites being used, the only hotel in the town centre and the site on Heywood Road. The level of violence that has been seen there, I will be very brief-----
The Senator's time is up.
-----but this is important to say because people on the ground know this. The level of violence that has happened has to be condemned but that will not stop. There is a community and there are neighbours there who are willing to do that and more, if things do not change. There needs to be better communication from the Department or someone will get seriously hurt.
I thank the Senator.
Regrettably, I am now convinced that the politicians in this Cabinet have no interest in making policies that serve people in Ireland. In the village of Coole, County Westmeath, a hard-fought victory was achieved last week. Eighteen modular units were prevented from being added to a site which already had an IPAS contract for 12 units. An enforcement order by Westmeath County Council was in place to stop these additional modular units being added. People within these communities are sick of the reckless mismanagement, where one hand of the State does not know what the other hand is doing.
On 25 April, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, stated that the Department of Justice's plans to turn Thornton Hall into a prison were still under consideration. However, an announcement last Thursday shows it will become a centre for IPAS accommodation in the form of tents for asylum seekers. To be clear, no one wants to see anyone in a tent in this country, not an Irishman in a tent nor indeed anyone seeking refuge or protection. This is a product of a shameful cycle of poor planning and inhumane living conditions imposed on people, offering no solution to Ireland's many ongoing crises. The site of Thornton Hall is wholly unsuitable for any temporary accommodation. For comparison, St. Ita's, Portrane, is a far better site for such a setting. It has an approximately 165-acre facility. It is vacant and simply needs refurbishment. Thornton Hall is a reckless solution. Housing and migration issues are among the top concerns of every citizen. The public is crying out for sustainable, long-term solutions and the Government is letting the citizens down. The Housing Commission report today shows an underlying deficit in Ireland of 250,000 homes.
It is a shameful indictment of this Government that our political system is failed. Any vote given to a politician who supports the EU migration pact will only add to these problems. We need to create national laws for national solutions to our unique national broken migration and asylum system. The Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, and his Department have either no will or acumen to fix our broken migration system. We need a stand-alone Minister for migration to be immediately instated, where all Ministers are accountable to them. The system cannot continue as is and it needs a dedicated Minister if we want real solutions, instead of this reckless approach.
In 2019, Glaslough village in County Monaghan was crowned all-Ireland Tidy Towns champions. It is customary for the President of the day to visit the winner as part of its celebrations. Unfortunately, as we know, in 2019 Covid was among us and that visit did not happen. However, last Saturday, President Michael D. Higgins and his good wife Sabina stood over a commitment and came to the village. It was a beautiful, remarkable day. In many ways, Glaslough is a remarkable village. Everyone turned out, from the very young to the not so young. Nearly the entire community is involved in Tidy Towns and the village is an absolute credit to them. It is not the first time that Glaslough village experienced national success. In 1978, it was also crowned all-Ireland champions. It was fitting that a number of people who were on the committee that day in 1978 were present at the function last Saturday morning. As was said at the event, the main stakeholder back then was a gentleman called Paddy Connolly, who unfortunately is no longer with us, but it was nice that Paddy was recognised on the day. To the people of Glaslough, I say “Well done”. They are an absolute credit. To the Acting Leader, the Cathaoirleach and all the Members who have not had the pleasure of visiting Glaslough village, if they can take time this summer and come for the weekend, I trust they will be highly impressed by it. If they let me know when they are coming, we might organise a cup of tea or coffee for them.
I thank the Senator for the invitation.
I welcome the announcement by the Land Development Agency and Limerick City and County Council earlier this week regarding the 183 affordable homes that will be provided in Mungret College. They have gone out to tender and the process is starting. They expect to be on site before the end of the year. This is certainly a good news story for the area of Mungret, which is expanding quickly. A number of companies have located within the Mungret area in recent times. These 183 affordable homes is good news for the people in the area.
I also welcome that as of yesterday, 20 May, new regulations have come into play for e-scooters. E-scooters can no longer use footpaths but also cannot go into pedestrian areas and fly through them. I note the number of scooters we are meeting on footpaths in my area of Limerick. It is an issue especially for older people. Somebody got hit recently by one of the scooters and injured themselves quite badly. I welcome the fact it is now illegal to use these e-scooters on the footpath but also the fact that passengers cannot be carried on board as well. Somebody used to go past my house every day with two children on board on the main road and it was dangerous. I welcome the news that these regulations have come into place since yesterday and I hope they will be implemented as quickly as possible.
Go raibh míle maith agat a Chathaoirligh agus a Threoraí Gníomhach. I passed the portal as I was walking through town today and it is great to see it back up and running. Two security officers are there minding it. We will be a better country and a better city when we do not need people to mind it because it is a great amenity and I hope it lasts.
I am ambivalent on the question of hunting.
I could be described as a pacifist perhaps because of my physique. I only ever fired a gun once in my life. That was in America where it is almost compulsory but it was at a non-animate target; I do believe in the importance of process and consultation.
The Senator fired a few of them in here.
I hope it was not a human target. Sorry, I thought you said non-animal. My apologies.
Non-animate or inanimate. It was a clay pigeon if the Cathaoirleach must know. The National Association of Regional Game Councils, NARGC has made a very good point about the issue of consultation regarding decision-making about hunting. Last September, the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien and the Minister of State, Deputy Malcolm Noonan, following limited consultation, removed four species of duck from the open season order. This in effect banned them from being hunted. My point is not about the rights and wrongs of that decision. Rather, it is about the question of how decisions are made on wildlife and hunting issues and whether rural interests are properly consulted and included in the process. I am talking about farmer representatives and the likes of the NARGC. I think this organisation is the leading voice of the sports and rural pursuits sector, with a membership of some 25,000 people. As with the recent issue I raised about the banning of electronic training collars for dogs and cats, the question is not just about whether it should happen, but whether everybody is being consulted before a decision is made or whether we have government by insiders, where only some stakeholders are heard before decisions are made. In the past the NARGC had a close working relationship with former responsible Ministers like Jimmy Deenihan and Deputy Heather Humphreys. The organisation says that there is no longer such consultation. The review of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, recommended a new nature advisory committee. This was supposed to be established by 2022 but has not been. In September 2023, the Minister and Minister of State referred to plans to establish a separate sustainable hunting of wild birds stakeholder forum. This has not happened either. There is an urgent need to establish the proposed nature advisory committee so that all relevant voices - from rural interests to environmental NGOs - are consulted about these important decisions. I do understand the importance of hunting to the rural economy. As I said, I have ambivalent feelings about it. I am very much an animal welfarist but I do believe that decisions cannot be made unless there is proper consultation with all the interested parties.
I raise a parochial or county matter about an organisation that has come in for a lot of heat over the past few weeks. I am curious because the GAA gets quite a lot of funding from the Government. It came up in general conversation with some members recently in the Mullingar area how Cusack Park is constantly overlooked as a venue, particularly for certain Leinster games. We had teams from Longford and Dublin pass by Mullingar to go to Tullamore to play a minor final last night. Congratulations to the Longford team on their great, exciting win. However, it seems crazy that they would pass a venue that would have easily been able to cater for the crowd that attended the match. The round robins are coming up as the Cathaoirleach is well aware as Cork are going so well in both codes. With the next tranche of games coming - the qualifiers - perhaps Mullingar could be used as one of the neutral venues and for some of the other under-age games, going forward. I am curious what criteria the GAA uses at present. I know there has been a lot of discussion about the GAA recently and the fact that it receives a lot of funding from the Government. I know there has been a call to bring the representatives from the organisation into this House to debate the issues. We could do with some clarification as to when that might happen.
I thank the Cathaoirleach. The deadline for the increased cost of business, ICOB, grant is coming up on midnight next Wednesday. It is wonderful that the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke, and Government have decided to extend this grant but I want to ask that all local authorities - the ones that manage the rates' payments - are ensuring that a reminder is issued. Businesses need to receive a letter. If they have not already applied, that letter should be sent out again to businesses. It does not have to be by post, it could be by email.
The letter header or email should state the customer ID number and the PIN code the business needs to get the details to apply for the ICOB grant.
Although it is a simple process, as it is not an application as such, when businesses are uploading it, they need to upload a bank statement from within the previous three months. Seemingly, this is a strict requirement. I encourage businesses, individuals and enterprises that are applying for this fund to take a photograph of a bank statement, with the IBAN and BIC numbers, and upload it against their application form. This issue is creating queries to us.
A substantial amount of funding has been paid out under the ICOB grant. The fund is there to benefit businesses. More than €250 million has been allocated to the ICOB scheme. If there are businesses that have not yet applied, there is an onus on us to ensure they receive a reminder and engagement from the rates offices at our local authorities, many of which are doing a great job.
I have done a lot of work in my area in Roscommon and east Galway around the green for business programme, under which businesses can apply for a free energy audit. Arising from whatever recommendation is made, the business can apply for an energy efficiency grant of up to €10,000 for lights, heating, a new fridge and so forth. The limit was previously set at €5,000. Galway County Council’s local enterprise office told me that increased numbers of applications have come in from Ballinasloe in east Galway. While I am delighted to see that, we need to see more. I reiterate that the deadline is midnight on Wednesday, 29 May.
I raise the work of physician-staffed helicopter emergency medical services as opposed to paramedic-led emergency care. A lot of our focus is on having access to air or road ambulances which primarily aim to get patients to hospitals and emergency departments in a timely manner. However, in other countries, they bring the hospital to the scene of the emergency, whether that is at the roadside, in a home, on a farm or in a workplace.
The UK, including Northern Ireland, and other European countries, dispatch helicopters, which are staffed by specially trained doctors, to the sites of serious incidents like road traffic collisions or where there has been serious trauma, such as a knife or gunshot wound or a workplace injury. Northern Ireland has had this service in place since 2017. A review of the first five years of the service in Wales found that 63% of patients received pre-hospital care that would not have been available from a standard ambulance crew; the number of patients dying from blunt trauma injuries was 37% lower than it would have been if they had been attended by an ambulance service only; and medical intervention was, on average, between 29 and 41 minutes faster than a standard 999 response.
Life-saving treatment can be provided by physicians that paramedics and medical technicians cannot provide, such as surgery, emergency anaesthetic, blood transfusion and the management of airways which can alleviate the impact of trauma and prevent brain injury. Just 6% of treatments occurred pre-hospital in Ireland last year. I ask that the Minister of Health, Deputy Donnelly, as a matter of urgency, meet an Irish consultant expert group of helicopter emergency medical service doctors who are working abroad and have practical and cost-efficient recommendations on how to bring this life-saving service to Ireland and maybe save 300 lives per year. There is an opportunity to look at an all-island solution as well in relation to North-South co-operation.
Iarraim ar an Seanadóir Carrigy. Gabhaim comhghairdeas leis as an mbua iontach oíche aréir.
I thank the Cathaoirleach. It would be remiss of me, as an avid GAA man, as the Cathaoirleach knows, not to congratulate Longford's under-17 team on its fantastic victory last night in Tullamore. We defeated Dublin to win our fifth Leinster minor title. It was a fantastic display which went to extra time. We stopped the capital city which was looking to win three in a row at that level. Longford is a small but proud county and we bat above our level on numerous occasions and last night was one of those occasions. We secured our fifth minor title in more than 120 years but it is our third in the past 22 years.
It was fantastic to be there in Tullamore with my oldest son and to travel back to Longford for the homecoming celebration outside the courthouse in the town where, over 50 years ago, we welcomed back our 1966 National League-winning team and our 1968 Leinster senior championship-winning team. It seldom happens in a small county but days like yesterday are what the GAA is all about. It is about every county striving for that opportunity to win a title. Last night was one such opportunity and I want to send my congratulations to Enda McGahern, the manager, his management staff, all of the players and their families. They did us proud last night. I am normally 6 ft 2 in, but as I was leaving Tullamore last night I was about 6 ft 5 in. It was a fantastic display and a very proud day for Longford.
The Senator did not need GAAGO to see it either.
No, it was on TG4 but it is better to go and watch a match live.
I also want to comment on the news emanating from Cabinet with regard to the setting up of a fund similar to the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, to support families who have to get an assessment of their child's needs and pay for services such as speech and language therapy or occupational therapy where the State is unable to provide them. This is something that I have been advocating for some time and have raised as a Commencement matter previously. It is also recommendation No. 27 in the report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Autism which was published last year. I am delighted to see that the Government, supported by the Taoiseach, has put this fund in place so that we can support families who have to pay for private assessments of need and various therapies where the State cannot provide them. It is a very positive day.
I thank the 15 Senators who contributed on the Order of Business. Senator O'Loughlin, on behalf of the Fianna Fáil group, was first and she spoke about Bruce Springsteen and his connections with Rathangan. I was suffering from major FOMO over the weekend looking at absolutely everyone I know, including my husband, going to the Bruce Springsteen concert while I was at home. Between that and Girls Aloud, I think I was the only person in the country who did not go to a concert at the weekend. I am in favour of supporting and recognising our diaspora, especially the ones who have achieved greatness like Bruce Springsteen, and the museum in Rathangan is something to be supported. I commend Senator O'Loughlin on her work in this regard.
The Senator also mentioned the parents' councils in 12 schools in south Kildare that have come together in relation to smartphones. As a parent, this issue is on my mind as my children are getting older. It is something that all areas should take a look at and we should encourage it. The Minister for Education has said she would like to pursue it with schools. I commend the schools involved in south Kildare.
Senator Conway raised the issue of water safety, which is really important, and made a crucial point about it being part of the education system. I was struck by something a number of weeks ago when tragedy was averted in Dún Laoghaire during one of the storms. A girl was swept from the pier but because she had received water safety training, she lay back and went into the starfish position and survived, which was a complete miracle. Everybody should have access to water safety education, especially as we are an island nation.
Senator Clonan raised the issue of scoliosis surgery and urology waiting lists. As I have said in this House and outside it, these children have been, and continue to be, failed by the State. I support the Senator's call for the Minister for Health to come to the Chamber to provide an update on the new national children's hospital because we would all like to know what is going on there. However, he is incorrect when he says the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, does not come into this Chamber; he comes in quite a bit.
Senator O'Hara raised the issue of the Sinn Féin finance Minister in the North rejecting climate change measures. I am not surprised by this. The Senator pointed out that it has been 108 days since the Executive returned but there is still no programme for government. We listened for a number of years to Sinn Féin representatives saying that they wanted to get back to work and that they were ready, willing and able but there seems to have been very little done since the Assembly was re-established, which is very disappointing.
The Housing Commission report was raised by Senator Wall. We should perhaps have some statements on housing in this House because a lot of progress has been made. I live in north County Dublin, where there is ample construction going on but there are different issues. We have exceeded targets but perhaps the targets need to be higher. I think the Minister said he is always willing to go high - the targets are not the top point; he wants to go beyond them. I support a debate on housing. Senator Boyhan mentioned Sir Anthony O'Reilly and the amazing work he did. I was sad to hear of his passing. His mother was from Balbriggan and I know his family there. What he did for the agri-food industry was remarkable. When Hollywood stars say their favourite food product is Kerrygold, you can say he did something very good for this country. I support Senator Boyhan's call for statements on the shared island initiative. We should also send our sympathies from this House to the family of Sir Anthony O'Reilly.
Senator Ahearn raised the issue of modular housing and Senator Keogan raised a similar issue directly after that. Both Senators raised their frustration with the lack of consultation. They both said they support a humane approach. I think Senator Ahearn travelled to Ukraine. He knows the desperate situation facing the people there and what has driven them to this country. I contend that many of the other asylum seekers in the country are fleeing awful, brutal circumstances as well. It is not good enough that people are in tents; nobody supports that. The Government is doing the best it can in an extreme emergency situation. It has been an emergency for two years now. It was completely unprecedented. These numbers have never been seen before in the country. We must do our best to provide a humane solution. Violence and attacking people on sites where modular homes are going in cannot be excused. Consultation needs to happen with communities but for some people, no matter how much consultation there is, they will object to it, resorting to violence and burning down hotels and other awful acts of vandalism which can never be stood over. Senator Gallagher raised the visit of the President to Glaslough in County Monaghan last week. I am fortunate to have visited Glaslough. It was not a recent visit but I would like to get there over the summer. Senator Maria Byrne raised the 183 affordable homes being built in Mungret. It is a fantastic number. We are seeing those kinds of numbers replicated across the country. The people who are able to access those affordable homes are delighted, from those I have been dealing with.
Scooter regulations were long overdue. We are all aware of stories of people being injured on scooters or run over by these scooters. It is great but enforcement needs to happen. When we see people on scooters on footpaths, we as citizens need to remind them that is not on anymore. Senator Mullen raised a valid point about the nature advisory commission. A Commencement matter debate would be a suitable way of bringing that forward. It is an important point. Senator Davitt raised Cusack Park in Mullingar. It is a fine venue. I have been there. I do not know why it has been overlooked by the GAA. Perhaps it can be taken up with the Oireachtas committee that deals with sport. Senator Dolan referred to the increased cost of business grant and the looming deadline. A letter from this House to the Minister for housing and local government to ask local authorities to send a notification and notice, as she advised, is a sensible suggestion.
Senator Currie raised an interesting point. It is something I would like to get more information about.
I suggest that a Commencement matter or a letter to the Minister would move this point along.
I express my congratulations to Senator Carrigy. Coming from Waterford, I know what it is like to be the underdog and to lose. It is always a great time when you actually have a victory. On the fund he mentioned, we need to do more for the parents of children with additional needs. It is not on. He made a really good suggestion.
Is the Order of Business agreed? Agreed. I welcome to the Visitors Gallery a guest of Senator Carrigy, David Freeman from Longford, who is home from England. He is very welcome. Céad míle fáilte.
Order of Business agreed to.