The Order of Business is No. 1, Control of Exports Bill 2023 – Second Stage, to be taken at 3.15 p.m. and to conclude at 5.15 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 2, statements on senior cycle reform, to be taken at 5.30 p.m. and to conclude at 7.00 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Today is Germany’s national day. I welcome to the Public Gallery the deputy head of mission at the German embassy, Mr. Christian Resch. I thank him for being here. I know the ambassador is busy this afternoon. On my behalf and that of the Seanad, I congratulate the people of Germany on their national day. It marks the day of German unity. I hope Mr. Resch, who is only at the beginning of his time in Dublin, has a very successful posting.
I add my voice to the welcome to our distinguished guest in the Visitors Gallery. My town, Newbridge, has a really good twinning with Bad Lippspringe in Germany. A group of about 70 will leave on Friday morning to go over and join in the festivities. Unfortunately, I cannot be with them on this occasion but have had many good trips there. I hope they all have an excellent time.
This is positive ageing week. It is important that we encourage our older people, who are not much older than me at this stage, to have a positive outlook on life, keep fit and healthy and engage fully with life. With that in mind, yesterday I had the opportunity to visit 80 people in Newbridge active retirement. I thank Brian Newman, the chairperson, for the opportunity to engage and talk about issues that are important to all of us in our community and country. We discussed many issues. One that merits further conversation is that as we get older, our nutritional needs change. Some of us develop allergies along the way too. Those who are coeliac - and there were a number of such people present yesterday - talked about the cost of gluten-free products. They are about twice the price of normal products. Gluten-free bread is about twice the price and it is the same for biscuits, cakes or anything of that sort. They feel, and I agree, that it is important we should look at some type of subvention for them. I would appreciate if we could take that up.
Last week, I had the opportunity to attend an event at the invitation of the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, in the National Gallery. Women make up half the population but according to esteemed historian Bethany Hughes, they occupy only about 0.5% of all recorded history. The Minister has set up a committee, and fair play to her, to look at representation of women in our national cultural institutions, museums, galleries, archives, etc. We know women’s voices were marginalised historically so this is a welcome initiative to engage with that imbalance. I wish the committee well and maybe that is something we can look at again.
The final point I want to raise is about how yesterday evening I had the opportunity to meet with residents in Suncroft Community, which is only a few miles outside Newbridge and Kildare. There is no proper bus service there. Senators will often hear me speaking about rural transport services and why we need to connect people, such as pensioners going to collect their pensions and young people needing to get the bus and train to third-level education. One mum is spending €20 per day on a taxi because she is working. Therefore, the upcoming budget will need to include sustainable public transport and our rural links.
On today's Order of Business, I want to raise the issue of a proposal that is contained within a Green Paper on the reform of disability services to medically assess disabled citizens on the basis of their capacity to work. We all know, in the context of the awful scoliosis and spinal surgery scandal in Children's Health Ireland, CHI, that is emblematic of how disabled citizens, both children and adults, are treated in the Republic of Ireland.
Having children on waiting lists for years until they are in extremis is not practised in any other European Union state. We are outliers in that regard, but it is emblematic of how we treat disabled citizens in general. Access to therapies, interventions and surgeries are delayed and are very often absent. Treatment and therapies delayed are young lives denied. Based on the statistics, there are tens of thousands of children languishing on waiting lists for very precious medical interventions. We know this. We have been reporting it at the committee. We have been highlighting it in the news media. We are blue in the face from talking about it.
In this context, the Government decides that it would be a great idea to medically assess the 225,000 citizens who are on disability allowance on the basis of their capacity to work. Who in their right mind would think that was a good idea or that it would help disabled citizens? This is one of the worst countries in the European Union to have a disability, and this is the big idea. Where will they get the medics? At the moment, disabled citizens cannot get to see a doctor, surgeon or therapist. Where is the Department of Social Protection going to get these doctors to medically examine the 225,000 people?
This is a system that was brought in as an austerity measure in the UK in 2008 and which has been thoroughly brought into disrepute. It has led to a surge in suicides among disabled citizens across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland, this has been to such an extent that, last year, BBC Northern Ireland did a special "Spotlight" programme to put focus on it.
I want to bring this to the attention of the House. I am hoping to have a debate on it in a Private Members' motion. I must say, I am disheartened to imagine that, at this moment of crisis for disabled citizens, this is the idea that has been brought forward. It makes no sense and it will actually generate a great deal of harm. Disability allowance should be a non-means-tested, universal allowance. It barely meets the cost of disability. It is the right thing to do. It is the humane thing to do.
As we will all be aware, we are having many meetings at the moment with different constituents and groups ahead of budget 2024. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting with Aoibheann Lynch, who is the principal of St. Peter's National School, Dromiskin, along with Andre O'Connell, who is a primary school teacher in St. Joseph's National School, Dundalk. Both Aoibheann and Andre outlined some of the priorities of the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, INTO, and, in particular, of teachers in County Louth. I wanted to bring them to the attention of this House ahead of the budget next week.
The first main point that was raised was the pupil-teacher ratio. The pupil-teacher ratio has come down in Ireland. We are down to approximately 22.8:1 at the minute, which is good, because it has come down from 24:1 down to 22:1. However, the average European pupil-teacher ratio is approximately 20:1. We still need to get there in the next couple of years. I know it will take two or three years, if not four, by the time teachers are trained up and come through. However, that is what we have to aim for because, when there are 20 in the class, students will really flourish, as will teachers, because they will have the ability to really influence the learning of students.
Interestingly, they told me that 18% of students in primary school are in classes of 30. Such classes are too big to encourage that type of learning.
The second issue is the restoration of the 2,400 posts of responsibility that were removed in 2012. I refer not to school principals or deputy principals but to assistant principals. An assistant principal is able to help with a lot of the heavy lifting in the primary school environment. The role also provides a really good career path for teachers who want to get an additional level of administrative experience to enable them to become a deputy principal or principal. That was a very clear request that was put to me by both Aoibheann and Andre yesterday.
Another request is for an increase in funding or the amount of money provided per pupil to schools. That would allow for things like electricity, heating, maintenance and pay for caretakers to increase. It would go a really long way towards improving the situation in schools.
Finally, a call was made to improve school-based mental health supports for children. This was also raised last year and is really important, particularly over the last four or five years. The INTO is asking that €20 per pupil be provided for mental health supports for children in primary school. I am sure that is something that everyone in this House will agree is really important.
It is good to be able to put these concerns on the record of the House today. I know the Department of Education, the Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, are taking these concerns very seriously. I hope to see some positive action in the budget next week.
Houseboat owners along the canals throughout Ireland are concerned that their permit fees will shoot up as Waterways Ireland drafts updated by-laws for these communities. The proposed steep hike in annual fees being considered would lead to people paying 12 times the amount they are paying at the moment. County Kildare is the nerve centre of concern, with a large number of houseboat residents residing at Sallins, Lowtown, Hazelhatch, Confey, Maynooth and Kilcock. Any proposed changes must be rooted in an appreciation of the stability of family life, the intrinsic tourism benefits and the ongoing economic contribution made by these communities.
The passenger barge skipper at Sallins, Mr. Ger Loughlin, accommodates approximately 5,000 visiting passengers per year who are only delighted to visit the beautiful canal areas of Kildare and see the unique collection of boats. I know first hand a number of these people who are deeply concerned about their choice of living. Some of them I proudly know from my college days. Indeed, the Cathaoirleach is also a past pupil of Maynooth University. I refer to good, talented people like Mr. Alan Holland, Mr. Gerry Gleeson and his family and Rolandis and his partner Laura. Mr. Ronan Herron, a native of Donegal, and his wife Lorna, have described, in today's newspapers, the concerns of houseboat owners as "palpable".
Apart from the proposed registration fee hikes, there is a concern that the existing closely-knit communities will be given guarantees of tenure if a new issuing permit system is introduced. Housing expert Rory Hearne said that for or some people, houseboats are a lifestyle choice but for others, they are cheaper form of housing. He argues that significantly increasing what houseboat owners have to pay in a short space of time seems ludicrous at a time when emergency accommodation is full.
I am calling on Waterways Ireland not to rush this but to tread carefully and sensitively, to work with the people affected on the front line and recognise their needs. Houseboat owners recognise that the by-laws are 35 years old and need updating, but at the heart of any revision and review of those by-laws must be real people, real living and real concerns.
This morning I had the pleasure of meeting former comrades from the SIPTU trade union alongside people from Age Action Ireland, the National Women's Council of Ireland, the Irish Senior Citizens Parliament and Active Retirement Ireland.
They are all part of the Pension Promise campaign. These very effective campaigners brought us the Stop 67 campaign before the most recent election. That campaign had a tremendous impact on the election. Outside the gates of Leinster House today, they are basically calling the Government to account over the promise it made to bring pensions up to the equivalent of 34% of average earnings. That commitment is in the programme for Government. Like so many other promises this Government has made, it has clearly been abandoned. Right now, achieving that equivalency would require an increase of €53 in pensions. We all accept that will not be practicable to achieve in the budget, but the lack of planning during this Government’s term in office to hit that target is entirely unacceptable, particularly when one considers that one in five pensioners is at risk of poverty, as we know from the 2022 survey of income and living conditions. One in three pensioners living alone is at risk of poverty. Those figures have dramatically increased due to the cost-of-living crisis. I wish to hold the Government to account for the promise it put in its manifesto but has clearly abandoned. I am calling for a debate on this topic. We need to debate how we can improve pension payments sustainably for everybody. That promise needs to be kept. A roadmap needs to be made to ensure it is kept.
The second issue I wish to raise is that of early years educators. There are real difficulties at the joint labour committee at the moment. It seems that the employer side, including the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, which was outside these buildings last week, proposed a pay increase of 65 cent for early years educators. In other words, instead of getting the early years educators getting €13 an hour, which all present would agree is entirely inadequate, the employers are proposing €13.65. That is not in any way acceptable. I did not hear that message last week when they were outside the gates of the Parliament. It is clear a sustainable pay rise is needed to enable people to have a career in early years education. It is interesting to note that the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, said he allocated €200 million for pay increases in the budget last year. According to SIPTU, only €55 million of that has been spent on pay increases. There is a real difference between what the employers’ group is saying, with its offer of a pay increase of 65 cent an hour, and what the unions are saying. It is clear we need to move to a publicly funded childcare model. That is what the National Women’s Council of Ireland, NWCI, has called for. My party, Sinn Féin, has been seeking for that to be done for some time. That is the debate we need to have in order to secure a real future for childcare and early years educators. Let us have that debate in this Chamber as soon as possible. We cannot sit through another budget where workers on the front line continue on wages that are entirely unacceptable in this day and age.
I will follow on the theme raised by the Senator. Last week, providers closed their crèches for the day and took part in a campaign outside the gates of Leinster House. The previous week, however, the NWCI held the Purple for Public campaign. A significant amount of work has been done on this issue by the NWCI and SIPTU’s Big Start campaign. The childcare crisis is not new. It has been going on for many years. We know thousands of places throughout Dublin are closing down. Why is that the case? It is because childcare has been left up to the ebb and flow of the free and private market. My local crèche in my constituency of Dublin South-Central closed last year. A new planning application has been lodged for the site but it does not include the provision of a crèche. Instead, it includes the provision of a private gym. The private childcare system has failed. Parents are exhausted from months of stressing about securing affordable childcare. Children are being ferried out of their communities to scarce services. Staff are worried about whether their facilities can continue to run and are in low-pay, precarious jobs. We need a new model that guarantees affordable, local and secure childcare for every stakeholder. That cannot be delivered through the private system that is currently being operated. It must be a public system, akin to how primary schools are operated. Staff should be on public employment contracts with fair wages, children should be guaranteed a place and parents should not be price gouged. We should not be relying on private developers to provide those facilities, some of which are completely inadequate. Instead, just as the Department of Education does for schools, there should be forward planning for childcare needs and then the provision of those facilities.
The only way we can guarantee secure, affordable and accessible childcare is by letting the State intervene and it being the leader in it, funding, managing and creating more childcare options in our community. If the Government fails to step up on this, it is failing parents, children and workers in the childcare sector across the country.
Well said.
We will now move to two-minute slots, and I remind Senators that it is one item per Senator from now on. I call on an Seanadóir Timmy Dooley.
I wanted to address the budget and to have a quick debate on a couple of issues within the budget. The Leader will be well aware that many primary schools are under enormous pressure with the level of capitation that are receiving. It is really putting them to the pins of their collars. I have spoken to numerous principals in recent weeks about the pressures that exist. They really do need our support and I hope we see something in the budget. Anything the Leader could do in that regard would be helpful.
There is also a situation in some communities where because of the decisions the State has taken - which were the right decisions - to house Ukrainian people and those seeking international protection in hotels and accommodation, tourists have been dislocated from those regions. There are many small businesses who are not accommodation providers but are depending on the tourists to stay in those facilities. Their businesses have been decimated as a result. It was the right decision by the State in the first instance but we now need to support those businesses to get through the period of time until the war ends and many of these people are able to return to their homeland. We hope that happens sooner rather than later. There is a need in this budget for a package of support.
I am also taken today - I will conclude on this, Cathaoirleach - by the profession of barristers, and in particular criminal barristers, who are working in criminal law. I am sure the decision they have taken was not taken lightly. Protesting is not in their DNA. In my view, they are entitled to receive a return to the remuneration they had prior to the fiscal cutbacks that were put in place a decade ago. Nearly every other profession, including our own, has seen a slow and gradual return to pay levels. I know they deserve their restoration. It is never an easy thing to do but we have done it for every other profession. We have done it for the medical profession, for politicians across the board, and for civil and public servants. It is time we did it for people who really have such an important role in society. What we are sadly seeing, as in other areas, is people drifting from the profession. That is not good for the rule of law in this State, if we see well-trained, well-qualified and appropriately-skilled people drifting off to other areas. There will be long-term damage unless we address it.
The Senator definitely stretched the budget to one item there.
No comment.
I thank the Cathaoirleach, and I might try my skills at doing the same. I want to raise with the Leader today the plight of our section 39 workers. We have, not just in my own area of north County Dublin and Fingal but probably in every county, organisations that are filled with nurses, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, support people and healthcare workers. All of them are expected to work for a fraction of the amount of wages we pay in the HSE or section 38 organisations. The reason this is such a crisis at the moment is that it is not just about pay anymore, although it would be enough if it was just about pay. I do not know how a young nurse, and it is mostly women in this sector we are talking about, is expected to provide 65% of the State services - that is the sector that is to grow, not the HSE-provided services - and to work for less than a nurse in a section 38 organisation such as St. Michael's House or the HSE. We have young women mainly, supported by administrative staff, trying to grow services. The source of ire that is there at the moment is not only the pay discrimination but also the fact that they are the source of recruitment for the HSE and the section 38s, and because of that, we have services that are not able to continue offering their services. They are telling us we are at crisis level and I do not believe the State is actually standing back and listening to them.
In 2018 and 2019, when I was actually in Government, we started negotiations on pay when it was only about pay. It was disingenuous of the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly in recent weeks - and not just the Minister, but also the Taoiseach - to throw back in the faces of those people, who are providing services for the most vulnerable in our country, that they already have been offered a pay deal and have not taken it. They absolutely know, and everybody knows, that it is disingenuous and disgraceful to offer them less money than we pay in the civil or public service for exactly the same work. I ask the Leader, in light of the fact that we have a budget in seven days' time, to use her good offices to talk to the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the Minister of Health and tell them that without these people, and without paying them properly, we will not be able to provide services, particularly in the disability sector.
We will have ten of thousands of people on the street, who normally just suffer in silence looking after their own families, giving out to us that we are just not doing the right thing
I would like to raise the issue of child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, which Senator Joe O'Reilly brought up last week. The Inspector of Mental Health Services has said that she cannot currently provide an assurance to all parents in Ireland that their children can have access to a safe, effective and evidence-based mental health service. I agree with this assessment. Young teens from the age of 12 to 15 seem to be caught in this loop. They cannot quickly access services, whether it be Pieta House, SOSAD or within CAMHS. They have to seek private psychotherapy, so they are caught. There is phenomenon going on at the moment. Parents need to be aware of it. It is on TikTok. It is all over Snapchat. It involves teenagers and children as young as 12 years of age cutting themselves and inhaling various substances, including deodorants. Having had kids in care, I know that anything that can be inhaled to give a high, such as deodorants, glue or laughing gas, has to be locked away from children. Communities are seeing discarded laughing gas and helium canisters when picking up rubbish around their towns. Many teenagers - children as young as 12 - are inhaling these substances. We had a death a couple of weeks ago of a young girl in County Clare. Sarah Mescall lost her life because of inhaling deodorant. This is a real issue that is affecting teenagers. Parents really do not know what to do when something like this happens to them. They do not know where to reach out to for help. They call services and doctors. The doctors are at a loss as to what to do because they cannot get these children into CAMHS. It is getting harder and harder to access private psychotherapy. Community leaders are left to try to see how they can try to pick up the pieces for these parents. I am making an urgent call before any more lives are lost. Covid has had a detrimental effect on the mental health of our teenagers and younger children. We have not grappled with the problem and we have not tried to provide solutions for the affected parents and teenagers.
I want to welcome the main man, Gerry McGreehan, my dad, to the Seanad. It is a nice day for me to see my father sitting in the Visitors Gallery.
I want to highlight a local issue and then a budget issue. I note the end of an era. Seamus Murphy and Sons, a local petrol station that had been in business since 1959, closed on Saturday. Seamus senior, Niall and Seán have served the community of north Louth very well. I want to wish them and their family the very best of luck. They received a wonderful send-off from the community on Saturday evening at their petrol station and shop. There were cakes and everything. The community wished them all the best and thanked them for their friendliness and their service over the years.
I also want to raise the section 39 workers. It is a serious issue. We are at crisis point in this regard. We have health and community workers employed by community and voluntary sector employers, funded by the HSE and other State agencies across the country. I believe there are 5,000 workers in this situation at the moment. They are underpaid and undervalued. We really need to start looking at them because they are an integral part of our disability services, mostly. If we let them fail, I do not know how the State will pick up the pieces. It is disgraceful that the same workers are being discriminated against in one section by comparison with another section. These highly trained and very dedicated people are being undermined and undervalued. It is about time that the section 39 workers received equal pay and acknowledgement for the incredible work they do.
I welcome the Senator's dad to the Public Gallery. I thank him for all his service to the people of County Louth. He can be extremely proud of your commitment to Leinster House and your dedication to your job as a Member of Seanad Éireann.
I too would like to support the section 39 workers. We all know the phenomenal work that is done by many of these workers.
It is a great pity to see that they are out on dispute. I sincerely hope this will be resolved as soon as possible.
I wish to raise just one more issue quickly. I call on the Minister for Transport to provide funding to Irish Rail to upgrade the Ennis–Limerick railway line, particularly at Ballycar.
It is very important but the Senator is straying into two items.
Year in, year out, the line has been closed at certain times of the year due to flooding, and people have ended up getting a bus from Ennis to Limerick and back. People buy a train ticket expecting to get a train. It is a wonderful service. For a few million euro, this problem could be resolved forever and a day. It has gone on long enough. The railway line from Limerick to Galway, via Ennis, is one of the fastest-growing lines in the country and therefore the investment is needed and should be made.
I thank the Senator. His brevity was welcome. I call Senator Horkan, who has two minutes and may raise one item.
I thank the Cathaoirleach. I hope you will allow me to wish the German people the very best on their national day, which is today.
Yes, that is allowed.
That is not part of my official contribution but I am very much supportive of the Germans in this regard. The links between Ireland and Germany have been very important for a long time, but particularly since Brexit.
We need an important discussion on air quality in Ireland. This is not me having a go at turf, anything to do with turf or fossil fuels generally; it is just about particulate matter. There are many discussions going on about this. The Irish Heart Foundation has produced a very significant report on air quality in Ireland. While it is generally quite good, it could be better. There is a lot we could do in both urban and rural areas through how we deal with our cars, including electric vehicles, and fossil fuels generally. We need a debate with the Minister responsible for the environment, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on where we are going regarding air quality. We talk about an increase in the number of road fatalities, the number being above 100 and heading towards 200, but it is estimated that 1,700 people die prematurely from poor air quality in Ireland each year. We have very significant asthma issues. It is really important that we have a debate here on what we are doing and what we are not doing that we should be doing regarding air quality. I urge the Leader to take on board my call for a debate. Sorry, Leader-----
I heard every sentence.
Good. You are being slightly distracted by Senator Mark Daly.
Time is up.
That is fine.
Through the Chair.
Through the Chair, but I just want to make sure-----
I assure the Senator that-----
The time is up.
It is very important.
Do not be falling out, lads.
Air quality is a serious issue and I would like it to be debated sooner rather than later.
Tá an t-am caite. Go raibh míle maith agat. I call Senator Byrne, who has two minutes and may raise one item.
Like others, I congratulate the nation of Germany on its national day.
I want to raise the story by Ferghal Blaney in the Irish Daily Mirror concerning the HSE's property portfolio. It does not surprise me that so many HSE buildings are underutilised. One of the buildings I have been referring to in this Chamber is the former HSE clinic in Camolin, County Wexford. This building was closed nine years ago, in 2014, much to the annoyance of the local community, and no action was taken by the HSE. It let the building sit there. Finally, in 2018, four years later, the HSE stated it would approach various local agencies to ask them whether they wanted to make use of it and that, if they did not, it would put it on the market. By May 2022, in spite of several inquiries, nothing had happened. I tabled a Commencement matter on the issue at the time. The response stated the title of the property was then being checked. Therefore, eight years after the building was closed by the HSE, it was questioning the title of the property. By the end of 2022, we were still in circumstances in which nothing had been done about the building. The HSE said it was still looking into the title of the property but that it was considering making it available for Ukrainian families.
This was welcomed by the local community. The community in Camolin is very welcoming. They were pleased that after eight years something would finally be done with this building. However, in spite of the several inquiries I have made of the HSE this year, nothing has happened. I have no confidence in the HSE property section to properly manage buildings around the country. We urgently need a debate on that subject.
I call Senator Craughwell who has two minutes to address one topic.
The Cathaoirleach will forgive me if I also congratulate Germany on its journey.
I will allow that today.
There has been much talk about the capture of the drugs vessel off the coast of Cork. We rightly commend the Defence Forces, the Garda, the Revenue and everyone else who was involved on their work. There was fantastic co-operation across the board. However, have we thought about what would have gone wrong if there had been weapons on board that ship and the helicopter involved in the operations had come under fire? Have we considered what would have happened if the helicopter had crashed into ship and the loss of life that would have occurred? The situation could have been worse than the Niemba massacre in the Congo. How can anybody hold his or her head high after running the Naval Service into the ground? The Cathaoirleach has expressed concerns to me about the Defence Forces. I know he does what he can in the background. How can anybody in Government circles and the Department hold their heads high and speak about the bravery of our gardaí and the members of our Defence Forces when we are running the system into the ground? We are buying hardware but for what? There is nobody to use it. Perhaps we could have a debate with the Minister for Defence at the Leader's convenience.
I must raise a second issue.
The Senator cannot do that.
Senator Dooley mentioned pay restoration-----
Thank you.
-----and the fact that barristers deserve it. He said politicians had their pay restored, but we have not. There are still long-term increments outstanding.
Thank you.
Ours is the only profession with those outstanding. I am not afraid to say it in public. I do not care.
I appreciate that. We did have pay restoration. We might not have had the incremental increase but we should be accurate.
I would appreciate it if Members stuck to the two-minute limit and spoke to one item. I do not make the rules. They are made by the House. I have been trying to inform Senators of that for a long time. Senator Mark Daly, who was here, has tried to do the same. I was probably guilty of not adhering to the rules. Unless we revisit the rules, they will stand.
This morning, along with hundreds of my colleagues at the criminal Bar, I stood outside the Criminal Courts of Justice on Parkgate Street in an unprecedented demonstration of dissatisfaction by barristers over their pay. I know the issue has been mentioned. That action was repeated outside courtrooms throughout Ireland by people who work in the criminal justice system in small towns in every county of this country. They both prosecute and defend crimes of a very serious nature in our system. Without them, the system cannot work. Sometimes when we talk about the lack of fairness in the context of criminal legal aid payments, we forget that these people are central to the operation of a system that protects the victims of crime, upholds rights and ensures that people are held accountable for what they have done. It is incredibly important.
I do not understand why this problem has not been fixed. I do not know what Senator Craughwell was referring to when he spoke about politicians because criminal barristers and solicitors are the only group for whom the cuts made during the financial emergency over 12 years ago have not yet been unwound. Every other person who appears in a court during a criminal trial has had his or her pay put back to where it was. Criminal barristers, supported by the wider community of lawyers in Ireland, brought a demonstration today because they are at the end of their tether. In 2018, there was a joint report by the Department of Justice and the Director of Public Prosecutions. It had nothing to do with barristers. That report established that reforms have been made by barristers in line with reforms by other sectors of the public service and that they deserve to have their pay cuts unwound. That was five years ago. Nothing has happened since.
We are now a week away from the budget. The demonstration that took place today was fair and respectful. I know the Leader is acutely aware of the situation. I hope the Government will take account of it and take the necessary steps to bring fairness to the pay scheme because our criminal justice system will be damaged if the situation is not resolved.
I congratulate Katalin Karikó from Hungary and Drew Wiseman from the US who won the Nobel Prize for medicine for their work on the mRNA vaccines.
I want to speak a little about the story behind this and about these two researchers who moved to the US and who fought for funding. They then worked at BioNTech SE. BioNTech SE is a couple from Türkiye who moved to Germany and were first-generation migrants. They studied, did research and were able to develop BioNTech SE. They then worked with Pfizer to develop the vaccine we now see today.
One should look at the international nature of where all of these researchers have come from, which we see in Ireland across all of our universities, and at how international so many researchers who come and work here are. This is the same as with so many of our researchers who go to work abroad. Investment in research and excellence, these chance encounters, and the opportunities scientists have in new countries, all point to researchers who never gave up.
Dr. Karikó did an interview with the Nobel Prize organisation, I believe, yesterday and spoke about how she was persistent all the time. She never gave up on this idea of mRNA even though she could not get funding in the university or in the United States, but she never give up. She was totally dogged in her determination that success lay at the end of the rainbow. As a result of this and what she has done, we have seen this Nobel Prize result today.
I would also like to highlight that Ireland, with Science Foundation Ireland, is fourth in immunology. Our researchers won €85 million from Horizon Europe which is recorded in the 2022 annual report that has just been issued. I also want to point out that as spokesperson on innovation and research, investment in academia is crucial. It is not just academia but it is investment in start-ups coming out of campuses, venture capital to do clinical trials and commercialisation. All of these are parts of the puzzle that we, in Ireland, have to be able to deliver in order to have impact with research. I thank the Cathaoirleach so much for this speaking time.
I thank the Senator, commend her on her comments and congratulate both Nobel Prize winners. The Nobel decision was a very insightful one. I watched a clip of the news last night and I saw some of the scientists from UCC. It was a powerful piece and I thank the Senator. I call the Leas-Chathaoirleach, Senator Daly.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach. I join with him in marking the day of German unity, the 33rd anniversary of which occurs today. It is important to acknowledge the role Ireland had in that fateful decision by the European Union to support reunification because it seemed to come at a thunderous pace and Europe was catching up. It was in Dublin where the European leaders came together and with the leadership of our Taoiseach at the time, they made the decision to support German reunification.
Of course, we had the Taoiseach in the Chamber last week and he has spoken, as have many others, on this topic. There is much we can do to work with our colleagues in Germany to learn the lessons they had to learn, and at a very fast pace, together with the mistakes they made.
There is a great line which, I believe, Bismarck said which was that the poor person learns from his own mistakes but the rich person learns from other people's mistakes. We need to learn the lessons of German reunification.
Bearing in mind that despite all of its complexity and the challenges Germany had, the people of Germany came together and supported it. Germany to this day does not know what the financial cost of this has been but, as many commentators have stated, that is not the issue. The issue is the magnitude of a people being divided and eventually, through the historic consequences of glasnost and issues beyond their borders, which is a bit like Brexit in our own situation, leading to a journey that is still ongoing. On this day, the small role which Ireland played in that should also be acknowledged.
I concur with the remarks by the Leas-Chathaoirleach in marking the day that is in it with regard to German reunification.
Senator O'Loughlin spoke about this being Positive Ageing Week 2023, and on not just the challenges of getting older but also the positivity which should be around in reaching that chapter in life. She reiterated her support for a women's museum in the country and mentioned the meeting she had with the Minister in this regard. She raised a local issue with respect of transport and Irish Rural Link for elderly persons.
Senator Clonan spoke, as he often does, about citizens with disabilities. He is a very passionate speaker in that area and, obviously, has a great amount of personal experience. He made certain remarks around the disability allowance and assessing the capacity to work which I believe were well made. Senator McGahon spoke about the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, INTO, budget briefing and the calls from that sector of education to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio.
We will be having a debate with the Minister, Deputy Foley, on senior cycle reform at 5.30 p.m. today and there will be an opportunity to discuss education in the round so those issues can be raised with the Minister.
Senator Martin spoke about houseboat owners and the review of fees being charged by Waterways Ireland. He has asked for a more incremental increase in fees as opposed to a large increase in one go, which is a reasonable request to be considered.
Senator Gavan spoke about SIPTU, Age Action and the whole area of pensions. It is interesting to note that I have yet to see a particular process or policy from Sinn Féin as to how it would achieve the levels the Senator has asked for but he did at least acknowledge that a considerable amount of money is required to get to the increased pensions we want. We have seen an increase in pensions every single year under this Government. The upcoming budget will be no different. We know that we need to support our vulnerable citizens and our elderly. We need to ensure that people can support themselves with proper pension provisions as they age. That is why this Government is planning for auto-enrolment to ensure that future pensions will be provided for and that people who are in their younger years and not thinking about pensions, but who will be at some point, will have an opportunity to feed into one at an earlier point. This Government is planning for pensions and is planning quite far ahead, way beyond the lifetime of the Government, which shows prudent planning for pensions.
On early years educators, an issue raised by Senators Gavan and Moynihan, the challenges in that sector were spoken about quite a lot in the Chamber last week. It is worth acknowledging that, under this Minister, there has been a reduction in fees for parents and considerable investment in childcare and anybody who says otherwise is not being truthful. That does not mean we are where we want to be and that we have finished the job of work. Clearly, we have not. However, as a country we have come a long way. Even within the last five years, we have changed the narrative around what early years education is. It is not just minding children. It is early years education in the most formative of years. Our attitude as a country has changed. To expect everything to be solved in one year is unreasonable. Notwithstanding that, it is acknowledged that the wages paid to early years educators, who are predominantly women, have a long way to go if they are to be adequate and that they need to be increased. When the Senator spoke about the €200 million that Deputy O'Gorman said went into wages and the €55 million the unions say went in, there was a package of money allocated in the 2023 budget. I believe it totalled €221 million. Some of that went towards reducing parents' fees and some of it went towards increasing the wages for workers. The two of those were policy objectives for the Government, progress was made on both this year and more will be done in the next budget. There is an outstanding issue regarding smaller providers, which has been acknowledged, but a lot of positive work has been done in the area of childcare.
To respond directly to Senator Moynihan's suggestion that childcare should operate under a publicly funded model, I would like to see a Labour policy as to how that might be achieved. We are working with a private system, because that is what exists, to reduce fees, ensure capacity in the system, create more places and increase wages for those working in the sector. If we were to walk away from that policy, although I am not sure that is what the Senator is suggesting, and just follow the public road, it would take us a lot longer to build up that system. That is a policy decision to be taken. I would also urge a degree of caution in suggesting that parents are being gouged because, while some fees are extremely high in some parts of the country, many providers will tell you that they charge a very reasonable fee, which I believe is accurate in many instances. Many providers also say that they find it hard to meet the ongoing running costs of their businesses so it is important not to suggest that all providers are gouging parents. That is simply not the case. I will again note that work needs to be done to bring down the cost for parents but it is just not possible to achieve all that we want to achieve in one budget or one year. This Government has made a significant amount of progress in the past three years, however.
Senator Dooley spoke about the budget and raised a number of issues under that umbrella including the need to increase the capitation grant for national schools and the challenges presented to the tourism sector as a result of refugees being accommodated in hotels and guest accommodation. This tourism issue is one I have raised myself, as have many other Senators, although I acknowledge that we had to do what we had to do to house the refugees coming into the country and that we will continue to do that work. However, in many rural areas where tourism is one of the main employers and main drivers of the local economy, if the local hotel is not available for tourists, it poses a problem for the pub, the restaurant, the coffee shop and all of the associated industries. That needs to be acknowledged. I agree with the Senator's comments on that.
Senator Dooley also raised the issue of criminal barristers being on strike today, as did Senator Ward. This is an issue that came up last week as well.
I reiterate my support for the restoration of their fees. In fairness to those who are on strike today, it was the last thing they wanted to do but they have exhausted all other options. They are the last group of public sector workers to get their pay restored. The Department of Justice has issued its support for pay restoration, although it has yet to outline a process for how that will be achieved. Nevertheless, I understand from my engagement with the Minister that she and her Department are in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform to try to achieve that. Criminal barristers have been extremely patient and reasonable in requesting that their fees be restored, and they are not looking for a full restoration in one budget. They are looking for a process to be put in place and for that process to start in order that they will at some point have their wages restored. I hope that process will be put in place without delay.
Senator Doherty spoke about section 39 workers, as did Senator McGreehan, and made the point that our disability sector would not function without these workers, who are predominantly female. There is a disparity there in terms of treatment. As a country, we seem to undervalue the work of carers and those working in the care sector. When we look at the wages earned in other sectors, they do not really reflect the importance of the work that is done, so I will convey that view to the Minister.
Senator Keogan spoke about CAMHS and the ongoing challenges of mental health. She is correct that the Covid period put a huge strain on youth mental health. A lot of young people fell through the cracks and their mental health was severely impacted by that period. Maybe we had underestimated the extent of that and we are now seeing it come through the system. It is a huge challenge for us as a country to deal with youth mental health. CAMHS is not fit for purpose - that is accepted - and there is a long way to go. Funding has been increased and the resources are there. We have tried to hire staff but we are just struggling to fill posts that have been funded, and that is a huge challenge. That is something we need to address. Were it not for organisations such as Pieta, which the Senator mentioned, we would be in a worse scenario. They do fantastic work and somewhat bridge the gap between the demand for services and what the State can provide.
Senator McGreehan welcomed her father to the Gallery, which was lovely to see, and spoke about Seamus Murphy and Sons, a local business in Louth that has closed, having opened in 1959. She also lent her support to section 39 workers.
Senator Conway, too, spoke about section 39 workers and made a plea that works be carried out on the Ennis to Limerick railway line, which connects to Galway, to ensure the train will continue to run even in inclement weather. He said it was one of the fastest growing rail services in the country, which reflects a point we often make in Mayo and Galway to advocate for the western rail corridor, where we say that if we put in the services, people will use them, as opposed to us just waiting for the population to grow.
Senator Horkan was concerned I was not listening to what he raised, but I assure him I was. He wants a debate on air quality with the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and spoke about the Irish Heart Foundation research showing the number of premature deaths associated with poor air quality. He rightly pointed out that air quality is generally good but at times could be better, and I certainly agree with those remarks.
Senator Malcolm Byrne spoke HSE estates, the building section of the HSE, and I have had some difficulties myself in dealing with that section of the HSE. I agree with what he said about the inadequacy of our dealing with vacant buildings and their use. If he has previously tabled a Commencement matter, perhaps there is another way in which I can assist in trying to get some information, and I will work with him on that.
Senator Craughwell spoke about the Naval Service and the drugs seizure of the coast of Cork. He made the point, as he often does, that the Naval Service is not at the capacity at which it needs to be. It is accepted that some of our naval ships are not manned because we do not have the personnel, but I understand the Minister for Defence is acutely aware of that issue and is trying to address it. There have been ongoing challenges in our Defence Forces for a number of years on which we starting now to turn the ship, if Senators will excuse the pun.
Senator Ward spoke about criminal barristers' pay, a matter I have dealt with. I have requested a meeting with the Minister for Justice and her officials, in which I can include the Senator. I have not yet been given a date for that meeting and am still working on securing it at the earliest opportunity.
Senator Dolan spoke about the two researchers who won a Nobel Prize and the work that goes on behind the scenes to get to that point, so it was great to see it acknowledged. The impact on public health globally, with the number of lives saved, was certainly worthy of the accolade. That was a nice, positive note on which to finish the Order of Business contributions.