I call the Leader to outline the Order of Business today.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
The Order of Business is No. 1, Control of Exports Bill 2023 [Dáil] – Committee Stage, to be taken at 1.15 p.m. and to adjourn at 2.30 p.m., if not previously concluded; No. 128, motion No. 8, regarding the disability allowance, to be taken at 2.30 p.m., with the time allocated to the debate not to exceed two hours; No. 2, Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023 - Report and Final Stages, to be taken at 4.30 p.m. or on the conclusion of No. 128, motion No. 8, whichever is the later, and the proceedings thereon shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after three hours by the putting of one question from the Chair which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by Government; and No. 3, motion regarding earlier signature of the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023, to be taken on the conclusion of No. 2, without debate.
I ask the Leader for two debates. One is around the recent report issued by Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, that failure to invest in road projects could lead to an additional 77 deaths or 380 serious road injuries. More specifically, in relation to my county, there is the M11-N11 upgrade scheme, on which the report identified that four fatalities and seven serious injuries could occur. This upgrade has been stalled by the current Minister and has been replaced with what is described as the M11-N11 bus priority interim scheme. The key word there is "interim", which does not address the core issue. I would also like to support the members on Wicklow County Council, who called at last Monday's meeting for the suspension of this interim scheme and the reinstatement of the main scheme. The interim scheme will cause significant problems for people in Bray because it will close one of the most important exit routes from Bray. The proposal will add total chaos to the M11-N11 and cause further congestion in Bray by making commuters go back into the town and around it. It takes no account of the population increase in County Wicklow, right down the N11 as far as Gorey, and the number of people who use this route. It also takes no account of the Government's strategy to develop Rosslare as a Europort and the heavy haulage traffic that will be on this route. We were five years into this main project. It was a 20-year project. This main project was needed five years ago but it is being delayed even further again and it will be another 20 years before we have it. I cannot even stress how bad the traffic is. It is every day, Monday to Friday and now it is every Saturday evening when you leave Dublin between 11.30 p.m. and 1 a.m. and on the way back into Dublin that evening any time between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Now, seven days a week, the M11-N11 is becoming a car park. The interim scheme does not cut it. The main scheme can encompass the interim scheme. A wider debate is needed on the TII report.
In the 30 seconds I have left, I would like to ask for a debate on the importance of homeownership and what it means to families, communities and society in general. More importantly, I wish to discuss how current Government support schemes are helping and restoring the aspiration of homeownership through the help-to-buy and first home schemes. I would like to debate some reports at the moment regarding the deadweight mentioned in relation to the help-to-buy scheme. Let us ask the 40,000 families who have availed of the scheme if they consider themselves deadweight. Let us ask the 2,000 people who, in the first year, have had their aspiration of owning a home reinstated through the first home scheme. Let us have a debate in this Chamber on the value of homeownership to us, families, communities and society.
Today is the International Day of the Girl Child. I call for a debate with the Minister for Justice on the need to increase efforts to detect, prosecute and eliminate the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation, FGM, in Ireland. FGM is a transnational public health, human rights and gender injustice issue that more than 125 million girls and women in 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East have been subjected to. This House and the Lower House acted in recognition of this in 2012, when they passed the Criminal Justice (Female Genital Mutilation) Act 2012, creating a specific offence to prosecute those who carry out these horrific practices, yet, while the Act has been in place for more than a decade, only one single joint conviction has been made under it. I am sure we all remember the trial in January 2020 when the father and mother of a toddler were sentenced to five and a half years and four years and nine months, respectively, in prison. As it happens, that verdict was overturned a year later on appeal, although I understand the State indicated that it would request a retrial. There are zero standing convictions for this crime in the entire country in more than a decade. We would be fools to think these instances of FGM in Ireland are zero. The HSE female genital mutilation handbook information for healthcare professionals working in Ireland, updated in 2021, stated that:
The number of FGM cases in Ireland continues to increase. In 2016, it was estimated that nearly 6,000 women living in Ireland had undergone the practice of female genital mutilation.
As the number of people in Ireland from east Africa and the Middle East increases, the risks of an increase in the prevalence of FGM in Ireland also rises. I read this morning in The Guardian that the political and religious leaders in The Gambia are threatening to introduce a Bill to decriminalise FGM eight years after the practice was outlawed. Members of the country's national assembly have blocked a proposal for the 2015 law to be scrapped while The Gambia Supreme Islamic Council issued a fatwa condemning anyone who denounces the practice and called for the government to reconsider the legislation.
I will make another comment on the barricade yesterday. We pride ourselves on our democracy and always being available to the public. I feel some people in here feel they are too precious to deal with those with whom they do not agree. I do not agree with any violence on any person in public office. These barricades send out a signal of exclusion; a literal divide between the politicians and the people who they are elected into these Houses to serve. The Government encourages protest at our Parliament and says that this the place to protest. From yesterday's blockade, however, it is clearly telling its citizens, "Do not bother, you are not welcome here." Yesterday was overkill as far as I am concerned. I just want to bring that point to the Leader's attention.
On that point, as a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, Cathaoirleach of the House and somebody who asked for measures to be taken following the event recently, I support the Senator's call for the right to protest. However, the barricades yesterday were not to preclude or exclude, but to protect members of staff, Members of the Houses and the democratic institution that is the Houses of the Oireachtas. The Senator is quite free to talk to me at any stage about it, but it was not to exclude anybody. As a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission who proposed that action be taken following the events of a number of weeks ago, I will stand up for the democratic process that is the Houses of the Oireachtas. It was not to exclude anybody, however, just so the Senator is aware. I am very happy to have a conversation and talk to her about. I just want her to know that.
I call Senator Maria Byrne.
I wish to pay tribute to the late Chuck Feeney. He was a philanthropist and was instrumental in much funding that came to the university in Limerick but also to many universities. I wish to pass on my sympathies to his family. The man was held in very high esteem. He gave away his wealth while he was still alive and made a difference to a lot of lives and many institutions. May he rest in peace.
I rise today is because we saw a huge health budget announced yesterday but then this morning at University Hospital Limerick, UHL, people were being told to stay away. All non-life-threatening procedures were cancelled yet again. This was continuous all through the summer and continues now. We have not really hit the flu season or anything else that might be coming. It is frightening to see people being asked to stay away from the hospital. I really believe we need to have a debate in this House regarding health.
I want to pay tribute to the staff and consultants who are working under extreme conditions. There were 103 trolleys yesterday, which was actually quite low. The figure is often 128 and 138. I wish to pay tribute to the people who are working in the hospital. We need to give people security. People need to have confidence in going to the hospital. For the hospital to tell people to stay away is just not good enough. There are other hospitals that have been brought into the group. I have gone on record to say that we need to educate people that there are minor injuries units for some procedures or minor injuries. They do not all have to go too UHL. Some sort of education campaign or public relations exercise is needed in terms of letting people know what they need to do. I would like the Leader's support yet again in this regard. UHL is the biggest hospital in the mid-west. It is just not good enough.
The horrendous slaughter in Israel over the weekend was promptly and unequivocally condemned by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Government. Indeed, I believe those words of condemnation have been uttered from all political parties in these Houses of the Oireachtas. For words of condemnation to have credibility and genuine meaning, they must have consistency. I am disappointed that others around the world could not bring themselves to condemn such wanton waste of life and slaughter. Murder is murder.
We know only too well in this country that if one wants to achieve a political aim, as many do, for instance, of a united Ireland, the greatest friend of those aspiring to a united Ireland has been the silencing of the bombs and guns. At this stage, it is vitally important that Ireland, which is near uniquely placed as an independent peace broker, does all it can to have a de-escalation and ceasefire and ensure the release of all persons captured. We must open immediately the corridors of power and use all our political powers of persuasion and diplomacy to appeal to Israel to use the absolute maximum restraint - while I accept everyone has a right to defence. If there is a disproportionate response, it will act as a recruitment sergeant for Hamas. It will dangerously lead to a possibly contagious situation in the Middle East. It is already on a powder keg and a knife edge. Maximum restraint must be observed. The Irish contribution is now needed more than ever before and we have a track record in peace negotiations.
The Irish influence and voice must be heard at EU level. The EU must become more unified. It must condemn a collective punishment against innocent Palestinians. Many people in this House and Dáil Éireann have been consistent in condemning Israel in the past in its disproportionate, unprovoked, aggressive responses. We are now equally condemning the horrendous work of Hamas. This is the 9-11 for Israel. Ireland is an honest broker. We can be respected and our voice must be heard. I appeal for all of us to come together and ask how we can take the next steps in a cogent and specific way.
To be fair, the Leader has intimated that she asked for a debate to be put on the schedule for next week or the week after. She will reply to that later, however. I thank the Senator.
I welcome the ladies of Lusk Irish Countrywomen's Association, ICA, who are visiting Leinster House today. I thank them for being here and congratulate them on all their great work. They are guests of our colleague and friend, Senator Clifford-Lee, who is representing them admirably in the House. Does the Senator wish to say a quick word before I call Senator Moynihan?
I will give a quick welcome. I acknowledge the work of Lusk ICA, which does tremendous work and has been supporting women in north County Dublin in rural areas for generations. This is a very strong branch that contributes an awful lot to the overall ICA network in Ireland. I am delighted to have them here today. I thank the Cathaoirleach for that welcome.
I thank Senator Moynihan for letting me do that.
I wish to raise the issue of the strike by section 39, section 56 and section 10 workers that is happening on Tuesday. Calling people section 39, section 56 and section 10 workers does not explain what they do. We are talking about people who provide essential services in the areas of health and disability, services to children and homeless services. They are going on what will be an indefinite strike on Tuesday following the breakdown of their talks at the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC. Why are they doing it? They are doing it because at the time of the financial crisis, they took the same cuts under the financial emergency measures in the public interest, FEMPI, that HSE workers took. Yet despite public sector workers getting a pay restoration, the section 39, section 56 and section 10 workers have yet to see that. We have seen the Government essentially decouple them and the essential State services they provide from HSE workers. It has opened up a gap in funding and earnings as big as 10% to 20%. People are leaving those services because of that pay gap. They are leaving those community services and the people they serve, particularly children, the elderly and some of the more vulnerable in our society. We have to have a debate in the House.
I stand in full solidarity with those workers who are going out on Tuesday to strike.
I echo the sentiments of Senator Martin with regard to Israel and the Gaza Strip, and all that is happening. The cruel things that happened at the weekend were hard to comprehend in any way.
I wish to dwell for a few moments on the budget. I am sure that many people are sick and tired at this stage of hearing about the budget but I wish to rebut the argument that the agriculture budget was reduced. The agriculture budget was not reduced. Let me explain. There is a budget of almost €2 billion there. Last year €250 million, which is one quarter of one billion euro, was added to agriculture to deal with Brexit. That was a once-off measure. It is very unfair for anybody to be putting it out there that the agriculture budget was reduced. It was not. I will briefly go through some of the elements in the budget. There is €700 million for agri-environment schemes. There is the expansion of the agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, to accommodate 50,000 farmers. That is huge. There is €100 million for the beef and sheep sectors. The €20 ewe payment that was so badly sought by the sheep farmers has been put in there. The accelerated capital allowances for slurry storage are to continue. This is important in the context of the type of weather we now have. There is €57 million for organic farming and €15 million for the horticulture sector. I also welcome the measures there including developments for young farmers. It is a massive budget and it is a big budget. There will be money coming from other places as well for agriculture.
Briefly before I finish, I do worry about the cost of fuels and especially for people in rural areas. I would like the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, to come to the House at some stage to discuss this.
The Senator is straying. This is a one-item contribution and he is into a third item now.
I am not bringing in another item at all. This is part of-----
You are.
No I am not.
The Senator's time is up anyway.
I do not want to get into an argument with the Cathaoirleach but I am talking about the cost of fuel in the context of people in rural areas and farmers. I am talking about the budget now.
The Senator's time is up anyway.
I thank the Cathaoirleach. If a farmer has a sick calf or a sick lamb down in rural Ireland, one cannot put them under one's arm and jump onto a Local Link bus. The farmer will need to use his or her jeep, car and trailer to go to the vet. That is the reality. That is what the farmers need to do-----
The Senator has made his point well.
I do worry about the cost of taxes on fuels.
I remind Members that we are in the two-minute slots with one item per Senator. I invite Senator Conway. It is two minutes for one item.
I support Senator Byrne in her call for a discussion on the developing situation in University Hospital Limerick, which is extremely concerning.
The budget yesterday was a very-----
The Senator is on one item. I will not get into this now. It is just so the Senator knows. It is two minutes for one item. There will be no dovetailing. The Senator can continue and finish his point.
The big ticket items in the budget yesterday are there and they are very positive. It certainly achieved a balance by not being an inflationary budget but at the same time helping people when they need help because of the inflationary situation.
I very much welcome the announcement made as part of the social welfare package that the free travel scheme will be extended to people who are certified as not being able to drive for medical reasons. This is extremely fair. There are hundreds of visually impaired people out there who are not technically legally blind but are not allowed to drive for medical reasons because their eyesight is not good enough. Thousands of people with epilepsy similarly cannot drive for medical reasons. It is only fair and proper that they would have access to the free travel scheme. I have been calling for this for a long time. I had hoped it would happen in budgets over the years but thankfully the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Humphreys, was able to do it in this year for 2024. I very much welcome this. It creates an equality across the board and it gives people access to transport, which is extremely important.
The Senator deserves great praise for his advocacy on this. He is an example of the championing of disability issues, to be fair to him and I thank him for that, as other Members of the House also are in their particular niche areas. Senator Craughwell has a couple of niche areas and the floor is now his. It one issue and two minutes.
I thank the Cathaoirleach: two minutes and one subject. Yesterday's budget announced for the defence sector €176 million for capital funding, with €12 million for the recruitment of 400 additional members of the Defence Forces. I am really confused about this. They talk about a net increase of 400 members. Is this a net increase from the number that exists today? Is it a net increase from the 9,500 or is it a net increase from the 11,500? I am really very confused. The Government is putting €12 million into it but there is no clarity whatsoever. If nothing else, the short piece that was the defence budget yesterday, as announced by the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, brought home to me the need for an oversight committee for intelligence and security in the State. We currently have a committee dealing with defence and foreign affairs but I believe the area of defence, security and intelligence needs its own committee. I ask the Leader to take this to her own party. Perhaps members of the other parties would think likewise. Ireland has the only Parliament, that I know of, that does not have an intelligence and security oversight committee. I ask the Leader to do that.
I thank the Senator for making his point quickly.
I too welcome the announcement of the free travel for those who are medically unfit. Since I came into this House I have raised several Commencement matters on this issue on behalf of people with epilepsy or other conditions. Many people have worked on this issue over the past years. It is a real difference and will make a real change for a lot of people. It will help a lot of people. I have had very positive text messages from people who will now be able to get access to that free travel.
I stood here last week and spoke about the sheep sector. Thankfully, the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, has given that €8 bringing the ewe payment up to €20. Again, this means a lot. The sheep sector was being ignored by the Department and thankfully, because of positive advocacy by many people including me, the sheep sector is now being seen by the Department. I am very grateful for that €8.
I welcome the new strict Cathaoirleach here today.
I have been here for a couple of weeks now. The Senator might not have noticed. I will just let him know it is two minutes and one item.
The Cathaoirleach will notice that I will be very obedient.
Thank you, I am glad.
I welcome the announcement yesterday in the budget for businesses and the funding the Minister, Deputy Coveney, has secured for the €250 million grant to be given to businesses in the first quarter of 2024. This grant will be half of the rates bill that they paid in 2022, up to €20,000. Of the €20,000 they had been paying in rates, they will be able to claim half of that back in the first quarter of 2024. We have spoken to businesses. The important thing they told us was around the challenge with some of schemes that had been set up and the difficulty in applying for things like this. In this case they will have to do nothing. It will be given straight back to them and there is no application that has to be put forward by the business. It is a direct payment that will be put back to them at a time when costs are most difficult for businesses. This is in recognition of the increase in the minimum wage. That will affect a lot of small to medium-sized businesses, including in places in Tipperary where I am from. Along with other schemes that have been announced with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, the local enterprise offices, and funding towards IDA Ireland, for the small to medium-sized businesses this is a recognition of the challenges they have over the next number of months.
Today's debate has focused on the budget. I will follow on from a lot of the points made by Senator Ahearn. My points are on the basis of my visit this morning to the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce business breakfast. It is a successful event held on the morning after every budget. More than 250 people attended today from a whole variety of businesses in Dundalk to hear a presentation on the business aspects of the budget. This reminds me of how far this country has come in the past ten years in really building that strong economy. It is because we were able to build a strong economy over the past decade that we now see budgets like this.
It really hits home when we see that the minimum wage has been increased for the tenth, if not the 11th, year in a row. It has gone from an all-time low of €7.60 in December 2010 to an all-time high of €12.70. It is important to acknowledge that the driving force of this country is the economic engine and the economic success story we have had, particularly in the past three or four years under the Government with regard to various issues such as Covid. It is very important to see such a strong business emphasis put on the budget. As Senator Ahearn said, it will back small and medium businesses and ensure our small country on the periphery of the European Continent continues to punch above its weight in attracting a level of business support and jobs into this country. Long may it continue. Perhaps at some stage we will be able to have a debate on the general state of the Irish economy and some of the measures the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Minister, Deputy Coveney are taking to continue to attract a large number of jobs into our country to make sure that employment is at the highest it has ever been.
Following the big announcement yesterday that Ireland will co-host the UEFA 2028 championships we need to immediately begin discussions on who will fund Casement Park in Belfast. Already the rows and wrangling are starting up North, which is depressing. I join my colleague Justin McNulty, MLA in his calls for this to end, for the positivity of yesterday's announcement to be embraced and for a decision to be made swiftly on the funding mechanism.
Everyone is making the right mood music noises. I have heard the Taoiseach say that the Irish Government will play its part. Others have said they will play their part. Ultimately there will be a bill of £100 million for the construction of the stadium and it will need to be met. Otherwise we will not achieve the all-Ireland tournament in which we want to participate. It is depressing to see members of the Traditional Unionist Voice state it is nothing to do with it, that public money should not be used and that the GAA is well fit to pay for its own grounds. We see the Northern Ireland supporters' club using this as a debating point to try to extract money because Windsor Park will not be used and to have the same amount of money allocated to it. Instead of being a good news story this has the potential to spiral out of control into a bad one. From our perspective, and the Taoiseach and Tánaiste have both said the Irish Government will play its role, we need definitive statements from all sides on what it will mean in pounds, shillings and pence.
I want to talk about two brilliant and kind young women, two wonderful sisters who have worked in the Oireachtas. Yara Alagha used to work for the Civil Engagement Group and her sister Lara still works for the Green Party. This morning ten members of the Alagha family were killed by an Israeli bombing of their house in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. I am trying not to get emotional and I ask the House to bear with me. I would like to request a moment of silence to remember them and to mark this House’s expression of sympathy and solidarity with Yara, Lara and their entire family. I will read their names into the record: Powerful Amin Faluji Agha, 61 years old; Sanaa Jihad Muhammad Al Agha (Wadi), 52 years old; Ameen Ameen Al Agha, 27 years old; Safe Amin Jabara Agha, 21 years old; Wassim Amin Jabara Agha, 19 years old; Mohannad Amin Jabara Agha, 30 years old; Hind Abdul Hamid Abdul Jawad Agha, 27 years old; Talin Mohannad Amin Agha, two years and two months old; Asil Mohannad Amin Agha, one year and 21 days old; and Sama Samar Sobhi Jabara Al Agha, 15 years old.
In Gaza there is nowhere safe to hide and there is nowhere to escape. The Israeli military is flagrantly and brazenly targeting residential buildings, ambulances and mosques without even the pretence of targeting military installations. This is collective punishment at its basest and most murderous. Everything needs to be done to restrain the violence of Israel, which has total control over the life and death of the more than 2 million people kept in the open-air prison that is Gaza. The people of Palestine need us to work urgently for justice and peace. I would like us to have a minute's silence for the family of Yara and Lara.
I second that.
I acknowledge the very emotional testimony of Senator Black. If we are to have a minute's silence we need to have a minute's silence for all who have died and been killed in conflict in recent days. We have to acknowledge this.
I know it is not traditional for Ministers to come to the House to speak about their departmental budgets but if they are agreeable it is something that would be positive. It would allow Members to speak about their specific departmental areas and to question Ministers.
I have come from a meeting of the health committee on child and adult mental health services, CAMHS, which we know are very important. There are 75 CAMHS teams throughout the country. The testimony today from the HSE is that only CHO 9 has fully staffed CAMHS teams. There are also issues regarding the transition from CAMHS services to adult services when someone reaches the age of 18. The view was expressed that there should be a longer lead-in time and greater collaboration between CAMHS and adult mental health services to allow people aged up to the age of 25 to be treated and seen by CAMHS. I would like to have a debate on this.
We have seen the reports on CAMHS in south Kerry, which came about because of a whistleblower. There is a need to enhance governance and have better leadership of CAMHS teams and to make changes to the Mental Health Act to allow the Mental Health Commission to have a regulatory role in CAMHS services. This is very important. I acknowledge the great work done by individual members of CAMHS teams. Often they are overworked and do not have the full complement of staff. There is also a need for greater collaboration between adjoining CAMHS teams that are down members, perhaps a psychologist or psychiatrist. I call for a debate on CAMHS.
I would also like an opportunity, as part of the budget process, to engage with Ministers from all Departments in the House. This would be along with the press conferences they have on their individual budget items.
I welcome the guests of the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers from Hermitage Golf Club. I hope they have a very enjoyable and positive visit to Leinster House. I thank them for BEING here.
Before I speak about the issue I am raising I want to say that I agree with Senator Kyne concerning the need for a discussion on CAMHS. This morning I tabled a Commencement matter specifically on CAMHS. One of the difficulties is the Eircode lottery.
However, it is worth noting that we now have a mental health budget of almost €1.3 billion. Much credit must go to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, for her success in that regard. I certainly look forward to that discussion.
In the context of yesterday's budget, one of the very specific line items that was mentioned with regard to funding for local government had regard to investing in our fire services, to include investment in new fire stations. It is to be hoped that the difficulties we have seen around the recruitment and retention of retained firefighters will be resolved as soon as possible. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, is deeply committed to resolving this issue and investing in our fire services but I ask the Leader whether we could get an update on the question of recruitment and retention in the retained fire services and an outline of the greater investment plan for fire stations around the country. There has been a lot of good news as regards investment on the infrastructure side but we also need to address the very legitimate concerns of those who put their lives at risk to ensure our communities are safe.
I join with Senator Black in offering my sympathy to Yara and Lara Alagha, two sisters who have worked here in Leinster House, on their very sad loss. I thank the Senator for raising the matter. I now call on the Leader to respond to the Order of Business.
I thank all Members who raised issues this morning. Senator Casey started today and spoke about the Transport Infrastructure Ireland report and the impact that a lack of progress on major road projects across the country is having. I believe the Senator said the report stated that this lack of progress could lead to an additional 77 deaths and more than 300 serious injuries. It has been well acknowledged publicly that there are now significant delays in progressing roads projects at the Department of Transport. I am assured that this is being dealt with at Government level and that, where the three parties in the coalition Government have agreed to projects in the programme for Government, these projects will be progressed. It is unfortunate that there has been a delay with the N11 upgrade. The inconvenience and disruption this is causing for people who are trying to commute, get to work and go about their daily lives is unacceptable. There are many roads projects similarly affected. I think of the challenges regarding the N17 in Mayo and Galway that were highlighted by the two chief executives where the Minister was not forthcoming with sufficient funds to progress the project. It is an ongoing challenge but it is being taken very seriously and being dealt with at the highest levels in government. The Senator is right to point out that the interim scheme does not take into account the stated objective and plan for Rosslare Europort, which is growing at a very good rate. One of the few benefits of Brexit was the positive impact on that port but that has not been taken into consideration in the interim scheme.
I will request the debate Senator Casey sought on home ownership and the many Government schemes now available to assist people in getting on the property ladder and buying their first home. There is a lot of Government support in that regard so it would be good to have a debate on it. We will arrange that at the earliest opportunity.
Senator Keogan acknowledged that today is the International Day of the Girl and that female genital mutilation is still an ongoing problem and challenge in the country. Despite legislation being in place, we are not seeing prosecutions coming through. I understand that the Irish Family Planning Association has a dedicated team working on the issue. It sees two women a week arriving into the country with those challenges. The issue is still prevalent among people residing here as well. It is important that we deal with that.
On the Senator's comments on the barricades yesterday, a few weeks ago, Members of both Houses and staff were afraid coming to work. That was a really unsavoury episode as thuggery persisted outside the Houses and people were blocked from entering and exiting. However, yesterday's arrangements may have gone beyond what we would have expected. The intention behind those arrangements was to get people in and out of work safely. It was anticipated that there would be significant demonstrations yesterday and nobody wanted to see a repeat of what we saw previously. Had those actions not been taken yesterday and had something bad happened, questions would have been asked as to why action had not been taken. It is a difficult balance to strike but I agree that we are a small country, that we do our politics in a very open way and that politicians are very accessible. It will be a challenge for us to strike the right balance in ensuring the safety of Members and staff while maintaining an openness to our politics and ensuring that people have access. It was very quiet around the Houses yesterday, both at the Merrion Street gate and the Kildare Street gate. You would normally expect to meet people and engage a bit more.
It was dead.
It was very quiet and I think people missed the action. How to strike the right balance while ensuring both safety and openness is something for us to reflect on for the coming years. We do not have the answer just yet but everyone is doing their best to respond to the safety concerns that have been raised, which the Cathaoirleach has pointed out, and to ensure that staff in the Houses are safe in doing their jobs.
Senators Maria Byrne and Conway both spoke about the health budget, University Hospital Limerick and the ongoing challenges there. The persisting challenges at the hospital seem to come up regularly. It has been acknowledged that significant investment has been made in the hospital and that the Minister of Health and the Department have engaged seriously with hospital management. I understand that admissions to the emergency department are up 7% or 8% on pre-Covid levels. In the over-75 cohort, they are up 21%. There is increased demand at University Hospital Limerick in addition to the normal challenges. That is proving tricky to solve despite the increased bed capacity the Senator has outlined on previous occasions. Every effort is being made to address the issue. As we know, we are now seeing the spike we normally get during winter throughout the year. It is spreading out more evenly and hospitals are facing a challenge. However, we have never had a bigger health budget. Funding and resources are not the problem. There is money for the posts. It is a question of attracting people to work in the health service to fill the posts that have been funded and which are vacant. Our biggest challenge is getting people to work in the health service because we are competing on an international stage. We are struggling to hire staff at different levels in our health service. That is an ongoing challenge, not just in University Hospital Limerick, but right across the health service.
I acknowledge the comments Senator Maria Byrne made about Chuck Feeney. A couple of Senators also mentioned him and his fantastic work in higher education and research and development yesterday. He transformed funding for higher education and left a fantastic legacy.
Senator Vincent Martin spoke about Israel. We will have statements with the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs in the House next Thursday morning. The Tánaiste will address the Chamber and hear from Members. The debate will be concluded by the Minister of State. We will have an hour and a half next Thursday morning to have that debate in the House. Despite it being budget day yesterday, the conflict between Israel and Palestine and what happened over the weekend was the top issue raised by almost everybody who took to their feet. That shows that people are very concerned about what is happening in the Middle East and the atrocities inflicted upon the Israeli people on Saturday but also about the atrocities on both sides and the deaths of civilians. I also note the request for a minute's silence. We will facilitate that at the end of the Order of Business. It would be appropriate to acknowledge all those innocent civilians who have lost their lives on both sides in the conflict.
Senator Clifford-Lee welcomed members of the Lusk Irish Countrywomen's Association, ICA, to the Chamber.
Senator Moynihan spoke about the section 39, section 56 and section 10 workers who are to strike next Tuesday. Every effort is being made to resolve the issue. The point was well made that they perform absolutely vital and essential work right across the health and disability sector. Without them, we would be really lacking in services. Every effort will be made to resolve that issue and to ensure that people are properly remunerated and looked after.
Senator Murphy also spoke about Israel. He also spoke about the agricultural aspects of yesterday's budget and the suggestion that the budget in this area was reduced. He is right to point out that it was not. The Brexit measures were finite and once-off but the ongoing agriculture budget was not reduced. I take on board the Senator's point about the cost of fuel in rural areas. This is always going to be a challenge because we do not have sufficient levels of public transport. As the Senator rightly pointed out, public transport would not be an option for farmers and other work purposes anyway. When the price of fuel goes up, it is always a challenge but I wish to acknowledge that the Ministers for Finance and Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform delayed the reinstatement of the final tranche of excise duty on fuel until next year in acknowledgement of the fact that prices are still quite high. That will be of some help, as will all of the other cost-of-living measures that were announced yesterday.
As well as speaking about University Hospital Limerick, Senator Conway welcomed the extension of the free travel scheme to those with a disability. He spoke about the visually impaired who are not able to drive. Senator McGreehan raised the same issue. That was a really great achievement in yesterday's budget.
Senator Craughwell spoke about the defence budget and what he sees as the deficiencies in what was announced yesterday. It is important to acknowledge that an extra €55 million in defence spending was announced yesterday. That will be put towards the development of a new radar system and the hiring of 400 additional personnel. Negotiations are ongoing. Defence will get additional funding but that is being negotiated after the budget. This will bring us closer to level of ambition 2, which is stated Government policy. We are still on track to increase our defence spending by 50% by 2028. That stated ambition and Government policy is being achieved on an incremental basis. That is still the position. Yesterday did see an increase in defence spending. It may not be all that we want but that was never going to happen all in one budget and, as I have said, there is more to come in that regard.
I note the Senator's comments around the need for an Oireachtas committee on defence and security. Our joint Oireachtas committees mirror our Cabinet Ministers and their Departments, so that would require a change there as well potentially.
Senator McGreehan spoke about the sheep sector, and the securing of an additional €8 per ewe yesterday, which is up to €20. It is really welcome. It has been well highlighted that the sheep sector is under significant pressure, and the increase from €12 to €20 per ewe will be a huge help and will alleviate a lot of the pressures on the sector right across the country, particularly as there are more rural areas along the west coast and even around the Cooley Peninsula, where there is a lot of sheep farming.
Senator Garret Ahearn spoke about the €250 million grant to businesses secured yesterday by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. It is really welcome, and that was in direct acknowledgment that the increase in the minimum wage by €1.40 will put pressure on small and medium enterprises, which has been well highlighted and articulated by the business representative associations. That grant will come in quarter 1 of 2024 and it is really to help offset that next year, and to assist businesses in that transition. We have asked a great deal of business in the last few years in terms of statutory sick pay, increased parental leave and the increase in the minimum wage. There has been a lot of change for business in a very short period of time. This was all very necessary change and good for workers and society. However, yesterday's budget was a pro-business budget, and there is funding for business next year to help support it through that transition. The business organisations have worked very well with our Ministers in ironing out how that transition can happen in a smooth way to protect jobs, which is really important. The same issue was highlighted by Senator McGahon, who spoke about the positive feedback he received this morning at the Dundalk Chamber business breakfast that he attended.
Senator Cassells spoke about the UEFA Euro 2028 announcement yesterday, which was really positive for Ireland. There is now a conversation developing that is not positive, and is trying to draw lines and divisions between communities. That is not acceptable. Yesterday was a positive announcement. It is good for Ireland, for the two islands, and the all-island economy as well. Sense will prevail but it is going to require careful management of that issue and a delivery of the facilities needed to host that event, which will be of huge benefit to our country.
Senator Frances Black very poignantly put on the record the names of Yara and Lara Alagha. I hope I have said that correctly. I understand that Yara worked for Senator Lynn Ruane and that Lara worked for the Green Party, I think in the office of Deputy Francis Noel Duffy. I want to extend my sympathies to both women on the unimaginable loss of so many of their family members. It is just horrific, and it shows how innocent civilians on both sides of the conflict want peace and do not want violence in their name. We will have statements on this issue in the Seanad next week with the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Micheál Martin. We hope that a de-escalation can take place in the region, and some sort of stabilisation. Ireland can be very proud of the work it did to ensure that aid continued to Palestine. That was not the view of all EU member states but Ireland stood out from the crowd with a small few, including Spain and Denmark, to demand that aid still be delivered into Palestine. We are working at an EU level to ensure that a humanitarian corridor is opened up, and that there are no restrictions on the Gazan people affecting food, water and electricity. It is an unimaginable situation, and as I said, we will have a minute's silence for all who have died in the conflict to date at the end of the Order of Business.
Senator Seán Kyne spoke about the budget debate and health. We will try to get a debate on health anyway and with various Departments. We have requested one for housing as well, and it will give us an opportunity to delve into matters. There was so much in yesterday's budget. With all the Departments working together, it is a lot to digest and we are still going through it. It would be a worthwhile debate to have in the House, to try to get into the detail in different Departments, particularly in areas like health, which is so important to all of us. With the colossal health budget that we have, it is important that we make sure it is spent correctly, that we can see existing services not just maintained but improved, and new initiatives as well.
Finally, Senator Malcolm Byrne spoke about the mental health budget, which is €1.3 billion. We have come a long way with our mental health budget. In the past decade, we put a lot of resources and funding into that. CAMHS is a particular difficulty for us. This morning when he was out on the media, the Tánaiste was asked about CAMHS. He pointed out it is not a resourcing issue in terms of money; it is about filling the posts that are there. We are struggling to get psychiatrists and to fill posts in certain parts of the country. We are competing on an international stage to get these individuals. It is not for a lack of funding, as the posts are there to be filled. It is trying to source the qualified persons to go into those jobs to provide the service that we need.
I take on board the Senator's point about investing in our fire services in the budget. Thankfully that matter was resolved to the benefit and satisfaction of fire services personnel. The work they do is hugely important. They put their lives at risk saving and protecting others, and I am glad that this issue was resolved and acknowledged in yesterday's budget. Overall, it was a good and positive budget that delivered for all aspects of our society.
Order of Business agreed to.