On St. Brigid's Day and the first day of spring, I call on the Leader to outline the business for the day.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
The Order of Business is No. 1, Finance (State Guarantees, International Financial Institution Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023 – Second Stage, to be taken at 11.45 a.m. and to conclude at 1.15 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, those of group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes and time may be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 2, Coroners (Amendment) Bill 2024 - Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken at 1.15 p.m.
On the feast of St. Brigid, the patron saint of Kildare, I now call on Senator O'Loughlin.
Lá Fhéile Bhríde shona daoibh go léir. Today is a very special day, not just for Kildare people but for people right around the country and indeed, all over the world. There are 52 events taking place in 52 different embassies across the world today, which is wonderful.
Brigid was very much known as a woman of peace and as a negotiator. There are many legends and stories about her but there is no doubt about her ability to bring people together. In that context, I very much appreciate that the Cathaoirleach has agreed to a pause for peace at midday, which will also happen in the Dáil. More than 1,500 years ago, Brigid passed away. She was a woman of wonderful traditions. Many stories are being told about her right around the country as we speak. Last Sunday in St. Brigid's parish church in Kildare we had the opportunity to bring her home. Relics that had left Ireland over 1,000 years ago were brought back to Kildare. It was a very moving ceremony and there is now a beautiful relic in the church which I would recommend people go and see. It might bring some solace in times of difficulty.
One of the legends about Brigid is that when she was looking for land on which to build a church in Kildare, the chieftain told her she could have whatever her cloak would cover. She took off her cloak and it spread and spread, and so we have the Curragh of Kildare, of which we are also very proud. Today we are going to have our own cloak made here in Leinster House. I am delighted, as chair of the women's caucus, that we were able to organise this event and I hope that all Members and staff will participate. To help us to make the cloak, we have a wonderful group of young women, aided and abetted by Ms Aideen Cross, a wonderful Rathangan woman who is just back from Kenya, having done a lot of really good work out there. Aideen and 13 young girls - Holly Tidd, Orna Manning, Claire Condron, Ellen Fitzpatrick, Kayla O’Rourke, Lilly McGivern, Clodagh Grimes, Aisling Nolan, my niece Libby O’Loughlin, Anna Kenna, Kate O’Reilly, Heidi Beary and Lucy McEvoy. - have been working over the last few weeks to make a cloak that we will keep here in Leinster House. Everybody is invited to participate in the workshop. I had a sneak preview just a few minutes ago and it is absolutely beautiful. I ask everyone to come and join us and thank the girls for joining us in Leinster House today.
Finally, I just want to mention "The Book of Kildare" which was launched on Sunday last. Ms Josephine Hardiman, a wonderful artist and calligrapher, spent seven years developing this book which includes all of the Kildare legends, including those relating to St. Brigid. The original is in the library in Kildare town and I would encourage anybody who has the opportunity to visit to do so. There are lots of activities happening all through the week.
Can the Senator tell us what the book costs?
It costs €40 and is well worth it.
I formally welcome our special guests and thank them most sincerely for their co-operation and for working with us and with Senator O'Loughlin. Enjoy your day.
What about getting off homework?
That is a given.
I join Senator O'Loughlin and the Cathaoirleach in welcoming our distinguished visitors to the Public Gallery. Today is very special. It is the first day of spring and St. Brigid's Day. It is great that it is now being recognised as a bank holiday, and so it should be. We all look forward to having Monday off, relaxing and remembering St. Brigid.
I would also like to congratulate Vision Ireland, formerly known as the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, NCBI, on the official launch of the Wayfinding Centre in north Dublin yesterday. The Wayfinding Centre is a space where people who are mobility impaired, irrespective of whether it involves their vision or their limbs, can go to undertake mobility training in the context of using public transport and negotiating the public realm. It is a fantastic facility. I would like to thank the Ministers, Deputies Paschal Donohoe, Eamon Ryan and Roderic O'Gorman, and the Minister of State, Deputy Anne Rabbitte, who all attended the opening, along with the chief executives of Irish Rail, the NTA and the HSE. The fact that all of those key stakeholders were there reflects the importance of this facility, which is the first of its kind in the world. People from all over Europe and further afield will come to this centre for mobility training. It will also be a space for academics, engineers, architects and those who specialise in creating accessible terrains including footpaths, roadways and so on. It will also be an area where staff from organisations like Irish Rail, Bus Éireann and so on, will go to undertake mobility training and disability awareness training. It is an outstanding facility and I thank the Government for the multimillion investment in it. When it is open to the public, I recommend that as many Senators as possible go and see it. There is a plane, Luas, DART, and Irish Rail carriages, and buses, as well as elements of the public realm. It is an outstanding facility and I congratulate and commend everybody who made it happen.
Well done to you on your advocacy, Senator, and congratulations.
A happy St. Brigid's Day to everyone. I hope each and every one of us takes on a piece of her character today, whether that be her strength of character, her kindness, her fearlessness or her compassion. If we can learn from her, we will learn many good qualities.
Once again I am calling for a debate in the House on the CA+ Convention, the pandemic preparedness treaty in development by the WHO's Intergovernmental Negotiating Body. This treaty will have a significant impact on future governmental approaches to health emergencies, containing as it does both legally binding and non-legally binding provisions dictating the behaviour of governments that are party to it. Provisions in the zero draft of the convention include a commitment to ring-fence a percentage of total healthcare budgets as well as the allocation of an, as yet, unset percentage of gross domestic product to be gifted to the WHO for use in foreign countries.
Members will appreciate that we should all be a tad leery of measures based on GDP, as our high GDP does not accurately reflect the financial situation of the population due to the inflationary effect of multinational companies using Ireland as an EU tax base. Moneys taken from Ireland as a percentage of its GDP will have a disproportionately damaging effect.
That is but one of the concerns around the pandemic treaty. Perhaps the larger one for us, as legislators, is that it is yet another large step down the road to supranational legislative overreach, which is a trend that seems to be picking up momentum in Europe. The treaty contains legally binding provisions dictating how a signatory must act during a pandemic. These provisions will be binding for the foreseeable future on all successive Irish Governments, having been opted into by only one Government. We can see how concerns around sovereignty, that is, the ability of a state to rule itself in totality, could arise. This House has often been referred to as a rubber-stamping forum by colleagues who deeply wish it were not so. I fear that the whole of the Oireachtas is going that way, with one Government party Member mentioning in the media recently that many people do not realise that 70% of legislation comes from Europe and that Dáil business is often only about transposing what is decided elsewhere.
When one reflects on the cost to Ireland of operating these Houses, this reality is deeply shameful. That is why, next Tuesday, I am hosting an information event on the WHO pandemic treaty, with an international panel of speakers including doctors, lawyers and politicians, some of whom have given evidence before the US Congress and Senate regarding the WHO's role in the last pandemic. It is at 12 noon in the Leinster House audiovisual room and I hope Members of this House and the Lower House will attend.
I remind the Senator that the House is not sitting next Tuesday, unfortunately.
I am aware. It is all the more reason for people to attend.
Yesterday, there was a presentation in Leinster House by Sporting Liberties on the issue of sports infrastructure in the south-west inner city. There is not a single playing pitch for the more than 8,000 children in the area. Back in 2014, I started a campaign with Sporting Liberties to rezone land and deliver pitches on the former Boys' Brigade pitches in St. Teresa's Gardens. That project is in train but it will not be delivered until 2026. It is unacceptable that there are no adequate sports facilities for the children of Dublin 8 and that the facilities that will be delivered are taking more than 12 years to complete. Football, boxing and hurling clubs are all in need of essential infrastructure.
There are a couple of small measures we could take immediately to deliver some sports infrastructure in the area. One would be opening the Guinness swimming pool, which is currently only for Guinness employees and members, for wider use. The two local schools should be allowed to deliver a water safety programme there. A second step would be opening some of the AstroTurf pitches in the area that are specific to local schools. Everybody should be allowed to play on them outside school hours.
The second issue I raise is the massive increase in the price of infant formula in recent years. Prices have risen by 20% since 2021. This is a question of infant health and equality. Every single child in this country deserves to be fed adequate nutrition in the early stages of life. At the weekend, I heard reports of parents who cannot afford formula watering it down. It is the most shoplifted item in our supermarkets. I was in Tesco in Ballyfermot last Friday and I noticed that every tin of formula is security tagged. There are flat complexes in my area where people are selling formula door to door. Yet, two years into a cost-of-living crisis, this is probably one of the first times the issue has been raised. Deputy O'Reilly raised it in May last year. It is an absolute disgrace that so many parents are worried about feeding their children and are having to water down formula.
I wrote to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, raising this matter. I ask the Deputy Leader to do the same on behalf of the Seanad to back up my request for an investigation into market practices in the infant formula industry. It has a captive audience that is not price sensitive. I would greatly appreciate a representation on behalf of the Seanad on this issue. I would also appreciate if we could engage with the Minister on allowing supermarket vouchers to be applied to infant formula. I refer to general vouchers that are not tied to specific formula brands. We also need a public information campaign on safe formula feeding and the dangers of watering it down. It is not about volume; it is about nutrition. The formula products are pretty much all the same. We do not want people switching between different types but once they start on one, it is pretty much all the same. However, watering it down is extremely dangerous for children's nutrition. This public health emergency can no longer be ignored as other priorities take over.
I welcome that the Minister has extended the public consultation on the use of shock collars on dogs. I encourage all genuine dog lovers to participate in the consultation and make it known to the Government that they support a ban on the collars. Following the horrific attack on Alejandro Mizsan, there were calls across the board, and rightly so, to address the issue of aggressive behaviour in dogs. It beggars belief that anyone in this day and age would advocate for the continued use of shock collars, which use pain and fear to train a dog. This is opposed to the positive reinforcement training recommended by reputable trainers, vets and animal welfare organisations. The use of shock collars can, in fact, lead to much higher aggression rates in dogs. The animals come to associate sheep, children and strangers with pain as they are shocked by remote control to prevent them making an approach. The association with a child or sheep is one of pain, which can lead to more aggressive attacks by dogs.
Apart from the real risks of increasing aggressive behaviour in dogs, studies have shown that the e-collars are less effective than positive reinforcement training. Their use may be a case of laziness on the part of some dog owners who want a train a dog faster rather than putting in the work through the positive reinforcement training model. Controlled studies have found that dogs subjected to positive reinforcement respond more quickly than those in other groups. The dogs in the control groups in which either negative reinforcement or shock collars were used were found to exhibit high levels of exhaustion and stress. More worrying was that the dogs in the shock collar control group had very high levels of cortisol in their saliva, which shows they were extremely stressed. This continued even three months after the tests concluded. When the dog was shown the collar, it exhibited the same cortisol in its saliva, an increased respiratory rate and gastrointestinal disorders.
The use of shock collars amounts to abusing dogs in a bid to train them. I strongly support the public consultation. Anybody who says this is a necessary means of training should look at what Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind does. Blind people across the country, in both rural and urban locations, take their dogs out and go about their business. Those dogs are trained using positive reinforcement techniques. It absolutely is not necessary to inflict pain on a dog in order to train it. In fact, it only makes the dog a higher risk to society. I encourage everybody to let the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, know their views before 16 February.
I raise an issue in regard to benefit-in-kind. At a time when we are trying to become more environmentally friendly, the Department of Finance's arrangements for benefit-in-kind, particularly for company cars, are ridiculous. I have been contacted about this issue by a number of business owners and employees who drive company cars. In the case of hybrid cars, people can get the VAT back on diesel but not on petrol. This means companies will purchase diesel cars in order to reclaim the VAT. In the case of electric cars, the range of charging points around the country is not sufficient at this stage to encourage companies to purchase those vehicles. The downtime for their employees would be too great.
With regard to another part of the benefit-in-kind, the more mileage an employee does, the less they will have to pay in benefit-in-kind. There are employees driving around and using up diesel to do unnecessary mileage, so that they can increase the mileage to lower their benefit-in-kind. It is absolutely ridiculous, in my view.
What I am calling for this morning - and I know I will have the Deputy Leader's backing on this - is that the Minister or the Department would carry out a full review of the current system and engage with all of the stakeholders on the issue. It is crazy in this day and age that people would have to be driving around doing unnecessary mileage to lower their benefit-in-kind. I also ask that we look at the VAT system, whereby they can claim it back on diesel but cannot claim it back on petrol.
This morning, I would like to wish everyone a happy St. Brigid's Day. Brigid was born in Louth 1,500 years ago, so we are very happy that she is being recognised to the extent that she is being recognised. I congratulate Louth County Council's arts office and tourism team, Dundalk BIDS and all the community groups around County Louth who have come together and made the celebration of Brigid 1500 a real showstopper in north Louth. The "northern lights" are happening in Dundalk's Market Square, and if Senators have not seen it on Facebook or social media, I recommend that they at least look it up but also attend. There is a light show every night until next week. There are Brigid: Lady of Light theatrical performances, one of which we saw last night. I have to say it was uplifting and absolutely incredible, with a mixture of opera and Irish dancing. There is such creativity, and it is original. It is the work of the arts office in Dundalk and An Táin Arts Centre. I am really proud to have had a small part in encouraging that and working with them all to make sure we had Brigid 1500 celebrations.
In all the hype, celebration and modernity of festivals, we should all think about what St. Brigid's Day means. It is all about peace and healing. It is the first day of spring today. It is the shedding of the old and walking into the new. We should all walk forward in the spirit of St. Brigid today and every day, and try to remember that peace and healing. We have a world in conflict, and I think we should embrace that.
I am wearing my pin today for Lá Fhéile Bhríde. It is fitting that today, one of the strongest women in Irish representation, Antoinette Cunningham of the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors, is retiring. Antoinette leaves behind some fantastic achievements, including access to the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court for members of An Garda Síochána. She will be a tough act to follow, and any of us who have watched interviews over the years with Antoinette will have seen that she is a tough woman in her job. I wish her all the best for the future. Whatever challenge she takes on, I doubt she is going to sit at home and do nothing. She was a tremendous representative and it is important that we recognise some of the great women who led Irish trade unionism, which sort of belies the notion that the Constitution requires all women to stay at home, as stated by the Minister. I could not let that go.
When the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013 was introduced, as part of what was happening in the Department of public expenditure and reform, one of the lunatic decisions that was made forced members of An Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces, when they retire, to sign on to the jobseeker's payment for the second half of their pension. Their pensions are now co-ordinated with the social welfare contributory old age pension. They have to go and lie, and say they are available for work when they are not. Members of An Garda Síochána spend 40 years of their lives upholding the law but they cannot access the supplementary part of their pension unless they lie. Moreover, members of An Garda Síochána have to go into the dole office or the post office to sign on for the jobseeker's payment, and frequently find themselves standing with people they arrested maybe a week or two ago. It is just wrong in every sense of the word, and I wonder if we could have a debate on that in this House with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.
I thank Senator Craughwell. I want to join with him in wishing Antoinette Cunningham every success in the next chapter of her life. She was a very strong advocate for members of An Garda Síochána, and those of us who met her and engaged with her always found her to be a person of conviction and also a person of huge courtesy. As Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, I wish her well.
I rise today and also wish everyone a happy St. Brigid's Day. We have had a number of events in County Kildare already to celebrate Brigid 1500. We had a brilliant night in the library in Athy two nights ago at the We Shall Overcome event. Last night, we had a great light show similar to what I am sure happened in County Louth last night. It was terrific to be there to witness Brigid in all her forms, and also the pause for peace, which we are having in this House today. I want to commend the Cathaoirleach on that because never was it more apt to have a pause for peace. Today is such an important day in that as we celebrate Brigid, we also call for that ceasefire that is so long overdue.
I want to mention a group of young ladies from a local Athy band, If, who took part in the We Shall Overcome concert. They gave us a rendition of "Johnny I Hardly Knew You", which obviously mentions the great town of Athy as well. I am marking Senators' cards in this House today to keep their eyes on If. There was a stellar line-up of female artists that night but three young girls from the town of Athy really showed what they were made of.
I want to mention the other events that will take place over the coming days in County Kildare. There is a stellar line-up of events as part of Brigid 1500 on the Curragh over the weekend but also at the Moat of Ardscull, another historic place. I want to mention that because at the Moat of Ardscull on Monday at 2 p.m. we will have the Village Voices community choir along with Kevin Morrin, Paul Linehan, Joseph Gorman, Colm Flynn and, of course, the St. Laurence's set dancers, to celebrate Brigid in all her glory. It is a very important event locally. It is an event we need to advertise and get people to. It is the second year of that event.
I wish everyone a very happy St. Brigid's Day, and I welcome the pause for peace and call for a ceasefire immediately.
It is great to hear the rallying call of the civil rights movement, "we shall overcome", live on.
This morning, I want to call on the Minister for Foreign Affairs to come to the House next week to update us on developments in the North, which we hope are going to accelerate over the weekend with the restoration of Stormont. However, there are aspects of the command paper that was released yesterday that need further attention. The statutory instruments are being laid before Westminster today, and they provide statutory assurance that Northern Ireland remains an integral part of the United Kingdom, and on its place in the UK. There are also other parts to it regarding adjustments to the Windsor Framework that we need to get under the hood of.
There is also a reference to the full and complete repeal of all statutory duties when it comes to an all-island economy. Our all-island economy is flourishing. It is doing very well post Brexit. It is worth approximately €12 billion. I believe that the path of least resistance is the path that businesses follow, and that they will continue to excel, but it is very important that we have positive co-operation on an all-island and east-west basis. I would like the opportunity to discuss what that means. Other aspects had more technical references that we need to unpick so I urge the Deputy Leader to encourage the Minister to come here next week. If it waits until the following week, it is going to be too late.
I welcome today's announcement from the Minister, Deputy Harris, on what is the deadline day for the CAO process, of a major expansion in courses outside the CAO process. We all know the stresses. I am sure the Deputy Leader knows as a parent, as do others who have gone through the process, that the CAO points system places stresses on pupils, parents and their wider families.
Today the Minister, Deputy Harris, has announced a major expansion in degree courses outside of the CAO process. Last year he launched the first degree courses outside the points system. Today, they are doubling the offering for students, so there are alternatives to the points race. These courses offer an alternative to the CAO system. They are aimed at ensuring points do not determine educational choices or career opportunities. It is important that young people note that more than 40 courses will be available in 2024. The Minister wishes to advise young people that after school they can consider options to be a nurse or engineer or work in ICT or construction without worrying about their points. As I have said, the courses include business, nursing, engineering, music, sound production and software development. This is the second year of programmes and we continue to learn from the roll-out and delivery of third-level courses. In the western region, through the Atlantic Technological University, Galway and Roscommon ETB, Mayo, Sligo and Leitrim ETB and Donegal ETB, we have courses in science, industrial laboratory science, engineering, sustainable engineering technologies, business and general nursing. This is a very welcome endeavour and initiative by the Minister, Deputy Harris. We should invite him to the House some time to update us on these exciting developments and initiatives and whatever plans he may have for further expansion of this in the years ahead.
Senator Kyne is looking for the Minister, Deputy Harris, to come to discuss this morning's welcome announcement. The announcement one year ago that the Minister was offering new routes for our young people to get third-level education outside of the CAO points system was welcome. The fact we are doubling the offering so quickly is a real intention to recognise that the CAO process is sometimes difficult. I have done it three times with three of my eldest children - two perfectly, and one completely messed up - and I do not think I am an unintelligent person. It is a difficult process to navigate, but it is wonderful we now have alternative choices for our young people to get degree courses they could not otherwise get through that system.
Senator Currie is looking for the Minister for Finance to come to have a debate and discussion with us about the welcome developments that have been seen on our screens and in the media in recent days with Stormont and Northern Ireland. There are some concerns coming out of the European Union this morning, so I think that debate will be welcome. I will ask the Minister to come talk to us.
Senators Ward, McGreehan and O'Loughlin opened with the fact that today is a wonderful day. It is St. Brigid's Day. I love that everybody claims ownership of St. Brigid. I think we all do. The primary school I went to as a child was called St. Brigid's school. We all feel we have some connection to and ownership of her. That is a wonderful example of a fierce and fearless lady who was so intent on peace. We can all recognise her wonderful attributes and want to have a bit of a connection. I wish everybody a happy St. Brigid's Day and it is lovely to see the sun shining on the first day of spring.
Senator Craughwell, in the way only he can, congratulated Antoinette Cunningham for 33 years of supreme service to the State in her career in An Garda Síochána. We did this previously when we spoke on Patricia King's retirement. We often talk about strong women in those kind of public sector union relations negotiations. Women do not have to be strong to be successful. They can be fearless and fierce at the same time. Sometimes we try to make women into something just because they have succeeded. Women can succeed; they can absolutely succeed. Antoinette Cunningham showed us that, but she is also a wonderful mother and a hugely compassionate human being. We can be all things. From all our perspectives, I wish her a happy retirement in next stage of her life and thank her for her service.
Senator Burke made a sensible request for the Ministers for public expenditure and reform and for finance to have a review of the BIK system, because it is aimed at getting people to do more and to be able to save more. At a time, in particular, when climate considerations should be at the forefront of all of our decisions, they clearly are not, given the system encourages people to have diesel cars and to do more miles so they can get more back from the State, which does not make any sense. A review would be welcome, and I will certainly ask for that. It is no problem.
Senator Boylan, much to my pleasure, has spoken about the public consultation to review and, I hope, make illegal the use of shock collars for puppies and dogs. It has been extended for a couple of weeks. The email address to which to make views known is animalwelfare@agriculture.gov.ie. The Senator is right. I am baffled by so-called dog and animal lovers who say it is not cruel to shock a baby dog, a puppy, for up to 11 seconds with a collar with metal protrusions with a voltage from 400 V up to 7,000 V, which the dog cannot get away from because it is around its neck, and that it is a positive thing with regard to training. It makes no sense to me whatsoever. I encourage all to make their views known, and I thank the Senator for raising that.
Senator Moynihan spoke about seeking new and long-overdue playing pitches in Dublin 8. She also brought to our attention a worrying note that the price of infant formula has increased significantly in recent years and that this has not been addressed specifically by the State. It is worrying that some mothers are forced to steal it to make sure they have enough for their babies, which is a chronic indictment, while mothers who do not have to reduce the formula and water it down. That is equally difficult for parents. I will certainly bring that to the attention of the Minister for Finance to see what we can do.
Senator Keogan has looked for a debate on the CA+ Convention. I will ask for that and organise it if I can. The Senator is right when she says that 70% of our legislation comes from the EU. It is something for all of us to think about with EU elections coming up in the next couple of months. We need to make sure the people we send to represent us actually do represent our views, and not think it is just some faraway place where nothing happens. It impacts us every day.
I wish the Deputy Leader luck on her selection.
I thank the Senator. Senator Conway spoke about the Wayfinding Centre, which is a lovely and wonderful initiative that was opened by Vision Ireland yesterday with the support of certain Departments. It allows people with mobility issues to access public modes of transport, to make sure they can navigate them and, if they cannot, for the State to learn why they cannot so we can make changes. It is really wonderful.
As I have said, Senator O'Loughlin opened today's proceedings by talking about the wonderful woman of peace, but also about our pause for peace today at 12 noon. It will happen in this Chamber and in the Dáil, and that is really reflective.
I also welcome the students from Navan, County Meath, this morning. They are very welcome. It is a lovely spring day and they should enjoy their tour around the Dáil and Seanad.
I also welcome the students on this first day of spring - St. Brigid's Day.
Order of Business agreed to.
I encourage Members to be back for 12 o'clock for the pause for peace.
Cuireadh an Seanad ar fionraí ar 11.07 a.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 11.45 a.m.
Sitting suspended at 11.07 a.m. and resumed at 11.45 a.m.