Before I ask the Leader to outline the Order of Business, I welcome to the Gallery students from Gaelscoil Phádraig, Dún Laoghaire, guests of Senator Ward. You are most welcome, thank you for coming to Seanad Éireann. We also have Rebecca Lanigan, guest of Senator Hoey; Cóilín Ó Scolaigh, a guest of John Brady; and Patrick Farrell, guest of Deputy Ó Snodaigh. It is easy to know it is raining outside because we have plenty of visitors coming in to Leinster House. You are all most welcome, thanks for coming. We are delighted to have you. As is the precedent, in relation to the unwritten rule of Seanad Éireann, for the students from the gaelscoil there is no homework for the weekend. That is the rule from Seanad Éireann.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Also to my left, all the way from Kenmare in County Kerry, because all politics is local, we have Ronan and Mary Rose and their mother Síle. They are visiting Leinster House today on work experience as well.
And they are from Kenmare.
They are from The Square in Kenmare. I may or may not have been in The Atlantic Bar a few times myself. I know-----
It is a beautiful part of the country.
I thank the Senator for the endorsement. Their uncles, my friends, Johnny, Jerry and DJ, and Mary are all most welcome. They are great people down in Kerry. Johnny and Jerry were great footballers in their day.
That was when the Leas-Chathaoirleach togged out for the reserves.
They had to be great footballers to carry the likes of me.
Anois, I call the Leader to outline the Order of Business.
I welcome Ronan, Mary Rose and Síle all the way from Kenmare. I hope they have a great time in Leinster House and enjoy their work experience.
The Order of Business is No. 1, Finance (State Guarantees, International Financial Institution Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023 [Dáil] - Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken at 12.15 p.m. and the proceedings thereon shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after one hour by the putting of one question from the Chair which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by Government; No. 2, motion regarding the Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023, instruction to committee, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, to be taken without debate at 1.15 p.m. or on the conclusion of No. 1, whichever is the later; No. 3, Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023 - Committee Stage, to be taken on the conclusion of No. 2 and adjourn after two hours, if not previously concluded; No. 4, Digital Services Bill 2023 [Dáil] – Committee and Remaining Stages, to be taken at 3.15 p.m. or on the conclusion of No. 3, whichever is the later, and the proceedings thereon shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after one hour 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. 5, motion regarding the earlier signature of the Digital Services Bill 2023, to be taken on conclusion of No. 4 without debate.
This morning, this House should recognise that there are renewed attempts to try to establish talks aimed at achieving a ceasefire in the Middle East. As a House, we are all very conscious and have talked many times since 7 October, now four months on, about the inhumanity that has been perpetrated there. We should call on all parties to engage in those talks constructively to seek to find a situation whereby a ceasefire can be achieved, humanitarian aid can be provided and sustained, hostages can be released and everybody can work together for a two-state solution.
Second, I welcome the confirmation from the Garda that there have been three arrests with regard to the recent arson attack on a residential property. It brings to ten the number of people who have been arrested in recent months for conspiring to destroy properties that could be used as essential accommodation for people in need of that accommodation. These are not just acts of vandalism. They are criminal acts that are aimed at destroying society's capacity and resources to respond to what is a humanitarian need in our society at this time. Everybody in this House should condemn them. We should support the Garda in the prosecutions and encourage anyone with any information to bring that information forward to it.
Finally, on a somewhat lighter note, I want to wish Mr. Oliver Callan well in his new slot on the RTÉ radio show. I do not get to listen to it often, but yesterday morning he had a piece on that was a really good example of public service broadcasting. Dr. Chris Luke, who is a columnist with the Irish Medical Times, and Mr. Luke Loughlin, who is a Westmeath GAA player, talked in a really calm, balanced and informed way about drug and alcohol use in our society, and not in our society as people read about it in the newspapers or see it on social media or how it is portrayed on other media, but how it actually occurs in our towns, villages, pubs and clubs all around our country.
I encourage everyone to listen to it because it was an honest and informed view of how drugs and alcohol can have a profound, lasting and damaging effect, not only on individuals, but on their families and wider communities. I am someone who takes a drink. I am not a teetotaller; I could not pretend to be one. However, it is important that we discuss this as a society and we do so particularly with the younger generation. It is an issue of education and information. In that respect, Oliver Callan and his programme provided a public service yesterday. I thank him and wish him well in his new slot.
I make an appeal for Members to stop using the catch-all title of "immigration" in this House, in the media, in commentary and in news items when we are talking about criminal and threatening behaviour in communities. Immigration should not be the headline topic. It should be racism and xenophobia.
Well said.
Language is important. If Members want to talk about illegal immigration and the systems in place to protect society from illegal immigration, let us do that. If they want to talk about international protection, a human rights obligation to give shelter to people who are running from persecution, then let us do that. If they want to talk about the critical skills list and the workers we depend on for a functioning health system, the hospitality industry and our IT sector, then let us talk about that as well. Maybe we also need to talk about the people who think it is okay to blame a whole section of our community for the problems in their lives.
I have been in politics my whole life and if you are concerned about school places, medical facilities and Garda resources in your community, you do you not burn buildings down. We need to call it out for what it is. It is racism and xenophobic behaviour. Let us remember that we can see the faces of the people who work in our hospitals, nursing homes and crèches and they are now subject to unacceptable slurs in public. We cannot see the cowards who hide behind keyboards and phones and come out with pitchforks at night.
The second issue I will raise is BusConnects and the dire need for an airport link in the wider Blanchardstown area, which has a population of 100,000. It is one of the most populous, diverse and business oriented areas, yet has no direct link to the airport. It was great to hear the news last year that the N8 route would be introduced from Blanchardstown shopping centre to the airport in 2024. I have now found out that has been pushed to quarter 4 of 2025 because of funding and resources. We have not had the Minister for Transport in the House for a while. Can we please bring him in because we need to talk about the delivery of essential services?
I will first draw attention to the Taiwan Strait. The International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO, is responsible for air navigation and it has set rules about how air navigation pathways might be changed. In the past few days, China has decided to cut off a number of vital pathways for air navigation in the Taiwan Strait. The M503, W122 and W123 flight paths are now all closed. Once again, this is China is flexing its muscles against a small state that has a democratically elected president and government.
We should be calling this out. We should be recognising Taiwan in this country. To hell with the One China policy that is in some way hampering Taiwan. We saw what happened with our own citizen in China, Richard O’Halloran, and the way he was treated. The Chinese do not give a continental damn for the rule of law.
I wish to raise another matter. I will circulate a document to all Members of the Oireachtas today called Closing the Backdoor, published by a think-tank called Policy Exchange in the UK. We can argue where it comes from and its political genre but what is stated in its report is 100% accurate. We are the weakest state in Europe. We are the weakest of the eastern flank of the United States and the western flank of the United Kingdom. We have no way of knowing what is in our sky or what is under our sea yet we have massive cables passing through our economic zone, carrying some 97% of east-west economic data. It is simply not good. I listened to the Defence Forces Chief of Staff being interviewed on RTÉ Radio 1 and he was asked about primary radar, which is essential to establish what is in our sky. He estimated it would take 24 to 36 months before we would have primary radar. That is simply not good enough.
Level of Ambition 2 is about two years old and we still see no development in that area. We still see the numbers falling and now we are beginning to see the number of Garda falling. I asked not so long ago for a debate with the Department of public expenditure and reform on the pension scheme. The post-2013 pension scheme is killing the uniformed services – Garda, Defence Forces, prison officers and fire officers. Nobody wants to be in those jobs now because there is no pension at the end of it. Indeed, the single pension Act hits a number of people in this House as well, including me.
Following on some of the themes that have been mentioned, and it has been discussed a couple of times, it is time we start calling these arson attacks what they are, namely, terrorist attacks. I do not think I am being OTT when I use this term. We have done some research on this. We can use terror laws for arson attacks on accommodation or linked to people seeking asylum. That is language we should probably start adopting as well; it is people who are seeking asylum. They are people first and they are seeking something - which they are perfectly legally entitled to do under international law, Irish law and European law - in Ireland. Where there is evidence that these arson attacks are being motivated by extremist ideology, crimes such as criminal damage, including arson, can be prosecuted as terrorism-related offences under the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act 2005. For any avoidance of doubt, I will read out from our Irish Statute Book what our definition of “terrorism” or “terrorist activity” is:
“Terrorist activity” is defined by reference to offences under our law which are committed in or outside the State with the intent of seriously intimidating a population, unduly compelling a Government or international organisation to perform or abstain from performing any act, or seriously destabilising or destroying the fundamental political, economic or social structures of a state or an international organisation.
As I said, that is directly from our Irish Statute Book. We should not dance around this and not call it for what it is. These are acts of terror, domestic terror or whatever one wants to call them. They are seeking to destroy our literal and our political infrastructure in our State. We will have to reckon with that when we come to the local elections and indeed the general election. They are seeking to destroy economic structures in our State because it is costing a huge amount of money both to put out these fires and then rebuild these buildings. They are destroying social structures as well because this is dividing people.
People are acting online. I have screenshots from channels and I could probably tell Members the next set of buildings across this country that will be targeted. People are boldly posting on channels that are easily accessible by me, you and anyone. I hope An Garda Síochána is also accessing these because there are lists of buildings now up online that they are talking about targeting next. I would not be at all surprised if those buildings are burned in the next week or couple of weeks.
I do not believe that we have to have this argument that we do not see any sort of co-ordinating force doing it and therefore these are just lone wolves. These are lone wolves who are acting online, who are being motivated online through channels that everyone has access to. I am not entirely sure how it needs to happen, whether we need to call the Minister for Justice to the House and have a conversation about this or whether she needs to go before the justice committee, but we need to start calling these acts exactly what they are. They are acts of terrorism against the State and against our people. These people will not be held accountable until the whole force of the law is against them. I am not someone who necessarily invokes the great force of the law any day but we have to start calling these things what they are. They are racist attacks, they are terrorist attacks and they are destroying our society.
Well said.
I call Senator Gavan.
I was delighted to attend, with some of my colleagues from the Dáil, the momentous and historic occasion last Saturday when Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill was elected First Minister with the DUP’s Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly. With many others, I witnessed first-hand epoch-making events. It was a day like no other in Ireland’s long and conflicted history; a day of great hope for the people of Ireland and of great opportunity for a new beginning. It was a great day for the Good Friday Agreement and its all Ireland and east-west institutions; a great day for reconciliation between the nationalist and unionist people and others of no declared aspiration. It was a great opportunity for local politicians to bring their collective skills to bear to resolve the many social and economic problems that people of the North are experiencing, in a similar way to the elected representatives in this Chamber and the Dáil on behalf of the people who elect us.
Last Saturday, the framework of the Good Friday Agreement had new democratic life breathed into it in the Assembly’s Chamber when the mandate of the people was respected and a Government was elected to work in conjunction with the Irish Government in the exercise of its duties across Ireland and between Ireland and Britain. With an eye to our tragic past, Michelle O’Neill’s election was a moment which was not supposed to happen because of Britain’s partition of Ireland and the system of injustice and discrimination that maintained the unionist state but far-reaching change is now rooted among the people of the North. I look forward to seeing all the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement operating in full and, alongside this work, Sinn Féin and the SDLP will continue to campaign for constitutional change and a referendum North and South to peacefully bring about a unified and independent Ireland, a referendum which is a pillar of the Good Friday Agreement. I call for a debate on how we can best support the important work of the Assembly.
The second issue I wish to raise is one that I must have risen to bring up 100 times by now, namely the continued and abject failure of this Government when it comes to University Hospital Limerick. I would not have believed that we could reach the stage we did yesterday with 150 patients languishing on trolleys. The record of failure is consistent and it gets worse year after year, month after month, and I hold Stephen Donnelly wholly responsible for this. This is a Minister who denies the INMO figures and has done so in this Chamber. He is in denial about the state of failure across University Hospital Limerick and we are losing lives as a result of this failure. He has had four years to actually implement measures. Even today, if you ask the Government what is its plan to deal with this crisis, it simply does not have one. I am calling, as I have done before, for an emergency debate on University Hospital Limerick. I hope I have the support of everyone in this Chamber for that debate given how appalling the circumstances are. I want to call here, publicly, for Stephen Donnelly to resign. He has failed and failed the people in Limerick and the mid west in the most abject manner.
I also welcome the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive. The opening remarks of both Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly were very inclusive. I think we wish them all the best in their work. I also want to wish a special best of luck to Andrew Muir, a friend of mine who is the first openly gay Minister, as the new Minister for Agriculture. I know he has already set to work. It is important that this House does wish them the best in their work.
I want to raise the Irish Independent story which has been covering the shortages of GPs, particularly in rural areas. This is something I have raised before. It is an ongoing issue. In my own local area in north Wexford, one of the fastest growing areas in the country, one of the GP practices no longer takes anyone new onto its practice lists.
Many of those who have moved into the north Wexford area have to keep their GP links wherever their GPs were originally. I am conscious, and it is very welcome, that the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, is ramping up the number of GP training places this year to 350, which is up 35% on last year, and that the Government has increased significantly the number of places in undergraduate medicine that are available, but they will take a bit of time to come through the system. We need to look at the graduate medicine programme and perhaps some ways whereby, in the funding of students who go through that, if they enter into GP practice, the State will cover the costs of their training on the graduate medical programme. I would like a debate about the question of general practice and its availability. This is critical. Ours is a growing country, but it is important that everybody has access to his or her local GP.
I rise to express my frustration with what is happening at University Hospital Limerick. I have been very consistent for quite a while in looking for the Minister to come here to address it. Yesterday, I wrote to the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and asked him to declare a state of emergency at University Hospital Limerick. I know that the Minister was interviewed yesterday and said it was not acceptable. While a great many among the hospital management had always said that it required resources - and there have been huge resources with extra beds, extra staff, extra services and my understanding is that UHL received the highest amount of resources of any hospital per capita - there were 150 people on trolleys yesterday. A number of people have been on the phone to me crying that family members are not being looked after. I am not taking from the staff, who work really hard, but there has to be an explanation for the problem. I asked the Minister to visit the hospital in the next day or two and to bring the emergency crisis management team down to run the hospital because that is what needs to happen. There needs to be change. I know that the new executive officer, Ms Broderick, started maybe only two or three weeks ago and needs time to bed in, but there is something fundamentally wrong at UHL, and it is not acceptable. There were 150 people on trolleys yesterday; 20 received beds since then and I think there are about 130 today. It is at crisis point. There are four other hospitals in the hospital group, and while changes have been made in terms of small injury units and specialist areas in the other hospitals, it is not acceptable. Realistically, I need the Leader's support to ask the Minister to call an emergency crisis to do with UHL because something needs to change before people die.
I want to flag that the UCD Earth Institute, in conjunction with UCC, will host a seminar next Tuesday, 13 February, for one hour. It will be in No. 45 Merrion Square, which is the Irish Architectural Archive building, and the topic is unregulated private wells, hidden hazards and the evidence for policy and action. It is very important, and I want to use this opportunity in advance of that seminar to call on the Government to introduce a well-funded - a water well-funded - advertising campaign for water cleanliness in the interest of public health. With our huge issues in terms of private wells, the Leader would know as a rural dweller herself about the impact of this. I regularly get representations from farm homesteads, particularly where they do not have the resources or the funding to re-bore a well. They have no direct fresh water mains. I believe that every home should have equal access to water. For those who live in towns, that is not necessarily a challenge, as opposed to those who live in rural areas through necessity or, for that matter, by choice. The UCD Earth Institute has told us that the research and evidence are clear, with comparative studies both here and abroad that highlight the gaps.
They say there are significant inequalities in relation to rural Ireland affecting over 800,000 rural dwellers. That is a considerable number of people. Forestry, agriculture, fertiliser, sheep dips and bad sceptic tanks are a contributory factor, but that is not all. There is significant leaching. This is a public health issue. It is a crisis. We know about the significant damage that cryptosporidium does to people. We know the damage from human faeces and animal faeces in our water supply. I would like at some point to have a debate on it. On behalf of UCD art institute that does amazing work and UCC, I just want to flag that this event is only for one hour, at 45 Merrion Square, next Tuesday. I would encourage Members of the Houses to attend.
I want to speak about a flood relief project that was planned for Ballinasloe. Of course, the Office of Public Works, OPW, recognised high levels of existing flood risk and conducted a catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM, study as part of the CFRAM Programme. That was finalised in May 2018. This was due to incredible flooding twice in Ballinasloe town involving millions of euro worth of damage. It brought expert teams together - OPW, Arup group engineers, Ryan Handley environmental engineers and Galway County Council - but all of these consultation processes are taking time. Our last public consultation was in March 2022. The next public consultation will be at the end of February. I suppose what I want to say here is that we need to see action. We are seeing all of these consultations, but where are we seeing the action on this? This next consultation day will be on Tuesday, 27 February. I encourage people in my own local area to go to this meeting. It is from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. We need to show the project team that this project is urgent and we need to see it happen now. I deal with families and people in the likes of Ballinsloe, in Portnick and all along Sarsfield Road and Station Road, where they have had to deal with this flooding. People look out the window - one will hear it about many areas that are flooded - and look to see the water rising, particularly at this time of the year, in February and March. I want to highlight that the investment in flood-relief projects across the country is crucial. We can see everything with climate change but we need to put the measures in place that we agreed years ago are a priority; we still have not seen action, we have the consultation now and we next need to see action and construction.
I rise briefly today to raise the issue of the Irish basketball team travelling today and playing the team from Israel. I listened this morning with interest to Mr. Kieran Donaghy, the former great Kerry footballer who, unfortunately, broke our hearts on a few occasions. The point he made was that the team should not go; they should not play. I would endorse that position because what is happening here is that this team of basketball players are being taunted and abused by people in Israel before the game starts and that puts them in an impossible position. They say they will lose approximately €80,000 in revenue and that their standing in European basketball will be downgraded. Mr. Donaghy made a interesting point that if they started a GoFundMe set-up for this situation they would not be long recouping the €80,000, but sometimes we must take a stance on these issues. Our country, under the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Micheál Martin, has been very vocal and taking an important and strong stance on the situation in Israel. There is a genocide in Gaza. Call it what you like, that is what is going on. Appalling incidents are being imposed on the poor Gazans by Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu. Netanyahu is the problem. Straight out, he is the problem with some of his right-wing cohorts. Netanyahu would be out of office and kicked and booted out except this is prolonging his position as Prime Minister of Israel. Internationally, Israel is getting a bad name, and rightly so. I cannot understand why the US President, Mr. Joe Biden, whom I would have great respect for, is not calling it out plain and simple if a stop is not put to this. They want to destroy and dismantle Hamas. Hamas is an ideology.
They can kill all they want in Gaza but instead of destroying Hamas they are actually throwing petrol on the fire because all throughout that Middle East region, whether it is Iran, Egypt, the West Bank, Lebanon, etc, instead of having 100,000 Hamas rebels, every day that passes that number multiplies and the Israelis, the younger generation and others, will regret what is happening now because this is not going to die away. We have experience in our country of trying to suppress an organisation who tried to uphold what they felt was the right way forward and, eventually, all parties came to the table to talk and got a solution. Israelis, under Netanyahu, dismissed outright the peace talks that were suggested recently. In fact, yesterday he poured cold water on the suggestion and I think we should call that out in this House.
I am a great supporter of the Irish basketball team going and playing but already, before they start, they are hampered by the negative comments and intimidation by Israel, which is most regrettable. I am not antisemitic but we cannot ignore the situation in Gaza. In the short term Netanyahu might have some success but in the long term the people of Israel will suffer.
Well said.
I want to raise the same issue. What I want to say is not a political commentary on what has happened but to say that sports and politics do not mix. What is really unfortunate about this situation is that individual players who only want to play the game and do their best to represent Ireland are now being put at the centre of a political controversy. They do not deserve that.
What is really unfair is that the rhetoric now coming from the Israeli Basketball Association uses words like "antisemitism". I have said in this House before, to oppose Israeli policy in terms of Palestine is not antisemitism. It has nothing to do with Jews, the Jewish faith or Judaism at all. It has to do with the disgraceful behaviour of Israel in terms of its neighbours in Palestine. It is war crimes and, in my view, it is genocide specifically of the population in Gaza. For the Israeli Basketball Association to criticise Basketball Ireland for not responding in the spirit of sport at the same time that it is allowing its players to pose with the Israel Defense Forces, in the presence of heavy arms, is absolutely outrageous. In fact, it shows just how far they have drifted from the spirit of sport and accusing individual players. If there are individual players on the Irish basketball team who have decided not to play then that is their decision and I praise them for it without criticising those who have decided to play. It is a very unfair position to put this team in. They are doing their best to represent this country. Now they are in a situation where they are being criticised and praised, depending on which side people are on. They are not politicians. They are sportspeople and should be allowed to get on with playing their sports. We should send a very clear message to FIBA, which is the international body, that the spirit of sport, which are the terms used by the Israeli Basketball Association, is very much absent from the behaviour of the Israeli team in terms of their approach to this and putting people at the heart of this does sport no good whatsoever.
To follow that last contribution, the call from this House is that the Israeli basketball team should be called out and pulled out of the International Basketball Federation because the pressure on the players has been shocking. I wholeheartedly agree with Senator O'Donovan about the stance that many have rightly taken but it is not fair to put players in that awful situation.
I agree with Senator Marie Byrne on UHL. I have had a lot of personal experience with UHL over the last few months. While my personal experience over the past few days has been very positive and contrary to the numbers that are in the ED at the moment, there is a dysfunction at the heart of the hospital. A patient before Christmas who had to go to ICU from the dialysis unit was forced to stay in the ED for 12 hours simply because ED is the only gateway in ICU in the hospital.
The issue that I want to raise this morning concerns the platform workers directive. We had thought before Christmas that we would have, in 2024, a directive across EU member states that would be groundbreaking in the effort to combat bogus self-employment, and that it would provide transparency to those who work on platforms on how algorithms manage their performance, pay and the allocation of work.
Importantly, it will provide for the rightful designation of these workers as employees rather than as bogusly self-employed. However, the Government, along with a number of other EU member states, just days before Christmas blocked the EU directive at a meeting of the European Council. We need to hear answers from the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, and the Minister, Deputy Coveney, as to why the Government has taken this position. There were some vague positive noises last year that it would be supportive of this directive, but it has now left us all in a position where there are no protections for the most precarious of workers, namely, the 25 million platform workers throughout the European Union. The Government is one of those blockers and we need answers.
A small village in south Cork, Ballinspittle, was badly flooded at 5 o'clock this morning. A torrent of rain came down through the valley and washed out businesses such as restaurants and pubs, while several residential properties were badly damaged. This is happening more frequently. Today is the second time in three months that Ballinspittle has been flooded, with the same houses and restaurants in the same location affected. In every town and village, the potential to be flooded is now a continuous threat and putting flood defences in place is becoming the big issue.
We need to fast-track these issues. There are so many environmental impact assessments and everything else that the process takes too long, and the knock-on implication is that villages such as Ballinspittle are being affected. They are being washed out. I really feel for the families who were affected at 5 o'clock this morning. Their properties have been destroyed. The fire services did a fantastic job, as always, and I compliment them on that.
We should immediately put a humanitarian fund in place for the businesses and households that are affected. It should be a rolling fund and we should not have to wait for the Minister of State to announce it. If you are affected by a flood, you should not have to wait for a ministerial order. It should be the case automatically that you can get the funding.
In any event, how long we are waiting for these flood defences is the big issue. We need to fast-track it. Otherwise, properties and lives will be put at risk.
As other Members did yesterday, I pass on my sympathies to the Bruton family on John's sad passing. I was taken by the contributions here yesterday from Senators and, indeed, by those of Members of the Lower House, in particular his brother, Richard, who gave a lovely and moving tribute. To John's wife, Finola, Richard and all the members of the Bruton family, I pass on my deepest sympathies and thank them for their very dignified service to this State through the years.
On a more joyful note, I am glad to report that a former TD, Minister and Ceann Comhairle, Dr. Rory O'Hanlon, celebrated his 90th birthday yesterday and that he is the picture of good health. He is hale and hearty and has as much energy, and is as bright, as ever. I pay credit to him for his energy. He is living life to full, along with his good wife, Teresa, who has been by his side for many a year. I would be grateful if we could send a note of belated birthday wishes to him and wish him and his wife, Teresa, many more years of good health and happiness.
I raise the issue of licensing laws. Last year, in May or June, Sinn Féin brought forward a Private Members' motion urging the Government to save the night-time economy. Fine Gael has made a lot of political capital out of announcement after announcement but still there has been no change. The response from the Minister, Deputy McEntee, to a parliamentary question last November stated that it was now the intention to bring forward "a shorter Bill to provide for key reforms including the standardisation of opening hours for pubs and off-licences" and to "introduce annual late bar and nightclub permits as well as cultural amenity licences".
We have to get this over the line. Campaigners are worried that this will not happen, as am I. What assurances can the Leader, as a representative of the Government in this House, give me that this Bill will be introduced in quarter 1 of 2024 as the Minister says? We have received an email today from groups calling for a health impact assessment of the Bill as proposed by the Oireachtas committee. I have no problem with that whatsoever. I think the health impact assessment should also be in terms of the current situation, whereby people do not just go home after a night out. They go to house parties or illegal raves or parties. What is the health impact of keeping the status quo? Our streets will be safer if we do not shut down premises at the very same time. There will be less pressure on transport services. At the end of the day, we are a small country. We are talking about a handful of nightclubs that would serve alcohol until 5 a.m., a maximum of ten across the country I would say and most of them in this city. We need to bear that in mind when we are talking about these changes.
Like others, I want to raise the issue of the emergency department in UHL. It is shocking that this situation is continuing. I do not blame anybody for it yet everybody can be blamed for it. Something really does need to be done. It is a crisis. It is embarrassing. It is not good for our society and it is certainly not good for the sick people in the mid-west. A debate here on the issue of the emergency department in UHL, with the senior Minister, Deputy Donnelly, in here, is something the people of counties Clare, Limerick, Kerry, Tipperary and other surrounding counties deserve. I suggest that should happen.
I would also like to articulate the concerns of parents of children with scoliosis. It is heartbreaking to see children suffering, children in pain, parents forced to put up videos on social media of their children in pain. What kind of a society allows this situation to happen? If it means buying the services abroad, it has to happen. We cannot allow a situation where these children are continuing to suffer day in, day out, week in, week out, months and into years. As a country we are better than that and we should act better than that and resolve this problem for once and for all.
Before I call on the next speaker, I welcome guests of the Ceann Comhairle from Cill Dara rugby club. You are most welcome to the Gallery and to Seanad Éireann. Councillor Seán is here as well and I thank him for being here.
I join with Senator Gallagher in wishing Dr. Rory O'Hanlon, a former Minister and TD and of course a fantastic GP in the Monaghan area, a belated happy birthday. It was great to hear him on his local radio station hale and hearty, talking about life in general and political life. He referred to the late John Bruton as well. I am sure he had a wonderful 90th birthday and we wish him well into the future.
I welcome new restrictions brought in yesterday by Scottish Forestry in relation to exports of spruce timber from Scotland. Our own Minister of State, Senator Hackett, the Department of agriculture and of course our Oireachtas agriculture committee have been working on this for some time. After a number of months of major discussions, the Department and the Scottish authorities have arrived at an outcome that will protect Irish forests.
These new restrictions on the movement of spruce logs from some of west Scotland's pest-free areas are a positive step in maintaining Ireland's protected zone status for certain pests. This is something that is very important to the forestry business here. Many regulated pests and diseases found elsewhere throughout the world in forestry areas are not present in Ireland. We have had a very strict plant health regime for a long time and that is a very favourable way to be. Ireland's protected zone status includes six bark beetle species. They can do awful damage to wood, so this is a very important and welcome step for our forestry business. It is good it has now been agreed and brought forward by Scottish Forestry and it is good for this country.
I wish to address the issue of apprenticeships. I call for a debate about them to acknowledge the really important work the Minister, Deputy Harris, is doing on them and to have a discussion about how we can make them better. I am raising this because over the weekend, I was out knocking on doors in my home town of Dundalk. I met an individual who is a tiler and that person outlined to me how there are currently no apprenticeships in tiling. We have apprenticeships for virtually every career going and we want to have 10,000 apprenticeships every year as part of our strategy, yet we do not have a dedicated apprenticeship for tiling. This is a very important issue and something the Minister, Deputy Harris, should look at introducing. I hope to perhaps arrange a meeting between him and the National Tiling Association of Ireland to figure out how we can make this an apprenticeship. We have an excellent apprenticeship hub in Dundalk that is churning out a huge number of apprentices. The key fact is apprenticeships are the way forward. Not everyone needs to go to college and not everyone needs to have a college degree. People can have an equally good career earning more money in most situations as a highly-trained and highly-qualified apprentice. We must ensure every position has a route for that and that is why tiling would be a very worthy apprenticeship to have and which the Minister and the Department should introduce. I would welcome a debate at some future point about apprenticeships, the key role they play in our economy and society and how we can make that role even better.
I will begin on a very pleasant note by following my constituency colleague, Senator Gallagher, in wishing Dr. Rory O'Hanlon a very happy 90th birthday and continued good health and enjoyment of life. He is one of the finest people we have ever had in political life and I have valued his friendship and wisdom down the years when we met at many public events. I also put on record my welcome to three guests of mine. Fr. Patsy Carolan is an Oblate father leading the Oblates in Inchicore and does extraordinary community work there. He had done a lot of work in London in Hope House and with people in difficult circumstances there down the years. I welcome also his brother-in-law Pat Maguire and Pat's son, who are guests of mine and will be in the Gallery shortly.
I turn to something raised by Senator Gavan earlier. I first congratulate the new Executive in Northern Ireland, including the First Minister, Michelle O'Neill, the Deputy First Minister and all the Executive members, and wish them well. In that context, I reiterate a point I regularly make that we should start a programme in addition to the special unit in the Taoiseach's Department initiated by the current Tánaiste.
The sports capital grants should be linked. There should be extra points or credit in the sports capital grants for clubs that show a connection to Northern Ireland, such as evidence they visit Northern Ireland and play challenge and friendly games there. That is a small practical step. There should be more interaction with second level schools and third level educational institutions in Northern Ireland and a positive policy and direction to have exchanges of pupils and games, cultural exchanges and so on should come from the Government down through the education system. It is by building those relationships and connections from the ground up that we will ultimately achieve a united Ireland. That is what we have to do. On that basis, given the constraints of time, we will leave the development of that issue to another day, but I look forward to the Leader's response.
Before I call on the Leader to respond to the Order of Business, I welcome students from St. Brogan’s College in Bandon who are guests of Senator Tim Lombard today and have come all the way from west Cork. They are most welcome. It is the unwritten policy of Seanad Éireann that visiting schools do not have any homework for the remainder of the week. It is a pity they did not come on Tuesday. I thank them for coming and they are most welcome.
I thank all Members who contributed and welcome the students to the Gallery. I hope they have found their time here to be of interest.
First this morning was Senator Fitzpatrick who raised the ongoing conflict between Israel and the people of Gaza. We are all in agreement with her remarks that what is happening there is abhorrent. It is deeply disappointing, to put it mildly, that Benjamin Netanyahu and his government have refused to agree to a ceasefire. There was great hope that potential agreement for a cessation of hostilities was on the table to get aid to people there. There is a primary role for the United States to step in. Everyone is expecting the US Government to do what it can because clearly very few people will be listened to by the Israeli Government. I appreciate the Americans have made regular visits in recent weeks.
The Senator also raised the ongoing issue of arson attacks, as did Senator Hoey. It is correct to say they are criminal acts and the penalty for committing arson is up to ten years in prison. It is a serious offence, but there can be challenges in finding the perpetrators because of the nature of the crime committed and sometimes the difficulty in gathering evidence. We rely on people with first-hand knowledge to come forward. People will often be aware of what happened and who is responsible. An Garda Síochána is doing everything it can to find the perpetrators of these events. We even see what happened in Kildare when the premises was not even being considered by the Department of integration. It just goes to show the poisonous effect of misinformation on social media and the impact it can have on people's behaviour. We all need to be vigilant for that.
Senator Currie raised the issue of the discourse surrounding immigration and the need to acknowledge that our society and communities have a significant number of migrants and non-Irish people working in our health and ICT sectors, farming and food production and retail. We need that and having a catch-all conversation and putting everything together is disingenuous to the issue.
She also raised the issue of BusConnects and asked for support to get an airport link with Blanchardstown. It has been pushed out to 2025. I suggest the Senator table a Commencement matter in that regard as it is quite a specific question.
Senator Craughwell raised the issue of the Taiwanese airspace and flight paths being closed by the Chinese Government which is regrettable. He also highlighted Ireland's security issues and stated that some would identify Ireland as Europe's weakest link when it comes to security matters.
Senators Gavan, Malcolm Byrne and Joe O'Reilly all raised the issue of the Northern Ireland Executive. They wished First Minister Michelle O'Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly the very best as they embark on power sharing after two years of the absence of the Assembly and Executive. It was a historic day and it is good that the democratic mandate delivered by the people two years ago has now been realised. It was quite symbolic to see two women in those positions. They looked genuinely interested in working together for the betterment of the people of Northern Ireland and that is what politics is all about.
Senator Gavan also raised the issue of University Hospital Limerick, as did Senators Maria Byrne and Conway. The challenges are obvious.
To have anyone on a trolley is unacceptable, but to hit 150 is unacceptable. We thought we would not see that day happen. It is acknowledged that there has been more investment in University Hospital Limerick than in any other hospital in the country. There have been 1,000 extra staff over the lifetime of this Government. Extra beds have been provided. The Minister has been down there on numerous occasions. There is new management. It is clear for people to see that the Minister is doing everything he can try to resolve the situation. I understand there are difficulties with discharges at the weekend, which is having a knock-on effect. I have no doubt that GP shortages or difficulty accessing GPs, step-down facilities and home care packages has an impact on the numbers presenting to the accident and emergency department who do not need to be there. Whatever is happening, there is a need to try to get it under control. The Minister for Health and the Government are working tirelessly to do that. It is an extremely difficult situation for staff and patients to be in. We all want the matter to be resolved. Every effort is being made to do that.
Senator Malcolm Byrne welcomed the restoration of power-sharing. He drew our attention to a story in the Irish Independent around GP shortages and has asked for a debate on that issue. He acknowledged that the number of GP training places has been increased under the Government and the Minister, Deputy Donnelly. We have a growing population and the demographics are putting extra pressure on the system. We have an aging population which increases the demand for GPs at a time when we need to get more into the system. While we are increasing the number of and investing in GP services, due to demographics it is difficult to catch up and get ahead. That is a priority for the Minister, Deputy Donnelly.
Senator Maria Byrne spoke about the issue at UHL. I understand she has written a letter to the Minister, Deputy Donnelly. As I have said, I am sure he is considering it. I acknowledge the points he made around the emergency situation in Limerick and the need to try to address it quickly and get things under control.
Senator Boyhan drew our attention to a UCD and UCC seminar next week on water safety and quality.
Senator Dolan asked for support for flood relief projects in the Ballinasloe area and acknowledges the difficulties for families in those situations. That is well acknowledged. There might be a lack of insurance because of where people are living. Senator Lombard has raised a similar issue. It is a difficult challenge to resolve, in that we have seen significant adverse weather events and increased levels of flooding in parts of the country where flooding was previously not such a problem. Due to the lack of insurance for those properties, a difficulty is created for Government in terms of how we deal with this going forward. I do not think we will be able to reverse engines in terms of flooding problems. It is a matter for the OPW and the local authority in the area to try to pull together some ideas to deal with the short-term, as well as the medium and long-term, issues. We need to determine how we deal with this in the future and try to assist those families and businesses that have been affected.
Senators O'Donovan and Ward spoke about the Irish basketball team and its game with the Israeli basketball team, and wider issues around the conflict in Gaza. I addressed those at the beginning of my response. I have a great deal of sympathy for the players and team who are just there to play a game and should not be caught up in this conflict. It is not of their making. I have no doubt they will share the same views as us in this House as to what is happening in Gaza and the need for a ceasefire, aid and the release of hostages. It is an appalling indictment of humanity as to what is persisting in that area that we still have not seen a cessation of the conflict.
Senators Hoey and Ward raised the issue of bogus self-employment platforms and the full worker protection that was due to come to those in the gig economy. My understanding is that there has been a disagreement on the wording. There is still a commitment at EU level to deliver on the directive to extend full employee and social protection rights to those working in the gig economy, which has exploded in the past decade. During the Covid period, there was an increase in people working in the gig sector, whether in food delivery or other services. I understand up to 12 member states have a difficulty with the wording of the directive. There is an acceptance that it is unlikely to be included in the term of this European Parliament and will move to the next European Parliament. The focus in member states will now probably turn to June. Overall, there is still a commitment from the Government for a directive in this area. It is important that wording is agreed because even if Ireland agreed to the directive today, there would still be 11 other member states not in agreement. I understand France has been particularly strong in voicing its opposition to the directive.
As we know, at a European level, things operate by consensus. There is a bit of work to do yet to get that right and get it over the line. It is something I would support. We have to extend proper workers rights to those in the gig economy and those who are classified as self-employed when they actually are not. I am thinking of taxi drivers, for example, who work for Lynk or FreeNow. It is a new area which has developed and we are still catching up in trying to deal with it and putting the right policy platform and regulations in place.
Senator Lombard spoke about the flooding issues.
Senators Gallagher, Murphy and O'Reilly all wished Dr. Rory O'Hanlon the very best of birthdays as he turned 90 recently. He is a former Minister and Oireachtas Member. I had the pleasure of meeting him recently. He is a lovely man. He is in great health and great spirits and still very much involved in politics at local level. I wish him the very best.
Senator Gallagher also extended his sympathies to the family of former Taoiseach, John Bruton. I want to take the opportunity to extend my sympathies to the family of the former Taoiseach, his friends, community and the Fine Gael Party on the loss of a very distinguished public servant. He gave many years to public life and has clearly left his mark on individual members of his party, many of whom recounted personal phone calls and advice and assistance along their political journeys. It is the mark of a party person and a team player. It is a great credit to him and his family.
Senator Warfield spoke about the licensing laws. It might be worth submitting a Commencement matter to get an update. It is still the intention to bring that Bill through. We have to see reform of our licensing laws. He is correct to point out that very few premises will want to open that late. However, the impact on transport, public safety and public order of having everybody flood out on the streets at the same time is quite obvious. We have to trust that the public will be sensible when there is access to those facilities and those premises beyond midnight or 2 a.m. People should be allowed to socialise a bit later in the night if they want to. I think that Bill will come through but it might be worth submitting a Commencement matter to get an updated position on it.
Senator Conway raised the issue of UHL and the challenge around scoliosis there. It is really difficult to watch the children and families who are still waiting on surgeries and assistance. It is just appalling. The Minister, Deputy Donnelly, is doing everything he can to get those surgeries performed. It is very challenging to get the waiting list dealt with because multidisciplinary teams are required. If we need to go beyond our own jurisdiction and purchase services elsewhere to get children seen to and to clear the list, I would certainly support that.
Senator Murphy also raised the issue of forestry's ongoing challenges and what has happened in Scotland. It might also be worth submitting a Commencement matter to deal with this with the Minister of State from this House who has direct responsibility for it. It is posing a challenge in many rural communities in counties Roscommon and Mayo and other parts of the country. There are conflicting policies in that we want to plant more trees because of the climate issue and to reduce our carbon emissions but we also need to be cognisant of doing it in the right way and ensuring that we are not taking up valuable farmland. We need to bring communities with us on this issue. That is the balance we are trying to strike and I am not sure that we are always striking the right balance. However, it is a very worthwhile issue to keep raising on the floor of the House. It is not the first time the Senator has raised the issue.
Senator McGahon raised the issue of apprenticeships and the fact that there is no apprenticeship for tiling. There are particular pinch points in terms of tradespeople. It is difficult to get blocklayers, tilers and plasterers. There is a shortage of those skills. They are essential skills for the building of homes as we try to deliver on Housing for All and increase our housing supply. The Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, who has direct responsibility for apprenticeships, has been doing a lot of work over the past four years to increase the number of places and to advertise them. We have seen increased numbers of people coming into apprenticeship programmes. People can see a viable career and future after completing an apprenticeship. It takes a number of years to turn things around and have people coming through who are qualified and ready to work but I take on board the Senator's points.
Senator O'Reilly made an interesting point on the Northern Ireland Assembly being back up and running and the shared island initiative in the Department of the Taoiseach, which was initiated by the Tánaiste. The Senator suggested that we could look at the grading of the sports capital programme and have an element of it that relates to all-island clubs. This is a very interesting proposal. It would certainly be worth raising with the Minister of State with responsibility for sport, Deputy Thomas Byrne. I am sure he would be interested in having a discussion about it. The sports capital programme applications are closed for now. We are in the current cycle so the Minister of State would not be able adjust the current adjudication process. Certainly for the future, it merits being considered. I am sure that he would be keen to have a conversation about it.
Order of Business agreed to.
Cuireadh an Seanad ar fionraí ar 12.10 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 12.15 p.m.
Sitting suspended at 12.10 p.m. and resumed at 12.15 p.m.