Joint Committee on Public Petitions to resume consideration of petition to ban herbicides in public areas

The meeting at 1.30pm in Committee Room 4 of Leinster House will hear from representatives of Wicklow County Council regarding Public Petition Number P00008/22 on behalf of Mr James Walsh and others. The Committee will also consider other petitions.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Martin Browne said: “This Committee will continue deliberations on this petition seeking to ban the use of herbicides from all public areas. Mr Walsh is also seeking a non-toxic method of maintaining grass and plant growth.

“The Committee looks forward to hearing from the representatives of Wicklow County Council, whose Climate Action Team were asked to look at current practices and develop a policy that would lead to the reduction and possible elimination of the use of glyphosate by Council Staff.

“We will also consider a number of other petitions, including one seeking to ‘support access to employment for Non-EEA PhD students’ spouses in Ireland’, a claim that ‘Bye/By Elections in Ireland may comply with legislation, however they do not comply with the Constitution’, and calls to ‘lower outpatient waiting times for urgent cases’ and for an ‘investigation to identify if Irish citizens have been spied on illegally’.”

The Joint Committee on Public Petitions is a standing Committee of the Houses of the Oireachtas and has 11 Members, seven from the Dáil and four from the Seanad.

The meeting in the Committee Room 4 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.