Prior to the commencement of the Order of Business, I wish to welcome to the Public Gallery Councillor Adam Teskey. I also welcome members of the Duleek Women's Forum from County Meath, who are guests of Senator Sharon Keogan. They are very welcome. I now ask the Leader to outline the business for today.
An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
I also welcome all our guests. The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding the appointment of members to the joint committee established to consider the application for a private Bill entitled the Royal Hibernian Academy (Amendment of Charter) Bill, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business without debate; No. 2, report of the Committee of Selection, to be taken on conclusion of No. 1, without debate; No. 3, Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2022 - Report and Final Stages, to be taken at 2.45 p.m. and to adjourn at 5.15 p.m., if not previously concluded; No. 4, Health (Amendment) Bill 2023 - Second Stage, to be taken at 5.15 p.m. and to adjourn at 6.30 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, all Senators not to exceed seven minutes, time can be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 5, Historic and Archaeological Heritage Bill 2023 - Report Stage (resumed) and Final Stage, to be taken at 6.30 p.m. and to adjourn at 8.30 p.m. if not previously concluded.
I thank an Treoraí. I also welcome the students from Belvedere College and their teachers who are here today. I hope they have a very enjoyable visit to Leinster House.
I support the Order of Business as outlined by the Leader.
It will give me great pleasure, on my behalf and on behalf of Senator Ardagh, to move that leave be given to introduce the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2023, "a Bill entitled an Act to provide for the establishment of a body, to be known in the Irish language as An Coiste Comhairleach um Chóireáil Atáirgthe Dhaonna Chuidithe or in the English language as the Assisted Human Reproduction Treatment Advisory Committee, to advise on criteria for eligibility for financial assistance with assisted human reproduction treatment and to provide for related matters." I move that this Bill, No. 23 on the Order Paper, be taken before No. 1. This is important legislation on which Senator Ardagh and I have been working on for the past two years. We all have family or friends who have struggled with infertility and we all know the huge emotional and financial cost that has. Senator Ardagh and strongly believe the least the State can do is to help support the financial cost, which is what the Bill aims to do.
I have come from facilitating a meeting with a group in the audiovisual room around the whole area of dementia human rights. I congratulate St. Joseph’s Shankill, a leading butterfly model centre for those living with dementia. It undertook research with five other countries into human rights for people with dementia and the need to respect people with dementia and have a value-based approach to treating them. We must always remember the person first and not look at the dementia first. The work the centre has done is incredible. As policymakers, we need to take this on board. Communities and society need to have a value-led approach towards treating people who have dementia with respect and dignity and listening to their voices.
Some of the asks have been on the need to produce adult safeguarding legislation. There is none in place and it is important that the House work on that. The terms of reference of a care commission are being drawn up. It cannot come soon enough and, likewise, the referendum. I ask Senators to note that.
With regard to the Women of Honour report, the documentary programme on the Women of Honour sent shock waves throughout the military and defence community, in particular, in south Kildare where many members of that community reside. It was a damning account by female soldiers on active duty and retired. The Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Deputy Micheál Martin, met the group to discuss the upcoming report yesterday. I understand that was a productive and constructive meeting. I pay tribute to those who acted as whistleblowers. I do not want to pre-empt the findings of the report but it is important that the Seanad take note of it and have a discussion on it.
I welcome all of our guests in the Gallery, in particular Councillor Adam Teskey. I commend and thank him for the phenomenal work he does for the people of his constituency in west Limerick.
The first issue I raise is the campaign by the Irish Farmers Association, IFA, regarding the various derogations from the nitrates directive. The simple point in this regard is that the goalposts keep changing. Farmers have gone above and beyond to be as efficient and environmentally friendly as possible. In many ways, they are guardians of the environment. I am thinking in particular of farmers in the Burren in County Clare and what they have done to protect and promote best environmental practice. Every year, the goalposts and criteria keep changing and new terms and conditions apply. We need a multi-annual programme to give farmers certainty because as matters stand, they do not know what the new criteria are from one year to the next. The small print always gets bigger. I am not talking font size here; it becomes more lengthy. One cannot run a business on that basis. It is completely unprofessional and it is not how business is done, certainly not how successful business is done. Until such time as the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine comes clean with farmers and sets multi-annual terms and conditions that give farmers certainty, we will continue to see a diminution in farm income, which will drive full-time farmers off the land, and farms will become part time.
That is not good for rural Ireland or our economy and it is certainly not good for farming. We certainly do not want to see farming in this country become a part-time occupation.
On 6 December this year, I tabled a Commencement matter in this Chamber regarding the pilot scheme that was announced by the Minister almost 12 months ago at this stage in terms of sewerage schemes for County Clare. Numerous schemes have been submitted. In County Clare, Broadford and Cooraclare were submitted by Clare County Council as part of the call for expressions of interest. In the reply that was given on the record of this House, we were told it would happen in quarter 1 of this year. We are at the very end of quarter 1 now and as of yet, there has been no announcement on which schemes have been successful or not. This is dragging on. It is not good government and it is not good politics. In a situation where we have a housing crisis, and when we have developers prepared to put their hands in the pockets and build but who are not allowed to do so because it is premature development, we need these schemes over the line in order to repopulate parts of County Clare.
I wish to support Senator O’Loughlin in for calls for fertility legislation and also her call regarding the Women of Honour group. This House needs a debate on the treatment of women in this country. The Leader can decide whether the Minister for Justice or the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth needs to be here for it, but it needs to happen now.
Like many in the House, I have been following the horrific treatment of one of our Irish sportswomen, Ms Kellie Harrington, by the media over the past 24 hours. Having been invited on to Newtalk's "Off the Ball" radio show to promote women's participation in sport, she was in her own accurate words hung out to dry by a presenter who used his time to grill her on whether or not she was correctly toeing the progressive party line. Kellie rightly refused to engage with this because she knew that if she put even one foot wrong regarding the issue of immigration, that which must not be discussed, the media would tear her to shreds and boy, they have proved her right because, of course, she committed the worst crime of all - wrongthink.
We do not know what Kellie's opinions are on immigration or trans-identifying persons in sports nor do we have the right to demand them from her. She is a boxer, not a politician. Her apparently scandalous deleted tweet said that it was very sad that a 12-year-old French girl had been sexually assaulted, mutilated, strangled and her body stuffed into a suitcase. What is wrong with saying that? Even if she does hold the taboo opinions that biological males should not compete against women in sport, and that year after year of unprecedented levels of uncontrolled migration into the country is unsustainable and will have negative knock-on effects, so what? These are views shared by massive portions of our population. Words are one thing, however. Violence is quite another despite the efforts of many on the left to conflate the two in order to control speech and silence dissent.
Women's rights promoter Ms Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull was recently assaulted in a Let Women Speak event in New Zealand on Saturday. Counter protesters in the form of radical trans activists threatened and attacked attendees and an additional event was cancelled due to credible threats on Ms Keen-Minshull's life. She is coming to Ireland to speak on 15 April. We are taking a two-week holiday from Thursday so we need to prepare now. What plans does the Minister have to ensure the physical well-being of women and their children? Will they be protected at that event? Has the Minister or Garda Commissioner assessed the need for personal security arrangements for Ms Keen-Minshull? Does the Government think that the women of Ireland are worthy of protection? If so, we need to talk about it and it should happen here and now. I would welcome if the Leader could urgently call the Minister for Justice into the House because this protest might turn into something rather nasty and we do not want that to happen.
I wish to raise the issue of Palestine again. It is an issue to which I constantly return because, unfortunately, the situation continues to worsen.
Last year was a deadly one for Palestinians, with 171 of them being killed by Israeli forces and settlers, including more than 30 children. Some 49 people, of whom 17 were children, were killed during the Israeli assault on the besieged Gaza Strip. At least 9,000 Palestinians were injured in the same period. By the looks of things, this year is going to be far worse. By mid March, more than 80 Palestinians had been killed, and this includes 17 children. In the same period 13 Israelis, five of them children, have been killed.
Israel's new Government, which contains representatives from extremist and racist parties, has given violent settler groups licence to attack Palestinian villages, destroy homes and property, blockade roads and assault farmers and deny them access to their land. This violence is carried out with impunity. The Israeli occupation forces passively watch on or often join the attacks in support of violent settlers. I call for a debate on this topic. It is badly needed. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil will be shown to have been on the wrong side of history when it comes to Palestine. In particular, the refusal of both parties to support the occupied territories Bill is nothing less than shameless. Everybody knows Israel is an apartheid state, yet we have a Tánaiste who says it is not helpful to use the term "apartheid". Imagine saying that about South Africa when it had an apartheid system. It is inexcusable. It is up to all of us to take a stand on this issue and I call for an urgent debate.
The second issue I wish to raise is the very disturbing report on yesterday's "Morning Ireland" about what is happening to international protection applicants who are without accommodation. As of yesterday evening, there were 408 people in this situation. These included a woman who was eight weeks pregnant. She was finally provided with accommodation yesterday, having spent five nights sleeping in a tent in Dublin city centre, where her partner had to take turns keeping watch with another man. They are terrified.
People arrive here in fear, having fled in terror and now they are left sleeping rough on the streets of Dublin. There are 408 applicants in this situation as of yesterday evening. This Government is failing in its international obligations. It is failing to implement proper human rights law with these people and this is nothing less than disgraceful. I call for a debate about that as well.
I second the proposal that No. 23 be taken before No. 1. This is a Bill I and my colleague, Senator O'Loughlin, have been working on. It essentially brings in publicly-funded IVF. It is something I have spoken about previously in this House. My husband and I had to go through five rounds of IVF to create our beautiful family. It takes an emotional toll on you and also a huge financial one. I probably spent the last Seanad going in and out of IVF clinics on my own and I hope this Bill will not only address the taboo with IVF but also the financial curse families must carry when going through the treatment. The cost is nearly the size of a deposit on a house. I am delighted we are bringing this legislation in and hope it will get support from all sides of the House.
The second issue I wish to raise relates to the shooting in Nashville, Tennessee. There have been over 120 mass shootings so far this year in the US. Over 63 children have died in mass shootings. I would like to send a message from the Seanad to our colleagues in the US to do something to reform gun laws. The message could say we are watching and we are all horrified, as most citizens of the US are too. It is about the laws. There are no gun laws in Nashville. I think a person can carry a weapon once he or she is over the age of 21 and can buy a gun without any questions asked. These are the repercussions and it is tragic. My thoughts go out to the families of the six people, including three children, who died yesterday.
I welcome Councillor Adam Teskey to the Public Gallery. He is a hardworking councillor from Limerick and it is great to see him in the Chamber. I ask the Leader to arrange a debate at some stage with the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications on energy and retrofitting of homes.
Retrofitting is a huge area. There are considerable grants given by the Government in regard to this. We would like to know how this is progressing. My experience with the SEAI is very good. It is very efficient. Its inspectors are very good at the work they do. People who had inspections after retrofitting of their homes are delighted with the inspections because that gives them reassurance that the job was done well. They can get an update on the satisfaction rate with the people who installed the retrofitting. There is a range of areas that are not grant-aided such as small domestic turbines. This is an area the Government should look at because along the west coast particularly, we are repeatedly told that we have the highest wind speeds in Europe. It is the best area for turbines. Quite a considerable number of householders would avail of small wind turbines if there were grants available. I would like a debate in the Chamber, if the Leader could arrange that before the summer, because we would like to know how people are getting on who have availed of retrofitting with solar panels, how they are being treated by energy suppliers and whether they are getting paid for the number of units of energy they are exporting. This is an area that needs to be examined. The Government could expand it.
In February the Minister for Transport announced the move to E10 as the standard grade for petrol in Ireland which will help to reduce the harmful emissions produced by petrol cars. E10 provides that there is a minimum of 10% ethanol in standard petrol, above the current E5 or 5% ethanol which is currently supplied in petrol stations. This will bring us in line with Britain and Europe. However, unlike the situation in Britain and Europe it does not seem clear whether the Government intends to cater for the small amount of car users who would be affected by this change: those whose cars will only take and operate on E5. One correspondent of mine mentions his particular situation. He has a 2006 Lexus JS300, which is one of the few cars that cannot run E10 according to Lexus and the EU. I looked this up and confirmed that it is the case. In the rest of the EU and in Britain, E5 is still available to purchase. What is the Government going to do to accommodate the small number of petrol car users whose cars cannot run on E10? I have a family interest in the area of vintage or more specifically veteran and classic vehicles. Certainly E10 would be damaging to the engines of older vehicles, specifically those. According to my correspondent, this issue would affect tens of thousands of cars whose owners are likely unaware that the extra ethanol would destroy aluminium and rubber fuel lines in cars such as his. That would certainly seem to be unreasonable. When I looked up what the Government had to say on it, it was not at all clear because the suggestion was that it would only be a matter of adjusting cars or having them serviced more often or having more frequent maintenance. However, it is more serious than that. I ask that we get some clarification from the Government that the small number of car owners affected would be in a position to access E5 for their cars in the future and that the Government would ensure that is the case.
I wish to raise the issue of online abuse to Members of both Houses. We still have not had a discussion about this. There is no solution for protecting Members and protecting people in general from online abuse and from hatred and discrimination. Senator Ruane and I had a conversation about six months ago. In this House and the Lower House Members can talk about and insult people and be racist, and they are doing their job.
If Senator Ruane or I, however, stand up and say they are not allowed to say that and they are hurting people, that is us at it again. I am making this contribution because I feel safer when I am walking the streets than I do when I am looking at my mobile phone. That should not be the way, not just for me but for other people in this House who are gay or from other groups in society. We talk about people participating in politics but what is there in place to protect those from minority groups in politics? I am very aware that I am the only Member of this House who is from an ethnic minority group. I cannot do my job where I do not feel safe. It is important to have freedom of speech in this House and the Lower House. I bring that to the attention of the Leader. Can we have a debate on online safety? Legislation to protect people online has gone through the House but it is not strong enough. The hate crime legislation is ready to go; it just needs to be implemented. Is there any update on that legislation?
I thank the Senator for her contribution. The Ceann Comhairle and I have held a number of meetings with Members of both Houses. A task force is being commissioned and we will feed the Senator's contribution back into that. I am sure the members of the task force, when it is constituted, will do likewise. I thank the Senator.
I welcome the announcement yesterday by the Minister, Deputy Harris, of the purchase of the old Waterford Glass site, subject to the approval of the governing body of South East Technological University, SETU. It will be a major footprint as part of the multi-campus SETU. Now that the Waterford campus is being developed, we look forward to the development of the Wexford campus. Things are moving in the right direction in that regard.
I was going to raise the issue of the borrowing framework for the technological universities, TUs, but on my way into the Chamber I got the good news that the commencement order has been signed. Until now, the technological universities, including Munster Technological University, were not able to borrow. This is significant as quite a number of them wished to commence student accommodation. Not being allowed to borrow caused a difficulty in that regard, however. The Higher Education Authority Act 2022 allows for the institutions to borrow but we were awaiting the signing of the commencement order by the Minister. I welcome the fact that the Minister has now signed the commencement order, which will allow the technological universities to borrow for the first time. That is significant. It is important that the TUs now come forward with specific proposals in respect of student accommodation. In most cases, the balance sheets of the TUs are relatively healthy. They can now borrow and the State can provide them with support. In order to go some way towards addressing the housing crisis, it is critical that we have a major investment in student accommodation. I welcome the signing of the commencement order and I hope the TUs will come forward with proposals. There is a need for the House to have a broader debate on student accommodation, however, because I am certain that, come September, it will be a live issue once again.
I rise to welcome the good news announced yesterday in respect of the arrival of Eli Lilly in Limerick. It is currently based in Cork and employs 38,000 people globally. An investment of €500 million was announced initially but the figure has now gone up to €1 billion. It will be a state-of-the-art development and 1,200 people will be employed in its construction, which has already started. There will also be 300 permanent jobs on site. This is a good news story. The Eli Lilly campus has been designed to take climate change into account and it will produce enough electricity at the site to heat more than 775 homes annually. It will also recycle its water. There is a rare barley plant on the site. A commitment has been given to consider that plant and carry out various tests to see how it can be used.
It is an awfully big news story for Limerick but also will be state of the art. It is going to be the company's biggest plant in the world and its intention to employ so many people and to supply biopharma and medicines worldwide is to be welcomed.
I wish to revert to the incident that happened in Glenmalure last week regarding the farmer, Pat Dunne. We all know the importance of outdoor recreation and all our councils now have an outdoor recreation strategy. A critical part of that strategy is access to the uplands and mountains. I came across a piece in this morning's edition of The Irish Times by Helen Lawless, who is one of the officers with Mountaineering Ireland and its clear position on dogs is that no dogs should be taken onto the hills without the landowner's permission.
Most of us who actually use the uplands - I am a huge user of this form of recreation myself - respect that but what happened in Glenmalure last week is completely unacceptable. First, I want to talk about Pat Dunne himself. I know him personally and have worked with him for over 20 years now. I have served with him on the national parks council and on the Wicklow Uplands Council. He has done more to open access to the uplands than any other farmer in Wicklow and he has been proactive in developing agreed access routes. County Wicklow was the leader in that, and behind that was Pat Dunne. That is why it is very disappointing that this incident happened.
Pictures have emerged over the weekend which clearly show Pat Dunne being shoved to the ground, while the son of the man takes the three dogs up the zig-zags and on the left-hand side, you can see cattle standing there. Pat Dunne has agreed access on that route for 20 years. He asked for one thing and one thing only: that no dogs be allowed. Something has to happen and unless this is dealt with, the outdoor recreation strategy in every one of our counties will be put in jeopardy. It is the minority, sadly, who are physically taking advantage of access routes agreed by farmers. From Pat Dunne's point of view, you could not meet a more positive farmer, who has allowed access across his ground and has promoted the possibility of other farmers allowing access on their lands. I wanted to put that in context.
I want to begin by welcoming Odette and Sam Doran to the Gallery. They are leading activists in the campaign called Not Our Fault, which is the group of residents who are affected by apartment defects and are waiting on the Government's scheme. I have spoken a number of times on this issue and have asked that we have statements in the House.
The decision has already been made by the Government in response to the probability that more than 100,000 apartments throughout the country are affected by apartment defects. The decision is made for us to have a remediation scheme. The €2.5 billion is there in the pot, ready to address that remediation, and now we are looking at the finer details of how that is to be worked out. I appreciate that we are on that trajectory, except that is no use to the people who are living in those apartments.
The two people in the Gallery have been extraordinary, in the Park West complex, at getting work done and trying to bring progress and safety to people who are living in fear of fire defects in their complexes. Their complex is extraordinary and they do extraordinary work. However, throughout the country, in every constituency and every town, there are apartments that are affected by this, going back to Celtic tiger building. It is really important that we address these issues. The Government is already there but we need to have statements in this House, first to tease out the finer nuances of it and then to ensure the message gets out that people should not delay on getting work done. How are they going to finance that? The Minister for Housing, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, needs to hear that we need an emergency fund to be brought forward as quickly as possible in that regard.
I commend Odette and Sam and acknowledge the other people who are outside the gate and who will be outside the gate every Wednesday until we have actual money in people's hands. As they are living with the daily consequences of it and with the fear of it, I ask for statements in the House on this sooner rather than later.
I welcome Odette and Sam to the House and thank them for their work.
I am speaking today about housing, which has been quite popular over the past while. We have all discussed and agreed that we are in the middle of a crisis. Nobody could deny that. However, there is a more simplistic solution that could be used. It was pioneered during the Covid crisis and it worked extremely well. Developers and builders were asked to roll out mortuaries and additions to hospitals. There was a plethora of different building works at that stage. Work started in a matter of weeks. At this stage this should be treated as a crisis and treated in the same way that we treated the Covid crisis. We need to bring in similar legislation. I know there has been a lot of emergency legislation recently. However, this has been a proven process where building and construction have worked. I know the Land Development Agency, LDA, has identified different sites. At present we have quite a number of sites adjoining areas of existing social housing. It is time to look at emergency legislation, speak to existing contractors and start building houses in some of these areas. The tie-up with the planning and the planning process is to the detriment of 90% of goodwill in relation to building at present. If we use the model used during Covid, we will have quicker and better wins. I do not think any party in this House would have a problem with it.
I request a debate with the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys. We have not had a debate for quite some time about rural affairs and the schemes available for communities. One scheme in particular is popular at the moment. I refer to the community recognition fund, which was set up to support communities that have gone above and beyond in welcoming Ukrainian citizens into their communities. County Tipperary was quite successful, and has received just under €1 million for communities across the county. There has been a positive uptake. More than 70 applications have been put forward to Tipperary County Council, which has recommended a list to the Minister. The task is to get that money out from the Department to those communities. When we talk about supporting communities that have gone above and beyond, there are two in County Tipperary that particularly need to be recognised. Fethard was one of the first towns or villages across the country to take in Ukrainian citizens. It transformed an old convent into a facility that was able to take 50 Ukrainian citizens. It has been hugely successful at integrating them into the community over the past year. There is also the small village of Dundrum, outside Cashel. Some of the houses in Dundrum House Hotel have been transformed and more than 200 Ukrainian citizens have been taken in. It is hoped that it will be possible to take in a few more. The population of the village has almost doubled. The community council, the GAA club and others have made applications under the community recognition fund. I hope the Minister will prioritise the villages of Dundrum and Fethard. There are about 1,000 Ukrainians in County Tipperary at the moment. More than 200 of them are in Dundrum, with the expectation of more to come. That means one quarter of the Ukrainian people in the county will be in Dundrum. I ask that they be prioritised by the Minister.
The Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, has been talking about cutbacks and telling European finance ministers what they need to do. I wonder if he was kept on as Chair of the Eurogroup to be a warrior for austerity. We all know European fiscal rules were suspended during the pandemic. The pandemic underlined the fundamental weakness of the fiscal rules, particularly the Stability and Growth Pact. What good are rules that will be suspended if and when they become inconvenient?
What good are rules that make impossible the necessary public investment in housing, healthcare and climate action? These are impossible under the Stability and Growth Pact. We are at an important time for EU economic policy. We need a debate on the Stability and Growth Pact, which has long been recognised as a failure. I would welcome the opportunity to say that directly to the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, in this Chamber.
Well said.
I refer to climate change and climate action. Climate change is all around us and is happening all the time and everywhere. Last week, the sixth report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, was issued and has been described as the final warning. We all need to think about the kind of legacy we want to leave to our children and grandchildren. If we want to leave them a liveable planet, the report is telling us that the time for action was yesterday, last week and last year. We are increasingly reaching the point where it will be too late to act.
Will the Leader address this matter with the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications? It is recognised internationally that Ireland has comprehensive climate legislation with legally binding targets. That is welcome. However, our emissions remain too high. The second-largest proportion of carbon emissions in this country comes from the built environment. There must be support for those of us who are trying to reduce our carbon footprint in our homes. I am increasingly receiving complaints from homeowners who are trying to take climate action by retrofitting their homes that delays on the part of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, are preventing them from doing so. The latest reply I have from the SEAI indicates that the average waiting time from application to completion of works is two years. As I said, we should have been taking action yesterday, last week and last year. I would appreciate if the Leader would ask the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, to respond to this issue with urgency and to work with the SEAI to accelerate the timelines in order that homeowners, particularly those who are trying to avail of the free energy upgrade scheme, can reduce their carbon footprint.
I thank Members for their contributions. Senator O'Loughlin has proposed an amendment to the Order of Business, seconded by Senator Ardagh, that No. 23 be taken before No. 1. I am happy to accept the amendment and I commend both Senators on their work on what I will refer to as the IVF Bill, to give it a shortened Title. In essence, the purpose of the Bill is to allow access to financial support for IVF services. The Senators have worked for the past two years with the Minister for Health and his Department to bring the Bill to where it is today. I commend them on this important work. We have come a long way as a country in recognising that infertility and reproductive issues are health issues and should be treated as such, and that prospective parents should not find themselves in a situation whereby they cannot financially afford to have a family.
Senator O'Loughlin also spoke about dementia and commended St. Joseph's home in Shankill on its work. She stated that adult safeguarding legislation is needed.
In addition, the Senator referred to the Women of Honour report and asked for a debate on it with the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence. I have been told by his office that he will come to the House on 25 April for statements and a debate on the report.
Senator Conway spoke about the nitrates directive and the campaign by the IFA. He called for certainty for farmers and a multi-annual programme to make their job easier and ensure we retain farmers and farming families in the agriculture sector. The Senator also had a question about a pilot sewerage scheme in County Clare that was due for completion at the end of quarter 1. He might put forward a Commencement matter on this issue, which is quite specific.
Senator Keogan spoke about the treatment of women and issues relating to Kellie Harrington. I did not hear the interview to which she referred but I am aware of it from online discussion. The Senator made the important point that everybody is entitled to his or her views and that we need to hear opposing and different opinions. Provided those views are articulated in a respectable way, there should be no difficulty with that. There certainly is a restricted space in which to have an opposing view on certain issues, which is not good for public discourse and debate.
Everyone should feel free, comfortable and safe in expressing their views, once it is done in a respectful way. I did not hear the interview but take on board the points the Senator made. The Senator mentioned also Kellie-Jay - I am not aware of that individual - and an event in Dublin. I do not think it would be a matter for the Minister for Justice to speak on a specific event but if there were safety concerns, the Garda should be alerted by the event organisers. It would be a matter for local gardaí to respond on that issue. I am not aware of the event beyond what the Senator has said. I wish the organisers well and hope it goes off in a safe manner and that people are able to attend as they wish.
Senator Gavan spoke on Palestine. I have requested a debate previously and we have not got a date yet on it but I will request that debate again. I take on board the Senator's point on international protection and accommodation. It is proving more difficult to source accommodation for international protection applicants than for Ukrainian refugees. A distinction has been made, not just by the European Union in how we deal with refugees from Ukraine as opposed to other refugees, but also by the Irish public. We know for a fact that some accommodation providers will accept Ukrainian refugees but not international protection refugees. It is making it more difficult to source accommodation. I have engaged with the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman, on the issue and he and his Department are working tirelessly to ensure nobody is without accommodation. The aim of the Government is to ensure anybody coming here seeking safety and refuge and fleeing multiple horrible situations, would be accommodated. That has not happened in every case but every effort is being made to ensure it does happen.
Senator Ardagh seconded the motion to introduce the Bill. I concur with her remarks on the shooting in Nashville, Tennessee. She stated that over 63 children’s lives have been lost this year alone. It is appalling and shocking. I am not sure what it will take to get legislators in the US to make a change. Even if guns were banned from this point onwards, the amount already in existence is a problem. I do not know how they will deal with it. They have not been dealing with it to date and it beggars belief. Every week, almost, we hear about children losing their lives. It does not happen in other parts of the world. Legislators should take note of that fact. It is important to send a message from this House. Sorrow is what we want to express on that issue.
Senator Burke requested a debate with the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on retrofitting, as did Senator Fitzpatrick. Both Senators raised issues around the length of time, access, resourcing and the importance of the retrofitting scheme for meeting our climate targets.
Senator Mullen raised the issue E10 petrol. That was all new information to me. It was very informative.
It was new for me until recently too.
I was not aware of the issue. An interesting point was raised concerning the move towards more advanced fuel composition. I imagine once the issue is raised with the Minister, some concession will be made for motorists with vintage cars. They are part of every St. Patrick’s Day parade and rallies. They are so important to the culture of the country that I have no doubt the Minister will engage on the issue. It might be one for a Commencement matter with the Minister because it is quite a specific question, even if just to alert the office to it.
Senator Flynn raised the issue of the online abuse of Members of both Houses. It is something we are dealing with. It has become part of the job, unfortunately, but that does not mean we should not try to tackle it. As the Cathaoirleach suggested, work is ongoing in the Oireachtas to find a mechanism to support Members. We will work together on it. The Ceann Comhairle has indicated, with the Cathaoirleach, that a cross-party group will be established to put forward tangible solutions so we can address the issue together. We are doing it not just for current but also future Members of both Houses. It would show outwardly that we are trying to address the issue, which we know is a problem.
Senator Malcolm Byrne welcomed the signing of the commencement order facilitating TUs to borrow. That is great news. Hopefully, it is in time to allow some works to commence on accommodation for the new term in September, but it is a tight enough turnaround. I will request a debate on student accommodation. We might leave that until later in the term as we run into the point where, as the Senator said, it will become a topic for discussion. He also welcomed the acquisition of the Waterford Crystal site as part of the new campus for SETU. He awaits the development of the Wexford campus. That is good news and it is great to see the TUs doing well and getting well established.
Senator Maria Byrne welcomed the new company that has been established in Limerick and the jobs it will bring to the area.
Senator Casey raised a very particular issue relating to access to uplands and the incredible work done by Pat Dunne. I certainly do not condone what has happened to him in that situation and I hope it is being properly investigated and dealt with. No individual should have to deal with that type of thuggery. It is only by consulting and working with farmers and getting their permission, effectively, that we have access to uplands and the greenways and walkways that are a huge part of rural Ireland and the tourism offering. It is important that we continuously acknowledge that farmers do this from goodwill; they do not get anything for it. It is an extra inconvenience, and there is an element of trust and good faith there in order for them to do that. It takes only one or two bad experiences for other farmers to pull back, so it is important that that issue is dealt with properly and does not arise again.
Senator Seery Kearney raised the issue of the apartment defects scheme and asked for a debate on it. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage will be in the Chamber tomorrow for statements on housing, so that will be an opportunity to raise directly with him that issue and to get an update on the scheme. I acknowledge that there were attendees in the Gallery earlier in that regard.
Senator Davitt put forward a potential solution in the form of an emergency response to housing and referred to the way in which certain facilities and buildings were constructed during the Covid period, when there was an emergency. It is always welcome to see new solutions put forward and everybody looking for ideas and ways to assist in the situation.
Senator Ahearn asked for a debate with the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys. We will make that request.
Senator Warfield mentioned comments made by the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. I was unaware of the comments until the Senator referred to them. I am not sure I can offer any reply to what he has asked, but it may be worth tabling a Commencement matter for the Minister to respond on that issue.
Finally, Senator Fitzpatrick spoke about climate change and climate action and highlighted the importance of the recent IPCC report and its very damning findings in respect of the acceleration in global warming. She alerted the House to the extensive waiting period from application to completion of works under the SEAI grants. Two years is a long time if we are trying to use retrofitting to tackle climate change. The deep retrofit scheme is a very good one and a big part of our response. We will request a debate with the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to get an update on the scheme.
Senator O'Loughlin has proposed an amendment to the Order of Business: "That No. 23 be taken before No. 1." Senator Ardagh has seconded the amendment. The Leader has indicated that she is prepared to accept it. Is the amendment agreed? Agreed.
Order of Business, as amended, agreed to.