Aubrey McCarthy
University of Dublin · Independent · Ireland
“I briefly mention what my colleague Senator Andrews mentioned about the accommodation recognition payment, ARP, and its proposed reduction for those who are hosting Ukrainians in Ireland.”
“I have travelled to Ukraine and seen first-hand the resilience and dignity of the people. Many of the people I hosted are from Mariupol and have nothing to go back to. They are not just people receiving support but people who have become part of the community here. We should never forget why they came here in the first place.”
“Just as I was coming in this morning, standing on the lawn at the Merrion side of Leinster House it is hard to ignore the ragwort that is growing on the grass. Under the Noxious Weeds Act 1936, ragwort is a noxious weed.”
“I extend the welcome to Emma and Adam. I first met them through our homeless services at the Lighthouse Homeless Café. They came to access services. Adam is a bright lad. He is studying away. He is a fanatic when it comes to basketball and I hope that one day, he will play for Ireland, if not in the NBA in the US.”
“As someone who has spent over two decades in Tiglin, trying to get people from homelessness, addiction and domestic abuse back into employment and education, I can say that the Mr Price model works very well.”
“I hope we ensure that people such as Adam are given every chance to fulfil their dreams. I wish Emma and Adam every success. I thank Emma for volunteering at the Lighthouse with my manager, Mr. Rob Byrne. It is something special. I welcome the Belgian Ambassador to the House. He is a wonderful representative of his country.”
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“I want to raise the case of the Oceanwide Expeditions liner that is now off the coast of Cape Verde. Just before coming in, I spoke to one of the passengers, Ann Lane, who is a good friend of mine. She was a colleague of many of us in this House. She worked with Mary Robinson for 28 years. She worked with Deputy Ivana Bacik and Senator Michael McDowell. She is a lady who is well known to this House. This is her sixth expedition. She has been to Antarctica four times, and has really enjoyed it. At the moment, the liner is lying off Cape Verde and is not being allowed to dock. Two people have died on board and another two are seriously ill. Seven out of the 90 passengers have contracted the Andes strain of the hantavirus. This is a very serious issue.”
“That means investing in electric vehicles and modern infrastructure, but supports must be put in place for ordinary businesses. We need to strengthen our energy resilience. The recent crisis has shown the importance of storage. Rather than binning some €400 million of energy per year, we should store it in batteries, etc. There is a need for such storage. The grid will benefit from it. We must recognise that energy policy is part of national security policy. The lesson of the Iran war is absolutely clear. Our fossil fuel dependence has exposed us greatly. Ireland has a choice. Do we remain exposed and reliant on imports of fossil fuels or do we act decisively?”
“Oil alone accounts for nearly half of our total energy demand, and we import all of it. I know there are issues regarding Tarbet power station, the new facility on the Shannon, etc. We have promised it for years. There is a huge challenge in our economy regarding energy security. We are just not producing clean electricity. We need to transform our entire energy system. That means accelerating the transition to renewable energy. There is untapped potential in this regard. The Minister’s statement outlined that in the context of wind energy and emerging technologies like green hydrogen. These are not just climate solutions; they are security solutions. We must electrify our economy, even when it comes to the haulage industry. It must shift away from oil and gas and move towards electricity powered by renewables.”
“Households are installing solar panels at a record rate. Demand for renewable technology - solar and wind, as has been mentioned - is accelerating. The Minister's statement outlines how we have made significant steps. I may have missed whether any steps have been made regarding storage. Recently, we were talking about €1.4 million of energy being wasted every day, which is about €400 million a year. If we could store that and work on that, Ireland would have a good starting point. We have made real progress with renewable energy, as the Minister outlined. It supplies a significant amount of electricity. We have set ambitious targets, specifically achieving 80% renewable energy by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050. Electricity is only part of the picture. Transport, my own industry, still depends overwhelmingly on fossil fuel.”
“Prices have surged. Some people have made a lot of money out of that. Roughly one fifth of the world's energy supplies pass through the Strait of Hormuz. That has become a geographical choke point. Here in Ireland the effects have become immediate and fuel costs have risen sharply. That is why the ordinary, hard-working person was protesting recently. That is the price we are paying for our dependency on fossil fuels. When our energy system relies on imports we are definitely not in control. That is not the Government's fault but the Government can change it. Even in the Minister's statement, we see there is an opportunity here. Throughout Europe we are seeing a rapid shift in behaviour. I spoke to a gentleman in Naas yesterday who has a car garage. He said sales of electric and hybrid vehicles have shot up.”
“We have changed even the way we are charging. This is not just an ordinary energy crisis. It is a security crisis. That is why I am delighted to see in the Minister's statement that we energy is secure in Ireland. However, Ireland remains one of the most import-dependent countries in Europe. Nearly 80% of our energy comes from abroad, the vast majority in the form of fossil fuels. That means decisions that are made thousands of miles away affect us. Even the Strait of Hormuz, when we see it on the news, impacts everybody out there. That is why we had the recent protests. Also, the Iran war has made the reality impossible to ignore. We saw that when the streets were blocked recently. Since the outbreak of the conflict earlier this year, global energy markets have experienced some of the most severe disruptions in modern history.”
“According to the Minister's statement, we are having this discussion at a time of uncertainty. The Minister mentioned the Strait of Hormuz. Global energy markets are certainly experiencing shockwaves. The ongoing war in Iran has sent shockwaves through international markets, as mentioned, and disrupted oil and gas supplies. It has exposed Ireland once again to the fragility of our energy systems. That is because they are largely based on imported fuels. Throughout Europe, including in Ireland, we are feeling the consequences of rising prices, economic hardships and growing anxiety about the future. I have a haulage business and every week we are looking at the diesel prices and asking if we are able to absorb the increase or whether we should let our customers know we cannot absorb it and then increase the price of an already fixed price.”
“I ask that the Minister for Health come into the House to address this at the earliest opportunity and outline what steps the Government is taking to tackle what is happening in our accident and emergency, and specifically how that applies to existing psychoactive substances and how the legislation applies to these products. I think it is causing very real harm to younger people.”
“The report they presented shows that in psychiatric wards and in psychosis clinics there is a lot linked to HHC and HHC-like products. The reason is that suppliers have simply changed the man-made cannabinoids to ones with virtually identical properties, which fall outside the specific ban. The human cost, as I know through people accessing Tiglin services etc., is real. A 2025 study in Galway found HHC was the second most commonly used drug among people presenting to hospital with psychosis over a 21-month period. Psychiatrists are not calling for new legislation; they are just saying we could use the present law in a smarter way.”
“I commend my colleague Senator Stephenson on her initiative to provide three months' free transport for victims of domestic abuse. I also commend the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Dara Calleary, on co-operating with her on that initiative. I will mention the matter of public concern, the health concern, that was raised over the weekend regarding synthetic cannabis. A number of psychiatrists from Cork, Dublin and Galway wrote to The Irish Times and they are calling on the Government to act on the continued availability of HHC products, or synthetic cannabinoids, that are designed to mimic the effects of cannabis. Despite HHC being classified as an illegal substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act, the ban definitely is not working.”
“This has transformed the lives of many people who were experiencing youth homelessness in County Kildare. Many had come from the care system. I commend Kildare County Council on making a difference here. After last night, I want to say that there is a case to answer regarding children in our care. As we are the ones making the legislation, we need to look at this.”
“However, 40 years later there should not be a closed door for these individuals. Many years ago, I spoke about the private care system, that is, special emergency arrangements, SEAs. These are privately-funded care homes for children and they are not working. They are profit centred and it is all about money. I know many well-meaning people who have worked in them but they are not qualified to look after these children. It is more like security than care. I approached Tusla five or six years ago about setting up a facility in Kildare. I was told that there was no demand for such a facility. We went ahead anyway and set up Jigginstown Manor, of which the Deputy Leader was supportive. We did it with Kildare County Council and Homeless Care.”
“Last night's "RTÉ Investigates" programme was horrific and very disturbing. It showed a system for children in care that is not working. Not only is it under pressure but it is definitely failing the children it serves. We heard the story of Max and some other kids. Max is from our own area. He was living in a car park under the Tusla offices, two miles down the road from me. My reaction was that this is indefensible and should not be allowed. We also heard other stories about young children who were being neglected or sexually abused in care and given fast food as their main diet, instead of proper food. In this House we have a case to answer. It hit home for me. I came from a dysfunctional household. I remember as a 13-year-old going in to the Eastern Health Board, as it was then, to try to look for help and there was a closed door.”
“I asked Professor Kerrigan to come in to the audiovisual room. He is coming in today to discuss sepsis, why the incidence is rising and how different countries are facing this epidemic, as he would call it. He is bringing Ciaran Staunton with him to join the discussion. Ciaran has been leading the force. He lost his son, Rory, to sepsis. In New York he has driven state-level legislation, which mandates early-recognition protocols and rapid treatment pathways. His experience is both practical and powerful regarding policy and how it can be directly translated into saving lives. There is going to be a short address today on how sepsis affects us in Ireland and how we can use the EU Presidency to give sepsis a platform. I encourage all of my colleagues and anyone who can to attend the audiovisual room today at 6 p.m.”
“A number of months ago we had Professor Steve Kerrigan appear before us and address the petitions committee. He brought in people who had suffered with sepsis or had family members who had passed away. There was a deeply moving testimony from a lady called Sinéad O'Reilly who lost her sister-in-law, Sarah. Professor Kerrigan reminded us that sepsis is on the increase and we are facing more sepsis in sicker and older communities throughout Ireland. There are fewer effective drugs to treat it. Antibiotics, which we have always relied upon and are the cornerstone, are increasingly failing to treat sepsis. It is becoming a big issue for us and it is shaping outcomes. Doctors are increasingly facing infections that do not respond to first-line or even second-line treatments. That is a problem.”
“It is a powerful reminder to all of us today that behind every label, whether that is homelessness or addiction trauma, there is a person, and a person with huge potential. Today I acknowledge all the people who work in Focus Ireland, Simon, Tiglin, Merchants Quay Ireland, etc. There are heroes in the community who actually help the likes of Mick Finnegan to turn their lives around. One thing I noticed about him is that childhood trauma may have shaped the story, but it does not define the ending. I thank the Cathaoirleach and the Acting Leader.”
“I was down at Killashee Hotel where there was a social care conference, supported by In Sync, and Mick was the keynote speaker. He was talking about his life. He is after getting married, is expecting his first child and is studying social care in the Netherlands. He is now back working with the Salvation Army in the Netherlands, the very organisation that helped him to get off the streets many years ago. Mick's story was not an easy one. He had terrible trauma in his life and that has been discussed in this House at length. All he was looking for was for somebody to believe in him. As he said to me yesterday, sometimes all it takes to change a life is for somebody to take an interest and sit down and have a chat.”
“I associate myself with the comments regarding Senator Flynn, my colleague. I know what it is like to receive bullying online and it should not be tolerated. I want to support her in that. About 30 years ago I volunteered in the Salvation Army. Its homeless hostel just off O'Connell Street is called Cedar House. At that time I did not know it but it would change my outlook and how I viewed people going forward. I met a young guy there who was homeless. His name was Mick Finnegan. He has often been mentioned in this House by various people. He has red hair, sharp wit and is a pure Dublin guy. He was homeless but you would not know it. He used to always slag me about my clothing, the way I spoke and the trousers I wore. He would always give you a hard time. We stayed in touch and yesterday I met him again.”
“I acknowledge there are a lot of amendments before the Minister of State today, but I suspect that the issues he has mentioned are not going to be addressed. I also acknowledge what the Minister of State has mentioned before, which is that medical confidentiality is a complex issue so trying to reform the law in that is very difficult. I fully understand that. It would require a separate Bill, but I appeal to the Minister of State to take account of the issues related to confidentiality in a future report. I do not think anybody in this Chamber wants to see what Andrew McGinley has gone through happen to other families. I put a focus on the dual diagnosis piece, which is a separate piece that is a huge chunk of work. If we can join the dots there, it would be a game-changer.”
“41 is very prevalent for that. I have also spoken in the House about the particular case of Andrew McGinley and his family. He was the co-parent who was not informed of his partner's issues, even though they were disclosed to a professional during her treatment. Unfortunately, we know that co-parent, Andrew McGinley, lost his three children and that the story of Conor, Darragh and Carla, who were tragically taken from him in circumstances which shook the nation, could have been prevented. Mr. McGinley has shown extraordinary courage and has channelled his grief into advocacy and is looking for reforms and answers. He has requested a meeting with the Minister of State. He has also called for sections of this Bill to be amended.”
“As the Minister of State knows, I have spoken many times in this House about the mental health system and also about the gaps where people are falling through. One area of concern I mentioned before is dual diagnosis and people coming from an addictive background when they present. I recently gave the case of a young guy from Limerick who arrived at a rehabilitation centre to get detoxed and was unfortunately hearing voices. He showed signs of mental health issues. He was then referred to accident and emergency services but because he had substances in his blood, those services said it was a drug issue rather than a mental health issue. The dual diagnosis piece is a huge gap. I am very happy to support my colleague, Senator Boyhan, in these amendments, which basically want to raise stronger safeguards. The review in amendment No.”
“Its CEO, Jay Bobinac, is downstairs and he is saying that if we recognise community detention as a credible option, then supporting a small pilot and evaluating its outcomes can make a difference. It is not about replacing the prison system; it is about improving it by using the right responses for the right case. If we are serious about reducing re-offending and building safer communities, then it is reasonable we should examine such approaches that are working elsewhere and consider how they would fit within our prison system.”
“It is focusing on helping people with shorter sentences to take responsibility for their actions and understand the harm caused but then to rebuild through a restorative justice approach. It is working with an organisation called RESCALED, which is a European initiative promoting small, community-based detention houses. They are structured with supervised environments. They are designed for people who would otherwise receive short custodial sentences. The key point here is that this has worked across Europe and is showing strong results in reducing re-offending. The proposal Release is putting forward today is to explore how this model could work in Ireland.”
“I would like to point out that at present, our prison systems are operating well above capacity at a national average of 125%. I have mentioned in this House before about the female prisons in Limerick and Mountjoy being over 150% capacity. Many people are entering custody there for short sentences that are often less than 12 months. The evidence shows this approach is not delivering strong outcomes and often there is a 45% re-offending rate. Nearly half of the people re-offend within one year. It is showing continued pressure, not just on the justice system but in respect of health, housing and community. Today in the audiovisual room we have Release, which is an Irish charity that is working with people who are in custody and in the community.”
“All they needed was a facility or proper investment in youth care that would have given them an opportunity for a different life. Unless we get that right, young people will continue to fall through the cracks. We need to give young people more places like the Tiglin youth café in Greystones and like the Belvedere youth club in Dublin, more places for them to belong and where we can make a difference in their lives.”
“Clearly, youth services are underfunded, workers are filling gaps left by statutory agencies and support for younger people is limited by wider family and community issues. The current funding models do not reflect the needs on the ground. We need more flexible policy whereby maybe we need to look at youth work for seven- to nine-year-olds rather than focusing on unsuitable childcare facilities. We also need to recognise youth work for what it is. The detention facility I visited would not have half the population in it if we got the youth work correct. Youth work is doing far more than it is funded or recognised for. I have seen that at first hand. Even in the rehabilitation centres I have through Tiglin, a lot of the people you chat or talk to will say their childhood was the basis for their trauma.”
“Belvedere Youth Club in Dublin city centre works with over 400 young people weekly. Many of them come from a disadvantaged background of poverty, trauma and social exclusion. Its model focuses on building the same type of trust to include young people and build up a long-term relationship and life skills. The CEO of Belvedere Youth Club, Jenny Courtney, is kicking the ball out of the park when it comes to youth work and what that club is accomplishing. She is saying that many of the youth workers are dealing with complex issues. There are huge gaps in mental health support and family support for young people but they also do not have the funding or recognition to match what they need to do.”
“The lady who runs it, Rachel Harper, is on the board of Tiglin. She has created a framework that means we can work in conjunction with the likes of Tiglin's youth cafes. This means there is a practical guideline, on social media, phones, etc., for parents and young people. We have actively encouraged the young people to be a source of their own destination by getting involved in how social media should influence their lives. This has provided a real antidote to digital isolation and is giving people their own future into their hands. We often wait for a young person to feel isolated or disconnected, and the experience in the detention facility showed me that. Support for facilities like the youth cafes, Tiglin being an example, is proactive, community-based and a common-sense approach.”
“That is why, with the organisation I am involved in, Tiglin, we have started youth cafes, which I have mentioned previously. For example, there is one in Greystones. It is a drop-in hub with all the supports for young people. We have put in pizza machines and barista machines and made it a welcoming environment. We have initiatives like crafts, a Garda diversion programme with Crosscare and so on. Whether young people are there to meet a new friend or simply to sit in a space, that cafe in Greystones provides a social alternative to the streets to a person who is perhaps marginalised. By providing a safe harbour like that, we are not just giving the young people something to do; we are giving them a sense of ownership over their community. We have also teamed up with It Takes a Village in Greystones. The Minister probably knows it.”
“I got talking to him about his life and about what led him to the situation he was in. It turns out he was seven years of age when his father was killed in a car accident. His mother used to drink a lot, and so she used to bring home people in the evening after the pub and then he would maybe get a bit of a battering. What he used to do was to wet the bed at night. The mother would check the bed, and if it was wet, she used to get his face and rub it around inside the toilet bowl. At seven years of age, he used to get into his school uniform, climb out the window when he heard the mother was coming home with whoever and he walked around the local town until school started the next morning. Now, we have a criminal in a detention facility, and this is the seven-year-old kid who never had an opportunity.”
“I thank the Minister for being here. I also thank my Sinn Féin colleagues for tabling the motion. As Senator Scahill mentioned, earlier we attended the Youth Work Ireland and Roscommon Comhairle na nÓg briefing on the youth response to mental health issues. We met the most amazing people who are going to take on the world. It is fantastic that they have the opportunity to do so. On the other side of things, I recently attended a young offenders' prison. Unfortunately, I met young people who had come undone in life for one reason or another. I do not condone criminality in any way, but I do question whether the facilities those young people had in their environments means we let them down in that regard. I spoke to one individual who was a very well-known criminal in his area.”
“Not only do we need to give these people a roof, but we need to give them a real chance like Jay Bobinac who was in the Merrion Hotel a couple of weeks ago.”
“We took in over 120,000 Ukrainians and we did it with the click of a finger because we all got together with joined-up thinking. That same co-ordination is needed today. What do we need to do? We need more social housing. We also need more one-bed homes. I am involved in Bluebell Community Council. We are doing one-bed housing over there. We also need services that work together like mental health, addiction and homeless supports. If we act properly and get that together, we will look back in years to come and say that the Minister, Deputy Browne, was one of the most successful housing Ministers ever. We do not want to lose a generation and that is what we are doing. I certainly do not want to be here in ten years listening to the increasing homeless numbers.”
“HAP is not working for many. Yesterday I got an email from a guy who is entitled to HAP. However, the HAP amount he is being given will not get him anywhere in his area. It is impossible, so he is in a hostel and stuck in limbo. It is a complex situation. From my situation of dealing with people going into rehab, we get people off the streets who have addiction issues. We get them into rehab and try to get them sober. Then, where do we send them? We cannot send them back to where they got sick in the first place. We try to do supported housing. The supported housing we have is temporary and is a year. Now that is clogged up because we have nowhere to send them afterwards. When I see 17,000 homeless people in a country our size with the resources we have. I think this is a problem that should not be too hard to solve.”
“It is essential we bridge that gap and acknowledge and deal with what people are actually experiencing through supportive housing opportunities. That is what I put to the committee in 2016. The Simon Community’s report was also released yesterday. It was all about how single adults, mainly males, are falling through the cracks. It is impossible to get accommodation. One-bedroom apartments are not being built. A lot of people on the Simon Community’s report did not come into the system the way we might think. They came through broken marriages and failed job opportunities, etc. It amounts to over 3,000 in a year, according to that report. A lot of those people are in accommodation for over a year, yet it is emergency accommodation. Emergency should be short term, but this is not emergency. It is long term. They are stuck there.”
“When the opportunity is given, the bed that is offered becomes stability. Stability becomes education and education leads to employment, which then offers dignity. That chap will be here tomorrow. His story is well-known so I am not divulging secrets. He will be in the audiovisual room tomorrow as CEO of a national organisation giving a presentation. It is at 10.30 a.m. tomorrow if anybody is able to get around. I have mentioned it to Senator Tully. A lot of people who use services like Tiglin hear that Ireland is one of the wealthiest countries in Europe. They hear that we have a strong economy, but when people are in emergency accommodation or the family hub on Gardiner Street, they do not feel it. They feel totally different from everybody else who has been mentioned in this strong economy.”
“However, none of those services are joined up and they have to be. Ailbhe Conneely's report shows that we have to reflect on the figures and ask what is going wrong. Everybody should have the opportunity to access recovery, stability, housing and be supported. I have also seen the good side of the Lighthouse where we feed up to 500 people per day. A couple of weeks ago I was at the Merrion Hotel across the road from these Houses for a wedding. I cannot afford lunch in the Merrion Hotel, never mind a wedding. It was the wedding of a guy I met when he was homeless and living in St. Stephen's Green. He came to us as a service user. He had no education, so we got him into college. He started a degree. He did a master's degree and another master's degree. He managed to do well and got married in the Merrion Hotel a couple of weeks ago.”
“We are failing them today and I certainly feel we are shaping their future. I mentioned I was at Tiglin at lunchtime. The reality we encounter on the front line is that some people are working but cannot afford to pay rent and eat so they are taking advantage of the food circumstances. We also have the residential supported housing, which is vital for people with a dual diagnosis of mental health issues, addiction, etc. The report today by Ailbhe Conneely on RTÉ highlights the number of deaths among homeless people. In 2022, 124 people died. That is slightly down from 133 in 2021 but these are people who have died alone on the streets. That also shows that too many people are falling through the cracks, particularly those with dual diagnosis where it is a housing issue, a health issue and an addiction issue.”
“Recently at the Lighthouse, our homeless cafe on Pearse Street where I usually do Thursday evenings, a family came in who were living on Gardiner Street. They are in a family hub. They had a social house, but the father had complex needs, and he fell behind with the rent. The rent arrears were approximately €14,000, which cannot be allowed either. The father, mother and two children were made homeless. The young guy came in with his mother and they were looking for food and I got talking to him. He wanted to be a basketball player. He plays basketball in Tallaght and that is his dream. Unfortunately, he is now living in the hub in Gardiner Street but is commuting to play basketball. Surely to goodness there is a better way and a better solution. I have met and sat with these families. I have seen children trying to grow up like that.”
“When I entered this House last March, there were 15,286 people in emergency accommodation and I wrote it on my whiteboard. I thought, "Let us see that number coming down." Now, I get the numbers - I see Ailbhe Conneely from RTÉ putting them up - and I go "Oh no, this is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy of negativity and we are losing a generation." The numbers are nearly losing their meaning, so we have to be careful of that. Behind these numbers are children who are growing up in hotel rooms, doing their homework in bathrooms and who have no kitchen. It is not just homelessness here. We are losing out with a lot of childhoods being compromised. There is the potential to stunt growth before it even begins.”
“I thank the Minister of State for being here. In 2016, I was asked to present to the Oireachtas housing and homelessness committee, as it was back then. It was long before I knew what a Senator was and long before I became one, but I tried to make a difference in the area of marginalisation and homelessness, and I helped to set up an organisation called Tiglin. We were asked to appear before the housing committee and we spoke to the then Minister, Simon Coveney, who gave an undertaking that homelessness would be eradicated by 2020. Homelessness and emergency accommodation numbers at the time were around 6,000. Now, ten years later, and this is not to criticise anybody but just to say, we are at nearly three times that level in emergency accommodation. We have over 17,000 homeless people now, with more than 5,500 of those being children.”
“Thank you so much for being here today. I mentioned during our meeting downstairs that in 2022, when the war broke out in Ukraine and so many Ukrainians came to Ireland, I had the privilege of hosting first of all ten, then 20, then 30 and then 40 of them. Through the organisation I am involved with, Tiglin, we have over 150 Ukrainians living with us in our community, but not only in our community. They are part of our social fabric, part of the football teams, the social enterprises and are certainly welcome members. As we had the meeting downstairs, it was evident that the Irish people stand behind the people of Ukraine. They certainly have support from this side of the House. We really appreciate them being here today. I thank the Cathaoirleach for welcoming us.”
“They were down to the wire. It is happening because the system is not working. The ordinary citizen feels they are not being supported. They hear that Ireland is the wealthiest country in Europe but they want to make it very clear that it is not impacting them and that we cannot continue like this. They deserve to be heard.”
“On another note, I support what my colleague, Senator Boyhan, said regarding the former Minister of State, Deputy Michael Healy-Rae, who is moving on. It is disappointing as he was certainly a hard worker. We wish him well. Regarding the matter on which he resigned, I have a haulage business and I know what it is like running trucks, whether national or international, with exceptionally increasing costs. For every cent that is added to a fuel bill, that is a cent off the razor-thin bottom line. Last week, we saw people who were desperate because of the situations they are in. Most of them are ordinary, hard-working people and supporters of the Government. They are supporters of authorities. In my hometown of Naas last week, the fuel pumps were running out. Although there was a delivery that day, the pumps were still running out.”
“I mark the passing of a wonderful lady, Moya Brennan. She was often described as the first lady of Celtic music. Moya was not just a singer; she brought the Irish language and culture, as well as Celtic music, to the world stage. She did so through Clannad initially and later as a solo artist. We all know her family from the small pub in Gaoth Dobhair, Donegal, which rose to global recognition. She showed what Irish identity could look like. Personally, Moya and her husband, Tim, were huge supporters of Tiglin, the homeless organisation. She used to sing at all of our events. I genuinely feel her generosity. Her resilience in life will be a loss for the Irish culture, but her voice will live on for generations.”
“To her family, I say that Molly and her life certainly did matter. We owe it to her and to everybody who has gone through something like this to make sure that it is reflected not just in words, but in the law of the land.”
“This tragedy raises huge questions about how the justice system responds to dangerous driving by minors, and the sentencing frameworks, as well as the supports available to the likes of the Dempsey family. It also highlights the need for stronger preventative measures such as early intervention and community supports that might stop a young person from ever taking a car without a licence. I realise we cannot undo what has happened. We cannot bring Molly back for the family who are seated in the Gallery. Nothing that we in this House can say or do can fill that space. However, I ask that the Minister for justice come before this House to outline whether current legislation is sufficient and what reforms may be necessary to ensure that no family endures what the Dempsey family have endured.”
“Last month, a suspended two-year sentence and a ten-year driving ban were handed down to the driver. While the court was constrained by the fact that he was a minor at the time of the offence, the outcome has left Molly's family – the Dempsey family from Baltinglass – absolutely devastated. Their grief was evident as they left the court holding a teddy bear that played the voice of Molly. I am not criticising any judge or undermining the courts. We have to respect the rule of law but we have a responsibility in this House to ask questions when something does not sit right with the public and when families feel that justice has not been served.”
“I wish to address a heartbreaking case that concerns the death of a 15-year-old, Molly Dempsey. Molly was from Baltinglass and her young life was cut short in a fatal collision in Baltinglass in May 2024. She was a daughter, a sister and a niece. She was loved and part of a family who are now waking up every day with a silence that should never have been. I extend a warm welcome to her mother, Mary Dempsey, who is here with her two aunties, Yvonne and Theresa, and acknowledge their courage in being here to support the differences that we can try and make. I have a photo in my hand of Molly in December 2023, just a couple of months before she died in May 2024. For those of you who do not know the case, Molly was a passenger in a car driven by someone who had no licence or insurance, and was driving dangerously.”
“We reinforce public confidence and affirm that Ireland's commitment to human rights is not theoretical but real. It ensures our international protection system remains fair and humane and is subject to ongoing scrutiny.”