Carol Nolan
Offaly · Independent · Ireland
“Despite this, her mother - who is utterly heartbroken and distressed as we can all imagine - is fiercely protective of her child and determined to protect her at all costs.”
“It is a form of cruelty beyond all description to force families to endure circumstances such as these. Many of us in this House are parents. What would we not do to help our teenage children? What is happening in Offaly is not an isolated case. I know there are cases around the country as well.”
“The Tánaiste will share my profound horror at the recent brutal murder of Jamey Carney, the absconding of her so-called partner to Jordan and the wider pattern of escalating violence against women that was raised earlier.”
“The schools are out, summer is well and truly upon us, and for most families this will be an opportunity to enjoy spending time with their children or grandchildren. Others will watch the kids being able to spend more time with their friends.”
“I thank the Tánaiste for his response and assistance. I directly informed the HSE about this situation, and I received an acknowledgement, but I will reach out to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and, with the consent of the parent, will pass on all details.”
“Will he therefore commit to a review of the relevant legislative and operational frameworks to ensure that, regardless of current statutory provisions, no chilling effect is being caused or created that might discourage or inhibit the reporting or public identification of suspects who are also international protection applicants, where su…”
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“As I said, we should look at the small schools scheme, roll it out nationally, extend it to more schools and support teachers. Teachers are managing a huge number of people. It is not just mainstream teachers, as I said; this has extended to SNAs and ancillary staff. We need to look at all that and tackle the bureaucratic nightmare quickly, efficiently and effectively before we have, unfortunately, more principals leaving their posts. It is time we put more solutions in place and allowed teachers do what they do best and what they signed up to do, which is to teach. That is what they are passionate about. I know this myself from being a former school principal. We had to do revenue returns and we had so much landing on the desk and, unfortunately, that situation has only got worse in recent years.”
“I welcome the improvements the Minister of State has just listed, but in order to tackle the current bureaucratic nightmare, there are decisive solutions that could be taken. For example, there is a pilot of the small schools scheme. I completely welcome that. That is certainly one solution. If that were to be rolled out nationally where schools form clusters and support one another with admin, and if the threshold, which stipulates that the scheme is for schools of four teachers or fewer, were increased, I think it would capture and support more schools. To give the Minister of State an idea of how bureaucratic this is becoming, since 2006 an average of 44 circulars have been issued to schools. That is a huge workload to land on any principal's desk, and that is just one layer of the workload that exists.”
“It highlights that there is an inordinate and disproportionate focus on managing the organisation and that this disproportionate increase in focus on managing the organisation without a corresponding increase in management supports and resources undermines the capacity of school principals to deliver greater focus on leading teaching and learning. The chief inspector also contributes to this debate. A report from him dated between 2016 and 2020 also concludes that there is a disproportionate focus on management and administrative tasks that diverts principals from their key leadership responsibilities and undermines their effectiveness as institutional leaders in the school communities.”
“We really need to take on board what school leadership are telling us. Another recent survey, this one conducted by the TUI, found that the ever-increasing workload, especially that of a bureaucratic nature, continues to be a demoralising factor. That forces many teachers out of the profession. We really need to get to grips with this. I have a document here in my hand entitled Primary School Leadership: The Case for Urgent Action - A Roadmap to Sustainability. It was published by the IPPN. The report is extremely revealing.”
“It is putting serious pressure on primary school principals, who are often left scrambling for resources to meet the needs of students with complex needs. I have engaged regularly with the National Principals Forum, which I thank for its great work in highlighting the many issues facing teaching principals. With regard to the bureaucratic burden, the NPF recently conducted a survey on the impact of the SET allocation model I have just referred to. This survey was conducted among more than 550 primary school leaders. It concluded that 71% of respondents believed their SET allocations for the 2025-26 academic year are inadequate to meet their schools' needs, but the important piece is that the majority of principals and school leaders describe the process as chaotic, stressful, ridiculous and frustrating.”
“This is an issue we really need to get grips with or we are going to see an exodus of principals, especially teaching principals, from our schools. I will focus on research that has been done and, at the end of my contribution, on solutions. In April, the Irish National Teachers Organisation, INTO, passed a motion at its annual congress regarding the unsustainable workload facing school principals. The resolution found that the current demands and expectations placed upon principals are unreasonably high, raising serious concerns about burnout and long-term sustainability in leadership roles. There have been ongoing calls made for an immediate review of the special education allocation model. That is causing great frustration. I have raised it in this House before.”
“As we approach the end of the school year in many primary schools, I acknowledge the hard work of many school principals and teachers but I also highlight an issue, the overloading of principals, particularly teaching principals. I met with many school principals in my own county of Offaly and they have told me that their workload is excessive, that it is continues to be extremely bureaucratic and that it is leading to burnout. Many principals cannot focus on teaching and learning because they are pulled in so many different directions with administration. Principals have pointed out to me that their management does not just extend to the school team, that is, the mainstream teachers and pupils, because they also have EAL teachers, SNAs and many ancillary staff coming in and out of the school.”
“I thank the Minister of State for his response. It is certainly positive that there is a review and analysis of our infrastructure, our rail infrastructure in particular. However, I hope there would be a commitment given to the people of Offaly, especially the people of Clara who want to see further development in the town, on capital funding for a second platform. I hope also that the pace of delivery for projects like this, which are there for the taking and would contribute enormously to the expansion of existing services for minimal cost, will be stepped up. As I said, they would also help us achieve a commitment in the programme for Government, namely, balanced regional development in all our rural towns.”
“It is practical, would allow further expansion of services, and would ensure users in surrounding areas like Moate, Kilbeggan and Ferbane could also avail of further services at Clara train station.”
“I welcome the Minister of State's response and the fact that €265 million has been allocated in funding this year alone. I accept there have been huge improvements in services. My question relates to the need for capital funding for a second platform at Clara train station. I brought this issue up only last week with the Minister during a debate. It would make social and economic sense in achieving balanced regional development in rural counties like Offaly, my county. I would hope there could be some commitment to ensuring capital funding is put in place for a second platform, given that €265 million has been allocated this year alone. It is an easy win for the Department.”
“I thank the Minister of State for taking this question. I am asking him provide details of the funding provided by the Department to improve the rail network and train connectivity in County Offaly in 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025. I do so because I am constantly being contacted by constituents who are very anxious to see improvements to our rail and connectivity in Offaly, particularly in Clara, which I will refer to later.”
“The signal must go out that, if you mistreat our elderly, you will be jailed and that, if you violate their dignity, you will answer for it before the courts and not just before some professional standards tribunal. People are fed up. We want accountability.”
“To call what we have seen revealed in some of our nursing homes a betrayal would be an understatement. It is brutality and the vicious erosion of trust. It is sickening to the core. I hope that each and every person who was seen abusing our elderly people will be arrested. I want to see their ability to ever work in such settings removed for life. These people who abuse our elderly are nothing short of animals engaged in the brutalisation of our loved ones. There must be no mercy shown to them and no excuses about regulatory failure must be offered. They are a stain on the good name of genuine nursing staff and all those nursing homes that cherish their residents.”
“This means that both trains serving the station at the same time can allow passengers to embark or disembark. Unfortunately and bizarrely, this does not happen at Clara. Only the train using the main track can allow passengers to board or alight. The train using the passing loop stops, but because it does not have a platform, passengers cannot enter or exit. This happens on a number of occasions daily. This means that many people from the Clara railway station catchment area, which includes Clara, Moate, Rahan, Ballycumber, Kilbeggan, Tober and Ferbane, who would like to use a specific service cannot do so. The cost of constructing the second platform would be a capital cost and a tiny percentage. Will the Minister consider constructing the second platform at Clara train station?”
“I also wish the Minister the very best in his new role. I look forward to working with him. I am happy to speak to this motion. I commend the Independent and Parties Technical Group on tabling it. I particularly reference the all-island strategic rail review and the manner in which it outlines economic and social benefits. This is incredibly important. In respect of my constituency of Offaly, I will raise ongoing issues regarding Clara train station. As my constituent, Barry Flynn, has noted through his extensive research on this issue, Clara was once the location of two railway stations and two railway junctions, one of which branched off the main line to Mullingar and the other off the main line to Banagher. It has been built beside what is called a passing loop.”
“In many cases, I doubt these entities are contributing a vital and important service, such as offering shelter. They offer shelter to victims of domestic violence. However, I feel they should be contributing more and that there should be value for money. In regard to the 437 AHBs in a country this size, it begs the question about massive levels of duplication and the appropriateness of funding. I absolutely agree that we have to use all levers at our disposal to try to put solutions in place to solve our housing crisis. However, there is a sense emerging that what we have here is almost akin to a homelessness industry.”
“Tá áthas orm an deis a fháil inniu chun labhairt ar an mBille seo. Baineann an Bille seo leis an éigeandáil tithíochta atá ar siúl faoi láthair. I welcome this Bill. In particular, I welcome the call to fully restore and increase funding for vital homeless prevention schemes, especially the tenant in situ scheme and housing first. This issue has arisen at my constituency clinics. People are coming to me after experiencing the desperate disappointment of being told that the council or their landlord could not or would not enter into the tenant in situ scheme. I will use the brief time available to highlight once again that we have a serious number of AHBs. This needs to be tackled. Is this value for money? There are 437 AHBs on the official register. I doubt that is value for money in that.”
“While we are here today discussing local property tax, we have to accept that we desperately need an urgent debate on how our taxation and property purchasing systems are facilitating the expansion of the housing collapse for ordinary people. I accept, as the LPT is apparently here to stay, that there is at least an attempt in this Bill to introduce a fairer LPT calculation method that supports homeowners affected by defective concrete blocks and to provide local authorities with greater flexibility and the ability to adjust deferral thresholds to account for inflation.”
“I note, however, that this legislation allows for tiered rates for higher valued properties to ensure they contribute proportionally more, aligning with principles of fairness in taxation. We all know, though, that house prices are radically out of step with actual value. There is scope for significant inequity to flow into the LPT system. I welcome proposals to expand the LPT exemption for defective concrete blocks in some counties. I hope that if more counties are found to be impacted by this issue, they too will be shown similar latitude. What we should be doing, however, is finding every way possible to tax not the ordinary homeowner and ordinary worker but the massive vulture funds and investment funds that are swooping in and wiping out any possibility of Irish couples and families bidding on and owning their own homes.”
“I welcome this debate and many of the provisions of this Bill. I am aware that my local authority, Offaly County Council, generated approximately €4.9 million in local property tax revenues in 2024, but also that our baseline was €11.2 million. This means we received about €6.2 million in that 2025 distribution of equalisation funding. While that is welcome within the confines of the local property tax system, the heart of the matter remains the fundamental unfairness of LPT as a tax in and of itself. People work, save for years, pay their taxes and buy homes, and then they must continue to pay increasing rates of tax on those homes, which they may own outright, until the day they die.”
“Even if I accept some local authorities are better than others, the fact is many local authorities, including Offaly County Council, are understaffed. Reductions in staff numbers were made many years ago and they have never reached the same level since. We should be collaborating, working together and supporting our local authorities to tackle this issue.”
“The response from the then Minister, Heather Humphreys, was more or less that everything was fine and the Government was doing all it could to tackle the issue - but here we are a year later, going around in circles. The former Minister spoke about the urban regeneration and development fund, the town centre first policy and the Our Rural Future vision for a thriving rural Ireland. The Government also spoke of measures being rolled out on building acquisition, measures which would support local authorities in purchasing vacant and derelict buildings. Yet only in the past fortnight the Taoiseach has spoken in this House about how slow he feels the turnaround process is for vacant social housing. It sounded to me like a blame game.”
“I welcome the motion and the opportunity to once again place a spotlight on the extraordinary levels of vacant housing. The motion is pragmatic and I will support it. When I think of housing vacancy rates, I think of a man dying of thirst while a giant pool of water remains within his reach. There is a stupidity and recklessness to this issue that is mind-boggling. In the middle of a great housing crisis, we are sitting on thousands of empty homes. It is ludicrous beyond words. I have raised the unacceptably high levels of vacancy and dereliction in many local authority areas, including my area of Offaly, for some time. A year ago, almost to the day, I called on the Government to commit to increased funding to tackle vacancy and dereliction rates in County Offaly.”
“What good will our words do when no one seems to be prepared to treat this with the gravity it deserves, take a logical approach and deal with the unsustainable, crazy level of inward migration.”
“When demand exceeds supply, it is very logical and very straightforward that we need to have a serious look at inward migration. We have a generation of children whose birthdays are spent in crowded hotel rooms; a generation who cannot plan their futures and who live on the edge of homelessness. We have tens of thousands of couples who are locked out of the housing market. In my constituency of Offaly, we are not seeing affordable housing schemes. I have dealt with many people in my constituency offices in Tullamore and Birr. Their income happens to be too high to go on the social housing list but too low to get a mortgage. Those people are caught and they need help. We need affordable housing schemes quickly. This whole crisis has gone beyond an emergency. It is a housing collapse.”
“Over-regulated, underdelivered and a catastrophic social disaster that is resulting in the untold misery of thousands of people who are trapped in a bleak housing nightmare. We are witnessing an epidemic of incompetence when it comes to housing. We are witnessing the third Government in a row that has shown no real, dynamic leadership on this issue. We have the third Government in a row that will not speak in an honest way about the impact that massive levels of unsustainable inward migration are having in terms of our housing and accommodation capacity. This is not just moral and political cowardice; it is betrayal. It is the kind of refusal to describe the known dimensions and contributors to a crisis that is nothing short of infuriating.”
“Caretakers in our schools are committed, dedicated and very hard working people. Along with school secretaries, they are the engine of any school. My question relates to the delivery of a package for caretakers. I acknowledge that there is a commitment to deliver a package for caretakers similar to the one delivered for school secretaries in the near future but at this point, caretakers need clarity. They need definitive clarity. When will the package be delivered for caretakers?”
“Indeed, I am calling for this to happen and for the VAT rate be reduced to 9% for our restaurants, cafés and hair salons.”
“We must do more in terms of reducing the massive tax and VAT debt that far too many businesses are labouring and, in some cases, collapsing under. This is something we can control. We should respond with all the latitude and constructive engagement we can when it comes to achieving the goal of creating an environment in which local and regional businesses cannot just survive but in which they can thrive and in which jobs are protected. I say this because if employers and businesses are not protected, then obviously this will lead to job losses. I am particularly concerned about this happening in County Offaly, where we have seen far too many small businesses, especially restaurants and cafés, close their doors recently. I hope more supports will be given in the forthcoming budget.”
“Employment trends reflect the strain, with full-time staff levels dropping by 10% and part-time roles by 7% since 2022. This Bill is definitely a step in the right direction. However, my main point is that our first priority should be about putting structures and supports in place, be it through the tax or VAT code, to prevent further insolvencies. I hope the VAT rate will be reduced to 9% for restaurants and hair salons, which are also impacted. Workers need access to their rightfully earned wages if a business becomes insolvent. No one could disagree with that as a fundamental principle. We must also ensure far more robust protections in line with the Supreme Court ruling in December 2018 that Article 2 of the 2008 EU directive was not correctly transposed.”
“According to the RAI, the pressure on the sector continues to result in closures, with 65% of respondents reporting a decline in financial performance in 2024 in comparison with previous years. Business owners identified wage increases and escalating operating costs as the most pressing challenges, with many restaurants forced to reduce the number of staff, raise menu prices and seriously question their long-term viability. The survey revealed that payroll costs now account for 39% of turnover. This is a significant increase from just under 32% in 2022. Food costs have also surged, rising from 28% to over 34% of turnover, while insurance and utility bills have climbed by 32.89% and 25.81%, respectively, over the same period.”
“This presented a clear and undeniable case for granting increased latitude to businesses around repayments, given the ongoing nightmare of closure announcements that were falling like confetti when it came to restaurants, cafés and the hospitality sector. This problem has by no means disappeared. In light of the heightened volatility around tariffs and the EU response to the US, we are probably facing into a period of rapid growth in insolvencies. On the impact on hospitality, I highlight the statement issued by the Restaurants Association of Ireland, RAI, earlier this month in which it referred to the fact that 150 restaurants closed in the first quarter of 2025 due to soaring business costs. These data also revealed the mounting financial pressures restaurants and hospitality businesses right across this State are facing.”
“Most alarmingly, however, the report found the retail and hospitality sectors accounted for 40% of all insolvencies. This collapse and the folding of such businesses is an issue I have been highlighting for some time with respect to my constituency of Offaly. In fact, last year, I engaged with then Minister for Finance, Michael McGrath, urging him to adopt maximum flexibility with respect to 1,530 businesses in what was then the Laois-Offaly constituency which had liabilities of €23 million warehoused as part of the tax debt warehousing scheme introduced for businesses following the pandemic. I pointed out at the time that were there 755 businesses in Offaly with tax debts of €11 million, while in Laois there were 775 businesses with €12 million in debt currently being warehoused.”
“I welcome the debate we are having on this very important matter. Clearly, there is a need to rectify the deficits in law with respect to insolvencies and the protections offered to employees. Indeed, that need is becoming increasingly urgent. We know from reporting on this matter by Credit Connect in January that business insolvencies in Ireland hit the highest level in six years, based on research conducted by PwC. That report also specifically highlighted the fact that insolvencies increased by 16%, although they came in below expectations as the fourth quarter saw a drop-off in company collapses. That said, the total figure for 2024 was 852, which was, as noted, below PwC's forecast that insolvency numbers would breach the 900 mark last year.”
“Nothing we can do can return Shane to his family but we can take action to ensure no family ever has to endure this kind of brutalising treatment at the hands of the State, including the courts and other authorities, again. I hope today is a small step in that direction.”
“A mother's unwavering love for her son, a family's courageous determination to overcome the obstacles, denials, bureaucratic indifference and outright hostility to own up to the wrong perpetrated on Shane has brought us to this day. The last email I received from Shane's mother, Lucia, was in July after I co-signed a Private Members' motion calling for action and justice for Shane. Lucia has always been a model of the fiercely protective love that Irish mothers are known for. She is a model to us all of the value of persistence and the pursuit of justice. Her beloved son, Shane, never left her heart before or after the moment of his tragic and unlawful death brought about by a reckless cowardly criminal. We are here today to honour Shane and his family, his sisters and his dad, Jim.”
“Why are so many of our children in need of complex disability interventions? What has happened to generate this level of demand? We must listen to therapists working in the field. We must respect them and support them. We must trust their judgment as to what it will take to deliver real change. There can be no more top-down approaches to this crisis. We need a revolution in our understanding of service-----”
“We need to bring in the private therapists and continue with the recruitment. In my constituency there are 530 children waiting on an assessment of need. If the two CDNTs that cover Offaly and north Laois, east Offaly is included, the figure is 530. Why is it that emergencies like this go on for so long? Why is it that there is a lack of urgency and that the HSE cannot hire therapists? What is it about the culture of the HSE and indeed the political culture that seems almost immune to effective action? There is something profoundly wrong at a fundamental level that goes way beyond the organisational and the structural. We have the will but despite all the apparent best efforts of Government the crisis goes on and on and so many children are failed and left behind.”
“I begin my brief remarks by commending the parents and the disability advocates who are highlighting this issue. I also commend and applaud all of those therapists who are demoralised, forced to work in a system that is just not fit for purpose and against a level of demand that is simply unprecedented. There seems to be very little point in standing up here yet again and simply repeating that the assessment of needs system is broken. We all know that. We all know there are thousands of children and families whose entire lives are put on hold because of it. What we need to focus on is pragmatic solutions and one such solution is to hire private therapists to clear the backlog. There is a serious backlog in many areas. CHO 8 Laois-Offaly in particular is very bad and has been for many years. That is where the focus needs to be.”
“As I understand it, the current funding for the CAP young farmers scheme, specifically the complimentary income support for young farmers under the 2023-27 CAP strategic plan, is mandated at a minimum of 3% of each EU country's direct payments budget. This is an increase of just 1% from the 2014-20 period, where national authorities were required to allocate up to 2% of their income support funding for the young farmer payment. Is it any wonder that young farmers say they do not believe that EU rhetoric matches the reality of the crisis? Regarding nature restoration, Brussels has highlighted time and again that there are food security issues.”
“It is a one-size-fits-all policy designed in Brussels, far removed from the realities of farm life while leaving Irish farmers drowning in paperwork, compliance costs and regulations that seem to change with the wind. The figures speak for themselves. In 2023, the average Irish family farm income was just €31,000. For many small farms, it is far less. Input costs - fertiliser, feed and fuel - have all skyrocketed, and are up 40% since 2020 while CAP payments have barely budged. What about the young farmers, the next generation who we are supposed to be encouraging? The CAP's young farmers scheme is a drop in the ocean.”
“The Minister of State may have seen recent polling on Irish people's views on the EU. Certainly, they are at historically low levels, due in no small part to what is now almost a cliché, that is, the bureaucratic stranglehold that Brussels has on every single aspect of our lives, particularly agriculture. There is a level of intrusion and often just plain stupidity that is simply eye-watering. Only yesterday, the ICMSA characterised the European Commission's proposals to simplify the CAP as unconvincing, and while they may involve some minor changes or improvements for some farmers, the overall regulatory tide shows no sign of easing. Let us be clear, in that the CAP is not fit for purpose.”
“How is that defensible? How is the RSA still in place given the prolonged nature of this crisis, which is severely disrupting tens of thousands of people on an annual basis? This is also causing huge concern to organisations such as the Irish Road Haulage Association, which through its own freedom of information investigation, has established that thousands of people are driving on provisional licences in Offaly. This clearly points to a system in absolute crisis. It also points to increased levels of danger on the roads because learner drivers are being forced to make hard choices between travelling to work and to apprenticeships or sitting at home with no access to work or education.”
“I have written to the new Chair of the Oireachtas transport committee to demand the appearance of senior management from the Road Safety Authority before the committee members. The RSA is clearly an organisation not fit for purpose, with an increasingly bad track record that is generating chaos for learner drivers and industry sectors such as hauliers. Last year there was a call, and indeed an expectation, that the RSA would be disbanded given its failure to tackle the learner driver waiting time crisis. Unfortunately, that came to nothing with the result that as of this March, over 81,000 people were waiting for a date for their test. This is a rise of 10,000 from the 75,000 who were waiting in February. We now have wait time increases of an average 24.1 weeks, which is a more than a 140% increase on the RSA target time of ten weeks.”
“This is certainly positive in developing and promoting apprenticeships. It is, however, disappointing to see that over the last number of years LOETB has received the lowest level of funding in the State when it comes to youth services. I hope the youth funding will be increased for the LOETB, which has been the lowest in the country. There are still issues around SUSI grants for students trying to access higher education. Many families in my constituency regularly contact me about the SUSI grants. Due to marginal increases in their household income they find their children are excluded. This is particularly the case when it comes to civil and public servants who had mandatory pay increases. Now that pay increase means their child is over the threshold for a SUSI grant. This needs to be corrected out of fairness.”
“Tá áthas orm labhairt mar chuid de na ráitis ar an ardoideachas sa Teach inniu. Guím gach rath ar an Aire, an Teachta Lawless, agus ar an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Harkin, ina róil nua. I truly believe that education is the most powerful and liberating tool at our disposal when it comes to lifting people from economic poverty, but also the poverty of the imagination that afflicts so much of our world. I acknowledge the role our secondary schools play in preparing students for higher level education. In my constituency we have the Laois and Offaly Education and Training Board, LOETB, which provides a fantastic range of courses and also equips and provides students with higher education courses. The education and training board is playing a fantastic role in its involvement in the national training campus at Mount Lucas.”
“What she has said to me is that as well as the frustration and the upset, there is a serious vacuum when it comes to communication. That certainly is something that should be easily fixed. We need communication with parents whose children are caught up in this or those of children who are still waiting for important and major operations.”
“He also stated that the new entity would be led by a 12-member competency-based board appointed by the Minister for Health. This makes it absolutely clear that there is an element of political and ministerial accountability that cannot be evaded. The Ministers who have been and gone appointed the leadership of CHI and, yet, time and time again, it has displayed catastrophic failures of judgment, of which that relating to the national children's hospital is the most recent and blatant. We can sit here and rightly condemn CHI for its institutional failures but we must also insist on political accountability or this cycle of vicious incompetence will never end. I have met the parent of a child who has fought for so long to get an operation for her child.”
“That said, it is impossible to stand here, having reviewed the record of CHI since its establishment in 2019, and be anything other than appalled at the sheer horror caused by its grievous failures. I look back now at the debate in September 2018, when the what became the Children's Health Act was introduced by the former Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris. The Act provides CHI with its statutory remit. At the time, Deputy Harris stated that CHI had been given broadly worded functions that would: ... provide clarity, authority and certainty relating to its leadership role nationally in paediatric healthcare and the national model of care. It will deliver on its remit for education, research, philanthropy and advocacy on behalf of children's health care in this country.”
“I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important matter. Obviously, it is upsetting for so many parents across the State and for even TDs here who have had personal experience in some form or other. We should always at least try and avoid the temptation to make any single institution the scapegoat for what are clearly systemic problems around governance and the care of children in the health service. We have fantastic people working in the health service, but where there are issues. Where mistakes are made, we need responsibility, we need accountability, we need the problems to be resolved and we need to make sure those problems never occur again. That is something that we all need to be committed to. Unfortunately, children have been on the receiving end of appalling service deficits since long before the CHI scandal emerged.”