Garret Ahearn
Administrative Panel · Fine Gael · Ireland
“The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2022 (Section 9(2)) (Amount of Financial Contribution) Order 2025 (Revocation) Order 2026, to be taken on the conclusion of the Order of Business without debate; No.”
“I am very conscious that No. 10 is to be taken at 11.30 a.m. and it is now 11.30 a.m. I will be brief. I will make a note of any contributions relating to debates for when we come back in September. There were a lot of calls for debates.”
“We have been here for a number of years and she is correct; a lot of it has come through in July. Technically, it is for the Leader to set out the timeline of debates but I understand the frustration when it comes late or when there is little scope for debate. The motions, in fairness, were referred to committee for debate.”
“9, whichever is later, and the proceedings thereon shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 75 minutes by the putting of one question from the Chair, which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by the Government, the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister at th…”
“5, motion regarding Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) (No. 4) Regulations 2026, back from committee, to be taken on conclusion of No. 4 without debate; No. 6, motion regarding Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) (No.”
“We will have a busy time coming back in September with an expected by-election to this House, which will create more work for them. To all colleagues across the House, on a personal level, I thank them for the last number of weeks since I took over as Leader of the Seanad. It has been a busy number of weeks for all of us.”
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“I thank all 18 Senators who made contributions. Senator Fiona O'Loughlin spoke about the use of the Irish language in school and acknowledged the awards that a number of schools had won, which are obviously very important. That is welcomed and should be continued. She also spoke about the very sad case of Maxine Maguire who died by suicide after bravely reaching out to look for help, which she unfortunately did not receive from the HSE. I cannot imagine how distressing what happened is for Maxine's parents, Robbie and Kathy. Maxine was suffering from depression and had the bravery to seek help but was turned away. Her parents had to wait nine years for the HSE to admit it was wrong.”
“The Order of Business is No. 1, Arbitration (Amendment) Bill 2025 - Order for Committee and Committee Stage, to be taken at 12.45 p.m. and to adjourn at 4.15 p.m. if not previously concluded; No. 2, Critical Infrastructure Bill 2026 - Second Stage, to be taken at 4.15 p.m. and to conclude at 5.45 p.m. if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes, and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes, time may be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 56, motion 1, Private Members' Business, motion regarding the UN International Year of the Woman Farmer, to be taken at 5.45 p.m., with time allocated to this debate not to exceed two hours.”
“Senator Sarah O'Reilly spoke about the ambulance service and asked why the pay conditions have not been implemented by the HSE. That is a matter for the negotiations that are happening at the moment. Senator Mike Kennelly spoke about a primary care centre. He knows that there has been an awful lot of investment while Fine Gael has in government in the context of building primary care centres. I have seen it in Dingle. I had to use the primary care centre after falling off a bike while cycling around Dingle. There are many primary care centres in Kerry, and this is another one that is very important.”
“There is an opportunity to have a debate and I will contact the Minister on that. Senator Mark Duffy spoke about wind energy and made a very good point about grant supports for battery units because there is an awful lot of energy that is being wasted or certainly is not being captured by people or businesses. Giving some sort of grant aid for batteries would be a very good thing to do. That is hopefully something for the budget in October. Senator Joe Conway congratulated the Celtic manager and team on their success at the weekend. It is another example of how someone at a certain age can achieve great success and Senator Conway knows that himself, as seen in the election of 18 months ago. It does not matter what age you are; you can achieve great success. Senator Teresa Costello spoke about the successful Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis as well.”
“Those contributions were made strongly and forcefully. Senator P.J. Murphy spoke about turf cutting. He raised that last week and he has called on the Minister for housing to lift an injunction he obtained against Mr. Darcy. There is an opportunity for a Commencement matter with that and I know he put one down last week but meeting the Minister officially would be an important thing to do. Senator Malcolm Noonan spoke about the flotilla and the sister of the President on that and more that can be done by Government, which is in line with what Senator Andrews said. Senator Robbie Gallagher spoke about increasing the threshold for social housing. As he says it has not been done since 2023, it is an important time for it and it will be going on for four years if it has not been increased by this budget.”
“I know Senator Scahill ran with them. I am not sure he ran too far as I read in the paper at the weekend he runs a couple of kilometres a week so I do not think he did a full marathon with them but he might have done some. As their last leg is on 28 May, he asked people to support them. Senator Andrews spoke about the flotilla and the acts of Israel being condemned by the Irish Government. I know he is frustrated by what he perceives to be not enough being done by the Irish Government but the Department is working very hard to bring those citizens back. Possibly more needs to be done. He has experience himself of when the Department of foreign affairs has assisted him and others in such a situation but it is wrong and it needs to be called out for being wrong. Senator Joe Flaherty spoke about the Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis.”
“There are negotiations happening at the moment and we hope that a conclusion can be reached before any further strikes happen. Senator Victor Boyhan spoke about businesses in Waterford and commended the work that was done to make sure businesses can receive funding as quickly as possible. I know the Minister of State, Deputy John Cummins, has been working very hard with the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke, on that issue. As he said himself, it is important to keep that under review. Senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee spoke about all of the positive things Fianna Fáil has done, which was well outlined and I agree with the majority of that. Others have agreed as well. Senator Paraic Brady spoke about the Adams brothers, Jordan and Cian, and the running of 32 marathons in 32 days, which is a phenomenal achievement, to raise awareness for dementia.”
“There is an investigation happening and I do not think it is appropriate for me to comment on it but it is horrific and very sad for that person and their family. Senator Alison Comyn spoke about the annual report from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and it is absolutely harrowing to see there has been an increase of almost one third and almost 24,000 people are ringing the rape crisis centre. It is predominantly women but also men and the Senator has called for a debate on that with the Minister, which is a really important thing to do. To think the numbers have increased by 33% in two years is depressing but it is something we need to do more work on. Senator Scahill spoke about the ambulance strike that was debated a lot last week.”
“I did not watch it and I have not seen it but a number of people have responded in defence of the good work that Fianna Fáil has done. That is to be acknowledged. Senator Harmon spoke about AI smart glasses and the consent that needs to be given when anyone is being filmed and how there should be consent for that. That is why the AI committee was set up; to look at things like this that have not been looked at before. It is important that we have a debate in the House on this. Senator Maria McCormack spoke about Rosenallis National School and the award it won. She spoke about it last week but in terms of confirmation of funding going forward, I will speak to the Minister. It could be an opportunity for the Senator to put down a Commencement matter. Senator Lynn Ruane spoke about the horrific attack that happened outside of Arnotts.”
“It affects the four in his house and the wider family. We all hope that Arlene as well as everyone in the country can receive their transplants as quickly as possible. However, that can only be done, as he said, by having conversations in family homes and asking people to be open-minded and open to what they can do. Senator Keogan spoke about Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis. I am a member of Fine Gael, so that was answered by a number of contributions. I will leave that to them.”
“I thank the 24 Senators who gave contributions. I have about six minutes to respond to 24 contributions. That is 15 seconds each. Senator Fiona O'Loughlin welcomed her guests and spoke about Avista and the work it does and the work we need to do in terms of employment rates being low. Senator Conway has done a great deal of work on this in terms of long-term employment for people with disabilities. There is more we can do as a Government. Senator Manus Boyle spoke about the tragic loss of three lives in Donegal which is very sad indeed. Our hearts go out to them. He also spoke about National Donor Awareness Week. Senator Boyle understands more than anyone, not just in this House but throughout the country, the impact that can have on a family. Senator Boyle's wife Arlene is waiting for a transplant. That does not affect just one person.”
“It was a very special day, and those four MPs are still very good friends of all of us in this House. The Order of Business is No. 1, statements on the priorities and progress of the Office of Public Works, to be taken at 4.45 p.m. and to conclude at 6 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed eight minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes, time may be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than seven minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 2, International Co-operation (Omagh Bombing Inquiry) Bill 2026 - Committee Stage, to be taken at 6 p.m. and to adjourn after two hours, if not previously concluded.”
“I too welcome our friends from Ukraine. It is a pleasure to have them here, and I hope they are being treated as well as they treat us when we visit Ukraine. They are in the first Parliament in the world that hosted Ukrainian MPs in person to speak to politicians. That was at the request of the Cathaoirleach, I think back in 2023.”
“In his own line of work, the Senator sees the amazing achievement of people recovering from addictions like that and the benefits this has for their young children.”
“Everyone can understand the fear. There is nothing scarier than losing your kids. If you are expected to voluntarily tell someone that you have a problem with drinking, drugs or gambling and you fear that you are going to lose your young children, it is very hard to do that. We need to change that stigma. We need to do an awful lot more. There is a wonderful women's refuge facility in Clonmel called Cuan Saor. It was opened by Michael D. Higgins in 2000. It does phenomenal work but this goes beyond addiction. Domestic violence is another issue. There is more to it. When people create stigma about people who are looking for help, they do not fully understand why that person is in that situation. It behoves all of us to try to change that stigma, to try to help and to support people to recover.”
“It is a valuable and, as the Senator has said, very credible organisation that has served for years to make sure that public sector workers are protected. It has done a very good job through good times and bad times to make sure that jobs, salaries and pay and conditions are protected as well as possible. There is obviously going to be a new public pay deal very soon. I know Fórsa will play its part to make sure its members are protected. We all have family members who work in the public sector and who are members of Fórsa so we all have a keen interest in the work it does. We wish it well with its conference. Senator McCarthy spoke about women in addiction, an issue that is not spoken about much. As a result of his involvement in Tiglin, he has a keen knowledge of the area. There is a stigma with women in addiction.”
“It is also important for patients' confidence for them to be able to see their own records and know exactly what is in them. If they are going from one place to another, to a different GP or to a hospital that is not their usual one for an emergency, their medical records should be easily found. GPs and nurses should be able to know their blood type straight away. Everything that needs to be known should be known. We have been talking about this for quite some time but we have not had a debate in this House on it. An opportunity to have such a debate with the Minister for Health would be helpful. Senator Boyhan spoke about the Fórsa conference that is happening at the moment. It is on its second day of three. Fórsa represents thousands and thousands of public sector workers right across the country.”
“The Minister for Finance has spoken a number of times in the last month about decisions that will be made in the budget. They have not been made yet but, in debates in the Lower House, he has spoken about giving more support to people who want to retrofit their houses. He has also spoken about solar panels and making it more financially viable for people to put solar panels on their houses. That is very important considering we are unfortunately going to see energy costs increase even more after the summer months. Senator Murphy O'Mahony spoke about medical records. It is amazing that, in a country that is so progressive, we still have not automated our medical records. It is very important for those working in the health sector.”
“A lot of the time, it is private businesses but communication is key here. We cannot have a situation where that does not happen. Communities rally together and hold public meetings and protests to try to block something being developed by a private company or another body, but they may not have had the opportunity to see whether it could benefit their area or the wider area. As a country, we need to do more on renewable energy. We can only do that if communities come on board and the only way to get communities on board is to be upfront and open, tell people what is being done and ask them what they think, whether they are on board and what can be done. A debate with the Minister on the matter would be timely. We will do that. The Senator also spoke about solar panels, as did Senator Nelson Murray yesterday. I am very hopeful.”
“I know the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, has made a lot of changes and has been very productive in the last 18 months as Minister for justice. I am sure he would be open to discussing this issue with the Senator. Senator Scahill spoke about energy projects. Again, there is a lack of communication. Regardless of the Department involved, there often seems to be a lack of communication when big projects are being developed. It creates fear very quickly. It is amazing that, when you hear about a project being done in Roscommon or some other area in the country, within a week people are talking about it as something that is five times bigger than it is and that creates way more damage. That creates a level of fear and resentment about the project coming to the area and locals not being told about it.”
“As the Senator herself said, the area she spoke about has played its part with provision of accommodation at Mosney and other locations. Right across the country, we see communities and counties that have really played their part. In an ideal world, the load would be shared right across the country but, at a time when we have a challenge in terms of housing and accommodation, it is about finding places that are available. It is almost impossible to get the right numbers in the right areas. In fairness to the Senator, she has condemned any attacks on these facilities. That is welcome because it is not right, it is not proper and it is not who we are as a country. The Senator also mentioned the Minister, Deputy McEntee. Deputy McEntee has not been Minister for justice for 18 months. I presume the Senator mentioned her because she is local.”
“It can be incredibly frustrating for parents who are very worried about their children to know a drug is available that would make them better but that they cannot get it although it has been approved and can be got in Belfast. Decisions need to be made as quickly as possible. I suggest that tabling a Commencement matter with the Minister would be the best approach. I hope that can be achieved. I know the Senator is very passionate about the issue. Senator Keogan spoke about IPAS accommodation and the lack of communication in that regard. We always seem to have a problem with communication in respect of houses, hotels or other buildings across the country being used as temporary accommodation for international protection applicants.”
“From a planning point of view, I can understand why we are trying to reduce the number of cars, particularly in city centres, but we need to be more realistic. I think we are going to see the problems Senator Andrews is seeing in his area in Cork as well once this big apartment development is completed. This is obviously also a matter for members of Dublin City Council as well. Senator Costello spoke very passionately about the drug givinostat. She said that the body that makes the recommendations to the HSE needs to make a decision and not pull back and let someone else make that decision. As the Senator said, there are children who are struggling and who cannot have any quality of life unless this drug is approved and can get to children.”
“He used the Glass Bottle site in his constituency as an example. There are numerous such developments around the county. I know of a building being built in Cork city where the pub the Sextant used to be. They will be the biggest apartment blocks in the city. One will be twice the height of any other building in Cork. There are no car parking spaces at all for the people who will be living there. As the Senator has said, we need public transport if people are to manage this. However, a lot of people who live in Dublin and Cork are actually from Tipperary, Galway or somewhere else and still have cars to get home. It is not credible for every single person living in a large apartment block or large housing development not to have a car.”
“There are different views on it, but from my own perspective, we have to acknowledge that a lot of people supported the referendum at the time, myself included, knowing that these provisions would be put in place. Members and supporters of my own party who were very nervous about it at the time felt more comfortable because that provision was in place. That needs to be considered when decisions are made with regard to changing it. As I said from the start, it is a moral issue for everyone. Everyone has different views. I do not think we should tell people they are right or wrong. People should be able to go into that Chamber and vote whichever way they feel is right. As always, democracy will make the decision, whatever that decision is. Senator Chris Andrews spoke about housing developments being built without car parking spaces.”
“My understanding is that another type of Bill like that might be coming next week from Sinn Féin. Everyone in that House has a free vote or a free decision to make themselves. That is right and proper. Everyone has different reasons for voting different ways. Just as Senator Mullen said in a very constructive way, it is about prevention, encouraging and looking to do what we can to support people who are in situations like that. There are different ways we can support them. People have different views on how we can support them. In relation to the vote itself on the three-day wait, the Senator was talking about having the three-day period.”
“We can see it in sports clubs nowadays, which was never the case 15 or 20 years ago. There is almost a normalisation of it. We have children who are in vulnerable or potentially vulnerable situations who need to be protected. Anything we can do as legislators, we need to do. It is a good opportunity to bring the Minister of State with responsibility for drugs and young people in here to have a debate about that and what we can do to make decisions, not reacting to the situation but actually being proactive in what possibly could be a very serious situation for our young people. Senator Rónán Mullen spoke about the vote last night in the Lower House on the Social Democrats Bill regarding the three-day wait. There was more to that Bill. That Bill was not passed.”
“I thank all the Senators who have made contributions this morning. Senator Fitzpatrick spoke about her recent visit with the drugs committee to Iceland. A lot of the stuff learned in Iceland was learned in the 1990s. They had the highest rate of drugs use in the 1990s and implemented what was called an Icelandic prevention model that has now led to the lowest rate. It is obviously a model that we should be looking at and seeing if we can implement here. In particular, she spoke about the youth, mental health and the red flags that we can see in our country at the moment. It is right across the country. Young adults are vulnerable to this, and we need to do more to support them. It is not in one particular area in the country, but rather we can see it in every single area.”
“I could speak of most of the contributions but I think Senator Noel O' Donovan spoke so well. We are very happy to have someone who is former member of An Garda Síochána speak so well about it. The relocation scheme needs to be changed and qualifications should be recognised. This happens in other professions and it does not happen as much as it should in An Garda Síochána. We have countless examples where people want to relocate and cannot. I know someone who was trying for five years to relocate but could not and has now left An Garda Síochána. They did not want to leave but had to leave.”
“There has been yearly proof while Fine Gael has been in government and while Fine Gael Ministers for justice have been there, and now with the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, that numbers have increased year on year. Are we where we want to be? No. Have we proven every single year that we are going to get to where we want? Yes we have. In the last months, and in the last number of years when it has happened once or twice, there are people who are Members of this House and the Lower House, people who are in public service, and people who are running to be Members of this House, who cannot condemn attacks on members of An Garda Síochána. I find it incredible. Have we really come to a place where Members of these Houses or people who want to be Members of these Houses cannot condemn attacks on members of An Garda Síochána?”
“It is quite easy to figure that out. Because of the financial crash, the Government at the time in 2009 had to make decisions. Dermot Ahern was the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform at the time and he had to close Templemore. That was subsequently closed for five years. The numbers of gardaí reduced by almost 2,000 into the 12,000 figures. It was a Fine Gael-led Government and a Fine Gael Minister who reopened Templemore in September 2014. If there is any reassurance I can give to Senator McDowell or any other Senator about whether we can reach figures, it is that every single year since 2014, the number of serving gardaí in this country has increased, bar one year because Templemore had to be closed because of Covid.”
“I was smiling when I was listening to Senator McDowell speak of when he was the Minister for Justice in 2018. He might not remember but it reminded me of when he was at a passing out event in Templemore. I was a student and I was doing some small piece of work for Tipperary Mid West Radio for the news department. I was sent off to get an interview with him. I thought my best chance was by just telling him who I was and who my mother was so I would have a good chance to get an interview. It worked and he was very kind at the time to do it. When the Senator was speaking just now about numbers in 2008 it reminded me of that. Senator McDowell spoke about Garda numbers. The figures were at their highest in 2008 and 2009. It is strategic to talk about those years. The Senator said we need to talk about why we have not reached those figures.”
“It is good the Minister of State is here today to listen to contributions from across the House. We will certainly work with him going forward, led by Senator Nelson Murray on this. It really comes back to the very basic fact that if we are talking about making changes in insurance to help small businesses and policyholders across the country, that can only be credible if insurance costs are going down. That needs to be our ultimate goal as a Government.”
“It is hard to be credible when they are getting a letter in the post once a year to say their motor insurance has gone up. The argument has been made that a lot of it has to do with claims for damage and the rise in repair costs due to inflation. That is understandable but that cannot be a reason in itself for why insurance costs are going up for everyone across the country. This is a very serious matter that impacts on everyone across the country, be it for motor insurance, home insurance and in particular for businesses. Sometimes for businesses it is a case of taking a decision to open or not and whether to keep the business going based on a letter that comes telling them how much insurance they have to pay for a year. That should not be the case.”
“The challenge now is to ensure that the savings are passed on, unnecessary legal costs are reduced, competition is improved and the new action plan is implemented with the urgency and ambition that is required to support policyholders. If we are touching on one aspect of insurance, the obvious one that most people right across the country understand is motor insurance. People can clearly see whether insurance has gone up or down. Unfortunately, we have seen a 4% increase in insurance since 2024. It is almost a fifth higher than in 2022. That is a significant increase. We are talking about making changes and the reforms that are being delivered to bring insurance costs down but the public are still seeing their insurance costs going up.”
“We have to acknowledge that there have been improvements in certain areas, such as the amendments to the personal injury guidelines, the reform of the occupier’s duty of care, the strengthening of the Injuries Resolution Board, the creation of the national claims information database and the Garda insurance fraud co-ordination office, and the continued focus on insurance reform through successive action plans like the most recent one. These things are important and they matter, but the next phase is to make sure the benefits are actually felt by policyholders. When it comes to liability, the Central Bank data shows that important savings are being made in the claims environment but many policyholders are still seeing premiums rise. They are seeing reduced choice, higher excesses and new exclusions.”
“The Minister of State is very welcome to the Chamber. I thank him for being here for such an important debate. I acknowledge the work that my colleague, Senator Nelson Murray, has done on this over the past 18 months since becoming a Senator. She has been a champion on this issue and has represented her own views and the views of our party extremely strongly. She has worked with the Minister of State’s Department since becoming a Senator to try to deliver change in insurance policy that could benefit small businesses, in particular, right across the country.”
“Ciaran Mullooly MEP, and Ms Maria Walsh MEP, may attend and be heard in Seanad Éireann on Wednesday, 27th May, 2026, and that the following arrangements shall apply: The proceedings shall commence at 2 p.m., shall not exceed two and a half hours, and shall consist of— (a) a speech of welcome by the Cathaoirleach; (b) an opening address by each MEP which shall not exceed six minutes in each case; (c) a contribution not exceeding five minutes by a Spokesperson from each Group; (d) a single response not exceeding five minutes by each MEP to the combined issues raised by the Group Spokespersons; (e) questions from all other Senators in accordance with the sequence set out in the Schedule to this resolution, which shall not exceed two minutes in each case; (f) a reply and concluding statement of not less than five minutes by each MEP; (g) a speech of thanks by the Leader of the House; and (h) concluding remarks by the Leas Chathaoirleach; and the members of the European Parliament may take seats on the floor of the Seanad Chamber.”
“I move: That, in accordance with Standing Order 63(1) and the approval of the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight, Seanad Éireann agrees that, in respect of the European Parliament Midlands-North-West Constituency, Ms Nina Carberry MEP, Mr. Barry Cowen MEP, Mr. Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan MEP, Mr.”
“There is an onus on us as legislators to make sure we protect them as much as possible. When that legislation comes to the House, there will be a good opportunity to discuss the issues further.”
“The report is the first step and, as the Cathaoirleach said, we will have an opportunity in this Chamber to debate it. The Minister has decisions to make in his Department. Something needs to be done. We cannot wait for the European Union to act on this. It would be much better if it did so, and did so quickly, but I suspect that will not happen. Therefore, the onus is on the Minister and the Government to publish legislation that will go through the Dáil and this House and will allow for a good debate. There are differing views on the issues and nobody, especially not any of us, is an expert on them. Somebody asked this morning whether there was anyone in the room who had used social media when they were under 16. None of us put our hands up, obviously, but we can see the negative impact such access can have on children.”
“In fairness to the Senator, he made some very valid points. Neither he nor I were at the important committee meeting last Wednesday as we were engaged in business abroad. His concerns are genuine and should not be dismissed, and nor should it be suggested that nobody on the committee is in favour of a ban. That is not the case at all. Senator Mullen outlined his concerns very well this morning. Deputy Carrigy and other members of the committee would agree with him. I am one of those in agreement with him when it comes to some of the issues, including pornography. There is a lot more that can be done. The publication of the report this morning is very important but it is not true that everyone had the same view on the issues. There very much were differing views.”
“The Senator has made a very genuine request and we will contact the Minister's office in that regard. As I said, housing committee members will be visiting some of the sites, which is important. The final contribution, by Senator Mullen, concerned the publication by the media committee of its report on online safety. We had what might be called a robust discussion at the committee this morning.”
“I am not too familiar with the areas he talked about but I acknowledge his suggestion of having some sort of consultation with those groups and people in terms of what will be done. The Dublin city task force was established with the idea of regenerating the city centre. It is a good thing to do. In a lot of other cities across the country, people want a task force similar to the Dublin task force to be set up for their city and to have joined-up thinking in terms of how to make our cities the best they can possibly be. I know that is the Senator's intention as well. I understand members of the housing committee are going out to visit one of those sites. The Minister should be playing his part as well in terms of having an open discussion with the residents of that area.”
“The Senator also referred to the increased cost of transport to primary school from €50 to €100 and to secondary school from €75 to €150. This was raised a number of weeks ago in a political sense but most people in this House are well aware that there are a lot of school buses across the country that are not full, with spaces being taken but not used on a daily basis. That is because, in effect, the buses were given for free. It means people are missing out who deserve to be on those buses. Although the increase is there, it is important to recognise that we must ensure we have space for people who really need those spaces and not just have them taken up by children who are not using them. Senator Andrews raised the Dublin city task force, referring in particular to its role in regard to regeneration and housing.”
“I do not know whether it is the case, but I do not doubt her for a second, that where the children of medical cardholders go to the school closest to their home, they automatically do not have to pay transport costs. There are changes coming in this area and it would be helpful to have a debate on them. The Senator made the point that if a pupil secures a concessionary ticket and the parent has a medical card, there is a charge for that transport . That seems very unfair. I do not think it would be very costly at all to change that and it should be done. I suggest that Senator Tully raise this as a Commencement matter with the Minister. It seems very unfair that people in that situation have to pay because they have a concessionary ticket.”
“The programme for Government that was put together when the Government was formed includes a commitment to abolish means testing and increase the payment from €270 to €325. Senator Byrne makes a valid case in asking for a timeline for the implementation of that commitment. I am sure everyone in this House and the Lower House is often asked when that measure in the programme for Government will be introduced, given the Government has been in place for more than 18 months and we have not yet seen a timeline for it. It is a very credible request by the Senator that the Minister come here and outline the timeframe for when this will be done. I will ask the Minister's office whether that is possible. Senator Tully made a really good point in regard to school transport.”
“It is very apt that we ask either the Minister for trade or agriculture to come to the House and speak on the important decision that was made last night. Senator Cathal Byrne raised the issue of payments for family carers and the 16,000 people in Wexford who receive that payment. It is normally €270 a week but some people, because it is means tested, receive a reduced payment and, unfortunately, some do not receive any payment at all. Thousands of people across the country care for loved ones, whether parents, grandparents or children with disabilities. They are doing that work because the care is for someone they love but that is saving the State a lot of money it otherwise would have to pay through the health service, hospitals and nursing homes. It is important that we in this House always recognise the work carers do.”
“Senator Lynch raised the announcement last night by the European Union in relation to Brazilian beef and other food not being allowed in from 3 September. As she rightly outlined, this is a very good example of why there was caution within the Government, as I mentioned earlier, in terms of the Mercosur deal. We support trade deals, obviously, but if one of those four countries is not compliant with the requirements, as is the case with Brazil, that proves the case for why we were concerned. The Senator also mentioned, which is important, the investigative work by the IFA and the Irish Farmers Journal in Brazil to highlight these issues before President von der Leyen ever made that decision yesterday. Senator Collins also raised this issue.”
“We welcomed the fact that, because of recent elections in Hungary, the EU is now able to give a €90 billion package to Ukraine that was being held up by the former Prime Minister of Hungary. It is important to call out what happened last night in Ukraine in terms of the number of attacks. We were given a false sense of security that there was going to be a three-day ceasefire but, clearly, that has not happened. When that is the case or when a ceasefire is broken, there is a responsibility on the Minister for foreign affairs to express on behalf of the people of Ireland our outrage that, in this case, so many bombs are landing on people in Ukraine. It is right and proper that this was done.”