Ivana Bacik
Dublin Bay South · Labour Party · Ireland
“Just today I and other local representatives got an email from the owner of two restaurants in Dublin city centre about this issue. The Minister of State’s brief includes not only the circular economy but also small business.”
“The Bill Deputy Sherlock and the Labour Party are proposing is not one we suggest is a silver bullet or a panacea but it offers one small, constructive mechanism to address the dysfunction in waste services.”
“In Dublin Bay South we have superb Tidy Towns organisations that I am proud to work with from Ringsend and Sandymount across to Portobello in my area to Rathgar, Rathmines, Terenure, Donnybrook and Ballsbridge. We see really important work being done by Tidy Towns organisations.”
“The owner says he no longer has space to accommodate additional recycling bins, cannot leave recyclable waste out for collection and cannot leave flattened cardboard outside for collection. Private waste companies must send a vehicle to collect this directly from premises. This is costly, inefficient and unnecessary.”
“I do not mean just in Dublin, though Deputy Sherlock and I are focusing on Dublin and most of the TDs present are Dublin ones, as clearly this has ramifications across the country and the dissatisfaction and the concerns Deputy Sherlock’s constituents and mine are expressing are ones felt across the board.”
“We want to see a move, as Deputy Sherlock has it in the Bill, from competition in the market to competition for the market and this Bill would represent an important positive step on that journey to quality public services provided by the State and to remunicipalisation. Deputy Sherlock has set out the detailed provisions in the Bill.”
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“Yesterday, the Taoiseach described Ireland's economic outlook as positive but in a wealthy country, one in five children lives below the bread line. Nearly 5,500 are now homeless. We are once again approaching a new school year with a shortage of special education places. Tonight's programme "RTÉ Investigates: Inside the Care System" highlights the shocking State failings in respect of children in care. The Children's Rights Alliance has described the haunting gaps in our country's response to children in need of care. We know the State takes a child away from their parents and places them in care only as a last resort and in the most extreme circumstances, generally where a child is subject to serious risk.”
“I raised this last year with the Taoiseach on the visit to the Dáil by Liam Conlon, the MP for Beckenham and Penge in England, who had brought forward Philomena's law in Westminster. The Taoiseach issued a joint communiqué with the British Prime Minister from the Cork summit in March on this but we just need to ensure the Government can work with the British Government to ensure clarity for the survivors.”
“Today, a survivor of a mother and home, Rosemary Adaser, along with human rights barrister, Caoilfhionn Gallagher, were in Leinster House meeting TDs, including my Labour Party colleague, Deputy Ahern. They met with the special advocate for survivors, Patricia Carey. They are seeking clarity on Philomena's law. They want to ensure justice for mother and baby home survivors who are now resident in Britain - 13,000 people from Ireland. There are welcome guidelines in place since 9 April but survivors are still concerned that without statutory unpinning in particular that there may be an issue about the retrospective effect. They fear that 700 survivors who have already applied to the redress scheme in Ireland may lose out on benefits in England.”
“We are out of line with other countries which have invested more extensively in renewables and are pushing renewables to power electricity generation. Instead of that, the Government, particularly since the Green Party left office, is relying on an expanding series of data centres which are gobbling up electricity, and relying on the importation of LNG. Where is the vision there? Why are we not seeing more of a move from subsidising dirty fuels?”
“By all means, let us have an honest debate. The Taoiseach will have to acknowledge, in honesty, that the Labour Party supported the funds. We did not support any narrowing of the tax base. We accept, of course, a renewables revolution requires investment, and requires money to be invested in it. However, if we are having an honest debate, let us talk about the ESRI report which acknowledged that Ireland has the highest energy prices in Europe and that a huge problem, which the Taoiseach must recognise, is that our electricity prices are being driven by gas prices. We are among the countries in the EU with the highest reliance on gas - a fossil fuel - and that is extremely costly. We have an extremely high proportion of households still using oil for heating.”
“The question is obvious: how can the Government move quickly for some but not for others, when nearly 500,000 households are in arrears on their energy bills, grocery prices are rising and the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is warning that electricity prices could go up by up to 9% this summer? The Taoiseach is failing to introduce the systems change that is needed. Other countries like Spain are offering an alternative by investing heavily in renewables, recognising the link between tackling climate action, reducing household bills and securing the energy grid. Unlike the Irish Government, the Spanish Government has a vision. Will the Taoiseach give hope to hard-pressed PAYE workers, adopt targeted energy credits, support pay rises and invest in real climate action to insulate against energy shocks?”
“In recent weeks, we have heard about saving scheme tax cuts and changes to inheritance tax; in the past 24 hours alone, new income tax measures and energy credits; and this morning, the Taoiseach is talking about new Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, grants. His shedsits are the latest - €14,000 tax free for people with large gardens. Where is the plan? Where are the supports for PAYE workers? This is the failure of the Taoiseach's budget last year writ large. It is the original sin of his Government's lack of vision and ambition for the country. In October, there was no money for the renewables revolution that we need. There was nothing for universal public childcare, yet the Government found €1 billion in tax breaks for developers and fast food chains.”
“Just as Viktor Orbán lost his election in Hungary, it seems the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, has lost his sense of humour. It is clear that Trump has lost the plot, and we are all paying the price, but the Government has lost its touch, not that it ever had it, really. Where are the cool heads? Where is the decisive action? As the spring economic forecast indicates, there is money there. It is how the Government is spending it that is the problem. Nowhere is that problem clearer than in the mixed messages coming from the Taoiseach’s own Cabinet. In here, the Taoiseach tells us he is acting prudently but in the media, the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance has transformed into the Minister for commentary and kite-flying, floating a stream of potential budget measures.”
“I acknowledge Margaret Loftus and salute her courage. Another week has passed, and the cost-of-living crisis continues to heap pressure on families who are struggling to make ends meet. When people look to the Government to give them some hope, it tells them to manage their expectations. They are left wondering what it takes to get the same urgent treatment it affords to sectoral interests. I am left asking the same thing. Every day, the Taoiseach stands in the Dáil lecturing us about prudence and restraint. Of course, he is right to point to global instability as a driver of chaos. It is, clearly, but that instability cannot excuse his inaction at home. In fact, decisive action and cool heads are exactly what we need at a time of chaos. Unfortunately, the disarray internationally has infected the Government too.”
“The commander-in-chief of the very military forces that transit through Shannon Airport threatened just last week to wipe out an entire civilisation in Iran. That was genocidal rhetoric. Will the Taoiseach meet Lelia Doolan today as she comes to Leinster House? Will he stop allowing US military use of Shannon Airport in the face of the war-mongering we have seen? Will he guarantee that the US military and, indeed, Israeli forces are not benefiting from the use of Shannon Airport?”
“I commend the amazing Lelia Doolan, the long-time neutrality activist and human rights campaigner. She is outside the gates of Leinster House right now having completed a mammoth 220 km walk from Shannon Airport. Lelia is 91 years of age and has been walking in a gentle, peaceful protest for a fortnight. She is protesting the use of Shannon Airport by the US military. She has asked for a meeting with the Taoiseach and Government TDs. I think she is right. I want to express the support of the Labour Party for her. As we all know, and as we have seen in recent weeks, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu have unleashed a rain of death and destruction across the Middle East. They have launched an illegal war. The Government has so far failed to condemn that war.”
“Also, the Taoiseach has to stop rewriting history about last week. The Labour Party in my name issued a statement last Wednesday morning calling on the Government then to engage with the representative organisations. It took the Government until Friday afternoon to do that. We also called for the lifting of the blockades on Wednesday morning. We had a very clear position and I will not accept the Taoiseach's claim on that. On the ESRI report, yes, it acknowledged Government supports had helped, but those supports are gone. The ESRI also pointed out that Ireland has such high energy prices because we have never diversified sufficiently into renewables where other counties have.”
“Yesterday, an ESRI report confirmed that Ireland has the highest energy prices in Europe. Yes, they were relieved in recent years by VAT reductions and energy credits but that took us down to eighth highest, and those credits are now gone. We know there are no easy answers to the global energy shock but the Taoiseach must heed the advice of the IEA. We need radical action now to harness more renewables, bring down energy costs, tackle climate emissions and ensure fuel security. Will the Government publish a national fuel security plan? Will it promise PAYE workers it will bring forward targeted supports for them and help the desperate households now in arrears on energy bills?”
“The only relief the Government has given is a few cent off petrol and diesel. Over two emergency packages now, we have seen special supports for those that shouted loudest but nothing to relieve the real pressure on PAYE workers and families. They are left with no option now but to seek pay rises in the months ahead. We will support the trade unions in that endeavour because more support is needed. In recent days, I have spoken to parents in Galway and Dublin desperate to see their children stay here rather than emigrate. I have spoken to young adults who see no future for themselves here. What help can the Taoiseach offer them? What is he going to do for the 320,000 households in arrears on their electricity bills, the highest number ever, or the 180,000 in arrears on gas bills?”
“The Government gave tax breaks to developers and fast-food chains – tax breaks paid for by workers. The Government could instead have taken the progressive step of indexing income taxes, as the Labour Party sought, but it did not. At the behest of business interests, the Government delayed the living wage and an increase in statutory sick pay while voting down our Labour Party Bill to give workers a real right to remote work. There is real suffering across our communities. Households are facing rising bills. Grocery prices, already increasing, are set to soar further as food security is impacted by global shocks. There are rising rents and mortgages, and electricity and gas bills that families are struggling to pay. All of us are hearing this, that people simply do not know how they are going to manage.”
“The Government has been weakened and damaged over its inadequate response to the energy crisis and fuel protests, with further challenges to come. The Government has now lost a Minister of State, and a backbencher - two Healy-Raes for the price of one, and a high price indeed. The Government won the vote last night but the pressure for hard working families and households in this cost-of-living crisis has not gone away. For hundreds of thousands of PAYE workers, struggling to pay soaring bills, where is their support package? For those who turned up at the office, the shop or the factory or who logged on at home for work this morning, what message has the Taoiseach for them? The budget last October delivered no relief for working people. Energy credits and one-off payments were withdrawn.”
“Taoiseach, you have failed PAYE workers, struggling households and hard-pressed families. We in the Labour Party have no confidence in you.”
“We are watching in horror as Israel erases villages from the map, colonises the West Bank and continues to destroy Gaza and entrench its system of apartheid. When will the EU act to end the trade agreement with Israel? When will the Government act to pass the occupied territories Bill it committed to in the general election but walked away from once office was secured? Now is the time, and the Taoiseach would have Opposition support to send America and Israel a real message on this and pass the occupied territories Bill in full to cover trade in goods and services, and to work with Spain and other progressives across the EU to force the EU to suspend the Israel trade agreement. These are real things that could be done but we know the Taoiseach will not do them because his conservative Government lacks the courage to do so.”
“We all know who caused outbreak of this most recent fuel crisis, yet this Government has failed to condemn the illegal war launched by Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu. We know that our economy, our energy security and our society are being threatened because of the actions of the US and Israel. The Government must now call in the US ambassador, challenge them on their illegal warmongering, their threats made just a week ago to wipe out a civilisation and their ongoing blockade of ships. We must recognise the United States is not acting as a friend any more and the fuel protests result from the US and Israel's war on Iran. The Government must press the EU to sanction Israel as it seeks to conquer southern Lebanon.”
“As our Labour Party finance spokesperson, Ged Nash, has said, the measures the Government announced on Sunday are designed to placate sectoral interests, effectively abandoning PAYE workers - low and middle-income earners who have no option other than to pay taxes but whose pay packets that are under increasing pressure in this cost-of-living crisis. There is pressure from rising energy bills but also from skyrocketing grocery prices as we face food insecurity, and from escalating housing costs. We need substantive engagement from Government at the upcoming LEEF talks, substantive engagement with the trade unions, and Labour will strongly support the trade union movement in seeking pay rises for hard-pressed workers and working families.”
“The value of those VAT cuts will be washed away in the inflation likely to hit us over the next six months. The price of construction of a house is already reported to have increased by between €25,000 and €30,000. The VAT cut on hospitality was never going to be passed on anyway and would have been better spent on targeted supports for those now in fuel and energy poverty. This Government cannot be trusted to manage the public finances. There is a €600 million deficit already forecast for the Department of education. The Government managed to spend nearly a billion euro on fuel supports without any new measures that will tackle energy poverty or address the near €200 million of arrears on household gas and electricity bills.”
“It has consistently rowed back on climate action commitments. It has arrogantly dismissed and consistently voted down constructive proposals from Labour and others in opposition on taking action on housing, workers’ rights and on the cost of living. The Government stopped sick pay increases and rowed back on a living wage. It voted down our Labour Party Bill on the right to remote working. It sneered at calls for stronger State action on housing or the development of a State construction company. The budget last October provided no relief for working people. It failed to index income taxes, removed vital once-off supports and at the same time committed millions of euro to untargeted VAT cuts for construction and hospitality - big builders and burger barons.”
“The Labour Party has no confidence in this Government to bring forward the radical proposals that need to be introduced, as the IEA has advised, such as proposals that Labour has made for remote working, making public transport free and taking serious measures to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. Ireland needs real action now to invest in renewable energy, retrofitting and solar and wind installation in order to reduce energy costs, curb emissions and tackle the climate crisis. That is another reason why Labour has no confidence in this Administration, because by its deeds and actions it has shown itself to be the most conservative and ideologically right-wing Government in a generation.”
“At best, one might hope this was a cynical attempt to distract from a disastrous week for the Government, but at worst, and in seriousness, it is a Minister resorting to sinister threats against the national broadcaster because it was doing its job of reporting fairly on events around the country. Yet as bad as last week was, the real crisis has yet to properly hit us. The International Energy Agency, IEA, has been warning for weeks that the world now faces the most severe energy crisis ever recorded, a supply shock that has yet to properly hit Ireland or Europe. So Taoiseach, where is our national fuel security plan? The crisis of last week shows a shocking unpreparedness if we end up facing a fuel rationing situation.”
“As protests began, there followed a week of dithering, confusion and mixed messages. Bombastic statements were issued by the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste on Wednesday night, but with no real follow through. On Thursday morning the justice Minister ratcheted up the tension by announcing that the assistance of the Defence Forces had been requested. In his rush to get on the airwaves, it appears he neglected to consult with the Minister for Defence. His intervention only inflamed the situation further. Not to be outdone, of course, the Minister for media announced yesterday that he wants Coimisiún na Meán to investigate media coverage of the protests. Goodbye Viktor Orbán, hello Patrick O’Donovan.”
“This Government is worn out, tired out and zoned out from the reality of people’s lives. After too many years in office, this Government of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Lowry group and, it seems, half the Healy-Raes just did not get the message. In the week before Easter, the message should have been received loud and clear about the growing fuel and energy security crisis resulting from Trump and Netanyahu’s illegal warmongering in Iran and Lebanon. However, Government leaders were more focused then on talking about tax cuts for the rich. In the week when grocery inflation was reported at over 6%, the Tánaiste was on a media blitz for his new investment savings scheme. While 320,000 households are in arrears on their electricity bills, the Taoiseach was ruminating on inheritance tax cuts in the next budget.”
“We also called for the lifting of blockades to limit disruption to families, lives and businesses and ensure fuel reached those who needed it. We rejected the intimidatory tactics of some while absolutely respecting the right to peaceful protest of many. We watched all week in mounting dismay as Ministers of this Government responded by going on the airwaves and pouring petrol on the flames of anger. Instead of de-escalating, they inflamed the situation. The meeting the Government eventually convened on Friday afternoon could and should have been held sooner. Government could and should have acted more swiftly to address the real and genuine concerns of so many. The Government’s actions over the last week alone have shown it is incapable of handling crisis situations.”
“It is about energy bills but it is also about exorbitant rents and mortgage costs, house prices, childcare, education and healthcare costs, waiting lists and more. It is about a budget last October that did nothing for working people. It is about a housing crisis only getting worse as more and more young people choose to leave this country because they see no future here. It is about the thousands stuck on waiting lists for treatment, therapies, disability services and assessments of need. It is about a lack of special education supports for children with additional needs, and so much more. Last week, Labour recognised the deep distress and frustration felt by so many. Last Wednesday morning, we called on the Government to engage urgently with representative groups to ensure a resolution.”
“A Cheann Comhairle, Labour has no confidence in this Government. This Government has failed to tackle the cost-of-living crisis. Its members have shown a total disregard for the mounting pressures facing households and businesses across the country. The Labour Party warned in March when the first package of measures was announced that workers and families would continue to face impossible cost burdens. We warned then that Government needed to adopt robust policies on renewable energy, transport costs and remote working. The events of last week and the support from the public for the aims of the protests were not just about fuel prices but the Government has patently failed to recognise this. It has failed to recognise why so many people across the country are so angry with it.”
“It is unconscionable that a plant operating in Ireland could be contributing to materials used in the destruction of so many communities and so much civilian infrastructure in Ukraine and can be used to kill children in Ukraine. This is appalling to see and I do welcome the Taoiseach's commitment to review this report, but the question is clear: what urgent action will the Taoiseach take to ensure that no Irish-based industry or business is complicit in supporting Russia's war machine?”
“Yesterday Conor Gallagher in The Irish Times , working with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, revealed shocking details about the supply chain linked to the Aughinish Alumina plant in Limerick. His report outlined how significant quantities of alumina from this facility are being exported to Russia, where they are being used to make aluminium, which is then sold to a trading company supplying over 100 Russian weapons manufacturers. It is deeply alarming to see that shipments of Irish alumina to Russia have increased significantly since Putin's brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is horrific to see this.”
“This shows the systemic problems in An Garda Síochána. This is the sort of example the Minister needs to take seriously in seeking to rebuild trust among communities in the Garda in respect of domestic violence, community policing, road safety and so much more. Our motion seeks to present to the Government constructive solutions to tackle those systemic issues and ensure that trust is rebuilt in communities and that An Garda Síochána can operate effectively and with community buy-in. I urge the Minister not to oppose our motion.”
“We see how many murders are linked to domestic violence, yet Women's Aid has found that nearly half of women who go to the Garda for help in domestic violence situations find the response unhelpful. That is deeply concerning. I have submitted a parliamentary question to the Minister to establish the number of complaints made to Fiosrú since the establishment of a new unit to tackle complaints against gardaí regarding allegations of sexual and domestic abuse. I have not seen any reporting in the annual reports of GSOC or Fiosrú on this. I would welcome a response. We have the courageous example of Margaret Loftus, who came forward to describe her experience of how gardaí closed ranks against her when she made allegations, which were absolutely justified, that her garda partner had been violent towards her.”
“Instead of massaging the numbers upwards, as the Minister has done, and providing such a poor response with barely any mention of domestic violence, community policing or the drastic failure to increase roads policing, the Minister has given us a somewhat idealistic countermotion that does not address the serious omissions. As the Minister knows, communities across the country are crying out for higher visibility community policing. Community policing needs serious investment. We need to ensure that community gardaí are not relegated but are instead seen as vital to the task of policing across the country. On domestic violence, our motion calls for a clear timeline for the roll-out of domestic violence co-ordination teams across every region. We know there is an epidemic of violence against women at present.”
“I commend Deputy Kelly on this Labour Party motion. I believe it is the first on policing in the lifetime of this Dáil. It reflects our long-standing interest in criminal justice, including my personal interest in criminal justice, and our concern to ensure a robust policing system for our country. I want to pay tribute, as did the Minister, to the vital work of gardaí across our communities and the country and in my constituency and that of the Minister. I welcome the high-visibility policing plan in Dublin city centre, which has made an enormous difference. However, the Government's countermotion is deeply disappointing because it fails to acknowledge the reality, which is that serious structural issues in An Garda Síochána need addressing.”
“I ask again if the Taoiseach will institute a ban on no-fault evictions now to protect families and children, in particular, from homelessness.”
“Less than four weeks into the Government's new rental regime, we are already seeing the effects. The Government is now presiding over the highest level of evictions since the Famine. Last week, Residential Tenancies Board, RTB, data showed the number of eviction notices issued rose by 41% in quarter 4 of 2025. Just over 20,000 people received a dreaded notice of termination through their letterboxes last year as landlords were already leaving the market in anticipation of the new reckless rent rules. Now we are seeing mass evictions at a higher scale again: 14 families in an apartment complex in Ballybane in Galway city; 20 families in Lord Edward Street in Limerick; and in my constituency too, I am hearing it. Renters are vulnerable and need protection. The Labour Party has offered constructive solutions.”
“This is the reality for the hundreds of thousands of households in arrears already on electricity and gas bills. The Taoiseach must acknowledge the desperate overexposure of Ireland on the liquified natural gas, LNG, front. We are so reliant on LNG. We are so reliant on fossil fuels and we are simply not acting fast enough to roll out renewables in the way we should. We know that takes a little more time, but we need to see commitment from Government on this. Here is one very quick ask the International Energy Agency, IEA, has called for: move now to a real right to remote and flexible working. That is one way to support struggling households.”
“Of course, the Labour Party supports the introduction of short-term measures to support struggling households. I think everyone does. Everyone here acknowledges that but this package is just not enough. The Government could do more. Look at it this way: the full-year cost of the tax cut the Government gave to the hospitality sector, the burger barons Deputy Nash speaks about, in last year's budget is €680 million. That is the three times the value of the package the Government is now offering struggling households in what the Taoiseach himself has said is the biggest energy shock we have seen in the world. It is just not enough, and the Taoiseach has acknowledged the reality of fuel poverty for far too many households across the country.”
“That is what we need from the Taoiseach's Government - real leadership. It is clear the best way to address the crisis is to stop the war. European leaders should now unite to condemn the war, to challenge Trump on his so-called little excursion and to stand up to this erratic and dangerous leader, not hand him a bowl of shamrock in the White House. While the war continues, however, the Government must ensure that struggling households are protected, and we must strive harder to shift away from fossil fuels. Will the Taoiseach join with the Spanish socialists in condemning the US-Israel war? Will he work with EU leaders to stand up to Trump, this bully, and to seek an end to the war? Will he ensure that struggling households are really supported through this crisis and that we now move urgently to end our reliance on fossil fuels?”
“Last Thursday, the Taoiseach attended the European Council in Brussels. There he would have heard the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, speaking about how Spain is less exposed to this huge energy shock than other European countries. Why? Because Spain pivoted early to renewables. Last week, 60% of Spain's energy electricity was generated through renewables. The price of electricity per kilowatt-hour is well over €100 here. The equivalent price in Spain is just €14. That is an extraordinary difference. When I was in Brussels myself last Thursday, I spoke with Sánchez and with the climate Commissioner, Teresa Ribera. The Spanish left Government has shown robust leadership within the EU, strongly condemning the US and Israel for their attacks on Iran and showing real leadership on climate action.”
“Just before I came in here, a woman emailed me to convey what she described as her disgust and deep unhappiness. As a working single parent, her last electricity bill was €637 and she said there is nothing in this package of measures for her. For her and for so many more, we need longer term thinking and measures from the Government that will ensure energy security and tackle climate change. Labour has championed a real right to remote and flexible working and the International Energy Agency, IEA, is telling us we need to pivot to this and to real investment in cycling and public transport to decarbonise our economy and society, as Deputy Ged Nash has said. This is imperative in the week when the World Meteorological Organization says 2025 was the worst year on record for climate change.”
“The illegal war on Iran launched by Trump and Netanyahu is now in its fourth week. Households across the country are reeling from the energy crisis. Petrol and diesel prices are now well over €2 per litre and those reliant on home heating oil are particularly badly affected. They are facing massive price increases, with the cost of refilling a 1,000 litre tank getting to €1,800. In the face of this, the Government's package of measures to support struggling households, which the Taoiseach has described as generous, is simply not enough. It is too little and very late. True, the excise and levy cuts to fuel prices will give relief to some, as will the extension of the fuel allowance, but hundreds of thousands of households are already in arrears on energy bills. There is no real reassurance here for far too many.”
“The Labour Party has put forward a number of measures. There are clearly things that the Government can do, including new measures to support faster roll-out of renewables, increased retrofitting supports for homes in energy poverty and the extension of the fuel allowance. We are not getting any clarity; all we are getting are mixed messages. Households are struggling.”
“There are 320,000 households in arrears on their electricity bills. Hundreds of thousands are facing soaring home heating costs and price hikes at filling stations as the US and Israel's illegal war on Iran enters its third week, with no end in sight. The Minister stated earlier that the Government is considering cost-of-living measures and a package of supports for struggling households. There have been many kites flown and many mixed messages from Government. The Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, suggested that the Government should consider scrapping the €680 million VAT cut on hospitality to pay for cost-of-living supports. Is that Fianna Fáil policy? If not, when are we going to see clarity from the Government for struggling households? People just want to know when and what will be offered by the Government.”
“There are hundreds of amendments tabled. In the Dáil, only amendments as far as section 22 out of 238 in Bill were reached. Draconian changes on family reunification were not debated or scrutinised at all before the guillotine was brought down. I could list dozens of other issues in the Bill. We did, as did other Opposition parties.”
“The Labour Party has articulated a very clear migration policy of our own. It is, of course, fair, effective and rules based, but it also has room for humanity and compassion. It is interesting to hear the Minister's emphasis on a rules-based system because at the same meeting yesterday in the White House, the Taoiseach also raised with President Trump the need for a special deal, a legal pathway with the US for Irish immigrants. Certainly, it is very welcome to see the Taoiseach making reference to people from Ireland who are living in the US and who are in fear of ICE and the deportations being pursued by Trump, but the policy is very different to that being pursued here in Ireland. This week, the International Protection Bill, which the Minister has initiated, is on Committee Stage in the Seanad.”
“These are the stories of people who came from Syria, Ukraine and India who have made such a positive contribution to our economy and our society. Therefore, instead of performative deportations and draconian legislation on immigration, let us see the Government now embrace this campaign; challenge the pernicious far right rhetoric on migration; and show solidarity and leadership with our new communities. Will the Government sign up to our Together We Thrive campaign? This is the real story of migration to Ireland.”
“Last week, we saw reports that the Minister's Department's new immigration strategy is apparently going to be for the benefit of the Irish people, founded on respect for social and cultural norms and the rule of law. That is somewhat concerning language, doubling down on some dog whistle rhetoric and using hostile language about inward migration amounting to the othering of people from different countries. I am calling on the Minister for justice to take heed of the Taoiseach's words yesterday on immigration and support the campaign Labour launched last week. We call our campaign Together We Thrive. It showcases the stories of migrants who come to Ireland and who have made a contribution by opening a restaurant in Dublin, being involved in and doing volunteer work in Sligo or teaching in Cork.”
“The fact that sectors of our economy and our public services, such as healthcare, hospitality and retail, simply would not function without the skilled people who have come here from other countries to bring their skills and experience. We need a campaign about the facts and the positive impact made by so many who have come here to seek work or, indeed, refuge from war or persecution. However, instead of that fact-based campaign we need from Government, we have seen far right rhetoric, myths and misinformation about migrants go unchallenged for far too long. We have seen intimidating protests. We have seen the appalling misuse of our national flag.”