Johnny Mythen
Wexford · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“Using data sets that use artists' works without their consent or authorisation to train large language models is not a fair use as claimed by many of these generative AI platforms. We would like to see regulation that mandates these platforms and organisations to ensure synthetic text generated by LLMs is watermarked and thus detectable.”
“I welcome this motion and thank my colleague, Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh, for tabling it at this important juncture in the era of generative AI.”
“This motion calls for the Government to use its influence in our Presidency of the European Council to force attention on the protection of copyright of artists from generative AI. State funding for art must not be used to fund or spent on generative AI artifacts that use artists' creative works without their consent.”
“The primary care service operators in County Wexford are creaking at the knees. Occupational therapists, OTs, in the community health organisation, CHO, 5 south-east area are burned out and under enormous pressure due to the current workload from a long list of clients waiting for appointments and treatment.”
“Will the Tánaiste investigate these unacceptable delays and seek an explanation as to why this is happening? These are children who require an immediate intervention. The longer the delay, the more they will regress. The sooner the treatment starts, the sooner they will progress.”
“Providers themselves are under severe pressure, with many folding and others barely hanging on. That is why core funding supports must be reviewed to reflect what is happening on the ground.”
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“The Department must row back and remove its new discriminatory and restrictive proposals, and increase the necessary staff to process applications in an efficient and timely manner. Again, we see rents averaging €1,423 in my own county, and an increase in rents of 5.7% nationally year on year. I ask Deputies to note the fault lines in the Department's new proposal and to support this Sinn Féin motion.”
“A property must be at least two years in the social housing support scheme, and the housing Department is also removing the ability of councils to exceed the set targets, plus the councils will not be able to reclaim refurbishment costs. Surely these measures, to put it mildly, are downright unfair, discriminatory and restrictive in nature, disavowing a large cohort of single people and couples from a scheme that could prevent them from becoming homeless. Figures show that the highest cohort of people seeking social housing is in fact single people. To reduce any funding to local authorities and introduce restrictive access measures to the tenant in situ scheme in a time of housing emergency is bad policy, and will result in more people becoming homeless.”
“In my own county of Wexford, 52 households have benefited from this scheme since 2023 - 13 in the Wexford district, 14 in the Enniscorthy district, 12 in the Gorey district, 12 in the New Ross district and one in the Rosslare district. Without this scheme, those families and individuals would have ended up in hostels, in overcrowded emergency accommodation centres or granny's box room, and that is if they are lucky. I ask that the newly proposed criteria by the Department of housing be fully re-evaluated and returned to the current rules. Under new proposals, a couple without children will be excluded. Single citizens will be excluded.”
“I wish both the Minister and Minister of State well in their new roles. I thank my colleagues in Sinn Féin for bringing this relevant and important Private Members' motion on the tenant in situ scheme to the floor of the House this evening. The tenant in situ scheme is a vital tool in the prevention of homelessness and has been a saviour to many families across the country. Since April 2023, the tenant in situ scheme alone has saved more than 2,500 households from the sickening prospect of losing a roof over their heads or being at the mercy of a system that is overwhelmed and broken due to dealing with the sheer volumes of evictions and notices of termination.”
“With pay talks to resume on Friday, what specific actions are being taken to ensure section 39 workers achieve pay parity with section 38 workers? These are promises the Taoiseach made to these workers before the election.”
“There is a deep sense of frustration among section 39 workers, who are the backbone of many support services and help many individuals in need every single day. Despite their incredible dedication, they are often met with indifference by the Government. The Government claims to prioritise the protection of these vital services, but where is the action? Where is the fairness in pay and recognition? Workers are leaving these services in their droves because they cannot survive. With the continuing cost-of-living crisis, they are struggling financially. We need to see real, tangible support for our section 39 workers, who provide essential services to the most vulnerable people in Ireland. It is time for the Government to step up and honour its commitments.”
“Has the Government any plans to address this problem of accessibility and the replacement of retired doctors in my county?”
“The lack of access to GP services has become a serious matter of concern for many of my constituents in County Wexford. For those patients lucky enough to have a GP, the waiting times for appointments are far too long, especially in rural areas with some waiting for up to three weeks. This needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency. What about the people who cannot get a practice to take them on as patients, particularly people whose family doctors have retired or citizens who have moved from one village to another? Where or who do they turn to? I am constantly being contacted by people who have real health and medical needs. I am also being contacted by a large number of people who are just above the threshold for a medical card or GP service card. When they contact the HSE, these people are told it is not its responsibility.”
“However, this is certainly not the case when we see the huge backlogs. The people of Wexford are disappointed by the recent allocation for road maintenance and road funding of €23,310,000. This is down almost €150,000 on last year. This is despite the fact that a comprehensive engineering report stated that one third of the roads need full reconstruction, estimated to cost in the region of €190 million. Once again, Wexford has been short-changed.”
“Another man, who is self-employed, had to bring his daughter to work in a local village shop about 20 km away. Again, this meant an early start in the morning and a return trip in the evening. The result was that the girl had to give up her job as her father's work took him miles away in the opposite direction. This must surely indicate to the Minister that the system is not fit for purpose and is failing. If this were any other business, it would be put through a root-and-branch reform, especially when we consider that Exchequer funding is expected to be in the region of almost €1 million this year. According to the Government's Revised Estimates, the RSA's income is anticipated to reach almost €90 million. People are paying for a good service and therefore, it is reasonable to expect a top quality service in return.”
“In many rural parts of Wexford, people waiting on the driving test depend completely on family and friends to bring them to their place of employment or education, as public transport is not an option or, in most cases, not available. I will give two examples from my constituency of the burden this incompetence is causing thousands of young people and their families. I know a father of two men in their early 20s who are both working and have both been waiting months on end for a driving test. This man had to get up at 5.30 a.m. every day to bring his two sons to work. The sons worked in different places, which meant a round trip of approximately 60 km for the man. He then had to turn around, go to work and repeat the journey in the evening.”
“Currently, if I apply for a driver test in my county of Wexford, I will get an invitation date for a test on 25 August 2025. I would then have to wait another three to five weeks after that for my actual test date. As of 21 January 2025, the number of applications in County Wexford was 5,643. The volume per centre is as follows: Gorey, 2,723 and Wexford, 2,920. The estimated waiting times for an invitation date in each centre is 20 weeks and 25 weeks, respectively. We can add another three to five weeks onto that for the test date. The national figure indicates that there are 72,000 people awaiting a driver test.”
“Every Deputy is fully aware of constituents, families and young couples, including in my county of Wexford, who are facing homelessness due to increasing rents, who cannot afford ever-increasing housing market prices and who will never be able to acquire mortgages due to low earnings. Housing should be a fundamental constitutional right. Every citizen should be entitled to a roof over his or her head and to shelter. I hope that in its lifetime, this Government will consider bringing a referendum to the people on the right to housing. I am glad to support his motion. I hope it will be supported by all Deputies.”
“The introduction of a ban on no-fault evictions served as security for many families who would otherwise have ended up on the emergency housing list. Sinn Féin fully supports the Housing Commission's recommendation to create a housing delivery oversight executive to bring together public, semi-State and private bodies to better develop capital programmes and address the bureaucratic red tape that is causing stagnation in the planning system, resulting in long delays in providing critical infrastructure and much-needed homes. I cannot overstate the need to build affordable and social housing as quickly as humanly possible.”
“The recent remarks by the Taoiseach, supported by the Minister for Finance yesterday, are very worrying and are reminiscent of the good old days of the Celtic tiger. I refer to the review of rent pressure zones, once again reverting to private developers and speculative landlords and an over-reliance on the private market to solve the housing crisis. Housing should not be viewed as a derivative or a mere commodity. This is the very reason the housing plan failed in the first place and, indeed, it is what led to the loss of our fiscal sovereignty and the visit of the troika to our shores. Rents have increased nationally by 40% but the 2% cap in the rent pressure zones has kept the wolf from the door for many families.”
“I thank the Labour Party for bringing this motion before the House. I have listened attentively to the Government's claims that housing is the number one priority. Nobody seems to know when exactly this revelation appeared before them. One could argue that both Government parties have been in full control of housing for 14 years, yet they have failed to deliver both affordable and social housing on any meaningful scale, missing targets year after year. Some 15,000 citizens and more than 4,600 children are in emergency accommodation. That is a stain on our nation. I suspect the real hidden figure, if we take the number living with relatives and friends, is at least three times that amount. A radical reset of the housing policy must replace the Government's Housing for All plan, as was recommended by the Housing Commission and the ESRI.”