Martin Conway
Administrative Panel · Independent · Ireland
“I too would like to welcome Leryn to Seanad Éireann. It is a very special trip back to Ireland for her and I hope she enjoys her time here. I also echo the good wishes and the thanks to Martin and all his team who make life so much easier for us here, and I hope all colleagues across the House have an enjoyable summer.”
“I have come across a number of examples lately that are quite distressing. I have to do further research but if the information that has been brought to my attention is correct, it is very distressing. I also seek a further debate on tourism. We have the Walker Cup coming to Lahinch in September and people are very excited about.”
“Finally, I commend Cara Darmody, someone the Leader knows very well, who is at the gates of Leinster House doing her two-day protest. I think it is her second in the last year. I commend her on what she has achieved through her advocacy and her campaigning and what she will achieve. I know the Leader would agree with me on that.”
“I support Senator Harmon in her call and proposition regarding Bessborough. I did not realise that planning permission had been granted. It is horrendous. With all the land throughout the entire country, surely to God, we can deal with a housing crisis in a more humane and respectful way than granting planning permission on that site.”
“If they did, I have no doubt it would raise awareness. It would develop a respect for the water and save many lives. I also believe every young person should undergo first aid training before they leave school. Again, it is not a difficult thing to provide.”
“I acknowledge the work that has been done to improve things in Limerick and the announcement by the Minister for Health in recent weeks that there is going to be a completely new hospital built, which will be co-located with UHL and will have its own emergency department. That is extremely welcome. I am a realist.”
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“Finally, I commend Cara Darmody, someone the Leader knows very well, who is at the gates of Leinster House doing her two-day protest. I think it is her second in the last year. I commend her on what she has achieved through her advocacy and her campaigning and what she will achieve. I know the Leader would agree with me on that.”
“I have come across a number of examples lately that are quite distressing. I have to do further research but if the information that has been brought to my attention is correct, it is very distressing. I also seek a further debate on tourism. We have the Walker Cup coming to Lahinch in September and people are very excited about. We also have the Irish Open in Doonbeg this year. Those big tourism events, coupled with the Ryder Cup that is coming to Adare next year, are bringing fantastic revenue and excitement. We need more of these type of events. Any investment the Government makes in big-ball tourism sporting events is well worthwhile, not just because of the revenue generated but also the international coverage we get.”
“I too would like to welcome Leryn to Seanad Éireann. It is a very special trip back to Ireland for her and I hope she enjoys her time here. I also echo the good wishes and the thanks to Martin and all his team who make life so much easier for us here, and I hope all colleagues across the House have an enjoyable summer. They can all come to County Clare on their holidays. We have many beautiful spots that they can visit starting with Lahinch and the Cliffs of Moher. There is lots to do in Clare and I hope I see many of them down there over the next few weeks. When the Leader returns in September, I ask for two quick debates. The first is on the protocols the Department of agriculture uses in culling animals on-site in farms. We need to have a discussion and a conversation on the protocols because they could certainly be improved.”
“In the meantime, I call on people to be careful over the weekend, listen to lifeguards when they give them advice, do what they are told and, most important, enjoy this spell of fine weather.”
“If they did, I have no doubt it would raise awareness. It would develop a respect for the water and save many lives. I also believe every young person should undergo first aid training before they leave school. Again, it is not a difficult thing to provide. Our fire services and various other emergency services could easily go to schools and provide that. I know Water Safety Ireland would be more than happy to engage with the Department of education and come up a suitable programme to roll out water safety training to schools across this country. I call for a debate on the specific issue of emergency awareness training for water safety and first aid for our second level students in the autumn.”
“I support Senator Harmon in her call and proposition regarding Bessborough. I did not realise that planning permission had been granted. It is horrendous. With all the land throughout the entire country, surely to God, we can deal with a housing crisis in a more humane and respectful way than granting planning permission on that site. I sincerely hope that this is rescinded and dealt with in an appropriate way. We are about to experience a second period of fantastic weather. As Senators are all aware, I come from County Clare. I live near the beach. One thing that has always annoyed me is that there is no water safety training as a compulsory module in schools throughout the country. There is absolutely no reason that every young person should not receive basic water safety training before they leave school.”
“This uses modern technology, quick transport options and advanced paramedics on-site to deal with and stabilise a patient before bringing them to get the acute treatment they require. It is the new way of dealing with medicine. It is on-the-spot and on-site; it saves lives. I am delighted to hear about the progress of the one in Athlone. I want to see the same in west Clare, because there are too many people there who find themselves in compromising positions, and sadly, with fatal consequences because there is not that access.”
“The Minister of State can justifiably take credit for the HEMS based in Athlone. He made the difficult decision back then to stick with the Government and it was not easy at the time but he has delivered that. This is what I want to deliver for west Clare. Where is the helicopter going to be based? There are several identifiable sites in Clare. Kilkee certainly has availability, as does Kilrush. Spanish Point would be an ideal place for a helicopter to be based and would be able to respond in a matter of minutes to a 999 critical emergency call. I am interested to know where it is going to be based. I very much welcome the fact it is being rolled out in September.”
“On that basis and on the basis that we are not going to see a second emergency department in the region for a number of years, this third base should be in Kilrush, Kilkee or somewhere in that area. It would serve Kerry, Clare, Galway and up to Sligo, Mayo and Donegal because helicopters travel fast. In speaking on previous occasions, I have leaned on the geographical inequalities that exist. When people live in remote places, we have a duty of care to them and must ensure they have the same access as people in urban areas. I will conclude by commending the work being done by the first responders and the Coast Guard. I know at first hand the excellent work they do and I want to put that on record.”
“I also know that the Coast Guard provides very useful support to the National Ambulance Service in dealing with emergencies, particularly along the coast of County Clare. It deals with everything from tragedies off the Cliffs of Moher or off Doolin to providing back-up and support when there is a significant medical emergency. I know there are plans for a third HSE-run National Ambulance Service-specific helicopter base. I would like it to be located in west Clare. There are plans for a base to cover the west and mid-west. I suggest that our situation is unique in that the distance from Kilkee, Kilrush and the west Clare hinterland to an already overcrowded emergency department is probably the most challenging in the country.”
“I acknowledge the work that has been done to improve things in Limerick and the announcement by the Minister for Health in recent weeks that there is going to be a completely new hospital built, which will be co-located with UHL and will have its own emergency department. That is extremely welcome. I am a realist. I know that we are not going to have 24-hour consultant-led accident and emergency services in Ennis. As much as I would love to say that should happen and will happen, I know it will not. However, there is an alternative, which is to put a helicopter base in west Clare. The HSE operates two helicopter services through the helicopter emergency medical service, HEMS. One is based in Athlone and the other is based in Cork.”
“The Minister of State knows west Clare as well as I do because he has often been there in both his current capacity and in his previous capacity as Minister of State. He knows that, if you are living on Loop Head or in Kilkee, you are an hour from Ennis, before you even get to head towards Limerick. University Hospital Limerick, UHL, is catering for a population in excess of 400,000 people and there is only one consultant-led emergency department in the area that runs on a 24-hour basis. We all know and have read the horror stories coming out of UHL every week. I am certainly fully aware of them.”
“I, too, welcome Lisa and Leah. Leah has been around Ennistymon in County Clare for the last couple of weeks. I have met her on a number of occasions. In spite of the inclement weather, she is enjoying herself. They are both very welcome to Leinster House. I thank the Minister of State very much for coming in today to take this critical Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Health. Living in Sligo, he will know that rural Ireland is sometimes not best served when it comes to the golden hour. As he also knows, getting to hospital within the golden hour is critical for people who find themselves having suffered a stroke, a heart attack or some other medical emergency of similar significance.”
“It is all interwoven. I want to make the point that if the Minister of State were to propose the re-introduction of smoking now as many as 98% of people would oppose it and even people who smoke would be opposed to it. To make a tough decision on vaping may sound unpopular or draconian but I can assure everyone that in a few years' time, the public will realise that it was the right thing to do. By banning single-use vapes is a very important incremental step in the right direction and I commend the Minister of State on that.”
“In March 2004, Micheál Martin banned smoking in pubs and restaurants and I recall the reaction of vintners. I have great time for the vintners and they do great work but at the time they said that they run the parties because they have their meetings in their premises. At that stage, the majority of people probably were against the smoking ban but now 98% of the population would oppose a proposal to re-introduce smoking in pubs and restaurants.”
“When I was a child there was a very famous music shop in Ennis called the Record Rack where we all went to buy CDs, tapes, etc. It is horrendous to think that the old Record Rack is now a vape shop. Around the corner there is a number of vape shops on Abbey Street and O'Connell Street. In any shopping centre in this country there are vape shops. There are vape kiosks. There are vapes advertised in SuperValu and all of the big retail outlets and they are glorious looking. The signage for vapes is in your face. The situation will not improve until such time as we are bold and brave and decide that we will treat vapes the same way as we treated cigarettes and put them under the counter. We must get rid of these awful shops from our main streets and do what Micheál did.”
“Personally, I believe that vapes should be banned and that if a person requires a vape to give up nicotine and cigarettes then it should be by prescription. That is not an unprecedented move. That is how it is done in Australia. People can vape in Australia but they require a prescription from their GP to acquire a vape. A prescription is only granted on the basis that a person requires a vape to give up smoking. I believe that the proliferation of vape shops the length and breadth of this country, in every town and village, has destroyed the streetscape. Vape shops, coupled with mobile phone shops and other such outlets but particularly vape shops, are very unpleasant. I have quoted extensively the situation in my own county of Clare.”
“I echo the welcome to Niall and Gillian Quinn, and the commendation on the great work they do. I welcome the Minister of State. I have spoken extensively in this House on the need for tougher regulations on vaping and the detrimental effect that vaping is having on a generation of young people in this country. I strongly believe we have been far too slow in dealing with this issue. In the last term I had rows with the former Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, over his absolute snail's pace movement to deal with this. At least the Minister of State is dealing with it in a much more efficient and determined way. Of course I would have liked to have seen an awful lot more in this legislation.”
“I reiterate that I am not a fan of the cap. I think it is punitive and ridiculous but there are other ways to skin the cat, and this is one of them. Let us talk about it. I would be happy to engage with the Minister of State's officials to come up with a wording that would be acceptable to him.”
“This additional €11 million would be available to support new routes that are of strategic importance, as Senator Ryan pointed out. It would also be available to assist in marketing, expand routes and support airlines that are prepared to take the risk of flying into places like Knock, Shannon and Waterford airports and, potentially, Galway, Donegal and other airports. While €11 million is not a huge sum, it would still go a significant way to enhancing the budgets of these airports. It would create more scope for critical infrastructure developments but, much more importantly, for supporting strategically important routes. We have tourism and regional development policies, and the rural first policy. Here is an opportunity to take just 1% of the turnover of Dublin Airport Authority and balance it in that way.”
“Shannon has struggled over the years yet is doing exceptionally well. Knock airport has a proud tradition and is doing exceptionally well at the moment. Kerry Airport is holding its own. We have an opportunity here to do something constructive to support these airports. I was doing a bit of research before speaking. DAA, which comprises Dublin Airport, Cork Airport and Aer Rianta International, still an exceptionally profitable company, had a turnover in 2024 of €1.1 billion. I am considering tabling an amendment to provide that 1% of the turnover of DAA be ring-fenced for a development fund for regional airports to support what is already being done by the Government.”
“I too welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, to the House. He has a deep interest in aviation and has advocated for Cork Airport for many years. On what Senator Clifford-Lee and others regarding residents, it is only good manners that should be done. I sincerely hope it is being done. If it is not, it should be enshrined in the legislation to ensure it will be done. I fully agree with the principle of removing the passenger cap in Dublin Airport. The cap as presented is bonkers. It just does not make sense. Why would you try to stop people coming into the country who want to come into the capital city? It has been violated extensively anyway so let us just deal with that particular issue, as we are doing. What Senator Ryan and others said about regional development is important.”
“The Coast Guard is always alert and available to do its duty at a moment's notice. We need to examine the volunteerism element of this, and we need to look at upgrading at least some of our busy Coast Guard units to the same remuneration as retained firefighters. While I am speaking and given the weather we have, I encourage people to heed the advice of the lifeguards who are doing fantastic work on our beaches the length and breadth of the country. People should listen to them because they have everyone's best interests at heart and they will keep them safe. Finally, I also encourage people to be careful around forests and gorse at the moment because it is very dangerous. Using barbecues and that type of thing near trees can have catastrophic consequences.”
“I also welcome the Slovenian ambassador and his delegation. I know they have left now, but we had a fruitful engagement led by the Leas-Chathaoirleach. There is certainly huge scope for developing tourism and business links with Slovenia, and I wish them all the very best on their national day. I call for a debate on the emergency services, particularly the Coast Guard, because it is largely a volunteer-led organisation in this country and the remuneration its members get is very little. There has been a long-term campaign for them to be brought up to the level of retained firefighters and given the same remuneration. That is reasonable because throughout this country there are Coast Guard volunteers on call on a regular basis, particularly during this type of weather because people are swimming, using boats and so on.”
“There is merit in that because west Clare is unique in terms of its distance from the accident and emergency facilities in UHL. Even with a new hospital, one cannot change the geographical challenges that arise. Perhaps in due course, ahead of the budget, we could have a debate on improving access to accident and emergency services in the mid-west.”
“I am sure Theresa is looking down from those great blue skies with a smile and a bit of guidance for the Leader. He always remembers where he came from and he is always very proud of his political history, which is with absolute justification, having had two parents as public representatives. Now, he is continuing the tradition. I have no doubt his two brothers are very proud of him as well. There is just one issue I would like a debate on, namely, healthcare in the mid-west. The Leader is fully aware from his own advocacy work in Tipperary that there are serious challenges. We very much welcome the Minister's announcement of a new hospital in University Hospital Limerick, UHL, but the Ennis Hospital action committee has a very detailed budget submission on a consultant-led air ambulance facility to be based in west Clare.”
“I warmly congratulate Senator Ahearn on assuming the position of Leader. He was doing it anyway, so now he is doing it officially. There is no better man, and Tipperary will be very well represented here, with his position as Leader. I think of the 1990s, when I was in college in Dublin. He and I have often spoke about this. When I travelled down on the train from college to Ennis, the Leader's late mother would be going back from the Dáil. I got much advice from her during those periods in those conversations. It is great to see former Councillor Liam Ahearn, the Leader's dad, and his two brothers. I missed Laura, but I am sure I will meet her and the two boys later on. It is great to have Liam here. I sat in his kitchen in 2011 and he did not let me down back then. It is just an amazing day. It is fantastic.”
“I am sure the 150-odd people availing of dialysis several times a week will take some solace from the reference to the fourth quarter. I hope it is October as opposed to December.”
“I acknowledge the sincerity of the Minister of State's reply. Yet another timeline has been set down. I will hold the Department and the Minister to account on it. We are allowed to table Commencement matters every six months. I sincerely hope that, next December, I am not tabling a similar motion and that we will have the unit up and running. I acknowledge what the Minister of State has said, that there has been enormous progress in healthcare in the mid-west, an area in which there was underinvestment for decades. That is welcome. When services are not needed in Limerick and when they can be provided in places like Ennis, to everyone's benefit, everything should be done to make sure that happens because it reduces pressure on a hospital that is already way over capacity. I thank the Minister of State for the reply.”
“Sometimes it is unavoidable when these things happen, but in this case it is avoidable and it should not be tolerated. I know of a couple of cases where community hospitals have been in a position to take dialysis patients because of the geographical challenges and difficulties. My question is simple. Will the Minister of State affirm a date here this morning as to when the satellite dialysis unit will be up and running in Ennis so that vulnerable patients and dialysis users in County Clare can benefit from it and avoid and eliminate unnecessary and very pressurised and life-impacting travel?”
“Now we are told it will open by December 2026. Am I convinced? No, simply because the timelines have been broken time and again. My understanding is that there is space in a unit for this facility. I understand companies are prepared to tender for a contract to do the work, which I think is outsourced. I also know that there are dozens of patients who need it, who require dialysis multiple times a week. A policy decision has been made by the HSE to open a satellite clinic in Ennis, there are patients who require it and there is space to provide it. For the life of me I cannot understand the reason for the delay, which is causing huge concern and stress and impacting on the quality of life of people who are vulnerable and need support.”
“I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan. This is a very important issue for people who require dialysis in County Clare. It is one that I have raised in the House on a number of occasions. People who need dialysis two, three or four times a week in west Clare and north Clare have to travel to Limerick. If you live in Kilrush, it is the bones of an hour to go into Ennis and then it is at least another half an hour into Limerick, depending on the time of day and the traffic. That is an hour and a half into Limerick and an hour and a half home in the evening three to four times a week. For a long time it has been proposed that there would be a satellite dialysis clinic based in Ennis. It was promised a number of years ago and it was supposed to open in 2023. It was also supposed to open in 2024 and then in 2025.”
“I ask for other Ministers as well to come in here and address us, particularly on the themes that are the priority of our six-month Presidency. I am looking forward to that. I hope that can be facilitated in the autumn.”
“I am sure that there will be a lot of interesting things in the city of Limerick during that period. I commend the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne. In recent weeks, he has been in here. He gave a fantastic overview of the preparations that had gone into the Presidency and, indeed, the programme of activities and work that will surround it. It is not all about business. There will be cultural and sporting initiatives and so on as part of the Presidency. It is such a wonderful opportunity. I hope the whole country buys into it, particularly schools, both primary and post-primary. I propose that we would have some specific debates around the Presidency. Ministers are going to be very busy, but hopefully we will have the Minister of State back here in the autumn to give us an update on quarter 1 of the Presidency.”
“I welcome the announcement yesterday of our priorities for the upcoming EU Presidency in the whole area of security and AI. I also welcome the county pairings that were announced by the Minister, Deputy McEntee, and Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, this morning. That is great because it creates buy-in with schools, community groups and sporting organisations into the whole Presidency. This is a huge opportunity for our country to showcase everything that is good about it. I am delighted that my own county of Clare is paired with Croatia. I certainly look forward to engaging with the Croatian ambassador here in Ireland. Hopefully, we will have some Croatian parliamentarians visit the county. That is good news. Every county is paired. I believe that the Leas-Chathaoirleach's county is paired with Germany. That is sehr gut .”
“The present Minister of State, who, like the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, comes from rural Ireland, will understand exactly the challenges there are and the various inconsistencies we have all experienced. We need to remove those inconsistencies because there is nothing as frustrating for members of the public as seeing a decision made, even in a different electoral area in a county, that differs from a decision they have been given, whatever about differences between counties. We need to see consistency across counties and consistency across planners and similar interpretations by planners. The only way that can happen is by proper regulation at Government level. I wish the Minister of State well and look forward to this process escalating.”
“The Minister of State is very welcome to the House, as the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, was as well. The message has been received loud and clear by Government that there are too many inconsistencies between counties. Having been in public life for over 20 years, I have dealt with many tricky and difficult planning decisions and, by and large, planners do the right thing and do the best they possibly can by clients, but sometimes regulations and requirements do not make sense. I welcome that the guidelines are going out to public consultation. I agree with Senator Boyhan that they need to go out for detailed consideration and public consultation. I sincerely hope that what comes back is taken on board by Government.”
“Given that the weather in this country is precarious at the best of times, I believe we need to be looking at year-round activities to build a year-round tourism business, on top of the successful tourism business that we already have.”
“I sometimes think they are not marketed as one product in the effective, efficient and productive way they could be. The Cliffs of Moher walkway had thousands of people walking it but it has now been closed for some time for health and safety reasons. It needs to be reopened as a matter of urgency. I am sure there are other walkways and potential walkways around the country that are not achieving their potential for one reason or another. I would like to hear what the Minister for tourism has to say about these projects and how an effective and efficient international marketing campaign could be put together to promote active tourism. Many examples of active tourism are not weather related.”
“I join everyone in offering my sincere condolences to the family of former Senator Ernie Caffrey. I know him when I was a member of Young Fine Gael in University College Dublin, UCD. We were coming in and out of the House at various times, and he was always an absolute gentleman. I had not seen him for a long time. I send my condolences to the Caffrey family on their sad loss. At the convenience of the Leader, I request a debate on active tourism. This country has so much to offer in walking tourism, cycling tourism, walkways, cycleways, hill climbing and mountain climbing. In my country of Clare, we have the Burren, the Cliffs of Moher walkway, the proposed cycleway along the former line of the west Clare railway and many other activities.”
“The justification in that answer is not sufficient so it needs to rejustify it and that can only be done with a proper, effective, short, snappy review.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. That was not the answer I was expecting or wanted. Will the Minister of State ask the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke, to review this and come back to us with the business case for not opening it? Why was the office there in the first place? When it was closed, it was simply because of cutbacks. There was no other reason. That was the reason given at the time. It does not make business sense. IDA Ireland is charged with channelling its resources in the way it considers to be most efficient, but there needs to be some ministerial intervention to ask it to review this decision and come back to us with a short snappy rejustification of why this is not required.”
“I hope the Minister and the IDA would see the economic merit and the business case for opening an office. It has been sought many times. I would like to know the reason for it. I sincerely hope the reason is not because pressure is being put on by the Chinese ambassador and government not to do so. That would not be appropriate and it would not chime with our history as a small nation that was colonised by a big country for many years. Of course, it would never be officially said but I sincerely hope it is not the reason either officially or unofficially, covertly or overtly.”
“Similarly, our nearest neighbour, the UK, has an office in Taipei. Switzerland has an office in Taipei, yet Ireland does not have an office there. Many delegations have gone from these Houses over the years to Taiwan and have benefited enormously from their very generous hospitality. There has been an awful lot of talk and commitments by people who went there that a lot would be done to open an IDA office in Taipei. I was there once. Members of these Houses were there on multiple occasions, yet we have not seen any delivery of the one simple ask of the Taipei ambassador to Ireland and his team and the government in Taipei when the delegations visit, which is that we would open an office there. It is a simple request. It makes economic sense and it is the right thing to do.”
“The similarities between Ireland and Taiwan are very strong, not just in terms of our history but also our economy. We have a very skilled high-tech workforce. Eight or nine of the top international tech companies have their European headquarters in Ireland. Similarly, Taipei is one of the world's leaders when it comes to semiconductors. It has a very advanced tech industry. Its population is something around 24 million or 25 million. Economically it is one of the top performers in the world. It does not make any kind of economic sense that Ireland and the IDA do not have an office in Taipei. As a country we should be trying to attract industry and business from Taiwan to Ireland. We must bear in mind that 16 of our European colleague countries have offices in Taipei, all co-ordinated under a European office.”
“I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy, for coming to the House. He is deputising for the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. The Minister could not be more ably deputised. What I am looking for this morning is that Ireland would open an office in Taipei. It is not setting any precedent. It is only reopening an office that was closed in 2010 or 2011, prior to the crash. We must bear in mind that we have a very similar history to Taiwan in the sense that we were colonised for 800 years. Taiwan has a gigantic neighbour in China, which has made no secret of the fact that it believes Taiwan belongs to it. Yet, Taiwan is a democracy. It has a democratically elected government and has operated as a democracy for a long time, similar to ourselves.”
“I appeal to the Minister to address that. On the Bill, it is great to see it being introduced in order to take full advantage of modern technologies and innovations so that An Garda Síochána can do its job more effectively, efficiently and determinedly.”
“Last Saturday night, there was a shortage of personnel on the ground. I believe only one patrol car was operating between Kilrush and Ballyvaughan. The patrol car was diverted to Shannon because a plane had to be protected. That leaves the system vulnerable. I know it is a policing matter and a matter for the Garda Commissioner, but to be fair to our chief superintendent in Clare, he can only deal with the resources he has and he has to supply them as he sees fit. It is a loaves and fishes scenario. Perhaps the Minister is able to do something about additional resources in the Clare division so that situations like this do not happen on weekends. Last weekend was a beautiful weekend. The populations of Kilkee and Lahinch balloon when the weather is like this. We cannot have vulnerabilities in the system.”
“Having been on the political scrutiny committee of Europol for seven or eight years, and having attended its meetings on a regular basis in Brussels and other European countries, I know how committed Europol is to embracing and sharing technology. We need to be front and centre as part of that. The Bill is welcome. It is good to see the justice elements of the programme for Government being implemented in a very judicious way. I commend the Minister on that. The Minister was in Clare a couple of weeks ago, for which I thank him. It was a visit organised by Deputy Cathal Crowe. He spoke at the Ennis Chamber of Commerce and met a group of business people, along with public representatives, in Ennistymon. There is a major issue with a lack of gardaí in the Ennistymon-Kilrush area, which has been amalgamated into one district.”
“Clearly, it will define society in the future. It is the next generation, the same way as social media was to the generation of the early noughties. An Garda Síochána needs to be on top of it and to benefit from it. We do not need to be laggards when it comes to this. Rather, we need to be out in front, similar to how we were European leaders when it came to the Criminal Assets Bureau, CAB, which has been imitated by other jurisdictions. We need to adopt the same approach when it comes to embracing technology, given the fact that many of the tech giants have their European headquarters in Dublin. We need to reflect that in our modern policing.”