Mary Lou McDonald
Dublin Central · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“Now he watches as Paudie, his other son, aged 16, deteriorates with the same disease. He says Paudie does not have weeks to wait. He says, "I can't lose him [too]. He is all I have left." That is what is at stake here. This is urgent. Caithfidh an Rialtas an rud ceart a dhéanamh dóibh siúd a bhfuil Friedreich's ataxia orthu.”
“We know that both scramblers and e-scooters are being used by gangs to distribute drugs, to openly and actively intimidate, and to evade the gardaí and, yet, we heard the Garda Commissioner say that there would be no chance of pursuit training until next year because of the EU Presidency. I found that really shocking.”
“Their hopes were very high that the HSE drugs committee would finally approve Skyclarys, but those hopes were to be dashed. The committee decided against approving the drug. Instead, it referred it to a rare disease review group. In other words, one committee passing the buck to another committee.”
“This cruel condition moves relentlessly, ravaging their bodies and their lives, yet the system stands still, putting up obstacle after obstacle, forcing them to wait and wait as time slips by. This drug was approved by the EU Commission back in 2024. Two years on, it is available in France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, Spain and Czechia.”
“So we are clear, it is not that all of this is frustrating for those living with Friedreich's ataxia; it is actually terrifying for them. I met Emily three or four weeks ago and I was speaking to her again on Tuesday. Even in that short time span, she told me that her swallow and speech had disimproved. We are on the clock here.”
“There is someone the Tánaiste knows very well in the Public Gallery. She is the unstoppable and heroic Cara Darmody. Cara has just completed her third 50-hour protest outside the Dáil, calling for real action for children and young people waiting for an assessment of need.”
The complete record
Every one of 1,050 lines we hold for Mary Lou McDonald, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 6 of 21.
“I am thinking of Harvey Morrison Sherratt, Mikey Henry-Benson, Daniel Collins, and of course, more recently, little Roxanne Kelly. Their stories spoke to the awful experiences of hundreds more children left to wait and suffer. It is now eight years since Simon Harris promised that no child would wait for longer than four months for spinal surgery, a promise broken repeatedly. Today, children are still left in desperate and dreadful situations. The family of seven-year-old Roxanne Kelly were left to fundraise so they can take her to America to get the scoliosis surgery she so badly needs. No child and no family should be forced to do this. The backdrop to the suffering of these children and families is the litany of scandals at Children's Health Ireland.”
“The appalling failure of children's scoliosis and spina bifida services is a shameful indictment of this and successive Governments. For years, the harrowing stories of children left to wait in agony for their operations has been a distressing feature of debate here in the Dáil, yet the Government has never matched its promises with the actions needed. Heartbroken parents have been forced to watch their children suffer and deteriorate, robbed of a normal childhood, racing against the clock with a fear of becoming inoperable. Parents are forced to pour out their anguish in the media just to get the Government to pay attention. These parents have shown enormous bravery, a courage and fight that only the love for one's child can inspire. The cases of some of these children have provoked widespread public shock and anger.”
“The idea of moving the Rotunda Hospital out to Connolly in Blanchardstown never made sense but, of course, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil would not listen. They used this makey-uppy plan to starve the Rotunda, the largest maternity hospital in the country, of resources, investment and development. Now that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have finally dropped this crazy policy I, and I am sure all the women of Dublin and beyond, expect to see action and investment for the critical care unit, for the sexual assault unit and for the full and extensive modernisation of the hospital. Eleven years have been wasted. For 11 years, Governments used this colocation plan as an excuse for inaction. The Government needs to get its act together now because women and babies simply cannot wait.”
“I just heard from the Taoiseach an exposition of the fact he is doing nothing. That has been a real subplot of the entire cost-of-living crisis. It is a Government that is hands off, stands back and just allows households to take the pain. Energy companies, supermarket chains and insurance companies are ripping people off and the Government does nothing to stop them. The Taoiseach talked again about another review. In the name of God, how many reviews is the Government going to do? It is probably, therefore, no surprise that this price-gouging has happened. Why would these companies not jack up their prices? They know they have nothing to fear from the Government. The Taoiseach says the price-gouging should not happen. Then the question is as to what is the Government going to do to stop it and the Taoiseach has no credible answer.”
“Tá price-gouging agus saint le feiceáil go soiléir ó chomhlachtaí. Caithfidh an Rialtas stop a chur leis an tsaill seo. The Taoiseach cannot do nothing as these price shocks hit home. For too long, the message from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to struggling households has been, "You are on your own". That has to change and change fast. People are under pressure. The Government needs to intervene to help. Will the Government scrap its plan to push up the price of home heating oil even further? Will the Taoiseach tell people today that he will not hike carbon taxes while they struggle to heat their homes? Will he outline what concrete, direct action he will take to end this rip-off and stop the price-gouging? He is left with a clear choice: he can take on these price-gouging companies or he can sit back and force households to take the pain.”
“Yesterday, he said there was no excuse for price-gouging but it is not good enough to criticise price-gouging and then do absolutely nothing about it. By the way, writing a letter to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, and asking for a review of the energy market is really no action at all. It is a cop-out. The Taoiseach needs to pick up the phone and tell the top brass in these companies to stop fleecing people. The Government needs to drop its plan to increase carbon tax in the coming weeks, increases that will drive up the cost of home heating oil even further. Surely, the Taoiseach can now accept it is his job to step in and act with purpose to protect households from these hikes and stop this price gouging. Tá teaghlaigh cráite ag arduithe ollmhóra ar phraghas an ola teas tí.”
“This extortionate hike puts this elderly woman under huge pressure but her options are either pay up or go cold. This woman is not alone. Yesterday, people spoke out on the radio about the price of home heating oil shooting up sharply in real time. Heating oil providers have jacked up their prices by hundreds of euro. This is blatant price-gouging and greed. It is a brazen rip-off, happening in plain sight. Of course, the price surge is also hitting motorists at the pumps. People are reporting increases as high as ten cent a litre since this onslaught began. Companies are clearly taking advantage of this crisis to squeeze even more profit from their customers. The Taoiseach is entirely passive on the matter.”
“As a Cabra woman, I extend a particular welcome to all of the girls from Finglas - our neighbours. They are very welcome. Tá fáilte rompu go léir. We are already witnessing a surge in fuel prices in reaction to the US-Israeli onslaught in the Middle East. People across the country are reporting massive hikes in the cost of home heating oil, with prices having increased by as much as 35% in the past number of days. The cost of home heating oil was already high so people really cannot believe what they are seeing. This morning, I was contacted by a 94-year-old woman from Wexford who relies on home heating oil to keep her house warm. Only last week, the price for a half fill of oil from her provider was €464. By midday today, that had jumped to €879. That is almost double the price in just days.”
“They cannot get clarity from the Department. Will the Taoiseach intervene for goodness' sake? This school needs this service, as I imagine another deaf school in Limerick does.”
“Holy Family School for the Deaf in Cabra is a centre of excellence for deaf education and is in fact the only campus in Ireland catering for deaf pupils from the ages of three to 18 years. This is education for deaf children and young people in the deaf community. It is a special school, providing a very specialised service. It is a wonderful school and they need in-house Irish sign language, ISL, interpreters on staff. I met them yesterday and they recounted to me how they have to hire in interpretation services for the most mundane, the most complex and sometimes the most sensitive of tasks. They also explained how bringing in interpreters piecemeal like that does not work for children, especially small ones, because there has to be a relationship of trust and understanding and so on. They need two of these interpreters in-house.”
“A reported 37 families in Hazelwood in Bridgetown, County Wexford, were hit with eviction notices on Friday. These families are panicked, stressed and worried about the upheaval in their lives. There is a serious lack of homes available to rent in the area, and even if they could find a new place, they would be hit with massive rent increases due to the Government's new legislation. People feel that their landlord is taking advantage of the new rules. Where are these families supposed to go? The Minister for housing has talked the talk about standing up for these tenants, but following meetings with the Residential Tenancies Board, RTB, and the council, as things stand today, these families still face eviction. Big talk from the Minister will not keep these families in their homes.”
“Ireland's neutrality and our commitment to international law mean absolutely nothing if they disappear when powerful states are involved. Why is the Taoiseach's shrinking away from stating the obvious? Why will he not speak clearly? Why will he not name the actions of Israel and the United States as illegal, dangerous and in breach of international law?”
“The rhetoric we have just heard from the Taoiseach is very dangerous. He has, in effect, offered a defence and rationale for the indefensible and brazen breach of international law. These strikes were launched while negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme were reportedly making progress, while diplomacy was under way and while talks were described as constructive. Now, instead of dialogue, we have missiles. Instead of dialogue and negotiation, we have assassination and dead schoolgirls in large numbers. Why is it that the Taoiseach will not call out this aggression and name it for what it is? He expressed concern and called for restraint but notably stopped short of condemning those who have launched this attack. The question is: why?”
“Léiríonn an iompar bagrach seo arís dúinn an fáth gur cóir don Rialtas gníomhú chun neodrachas na hÉireann a láidriú in áit bheith ag obair go náireach chun an bun a bhaint de. I ask the Taoiseach directly if he will condemn the US-Israeli strikes without qualification. Will he state clearly that they are in breach of international law? Irish neutrality demands that the Taoiseach be unequivocal on both these questions.”
“It means we do not align ourselves with aggression, but more to the point, it means we robustly defend international law consistently. Of course, we are already seeing the consequences of all of this here with fuel prices rising sharply in recent days. The price-gouging has started. This needs to be stopped in its tracks and the Government needs to drop any notion or plan of increasing carbon taxes in the coming weeks. Ní mór don Taoiseach ionsaithe na Stáit Aontaithe agus Iosrael ar an Iaráin a cháineadh mar shárú tubaisteach ar an dlí idirnáisiúnta. Ní leor guaim a lorg. Caithfidh sé stop láithreach a héileamh ar an ionsaí míleata seo, agus comhrá agus taidhleoireacht a mholadh, chomh maith le hathdhearbhú ar an dlí idirnáisúnta.”
“This represents military aggression over diplomacy. This confrontation has already spilled into Lebanon and across the Gulf. The UN Charter is explicit: force is prohibited save in the case of imminent self-defence or UN Security authorisation and neither is demonstrated here. Pre-emptive is not a substitute for legality yet the Government's response has been limited to expressions of concern and calls for restraint. Calling for restraint on all sides blurs the reality of who initiated this aggression. Only days ago, the Taoiseach spoke of Ireland being able to "stand militarily" with states engaged in conflict. This language undermines Ireland's neutrality and neutrality matters precisely at moments like this.”
“The US-Israeli assault on Iran is an act of aggression that threatens to set the entire Middle East ablaze. A sovereign state has been bombed, its leader assassinated and 185 innocent schoolgirls killed. These are not defensive actions. They are the actions of powerful states acting in defiance of international law. Let me state very clearly: the Iranian Government is brutal and repressive. It has crushed protesters, oppressed women and jailed dissidents. That merits the highest of condemnation but the brutality of one government does not license another to set aside international law and engage in military aggression. Israel, already pursuing a genocide in Gaza, has widened its murderous campaign. Israel has no interest in peace, in compromise or in negotiation, and the United States has backed and enabled this escalation.”
“Ní cóir go mbeadh ar ár marthanóirí troid a thuilleadh. Today's apology is of course welcome and I hope it brings them some comfort, but an apology without justice is really no apology at all. No child belonged in these places. No child should have endured such suffering. To be beaten and abused only to know that it would happen again, to be demeaned and know that this was allowed, and to cry out for help and know that help was not coming is the harrowing story of Ireland's industrial schools. It is a story crafted by the Irish State and overseen by successive Governments hand in glove with the religious orders. Today, however, the dignity of each survivor soars above all of that. They had to fight for far too long. They should never ever have to fight again.”
“The demands of Miriam, Mary, Mary and Maurice for the State contributory pension and a Health (Amendment) Act, HAA, medical card to help address the lifelong consequences of the abuse they and others suffered were shamefully ignored by Government. They were allowed to go on hunger strike to the point where they developed real, genuine health concerns. They deserve an apology for that too. They called off their protest after proposals that were belatedly tabled by the Taoiseach. I can only hope and pray that the full package of measures is true to those proposals and that Government in full follows through on its promises. Maireann an tráma ón mí-úsáid a d'fhulaing íospartaigh in áiteanna tionsclaíocha fós leo sa lá atá inniu ann. Tá an Stát agus rialtas i ndiaidh rialtais freagrach as an méid a tharla sna háiteanna seo.”
“In 2009, the Ryan report laid bare the shocking endemic nature of abuse in industrial schools. The Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act was enacted in 2012 to manage very meagre contributions from religious orders in the areas of housing, health and education. Let it not be forgotten that survivors had to fight and wait years between each step of progress and reparation. Survivors are still fighting for full truth, full justice, full accountability and the supports they deserve. That is what brought the four survivors of industrial school abuse to the gates of the Dáil last September for 51 days. Miriam Moriarty Owens, Mary Donovan, Mary Dunlevy Greene and Maurice Patton O'Connell protested and went on hunger strike outside Leinster House. That is what it took for them to be heard by Government.”
“We have heard the powerful testimony of many survivors, yet it remains hard to comprehend the gravity of the beatings, sexual abuse, emotional and mental torture and excruciating tension of not knowing when that next horror would come every minute of every hour of every day. Childhoods were destroyed, lives ruined and unspeakable damage done. The physical scars run deep. The mental and emotional scars are wrapped tightly around every heartbeat and every breath taken. For survivors, this is not a chapter of history because the trauma is with them still today, hardwired perpetually into their lives. Twenty-seven years ago, survivors heard a State apology from then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. Three years later, the redress board was set up to provide financial redress to survivors.”
“These awful things were done to me again and again. It was done to me." The way the State chose to look after vulnerable children was to batter, brutalise and dehumanise them. The chosen setting was industrial schools. It would be easy to say that these children were forgotten but the State and successive Governments knew exactly where it had put them, knew the culture of violence that dominated these places and knew that children would be met with cruelty masked as care, which was the same broken philosophy that gave rise to the mother and baby homes and Magdalen laundries.”
“They were criminalised and victimised, swept under the carpet of society, swept behind iron gates and swept into places of unspeakable brutality. Responsibility for impoverished children was handed to the religious orders, and then a blind eye was turned to the extreme violence inflicted on them. Children, whose names were erased with a number, whose innocence was crushed in dark rooms and grey cold courtyards, children whose cries for help were drowned out by a depraved cruelty. Not only did the State and successive Governments sanction this systematic abuse of children but it was then covered up, survivors dismissed, their experiences sidelined and their demand for truth and justice ignored. Survivors, for too long, were robbed of their right to say without fear or contradiction "I was there in that place.”
“The dark shadow cast by what was done to children in Ireland's industrial and reformatory schools is a horror with which our country has never fully reconciled. Indeed, it may be impossible to do so. The scale and depth of the abuse, violence, hurt and life-lasting trauma suffered by victims has rippled and reverberated for decades, sometimes as quiet as uncertain as a whisper, sometimes powerful enough to rock our collective conscience but always there. The industrial schools were a State-sanctioned system of abuse of vulnerable children, operated on the watch of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael Governments. Children who needed care and safety were instead met with the most unimaginable cruelty.”
“The Government's legislation is causing this to happen and I have asked the Taoiseach to take responsibility for that. I have asked him before and I will ask him again. Will he intervene, now that the writing is on the wall, to stop these massive rent increases?”
“Is waffle atá i gceist anois. This is on the Taoiseach. There is no balance here. The biggest landlord in the country could not be clearer. It knows that it can hike rents by 25% as a result of the Government's rent hike Bill. It knows that it will make an extra €21 million in rents each and every year. That means millions going into the pockets of corporate landlords and thousands coming out of the pockets of renters - security of tenure my eye. Those are the hard facts and the Taoiseach knows it. It is here in black and white. We are talking here about the biggest rip-off of renters in a generation. This sends a shiver down the spine of every renter across the land and it is directly because of the decisions and choices of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.”
“He is doing it with his eyes wide open with all the proof of who will benefit on the table for all of us to see. Ní fhéadfadh leis an tiarna talún is mó sa tír a bheith níos soiléire, gur féidir leo cíos a ardú 25% mar thoradh ar reachtaíocht an Rialtais. Caithfear stop a chur leis na harduithe ollmhóra seo. Does the Taoiseach accept what the largest landlord in the country is saying? It will be able to hike new rents by 25% as a result of the Government legislation, an increase that will be a breaking point for so many. This is what the rent hike Bill is facilitating. He simply cannot allow this to happen. Will he now intervene to stop renters being crushed by these massive increases?”
“Two weeks ago, I warned that his legislation would give a big pay day to corporate landlords and the Taoiseach said that I was wrong. He said that this was all about providing stability for renters. How in the name of God is allowing renters to be hit with a 25% increase providing them with stability? Of course, the Government's legislation was never about stability for renters. It was always about feathering the nests of the big property funds and now the Taoiseach has been found out. Now we see the proof straight from the horse's mouth. The biggest corporate landlord in Ireland is saying out loud the very thing the Taoiseach denied. It will make a fortune from his legislation all on the backs of renters. This is a recipe for disaster in the lives of workers, families and our young people.”
“It is predicting a 25% potential rental income uplift "with minimal added costs". That is a direct quote, Taoiseach. This paints a frightening picture of the size of the rent increases coming down the tracks due to the Government's decisions. The property funds are set for a bonanza. This company is telling its investors that it stands to make an extra €21 million in rents every year once the Government legislation flows through. Just imagine what that means for renters faced with a 25% hike in rent. What would this mean for somebody paying the average rent? It means having to find more than €5,000 extra per year. That is just to cover this increase. Does the Taoiseach know any renter able to afford that kind of increase on their already extortionate rent because I certainly do not?”
“In just four days the Government's rent hike Bill comes into effect. Its legislation allows landlords to hike up rents to the market rate and renters will be hit with massive rent increases, the likes of which we have never seen before. We know that corporate landlords and vulture funds are rubbing their hands in glee, popping champagne corks at the thought of the huge profits they stand to make as a direct result of your legislation. They are not even hiding it. It is in black and white. In a presentation to its investors by I-RES REIT, the largest corporate landlord in the country with thousands of properties, it sets out what it can now do as a result of the Government's new rent hike Bill. It has told investors it will be able to increase new rents by a staggering 25%.”
“The Taoiseach needs to know that those parents, children and young people who rely on their SNA to participate in school life and learning, to stay at school, to build confidence, esteem and relationships and who require behavioural regulation need to have the security of the SNA. They cannot live on a wing and a prayer from year to year, hoping against hope that the SNA is not taken away. The Government attempted to remove SNAs from schools. That is what it attempted to do. Parents and SNAs have fought back and they are telling the Government now very clearly that there needs to be a new departure and it needs to accept in full the role of SNAs.”
“Ní sos atá ag teastáil, nó é a bheith curtha ar an méar fhada, ach scrios iomlán ar an bplean. Ní mór don Rialtas a chinntiú go bhfaigheann gach leanbh le sainriachtanais an tacaíocht atá ag teastáil uathu. Comments today from Ministers have only added to the anger of parents and SNAs. Ministers lined up to say it was a communications, sequencing or cliff-edge problem. They are incapable still of accepting the Government's plan was wrong. It was wrong to treat children this way. Can the Taoiseach accept that a new departure is needed, not a temporary pause, but a child-centred approach, built on respect, security for SNAs and an end to the constant stress and worry endured by parents?”
“One mother speaking through her tears said, "How dare the Government even consider pulling SNA support from our children?" Another said, "I'd like the Minister to come to my home even for one day to see what it's like when a child doesn't get the SNA support they need - the frustration, the helplessness, the anger." Parents, SNAs and teachers have all said that the Government has crossed a line here. They do not want an extended pause; they want these cuts taken off the table for now and for the future. They want to know that no child will lose the SNA he or she depends on and they want the Government to deliver a comprehensive response to the needs of their children. They want respect. Caithfidh an Rialtas fáil réidh lena phlean ciaradh a dhéanamh ar chúntóirí riachtanas speisialta.”
“By seeking to restrict the allocation of SNAs to a very narrow range of primary care needs like toileting and medicine, the Government is knowingly seeking to limit access to SNAs and to pull the rug from under children who desperately need support. The Government needs to accept that learning, emotional and behavioural difficulties are also primary care needs. This is the support SNAs provide day in and day out. Despite the Government's announcement last night, its threat to cut SNAs remains on the table. This is a tactical retreat, not a change of heart. The stories shared with us at last night's meeting were utterly heart-breaking.”
“Of course, there is relief among parents and schools that there will be no cuts this September and that much-needed additional funding will be provided, but that is not the end of the story because parents see right through the Government's ploy. They know that the Government has simply kicked the can down the road for another year. They know that the Government's approach is a cynical bean-counting exercise and that the needs of children do not even come into it, which is shameful. Parents and schools now demand fundamental change. They demand that the Government recognise, respect and value the full role of SNAs.”
“The Government's plan to take away special needs assistants from vulnerable children was met with massive public anger. Last night, we held a public meeting against the Government's proposed SNA cuts and more than 1,000 people turned up - parents, SNAs and teachers all calling out Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael for their cruel treatment of children. They are now determined to fight back against this, tooth and nail. Last week, in the face of this anger, the Government announced that it had called a pause to its plan to cut SNAs and late last night, it announced what amounts to an extension of that pause, acting only to buy itself time and alleviate pressure on the Government.”
“It is extremely important that we have clarity on this matter today because the actions of the Government have caused real concern, anxiety and anger, and have the potential to create chaos in school communities.”
“I want to return to the Government's cuts to special needs assistants, SNAs, for schools and its pause, as the Taoiseach calls it. I want to establish exactly what that means. I raised the situation generally but also specifically with the Taoiseach yesterday. Fossa National School in Killarney has been written to in order to inform it that it will be losing four SNAs. Johnstown Boys National School in Dublin will lose five SNAs. Scoil Barra in Ballincollig, Cork, will lose two SNAs. Will the Taoiseach help us by confirming whether or not those losses will proceed in September - "Yes" or "No"? Is that what this pause means or is the Government simply buying time and intending to resume its course of action?”
“Who in the end is answerable for all of these things that happen daily to children and young people, let it be said on the watch of the Taoiseach's Government?”
“The difficulty is that the priority and focus has not been on the well-being of children and young people. In fact, many families and parents wonder what on earth is going on with this litany of appalling treatment of children and young people. We have children whose SNAs are being taken from them, children waiting for an assessment of need, children with no school places, parents forced to campaign and fight for basic services, and children with scoliosis and spina bifida waiting for surgery. Seven-year-old Roxanne Kelly and her family now have to fundraise for the surgery she requires in America. Parents and families are literally battling the State daily for basic services and support. This has now become a hallmark of Government and a hallmark of how our society operates. It is deeply unacceptable. What about accountability?”
“Has he established if this scandal is more widespread? What other areas does it affect? How many children, young people and families does it affect? How will he assure families in Kerry and right across the country that this will never happen again?”
“Shockingly, the HSE has admitted that she was diagnosed without an appropriate assessment, that there was no clear rationale given for the medication prescribed and that there was a complete absence in the monitoring of the impact of these drugs on the child. Mary has said all this destroyed her child and that there was no happiness left for this child. This is just one case of hundreds, just one family of hundreds and just one area. These young people were in crisis. They reached out for help, and they were failed. Teipeadh go tubaisteach ar an gcúram meabhairshláinte do leanaí agus daoine óga i gCiarraí. Ní mór don Rialtas gníomhú chun a chinntiú nach dtarlóidh a leithéid riamh arís. What will the Taoiseach do now to ensure the children and young people affected by this scandal get the proper care they need?”
“Today, the full story of what was done to children and young people in the care of north Kerry CAMHS has been brought to light. The findings of this report seem damning. The HSE has already issued apologies to more than half of those whose files were examined. The human price that has been paid was laid bare by one mother who spoke on the radio this morning. Mary from Tralee said the treatment her teenage daughter received from north Kerry CAMHS devastated her life. This child had been diagnosed with depression and PTSD. She had been prescribed antidepressants, anti-anxiety and antipsychotic medication.”
“These negligent prescribing practices had devastating consequences, which included psychological distress, cognitive impairment, considerable weight gain, excess sedation and high blood pressure. I have met with and spoken to some of the young people and families in Kerry and they have told me of the devastation this caused to their lives. One heartbroken father told me how he dreamed of his son striding the pitch of Croke Park. He was a fine young footballer, but following the lad's treatment by CAMHS this father has been left wondering if his son will ever be able to watch a match, never mind have a pint or a friend. This father, like so many other parents, is filled with guilt for trusting a system which failed their children.”
“The report of the investigation into mental healthcare given to children and young people in Kerry has now been published. The young people affected, their distraught parents and their families have waited years for answers. The investigation of these case files of 300 children in north Kerry was, as the Taoiseach knows, originally ordered in the aftermath of the 2022 Maskey report. The distressing findings of that report into the care of vulnerable children by south Kerry CAMHS provoked shock and public anger at the time. That investigation revealed that children in crisis were subjected to harm, that there were serious deficiencies in care, that there was a total lack of oversight and that children were being overprescribed medications.”
“For generations the Rotunda Hospital has been colocated with the Mater Hospital in the heart of Dublin's north inner city and that is where it must stay. The Taoiseach has been asked several times today and he has avoided giving any clarity. I want him to give clarity now for those who work in this hospital and those who use its services. Generations of northside Dubliners have been born there and people rely on its services. Will the Taoiseach give clarity that the Rotunda Hospital will remain at the heart of Dublin's north inner city?”
“There are unruly elements in this Chamber. Most of them are Sinn Féiners but how and ever. I return to the issue of the Rotunda Hospital, which is the busiest maternity hospital in the country. The refusal of permission for the critical care unit is undoubtedly a blow but it should be remembered that it is just the latest in a series of setbacks for the hospital. The hospital has for a long time been seeking investment and development but each and every time it has been put through the wringer by a government that kept citing the desire to relocate it to colocate it with James Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown. That plan never made sense. It did not make sense ten years ago and does not make sense today.”
“That is merely a snapshot of what is in store. Now it seems that the Government is going to review the review. It is talking about a pause. That is of absolutely no use to anyone. In fact, I would argue that it will add to the anxiety.”
“The Taoiseach seems to not accept or understand that schools in any event have been struggling and are under pressure. If there is an excess of SNAs across the school communities of this land, I certainly have not seen it. I think all of our colleagues would confirm that if you go from school to school and principal to principal, you will see that they are tearing out their hair out as they try to do the best for the children under the most enormous pressure. Now the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, is proposing cuts. Yes, cuts. Here is what it is going to mean: Fossa National School near Killarney will be down four SNAs; Johnstown Boys National School in Dublin, which I mentioned, will be down five SNAs; and Scoil Barra in Ballincollig in Cork will be down two SNAs. That is just a small sample. We could go on and on.”
“She says that Ciaran really struggles to stay at school. It is vital that he has SNA support. He cannot manage without it. She said please do not take away his SNA support. What was the Taoiseach's response to parents like Paula and to schools? He told them to appeal. There was no help, no comfort, no solution; they were just told to appeal. That was a reply as cold as the cuts themselves. Déanfaidh na ciorraithe ar chúntóirí riachtanas speisialta dochar as cuimse do leanaí le sainriachtanais oideachasúla. Caithfear stop a chur leis an gcinneadh cruálach seo. Ní chóir go gcuirfear na ciorraithe ar SNAs i gcrích. A pause is no good to anyone. In fact, it only adds to the uncertainty and the anxiety of parents, schools and SNAs. The Taoiseach needs to stop this now and not just pause it. Take this plan off the table.”