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.”
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“This is a massive step backwards. One principal has stated that these SNA cuts set special education in mainstream schools back by 30 years. The Taoiseach says that we have more SNAs than ever. He rattles off big numbers but that is no comfort to a parent who has seen their child progress and thrive with the support of an SNA and who has seen their child go from dreading school to loving school with the support of their SNA. Parents are now racked with worry because their child will lose that support come September. Paula Byrne is one such parent. Her son Ciaran attends Johnstown Boys National School in Dublin. Ciaran has autism and ADHD. He will lose his SNA support because of these cuts. I heard Paula on the news yesterday pleading with the Taoiseach and the Government not to do this.”
“Some 200 schools have already been informed that they will have their SNA numbers cut in September, and that is with just half of the SNA allocation reviews having been completed. Even more cuts are on the way. SNA supports in schools were already stretched to the limit. This will only make a bad situation far worse. The decision of the Government to restrict the allocation of SNAs only to children who have a primary care need, that is, toileting or medicine, is driving this cull. The Government ignores the wider role of SNAs for children with learning disabilities, sensory needs and behavioural challenges. SNAs help children to focus, participate and interact. They also provide emotional support and build confidence. These supports are life-changing for so many children and now the Government will pull the rug from under their futures.”
“Some of the words being used by parents, special needs assistants, SNAs and teachers alike in the past few days are "panic", "fear" and "anger". They are beside themselves with worry after schools received letters informing them of the decision of the Government to cut their SNA allocations. We have heard of schools losing as many as five or six SNAs. These cuts will be devastating for children with additional needs who depend on their SNAs to cope with challenges, to be included, to learn, to progress and to reach their full potential in school. The Government will now rip that support away from them. This is a cruel decision. It comes on top of the fact that many children across the State are still being denied access to a special class or special school place.”
“If Westminster's legislation fails to meet human rights standards or fails to command the confidence of victims, Ireland cannot and must not be party to it. There cannot be quiet acquiescence, no technical compliance, no diplomatic shrug. Ireland cannot lend its consent to another British-authored process designed to entrench impunity for acts that claimed the lives of hundreds of Irish citizens. That is why the inter-state case must remain firmly on the table. To withdraw it would be to signal a retreat, not reconciliation. The publication of the Kenova report is not the end of the story. It is another chapter in a long struggle between families seeking truth and a state determined to avoid it. The question now, therefore, is not, "What will Britain do?" The question now is, "What will Ireland accept?"”
“By withholding truth and blocking disclosure, British state actors have forfeited any claim to good faith in dealing with the past. The evidential gaps in Kenova echo what we saw in Bloody Sunday and countless other cases: gaps that were not accidental but that were engineered. Despite the scale of evidence, the message is unmistakable. British state actors will not be pursued, regardless of the dead. That is not the rule of law; that is impunity. This brings me to the British Government's legacy agenda. The legacy Act, with its sweeping national security vetoes and additional protections for state forces, is designed to close down truth, not to deliver it. That is not reconciliation; it is foreclosure. It places a clear responsibility on the Irish Government.”
“Taken together, the Kenova-related reports expose criminality, collusion and cover-up at the highest levels of the British state, including actions carried out within this jurisdiction. That should alarm everyone in this House. Far from drawing a line under the past, these reports deepen the questions that confront us. Given these findings, the Irish Government must now actively consider a full public inquiry into British state activity in this jurisdiction, including the Dublin-Monaghan bombings and other killings of Irish citizens. This is not about history alone. It is about whether this State will assert its responsibility to its own people when another state has demonstrably acted unlawfully on this island.”
“It mirrors earlier interference with judicial processes, including during Judge Cory's work on the Finucane case. What emerges is not confusion or coincidence, but a clear pattern: intelligence agencies actively managing exposure, and placing operational advantage above legality, accountability and the rights of victims. These were not marginal practices. They flowed from a counterinsurgency doctrine authorised at the very heart of the British state. The purpose was simple and chilling: to prevent the truth from ever fully emerging. Operation Denton reinforces this picture, confirming collusion between British state actors and loyalist paramilitaries in a campaign of systematic murder.”
“As we discuss these findings, my thoughts are with the families who lost loved ones, families whose grief did not end with the passage of time, and whose dignity and persistence have been extraordinary. They engaged with Kenova in good faith, often at immense personal cost, reliving the most traumatic moments of their lives in the hope, not the certainty, of truth. All families are entitled to truth, justice and acknowledgement. That is not a political demand. It is a basic principle of the rule of law. It is precisely where Kenova was constrained. The report makes clear that MI5 deliberately obstructed the Kenova investigation. Information was withheld, investigators were impeded and investigative material was interfered with. This behaviour was not isolated.”
“Victims were not warned, families were left in the dark, lives were treated as expendable. This was not an error. It was not a failure in oversight. It was a deliberate political choice. Kenova confirms what many families have long known, but which was long denied: collusion was not an aberration, but a defining feature of British state policy during the conflict. Its findings sit alongside decades of documented evidence, from the Glenanne gang, involving members of the RUC, UDR and loyalist paramilitaries, to the Stevens inquiries and the de Silva review into the murder of Pat Finucane. Each reached the same conclusion: collusion was real, systemic and sanctioned. Kenova corroborates that truth.”
“Those words reflect a genuine sense of sorrow and regret for everyone who was hurt and harmed during those years of violence. By that, I mean civilians, combatants and families whose lives were forever changed. Ní féidir le tuairisc ar bith, díospóireacht ar bith, nó próiseas polaitiúla ar bith a bheith mar réiteach iomlán ar an gcostas daonna. No report, no debate and no political process can ever fully address that human cost. Operation Kenova exposes the lie at the centre of the long-standing narrative of the conflict, which I mentioned at the outset. Its findings are stark and deeply disturbing. A senior British agent was involved in killings. The British state knew, and it protected him. It allowed violence to continue in order to preserve operational advantage.”
“Today, this House is asked to reflect on the findings of Operation Kenova, findings that go to the heart of how the conflict on this island has been understood, explained and justified for decades. For too long, the story of that conflict was presented as one in which the British state was a neutral arbiter, acting reluctantly, forced by circumstance into extraordinary measures. That story shaped public understanding, shaped political responses and, for decades, insulated grave wrongdoing from scrutiny. Before addressing those findings, I wish to say this clearly and directly. To all those who have suffered such grievous loss, I am sorry for all the lives lost during the conflict, and for the hurt and loss endured, without exception.”
“Children with scoliosis and spina bifida and their parents have been failed once again. They found out from a Sunday newspaper that phase one of the Nayagam review, which looked at the spinal surgeries carried out on 91 children, had been sitting on the Minister's desk. This is a report the HSE has had since September. Yet, families heard nothing from the HSE, Children's Health Ireland or the Minister. They heard the news through the media. Only today will letters land through the doors of those families. The Government has learned absolutely nothing about how to treat these families and children with respect and dignity. The Minister now refuses to publish this report. I want the Taoiseach to guarantee the report will be published, not left on a shelf with families left in the dark.”
“That is it. When rents climb and climb and you just cannot make it month after month, that is not secure. That is a recipe for chaos in your life. That is a recipe for driving people to Dublin, Shannon or Cork airport to go thar sáile, far, far away to live their lives or, in the case of families, for driving them into homelessness. The Government has made a decision and it has made it very clear whose side it is on. It is on the side of very large corporate landlords; not just any common or garden landlord but the large ones and the vulture funds. They want market rate and the Government is giving it to them on a silver platter. I have told the Taoiseach that most tenancies do not last six years. They average at three and a half years and 25% of tenancies every single year are brand new. Will the Taoiseach answer that?”
“A Bill to allow rents to be increased by €3,000, €4,000 or €5,000 will do incredible damage to people's lives. It cannot go ahead. I urge the Taoiseach to scrap the rent hikes Bill.”
“Nobody will be able to afford these increases; there is not a chance of it. It is straight out of the Fianna Fáil-Fine Gael playbook to give a big payday to landlords and vulture funds and screw over ordinary tenants. If they gave a damn about renters at all, they would end this rip-off, not fuel it. They would ban rent increases and make rents affordable. Caithfear stop a chur le Bille Fhianna Fáil agus Fhine Gael chun an cíos a ardú. Níl ann ach bronntanas do na tiarnaí talún móra agus cuirfidh sé níos mó brú ar na tionóntaí. Renters have known for a long time that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael simply do not have their backs. For over a decade now, they have allowed renters to be ripped off relentlessly and mercilessly but they are crossing a big red line here.”
“The majority of renters will be hit quickly, and hit again and again, and very few will escape these hikes. It will be a nightmare for people who feel they have to stay put for fear of having to pay a hugely increased rent on a new tenancy. It will be a nightmare for students, apprentices, trainees, nurses, teachers and anyone who moves frequently for work or education. A total of 7,000 Irish medical professionals were registered to work in Australia last year. If the Government's Bill goes through, we will lose many more because the rent hikes will be off the charts. In Galway city, for example, renters will fork out €5,292 more per annum. Here in Dublin, an extra €3,516 a year will be due. In Cork city, in the Taoiseach's neck of the woods, renters will pay an extra €3,336 a year. These increases are on top of already staggering rents.”
“From 1 March, it will allow rent for new tenancies to be reset to the full market rate. This is a hammer blow for ripped-off renters and a gift for big landlords and vulture funds. It will mean huge rent hikes, increased pressure for renters, more young people forced to choose between emigrating and moving home with their parents and, shamefully, it will mean more families and children pushed into homelessness. Up to 60,000 renters will be hit by a huge rent hike every single year. That is the hard truth. Of course, the Government's defence of the Bill is that six-year tenancies will protect renters, but they will not. A total of 25% of tenancies in any given year are new tenancies, with people moving in and moving on all the time. Most tenancies last three and a half years, not six.”
“I echo the Ceann Comhairle's sentiments entirely. I also welcome to the Public Gallery the delegation from Donegal who are here today to save the flights accommodating cancer patients from the county. I understand they have gathered some 15,000 signatures for their petition over recent days. It is a disgrace that they have to come here to fight that fight but I commend them on their efforts and wish them every success. It is a decision that needs to be reversed. The Government is set to throw renters to the wolves. Today, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael will push through their rent hikes Bill and it will be devastating. Previously, in rent pressure zones, any increase was set at the rate of inflation or 2%, whichever was lower, but the Government is tearing that up and opening up the floodgates.”
“I am sure the Taoiseach will take that on advisement. I return again to the growing concern about the safety of Seamus Culleton, who, as we know, has been held in an ICE detention centre in Texas for the past five months. People were very shocked yesterday to hear him describe the conditions that he is being held in and say that he now fears for his life. I understand his family have only gone public because they felt they were left with no other avenue. Can the Taoiseach tell us specifically what representation has been made on his behalf? Has the Taoiseach raised his case with the US Administration? Can he be precise and tell us how many Irish citizens are caught up in this same nightmare situation?”
“Working households are struggling with price hikes and rip-off bills and no help coming from the Government. People with disabilities in particular have suffered as a result of the Government's budget leaving them €1,400 worse off. The Government refuses to provide a cost-of-disability winter payment. Now, those people are forced to protest outside the Dáil. It is not lost on anyone, by the way, that the Government makes these cruel decisions while hiking up the pay of CEOs. We need a debate and discussion on the Government's very unfair approach to the cost-of-living crisis.”
“The only way in the short term, in the immediacy of now, that they can do that is by the Taoiseach reinstating the energy credit. That is the reality.”
“The Taoiseach’s view is simply wrong. It is neither intelligent nor targeted. As a matter of fact, it strikes me as most unintelligent because 70,000 more households than last year are now in difficulties. They cannot pay their bills. I told the Taoiseach we have hit a record of 303,465 such households. They are not millionaires. They are working households who now cannot pay their bills. I want a long-term solution. The long-term solution is to end the price gouging, end the rip-off by the big energy companies and to give the regulator the powers it needs, but the Taoiseach knows that because I have told him that repeatedly. I will tell him this much: in the here and now I want those households to be able to make their bills.”
“Will it haul in the energy companies and tell them to stop ripping people off? Will it finally act to give the energy regulator the powers it needs to get energy costs down and to bring this rip off to a stop?”
“Tá líon níos mó teaghlaigh ná riamh ag streachailt chun billí ródhaora leictreachais a íoc. Tá sé in am don Rialtas seo a jab a dhéanamh agus gníomh a ghlacadh chun deireadh a chur leis an saill fuinnimh. This silence and inaction simply cannot continue. Only yesterday, we heard how the sky-high prices of groceries have gone up again - the fastest increase in two years. The Government has done nothing to tackle that problem either. People cannot take any more. They are especially sick of working every hour but still not being able to pay their electricity bills. They want the Government to do its job to protect them from price gouging, to tackle relentless price hikes and to end this rip off. Will the Government do its job? Will it reinstate energy credits, which households so desperately need?”
“Families are hammered by incredible, unbearable daily pressure, and the Government's so-called task force, its big solution, is as láthair, sleeping on the job. While the Government and its task force twiddle their thumbs, households have been hit with price hike after price hike. The big energy companies hiked up their prices one after the other and the Government allowed this to happen. It refused to take on the price-gouging energy companies. It repeatedly ignored calls to give the regulator more power to get energy costs under control. The Government then took away energy credits - the one lifeline households had in the face of these rip-off bills. As people struggle to get by, we have a do-nothing, say-nothing Government - doing nothing to tackle the problem and saying nothing about the impact on people's lives.”
“The regulator told him that even more households would struggle to pay their bills due to rising prices and that arrears would hit record levels, but, incredibly, the Government went ahead and withdrew those credits anyway. I have lost count of the times that I have raised this with the Taoiseach, the pressure that households are under, and the stress that they face to pay rip-off energy bills. What was the Government's big idea, by response? A talking shop, a so-called task force to tackle big energy bills, cobbled together by the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, last June. How many times has this crack team met since then? Three. Yes, that is it - three times in eight months. That really takes the biscuit. There is no urgency, no determination and no real care for what people are going through.”
“Seventy thousand more households are behind on their electricity bills now than at this time last year. The overall number in electricity arrears now stands at a staggering and record 303,465 households. We have not seen the worst of it yet because the figures for December and January are still to be reported. This is a shocking situation and yet there is not a word from the Taoiseach, only silence. One would never think that households were under such enormous pressure, given the deafening silence from the Taoiseach's Government. People are working every hour they can and still cannot keep up. It is one big, never-ending and exhausting rip-off. Working households find themselves in this desperate situation because of the Taoiseach's terrible decisions. He was told that withdrawing the energy credits would cause big problems.”
“I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I am all shook up. Communities devastated by flooding are angry about the failure of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to deliver desperately needed flood defences. The Taoiseach might remember that in the wake of Storm Frank in 2015, when he was the leader of the Opposition, he described that flooding as a national emergency. He criticised the then Government for being far too slow. That was 11 years ago, and now he talks about waving magic wands and points the finger of blame at all and sundry. There are now 94 ongoing flood relief schemes, 68 of which have not even gone to planning. That is shocking given the increased frequency of extreme weather events. Where is this national emergency-style action from the Taoiseach's Government to get these flood defences in place?”
“So, Mick, free at last. Thirty-two years; that is a really good number for you to finish on. We would say that, would we not? I wish you well. You will have lots of time now but I am sure it will be very usefully deployed. Lorraine will have you at home a lot maybe - we will see how that goes - as will your daughters Michelle and Jennifer, your son Karl and your grandchildren. We all collectively, as you can hear, wish you nothing but the very best. We hold nothing for you in our hearts other than immense gratitude for your hard work, your courtesy, your sense of fun, but above all, your service to this institution and to all of us who have been elected here. Good luck and enjoy.”
“I ask the Taoiseach to please reassure people that he understands that enforcement has not been adequate and that he needs to fix that.”
“Deputy Ellis first raised this in 2011 or 2012. It was a problem then and, in the years that have followed, it has gotten worse and worse. I do not know whether the Taoiseach has any exposure to scramblers and this happening in his community and neighbourhood, but I do. It happens in Cabra and in the inner city, too. It is terrifying. It is now too late for Grace Lynch, aged 16. Her life is gone. Unless there is enforcement - aggressive, rigorous enforcement - we run the serious risk of losing more lives, and that simply cannot happen. I asked the Taoiseach to specify what additional resources and capacity to pursue these offenders, such as any training or the use of drones, will be put in place. These are some of the essential elements.”
“We know the real test of these laws will not be found in announcements and promises but in the difference they make on our streets, in our communities and in the lives of those who have been plagued by scramblers.”
“He was unable to answer or clarify even the most basic of matters. He was unable to articulate what difference these laws and regulations will make. We need this clarity now from the Taoiseach today on the floor of the Dáil. Will he specifically outline what additional resources, equipment and specialist training the Garda will be given to enforce the law and get these scramblers off our streets? Will he specifically answer what new powers the Garda will be given to successfully pursue and apprehend scramblers? What new power will the Garda have to seize and destroy scramblers? When will the urgently needed code of practice be in place to allow the Garda to use drones in the fight against scramblers? The public and communities need answers. A law without enforcement and resources will not work.”
“I really hope the new regulation brought to Cabinet today will be some small comfort to Grace's heartbroken parents and to her community. I sincerely hope that today genuinely marks the start of the change that is so desperately required. I hope this is the start of the Government getting its act together and really taking the fight to those who are using scramblers to make life a misery for so many. However, law and regulations on their own will mean nothing if they are not backed up by enforcement. It is all well and good having laws and regulations and making promises, but if gardaí on the ground do not have the tools they need to get the job, then we are at nothing. Speaking this morning, the Minister of State , Deputy Canney, was very unclear as to how all of this would be enforced.”
“It happens because they know that the gardaí have their hands tied behind their backs, powerless to stop and apprehend scramblers even as they pose such a threat and danger to people. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in government have failed to act, failed to get a grip on what was a very evident and worsening problem for our communities across Dublin and beyond. It is unforgivable that it took the death of Grace Lynch for the Government to sign the regulation to give the Garda the power to get scramblers off our streets and out of our communities. In fact, it sat there gathering dust for more than two years, even as communities continued to endure the scourge of scramblers. The Tánaiste himself has admitted that he cannot give a satisfactory explanation as to why this happened. I wonder whether the Taoiseach can.”
“Last Friday, the community in Finglas came together for Grace Lynch's funeral, to mourn her, to remember her, to stand by her devastated family, and to say clearly that the days of their neighbourhood being terrorised are over. It is hard to describe the convulsion of grief in Finglas that day - a family utterly bereft and the sobs of young people. Finglas is just one of the communities that have been terrified, harassed and intimidated for years now by those using scramblers for antisocial behaviour and criminal activity. Finglas is just one of the neighbourhoods that have, literally, been terrorised by people on scramblers threatening residents and feeling they could do what they want when they want. Stories of gardaí being taunted by hoods on scramblers are all too common.”
“Eight days on, and the Taoiseach still ignores the calls for Larry Murrin to step down from his role as chair of Bord Bia. His position is untenable. There is a massive conflict of interests with him remaining in post, particularly as his company imports Brazilian beef into the Irish market. This is totally in conflict with the role of Bord Bia, which is to promote Irish food, including Irish beef. How long will the Taoiseach keep his head buried in the sand, ignoring farming organisations, parties across the Dáil and many of his own TDs? The Government appointed Mr. Murrin as chair of Bord Bia. It has the power to remove him from post. The more it dithers and delays, the more damage is done to the reputation of Bord Bia. When will the Government use the powers available to it and remove Mr. Murrin as chair of Bord Bia?”
“Therefore, there is no firm, robust response to anti-social behaviour. That is the stuff of fiction from the Taoiseach. There is not. Ask anybody anywhere. Ask them in Dublin's north inner city; ask them in communities across the country. This scourge goes unchallenged. Communities are telling us loudly and clearly that one of the ingredients to actually get a proper response is high visibility out on the streets and across the community but that is not happening, and it is not happening because the numbers are not there. I asked the Taoiseach a question about Garda vetting and the fact that up to 20 in a given class of gardaí will be prevented from starting their duties because of an internal Garda process. The Minister, at the committee yesterday, confirmed that was the case.”
“My understanding is that up to 20 gardaí from the class graduating next week will be prevented from getting onto the streets because of this problem - that is, gardaí who are trained, qualified and ready to go, stopped from getting to work because the vetting process is not fit for purpose. You could not make this up. The Garda vetting review was set up four years ago. It submitted its recommendations to the Minister for justice and, even though the Minister accepts there is a problem, he has failed to solve it. How many newly graduating gardaí will be prevented from starting work because their Garda vetting is incomplete? My information is that it is up to 20 from next week's graduating class. Can the Taoiseach tell me if there are more? Can he explain to every community crying out for greater Garda visibility-----”
“The single biggest ask last night was for more gardaí on the street in the community. Gardaí in the area, by the way, are doing their very best but we simply do not have enough of them. The result is that those engaged in antisocial and criminal behaviour, drug dealing and drug taking have free rein to do whatever they want. This is not the experience of just one community, although they are having a particularly hard time of it. This scourge of antisocial behaviour and the lack of gardaí to respond is something that communities everywhere will know all too well. At this time, when communities are crying out for stronger, more visible policing, it is frankly unbelievable to me that gardaí who will be graduating next week will be prevented from starting their work. Why? Their Garda vetting has not been completed.”
“Last night, I was at a meeting in my own constituency in the north inner city with residents of Blessington Street square and the surrounding areas. The Garda was there, as was Dublin City Council. This is a community of the finest people you could ever meet. They really look out for each other, care about their neighbourhood and want it to be a safe place to live but that is not the case. Last night's meeting was called because these people's lives are being made a misery. Every day, they are faced with open drug dealing and drug taking in front of their homes and constant low-level criminality and antisocial behaviour. It is not just people's homes. Local businesses are also under huge pressure just to stay open. There is a persistent atmosphere of intimidation and danger. This community has been robbed of its right to safety.”
“Yesterday, everyone here in the Dáil expressed sympathies on the horrific and senseless death of Grace Lynch. I raised with the Taoiseach his Government's persistent failure to keep communities safe. So many communities across the city of Dublin and the country are tormented by persistent antisocial behaviour by those who feel they can do whatever they want whenever they want and who intimidate and harass people every single day. Ask people from these communities and they will tell you that they simply do not have enough gardaí in their communities, on their streets and walking the beat. There are not enough gardaí to provide a strong, consistent, visible deterrent and a quick policing response to those who are quite literally terrifying communities 24-7.”
“This means that means that within a few short years most renters will be paying full market rents and that rents will soar. This is the Government's choice. Can the Taoiseach accept that its legislation will increase rents for new tenants and, over time, for the majority of tenants?”
“What does the Government have against renters? Its new legislation guts rent pressure zones and allows rents to be reset to full market levels between tenancies. From 1 March, this will have the effect of driving rents even higher. Who demanded the introduction of the Bill that has been brought forward? It was not renters, who are drowning under record rents, or small or medium-sized landlords. The Bill was written for one group only, namely the vulture funds and corporate landlords that are gouging renters month after month and charging €2,500 or €3.500 for very ordinary homes. From March, new tenants will be hit first. Students will then be hit. Year by year, increasing numbers of renters will be forced into paying uncapped market rents. The Residential Tenancies Board has indicated that one quarter of tenancies turn over every year.”
“With a 16-year-old life taken, no words of consolation can ever meet the pain of Grace's family but Siobhán, her mother, told me that action would be some consolation. We need swift action not words. Take these bikes off our streets and make our kids and our communities safe at last.”
“Of course, there are no words of consolation that can in any way reflect the loss of Siobhán and Martin, Grace's wider family, her community and her friends too. Of course, that is the case. Her life was lost needlessly and, as I said, it was predictable. It was predictable that a life would be lost and yet the law dragged its feet. I hope the Taoiseach hears that anger from Finglas. The people in that community have their arms around Grace's family and they will mind them but, no more than the communities in Ballymun, Ballyfermot, Clondalkin, Tallaght or parts of Limerick, they will not tolerate any more that people are allowed to run a monk in working-class communities, putting people's very lives in danger.”
“Grace's mother, Siobhán, spoke at a vigil in Finglas last night. She said watching Grace take her last breath was the worst pain imaginable. She vowed to fight to get these scramblers off our streets, but this is not a fight she should have to take on. It is the Government’s job to act now to ensure that another life is not lost. The Taoiseach owes it to Grace’s heartbroken parents to set out what the Government will do now to get scramblers off our roads and streets and out of our communities, where they have wreaked havoc for years. I spoke with Grace’s mam, Siobhán, last night. She told me that Grace was a happy girl and a kind girl. She loved her family. She loved her friends. She loved the colour red. She loved life, and she should still be here. Her death cannot be in vain, because Grace Lynch matters. What happened to her matters.”
“For more than a decade, we pushed the Government to crack down and introduce stronger laws to get these scramblers off our streets. When the Government would not act, we did. In 2021, we brought forward legislation to take this on, but the Government amended and blocked it and dragged its heels. In 2023, it brought forward legislation but it did not go far enough. As we meet here today, this legislation has not been enacted fully. Only today, when a child is dead, the Government is talking about moving quickly, tightening things up and taking action. The absence of any Government urgency in tackling the menace of scramblers is frightening. This has to change fast. Éilíonn bás Grace Lynch gníomh ón Rialtas chun dul i ngleic leis na rothair streachailte. Tá ár bpobail cráite acu.”
“What happened is every parent's, every family's and every young person's worst nightmare. Now, instead of preparing her for school, her heartbroken parents prepare to bury their lovely daughter. Grace Lynch was failed catastrophically. Scrambler bikes have been the scourge of working-class communities in Dublin and beyond for years. Neighbourhoods being terrorised by antisocial behaviour involving these bikes is nothing new, with gangs driving scramblers dangerously, harassing and intimidating people and delivering drugs. There have been countless accidents and there is a constant sense of menace, but the Government failed to listen to communities and take them seriously. It was, in reality, only a matter of time before somebody was killed. Now that somebody has a name. Her name is Grace Lynch.”
“For Grace Lynch, last Sunday began like any other. Spending time with her family, having breakfast, talking about her plans for the day, texting friends and having the craic with her sisters and baby brother. Later, on Sunday afternoon, Grace went to meet her boyfriend. She never came home. As she crossed the Ratoath Road a short distance from her home, Grace was mowed down by a scrambler bike. Hit at full speed and with full force, her body was thrown across the road. She was rushed to Connolly Hospital where doctors desperately treated her catastrophic injuries, but it was not enough. Grace Lynch died that evening. She was 16. A young woman with her whole life ahead of her. The apple of her father's eye and her mother's pride and joy, she was killed on the road in her community as she went about her everyday 16-year-old life.”