Nessa Cosgrove
Labour Panel · Labour Party · Ireland
“The Minister of State recognised that there was a grassroots movement and the documentary "Groundswell" captured it. There is also the documentary "Gasland", which was made in America and came out in 2010. We know it is going to come from America. Again, this is the Trojan horse.”
“The amendment defines "fracked gas", which does not appear anywhere in the Bill. This, with amendment No. 13, would make clear that the importation of fracked gas would not be possible under the Bill. LNG particularly when sourced in the US, is usually derived from fracking.”
“I move amendment No. 3: In page 8, after line 39, to insert the following: " "hydraulically fractured gas" means liquefied natural gas, or natural gas in any other form, that has been produced, in whole or in part, by means of hydraulic fracturing within the meaning of section 5A of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development Act 1960;".…”
“I am sorry but I just do not buy the argument that it is security. A floating LNG storage facility in Qatar was blown up. It is actually more of a risk to our security to have a floating LNG terminal. This whole thing is mad.”
“All of us were probably at the IFA briefing yesterday. When they gave us the briefing document I saw that it was exactly the same as the one last year and I wondered whether it had got anything it looked for. I was told not really, apart perhaps with regard to areas of natural constraint.”
“Historians, no doubt, are going to refer to this legislation in that way, because the reserve is not going to be used solely for emergencies. We are trying to define what an emergency is. There is no definition. Seven years ago, we led the way in the international community by committing to phase out oil and gas exploration.”
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“Irish farmers are receiving a decent price for the top-quality beef they produce. They have made strenuous efforts to reduce their carbon footprints in line with Government policy and are doing their very best to help us to meet our legally binding climate targets. After doing this, there is a worry that the rug is going to be pulled out from underneath them by the Mercosur deal of the EPP, which is Fine Gael's grouping in the EU. If we allow the importation of 99,000 tonnes of South American beef into the European market, the negative consequences for Irish farmers will be stark. As was said previously, the beef produced in South America is not subject to the same strict requirements as that produced in Europe in respect of traceability, animal welfare, and health and safety.”
“Recently, my office met representatives of Ethical Farming Ireland, who stressed that there was a general conviction in the Government that animal welfare was important. That is fantastic, but nothing concrete has resulted from that conviction. However, I welcome the sentiment and will wait to see what is done to improve the lives of pigs, poultry and cattle that can be sold at marts at just ten days old and exported live outside the EU and beyond EU protections at just 15 days old. We all know that the ill-treatment of livestock is bad for the animals but it is also bad for humans and the environment. The Mercosur trade has been spoken about. Unfortunately, I missed the opening remarks of the Minister, Deputy Heydon. Mercosur is a disaster for the environment and farmers. I talked to farmers at the ploughing championships.”
“I would remind the Minister of the commitment he gave to farmers last year that the implementation of GAEC 2 would not affect their day-to-day activities and would not result in the implementation of fines on farmers who continued to farm those lands. I am pleased to see concern for poultry and pigs shown in the motion with the call for capital investment to improve animal health and welfare. Not only is improved animal welfare good in its own right, but the health and welfare of animals have a direct impact on human well-being and health and on the environment, including - I do not need to tell the farmers in this room this - water quality, which can be affected by slurry and waste, which in a factory farm setting need to be disposed of in vast quantities.”
“These payments help farmers with the back-to-school and college costs. We all know that farmers spend their money locally, so it goes back into the local economy. The area I represent includes higher ground and poor ground, as well as island farmers. They all support this scheme. It is important for the farmers in Sligo and Leitrim. Unknown to me until I started looking into it, this scheme pays 75% of farmers. I understand from the farmers I met last week that the ANC was reduced during the austerity years after the crash and this €50 million should be reinstated immediately. We in the Labour Party are calling for that in our alternative budget, which will be published tomorrow. Many of the farmers who are eligible for this ANC payment contain land parcels subject to GAEC 2.”
“Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I thank the Fine Gael Senators for tabling this motion. It is a wide-ranging motion and I do not intend to speak on every aspect of it. I will address the issues around the areas of natural constraint payments, animal welfare and the Mercosur deal. Last week, I met representatives of the IFA, who stressed the importance to farmers in Sligo-Leitrim that the Government resisted European attempts to cut the CAP and that payments under the ANC increased by €50 million to €300 million. This is a sector where the word "simplification" is bandied about in the context of multiple schemes. I often hear from farmers that there are associated bureaucracies and red tape. The areas of natural constraint scheme, however, seems straightforward and is paid with little bureaucracy in September each year.”
“It creates community events, gives opportunities to growers, arranges workshops and provides a place where people can exchange creative skills and growing skills. My party would love to see the re-establishment of the co-operative development unit in the Department of enterprise. We would also like to see the audit threshold for charities increased to €500,000 and for a national body to be developed for the sector.”
“Too often, social enterprises are locked out of public contracts, so it is great to see that the Minister of State addressed that aspect in his opening remarks and he mentioned that the new policy included space for a social clause. As has been said by colleagues across the House, social enterprise is not a mystery and we must ensure that education about it happens in schools, business courses, universities and training centres. To pick up on what has been said by Senator Tully, my party views social enterprise as a way of creating community wealth but because there is not a dedicated person employed to do that, social enterprises can be locked out. I use Rossnowlagh Farmers Market, for example, which has created a space. There was very little available in the community, so it is a lot more than a farmers market.”
“In my own area of Sligo and Leitrim, social enterprises often operate in areas where there is a lot of disadvantage and they have limited access to capital and skilled labour. Social enterprises come from a grassroots level and are being supported by the local LEADER partnerships, which is fantastic, and LEOs. I want to give a big shout out to the Sligo Women in Business Network, SWIBN, which does incredible work in the local enterprise office in Sligo. In terms of actions that we would like to see, we need dedicated funding streams and a multi-annual funding model that allows for long-term planning. As often happens within the voluntary and community sector, there is a lack of multi-annual funding. I know this is a different matter, though. I welcome the fact that the Minister of State mentioned the need to reform procurement.”
“Tá fáilte romhat, a Aire Stáit. I, too, welcome the policy. Social enterprises have been called the quiet revolutionaries of our communities. We seem them right across the country - community cafés that support people with disabilities or mental health difficulties, recycling hubs, and enterprises supporting growers. Social enterprises want to provide solutions based on their inclusion model. The national social enterprise policy is a start. The commitment to social enterprise is wonderful. The idea of a social enterprise model and policies is growing across Europe. We need to encourage and lead that rather than follow and it is great to have this debate with a Minister of State. Social enterprises, as has been said here, face barriers that traditional businesses do not.”
“I move amendment No. 2: In page 6, lines 27 and 28, to delete all words from and including “or” where it firstly occurs in line 27 down to and including line 28 and substitute the following: “or any question of fact or any issue arising in such action shall not be tried with a jury unless otherwise ordered. A court may order for trial with a jury where, having regard to the circumstances of the case, it is in the interest of justice to make such order.”.”
“For example, we as a party proposed an amendment that would have stopped employers winding up or freezing workplace pensions during the ten-year transition period while the scheme was coming into effect, but this was rejected by the Government. As the scheme is now being implemented, we need to ensure that safeguards are put in place, that this will deliver for workers and does not create incentives for employers to scale back existing pension entitlements.”
“We also believe, crucially, that self-employed people should be included in auto-enrolment. This is necessary to ensure that the companies are not incentivised to place workers on bogus self-employment, which we know only too well in this House, in order to avoid needing to pay auto-enrolment contributions. We have seen the proliferation of such contracts in recent years, such as among RTÉ staff, leaving many without pensions. Coverage among self-employed people is already too low. As the Bill progressed through the Oireachtas, as a party, we repeatedly raised the importance of ensuring that this scheme cannot be sidestepped by employers or ensuring that employers are not incentivised to wind up good, existing workplace pension schemes.”
“This is an opportunity for us to say that we do not want our collective retirements built upon the profits of companies that profit from fossil fuel exploitation, war or pornography benefit or that benefit from child or slave labour. The introduction of this scheme has much to be commended, but some protections and reassurances are required. We need to be clear on how this scheme will relate to the State pension, that it will complement and not replace the State pension. Similarly, we need assurances that the Government remains committed to achieving a benchmark of 34% of gross average earnings for the contributory State pension, such as was set out in A Roadmap for Pensions Reform. We need certainty and safeguards that the workers contributing to the new scheme will not face a means test for the State pension in the future.”
“I would like to see these benefits extended to younger workers aged between 16 and 23, who are currently excluded from the scheme, as even small amounts contributed during these early years would have a disproportionately beneficial impact upon the pension amount available at the end of a working life. If 16-year-olds are old enough to make PRSI contributions, then surely they are old enough to be included and entitled to the benefits of auto-enrolment. Having a large State fund that is managed according to strict ethical guidelines could also have a beneficial impact upon the ethical approach taken towards pension funds across the whole of the free market.”
“In previous years, many of those people would be condemned to poverty in their old age. The voluntary nature of pension provision in the past has failed low-paid workers. The Labour Party has been supportive of the introduction of an auto-enrolment pension scheme for many years. It has been well overdue. Having the voice of Patricia King on the board of the new National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority demonstrates that members' interests will be at the heart of the new authority. Having a large State fund gives additional security and investment potential to a pension scheme.”
“Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I welcome the opportunity to contribute on the discussion on auto-enrolment. As we all know, the best time to start a pension is as early in one's career as possible. However, the reality for too many people, particularly low-paid workers and those at the beginning of their working lives, is that there is no spare capacity in the weekly or monthly budget to pay for pensions. I know that from personal experience. As a low-paid youth worker for years, it is only in the last few years that I have been able to afford to contribute to a pension. The lack of affordability has led to low rates of pension uptake among younger workers and those who remain on low wages throughout their working lives. An estimated 811,000 workers currently have no occupational or private pension provision.”
“We would love to have the whole idea of a radius completely gone. Why have this radius? Whether or not a school is the nearest one, there should be a bus place available for every child who needs it, regardless of whether they live 4 km or 4.5 km from the school. It causes so much upset when people are maybe a fraction of a kilometre outside the approved space. Is there a way to have a complete rethink of this in order that students would be able to get a school bus regardless of the distance from their particular school? We need joined-up thinking around the Local Link and Bus Éireann routes. One of the biggest requests in my constituency is for an increase in Local Link services. We know how successful they are. Having all the services incorporated under one body could be a way to alleviate the issue.”
“As Senator Harmon said, the Labour Party is looking for a complete overhaul of the system and an integrated approach rather than just relying on a school bus from Bus Éireann. We need to look at the Local Link services. As Senator Tully stated, there are buses that sit there during the day while we are crying out, especially in my area,, for additional Local Link services. I know the other rural Senators here understand that. We know those services are successful. They really work. If they are integrated under the Department of Transport, we will see older people mixing with younger people on buses at a time when people are feeling isolated and there is a lot of loneliness experienced among many members in our society, particularly in rural Ireland. This could be a way to totally alleviate this.”
“She is again dependent on her parents, whom she was just about gaining independence from. She was offered a taxi service, and I know Senator Tully brought this up as well. It is great that she was offered that service, but it defeats the whole purpose of her wanting independence. It is a waste of money in this case as she did not particularly want it; she wanted to be on the school bus with her friends. The school bus is a lot more than just a service to get on and off while going to school. It is much more than that for many children, particularly in rural Ireland, where they might spend 45 minutes or an hour on the bus. It is where their friendships are formed and there is a lot more to it than that.”
“Fáiltím roimh an Aire Stáit. I will continue on from what other Senators have said. During the summer, we all got phone calls about the lack of school transport. One girl I want to mention who lives in Sligo has been taking the school bus every day since she started in junior infants. This August, her school bus application was refused because of the lack of available places. She is in her final year of secondary school and has significant health challenges. She has a form of a disability which means she is unable to walk any significant distance. As there is no Local Link or Bus Éireann route servicing her home, she has to remain in school until her parents or friends are able to collect her. This is a time when she is just about gaining confidence in herself. She should be gaining more independence but she is stuck back in school.”
“We want to make our amendments to the motion to keep the focus on Gaza, but not it alone because we know Israel’s ultimate game is to take control of the whole of Palestine, the state it does not even recognise. We need to keep the West Bank very much to the fore as well.”
“A day ago, the Al-Karama Crossing, or Allenby Crossing, in the West Bank was the only link to the rest of the world. It borders Jordan to the east and is the lung of the West Bank, enabling the movement of people and vital goods. Israel’s Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, has closed the crossing indefinitely. Three million Palestinian people rely on the crossing. While the genocide continues in Gaza, Israel is now laying siege to the West Bank and turning it into a large sealed prison. I urge that we keep this to the forefront. The Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates and Palestine’s embassies around the world are demanding the mobilisation of international pressure.”
“I, too, welcome the Fianna Fáil motion, and I also welcome the fact that the Government is supporting it. I will speak about the motion but also the amendments. The UN independent commission report states Israel has shown clear intent to establish permanent control over Gaza while ensuring a Jewish majority in the West Bank. I, too, was in the West Bank, 20 years ago, and at that stage I could see land confiscation, population displacement, discrimination and apartheid. These have accelerated since 7 October. We have recognised the State of Palestine. It is so welcome that Ireland was one of the first countries to do so. This has been followed by France, Britain, Canada and Australia. Now that we have recognised the State of Palestine, it is now our responsibility to focus our attention not only on Gaza but also on the West Bank.”
“We tabled a motion yesterday whose recommendations, if implemented, would ban the eviction of families with children into homelessness. I urge all Senators present to make the choice in question and encourage Government TDs to accept the measures outlined in the motion and stop evicting children.”
“I urge Senators to rethink the untargeted VAT cut in the budget that benefits giant hospitality chains, which will cost €630 million. We know hospitality chains and food giants are going to benefit from the measure. The measure should be targeted and the money needs to be invested in public services designed to lift children out of poverty and to provide them with the support they urgently need. When Labour moved the motion yesterday, the Government spokesperson claimed child poverty was being addressed through hot school meals. These are really welcome but, unfortunately, there are many areas across rural Ireland, particularly mine, in which the scheme not been rolled out, meaning children are still receiving cold meals. None of us here believes any child should be evicted into homelessness.”
“A motion moved yesterday in the Dáil by the Labour Party called on the Government to take immediate action to address child poverty and child homelessness. The latest ESRI report states child poverty has reached unthinkable levels in Ireland. One in five children is living below the poverty line, and this is when housing costs are factored in. These children are not statistics. We all know there are children below the poverty line going hungry every day and children living in families with a genuine fear of eviction. There are families who feel genuine despair over their future. Over 5,000 children are homeless in Ireland at present. Every day in politics, we have a choice to make. Our motion yesterday offered the Government a genuine opportunity to choose to relieve child poverty and homelessness.”
“We should have a progressive system, like they have introduced in Spain, to protect those who are asset rich but cash poor. It can be implemented. We can broaden our tax base. Internationally, a system has been proposed to the G20 that will involve the collection of a 2% wealth tax on global billionaires. We could demonstrate that it is possible to raise taxes for billionaires, continue to grow our economy and deliver services, housing and infrastructure projects. Spain is doing it, and we could do it too. At the moment, we are still allowing the world's billionaires to continue to acquire, hold and pile up wealth. This affects our public services and there is a direct correlation between poor public services and poor infrastructure projects and untapped wealth that we are not using. They should not be allowed get away with it.”
“Money is designed to flow around the financial system just as blood flows around the circulatory system. To have a blood clot in the circulatory system is potentially fatal and may require surgery or clot busting medication. Blood clots are the enemies of good circulation but billionaires are the enemies of a well-run, functioning society which requires buy-in and contributions from all of its members. Why am I talking about it now? We know there are massive infrastructure projects that need to happen. We know housing needs to happen. We know one in five children are living below the poverty line but taxation has become a dirty word for political parties. Raising taxes for those who are already struggling cannot be an option.”
“During 2024, their combined wealth increased by a staggering €35.6 million every single day. I have to agree with Jim Clerkin from Oxfam that this wealth is not deserved and is not based on merit. It is based on greed and a desire to acquire, possess and hoard. It is a level of greed that would even put world's imperialists to shame. Billionaires worldwide use clever accounting and tax avoidance - not actual tax evasion - to get away with not pulling their weight. Not only that, they are actually doing real harm. Every euro they acquire is held onto tightly, taken out of our system and squirrelled away. Although billionaires have been allowed to exist and thrive under modern, unrestrained, unregulated capitalism, their behaviour will undoubtedly cause the end and collapse of capitalism.”
“We could compete with any region in Europe but there have been years of underinvestment in infrastructure projects that is preventing us from achieving our potential. I know we are talking about public infrastructure and finance, it is often asked where the money will come from. It is a fair enough question. Where are we going to raise finance? However, in a country where there is so much real poverty, levels of homelessness, child poverty and food poverty, and low- to middle-income earners paying high levels of tax and not receiving the services they should, there is a whole class of people groaning underneath the weight of their wealth without paying any meaningful level of tax at all. According to Oxfam Ireland, there are now 11 Irish billionaires.”
“Earlier this month, the Northern and Western Regional Assembly released a report on the status of priority infrastructure projects. The Northern and Western Regional Assembly does amazing work in identifying not only the needs and gaps in provision but also the possibilities that could be implemented. There are a number of absolutely crucial transport infrastructure projects which have been identified for years in the north west but are still not shovel-ready. What is missing in Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal that we have seem to have no transport projects ready to go? Our region is bursting with untapped potential in terms of our natural resources, landscape and extremely talented workforce.”
“While these roles are available, people with disabilities can be enabled to access mainstream activities and services, slowing down or reducing the uptake on more traditional disability services. It is a cost-saving measure to introduce community workers and it avoids a duplication of work. Community workers do their job and people living with MS thereby get the supports they are entitled to because they are being signposted in the right direction. It cuts down and is a cost-saving measure in the long run.”
“There was no indication there that there is going to be any commitment to delivering MS services in the north west. I thank the Minister of State for outlining the amazing work MS Ireland and section 39 workers provide and I know that. Could the Minister of State bring it back to the Minister, and it would be really appreciated by the people in the north west, that this has been going on for decades, particularly when there is the highest instance in the north west of people with MS and we do not have the basic services that other counties do? The Minister of State spoke about the role of disability reviews and that in 2018, the HSE disability capacity review stated that community workers were listed as the most used in multidisciplinary teams within disabilities.”
“I had no access to information on how to connect with other people living with MS, no guidance on what her future could look like if I had to stop working and no knowledge of the financial supports available. There was direction on how to access homecare should I require it nor any mention of MS Ireland or the resources they offer. Sláintecare contains a dedicated commitment to an integrated approach to healthcare. If a community worker was employed, €73,000 is a drop in the ocean in the context of the Department of Health's spending budget. It would support social workers' case management and the management team in the support services sector around MS. I would like the Minister of State to reply that the people living with MS in the north west are not going to be treated like second-class citizens anymore.”
“They have to raise €100,000 a year to keep it operating and it has been such a support for people living with MS and their families. The idea of having a community worker has been overlooked because the centre has been such a success in the north west. I am going to quote Mary who was at the meeting I mentioned: When I was diagnosed with MS in 2006, there was no dedicated community worker in Sligo. Almost two decades later the situation remains unchanged. Upon diagnosis I was provided with medication options by her urologist and left to navigate the rest on my own. The MS nurse gave her advice on how to take the medication but beyond that there was no structured support.”
“There were a lot of Government TDs and local representatives from across parties and none at the business proposal meeting. They listened to stories from Sligo and Leitrim people with MS who do not have access to the services that we should have access to. MS Ireland put forward a business case and it is looking for just short of €73,000 to employ a community worker, which in the grand scheme of things is a drop in the ocean. Some 300 people have been diagnosed with MS in Sligo and Leitrim. There should two community workers. I worked as a community worker with the Irish Wheelchair Association. Trying to manage a caseload of 300 people would be astronomical. I would put forward the case that there should be two. I ask the Minister to look favourably on this. We have continued on in the north west. There is a wonderful MS therapy centre.”
“I raise the ongoing issue of the absence of a community worker for MS services in counties Sligo and Leitrim. The north west has the highest instance of MS in the country, but alarmingly there is no dedicated MS community worker in Sligo or Leitrim. They are the only counties that do not have a dedicated community worker. MS Ireland put together a business proposal and submitted it to the Department of Health. It is looking to be treated like everywhere else in the country. There are 19 community workers employed throughout the country. They play a vital role for anyone who has MS. It is a condition that affects people differently. The community worker is there to offer case management, support to families and to act as an advocate to look at finance and training. They are a voice for people who have been diagnosed with MS.”
“Of course, it is important to have an open and frank discussion about how we establish and manage a transparent, rules-based, functioning and well regulated system. However, it is also important that we use careful, measured and responsible language ourselves, whether in this House, on social media or in the mainstream media. All across the western world we can see that anti-immigrant sentiment is on the rise and we need to ensure that whatever we do in this House and in this country, we make the situation better for all people and not worse.”
“Our whole health and social care infrastructure is built upon the labour of immigrants and if they start to leave, where are we going to be? Immigration has transformed this country in a really positive way. That people want to come here is a tremendous compliment to our society and our people. Our flag is a symbol of unity and peace and yet we see a tiny minority of people seeking to use it to sow fear, hatred and division. Our flag should fly over all our people equally. The housing crisis the Government continues to perpetrate is fuelling misdirected resentment towards immigrants and asylum seekers. The need of all people to have a safe, secure, warm place to call home should be the absolute priority of this Government but I am still convinced that the Government has not grasped the depth of this problem.”
“They are actively pushing this at people to grow their platforms and their obscene levels of wealth. Minority communities are relentlessly targeted online, including by anonymised individuals on so-called community pages and there are no consequences for those responsible. Facebook, TikTok and X are consequence-free zones for those who want to perpetrate racism and hate. At least 31 buildings, either reception centres or rumoured-to-be reception centres, have been burnt down by anti-immigration criminals in the last few years. How many of these have resulted in prosecution? All over the country, including in Sligo, we have heard about healthcare workers, nurses and doctors feeling that they are no longer welcome here.”
“We also need a strong and robust campaign to combat the fears, stereotypes, tropes and racism among the general public. We need to see a national counter-disinformation strategy, as per the programme for Government. We also need to consider who is benefiting from the division and discontent sown. Why are the social media and digital platforms allowing themselves to facilitate hate? They have literally become laboratories for hatred. Despite the knowledge the Government has about the harm done through social media platforms and their billionaire owners, there remains no proper regulation. The European Commission and the Commissioner, Michael McGrath, have an opportunity to use the forthcoming democracy shield legislation to force social media companies to dismantle their recommender systems that promote hate and disinformation.”
“While they are very welcome, and the community engagement team in my constituency has a lot of contact with my own constituents, they need to be given additional powers and additional teeth so that they can advocate on behalf of people. They also need to be given more responsibility so that mediation can take place. Nobody has a veto on where anyone can live but local authorities, elected representatives and community representatives must be included and be given accurate information early on in the information-sharing process. As was said earlier, local communities need to be made aware of any additional resources, funding and services that will be, and must be, put in place to support refugees and international protection applicants.”
“Neither direct provision nor emergency homeless accommodation is ideal and each serves only to enrich the largest corporate providers of such accommodation. People living in Ireland deserve to be housed in decent conditions, whether they were born here or not or whether they came here through choice or circumstances. Many communities throughout Ireland have been strong in the welcome and support they have provided for refugees but many of these communities, including those I represent in counties Sligo and Leitrim and south Donegal, have been the target of misinformation and disinformation. This has been worsened by a failure of State agencies to communicate properly with those communities through trusted individuals and organisations. The Minister of State mentioned community engagement officers.”
“Global instability, including the ongoing war in Ukraine and the horrendous genocide in Gaza, has contributed, and is continuing to contribute, to a substantial increase in the numbers seeking international protection. When the direct provision system was introduced in 2000, about 7,700 refugees sought protection in Ireland. Since then the numbers have more than doubled to 18,560 and the direct provision system, which the Government previously pledged to abolish, remains in place. Every week I get phone calls, as I am sure everyone else in this House does, from people trapped in homelessness and in the direct provision system, who have nowhere else to go. This includes families of four or five sharing a single room.”
“Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit agus déanaim comhghairdeas leis as ucht a post nua. Although migration has increased in recent years, it has always existed. The likelihood is that the level of people on the move in future will only grow, as has been mentioned, due to war and climate chaos. People move for a variety of reasons, including to escape war, conflict, oppression and poverty. They want to make a better life for themselves and their families. All of us want the same things. We want to earn enough to support our family, a secure home and, most importantly, a safe life. Globally, forced displacement is at a record high. Almost half of the people who flee globally are children. Those who are forced to move are not anywhere near Ireland. They are in poor developing countries that have shouldered the brunt of forced displacement.”
“My colleague Senator Mark Wal, brought a Bill through the Seanad to ban gambling ads. This is a huge problem. Last week, I highlighted the case of Scoil Mhuire in Carrick-on-Shannon where the PE hall has been split in two to provide extra classroom space. This is an example of the underinvestment in sports facilities in schools. Each school should have proper PE facilities and these along with halls, pitches, basketball courts and playgrounds should be available to be used by local clubs, children and community groups when the schools are closed. I have previously called in the Seanad for the Government to indemnify schools against any insurance claims. We have these wonderful facilities in schools sitting there locked in the evenings and during the summer holidays. We can do so much more to support sporting initiatives.”
“As has also been mentioned, the fact that girls often leave sport as they approach their teenage years has hit the headlines more in recent times. SIPTU has been instrumental in supporting, advocating and campaigning for the fair treatment of women in soccer, which is so welcome. Fair treatment and improved terms and conditions for female athletes across all codes has to be encouraged and prioritised if girls are to stay on in sports. Many female Senators spoke to this. Integration in the GAA is a welcome move and must be managed carefully and with sensitivity with equality at its core. The Labour Party has a range of practical ideas that would improve the take-up of opportunities in sport, including more swimming pools, multisport facilities and all-weather pitches in towns with populations of over 5,000.”
“When Mona and our other swimmers take to the pool in Olympic competition, it is in a 50 m pool. However, she had no access to a 50 m pool growing up. People in Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal have no access to such a pool. There are three 50 m pools in Dublin and one in Limerick. It is high time that a 50 m pool is constructed in the north west to take advantage of the huge interest in swimming in our region. Ballyshannon, Carrick-on-Shannon and Sligo have fantastic swim clubs and surf and rescue teams that compete at the highest levels. A 50 m pool based in Sligo would serve the region. We have the Atlantic Technological University in Sligo and this would allow us to push this enthusiasm for swimming to a higher level.”
“Mona is from the village of Grange, County Sligo and trained in the pool in Ballyshannon, County Donegal. The building the pool is located in is owned by Donegal County Council and our own pool in Sligo is owned by Sligo County Council. There are often employment challenges in sports centres because the staff often do not enjoy the same employment rights as their colleagues directly employed by local authorities. However, I am not going to go into that. Success such as Mona's demonstrates how a sense of community and volunteerism extends from the very base to the pinnacle of sport, from the infant to the Olympic champion. These two pools in Ballyshannon and Sligo also highlight the underinvestment in all levels of sport in our region, which Senator Rabbitte also referenced.”
“It teaches them commitment, self-awareness, discipline and teamwork and I am grateful for the volunteers who run the clubs. Sports should be, and can be, an effective defence against the increased levels of sexism, racism and intolerance that blight much of the online and social media landscape. It has come up many times in the debate that many of us have seen in our own communities how sport can be a force for genuine social inclusion and action. None of this happens by accident. It happens through good social policy and investment in communities and grassroots organisations whose volunteer members turn up to training sessions week in and week out. In north Sligo and south Donegal, we are immensely proud of our Olympic medalist Mona McSharry.”