Pádraig Mac Lochlainn
Donegal · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“In recent days, First Minister Michelle O'Neill visited Letterkenny Chamber of Commerce. Present were the heads of Donegal County Council, Atlantic Technological University, Donegal ETB and a range of employers and businesses from across the county.”
“The opportunity to progress towards a united Ireland is incredibly exciting. It is an opportunity to reimagine our island and its potential. David McWilliams wrote in recent years about the impact of partition on the North of Ireland. Some 100 years ago, Belfast was larger than Dublin.”
“There are many challenges and issues but the easiest one is going to be the economic benefits of a united Ireland. They will be immense, particularly for the northern half of the island. As an eminent economist said, if the North of Ireland can perform at the level of counties Cork and Kerry alone, there will be no issues.”
“In recent weeks, the Taoiseach talked about the importance of the Minister of State with responsibility for the marine. However, incredibly, it is the Minister for agriculture who will address the European Parliament's committee on fisheries today.”
“That would give a clear message that the Taoiseach is serious about giving the Department of marine and the Minister of State with responsibility for the marine independence to speak and fight for our people, rather than the Minister for agriculture, who could not possibly know anything about these matters.”
“Nationalism is united on this issue. We are asking for responsible preparation, a Green Paper and a citizens' assembly to make the plan and the case. The Taoiseach says that he is an Irish republican and a united-Irelander, then he should make the case and have a plan. That is what nationalism wants.”
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“If the Tánaiste were to visit the school, he would see a new school is desperately needed - not a building here or there but a new school. The current location is very dangerous as regards traffic. There is a whole range of issues. It is a perfect storm. A new school is needed.”
“I raise the issue of Scoil Mhuire National School at Milford, County Donegal. That school is providing a tremendous education but the facilities there are appalling. They date from decades ago, including the toilet facilities and cramped classrooms. A storage area had to be converted into a classroom last year. This became a huge issue before the election. Our then local Minister, Deputy Charlie McConalogue, confirmed that an inspection was taking place, which he expected to lead to the provision of a new school. A fully serviced site with control points has been provided free of charge at Milford. It is a perfect location, with no cost to the State in that regard. It has all been done. We just need confirmation of a new school. Will the Tánaiste talk to his colleague, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, and please come through?”
“I am asking that collectively we urge a sense of emergency and urge the NSAI to publish its draft amendments to the standard soon. It would then go to public consultation and this could drag on and on. We do not have another six months or a year, for sure. I am asking that the Minister of State invests a sense of urgency in tackling and dealing with this and for him to understand that this standard IS 465 is a disaster, people do not trust it and we need a new one we can trust based on authoritative science this time, not a desktop study.”
“We have an issue that does not just affect people who are living in defective block homes but the entire housing market across most of Donegal. In my county, or example, in a very profound way, people cannot buy or sell a house without ensuring that they do not have defective concrete blocks. Lots of houses, however, are being misdiagnosed. These are houses that are actually perfectly fine, which could be sold and which people could purchase in a housing crisis and they cannot be because we have a standard we cannot trust. The NSAI has delayed again and again and everything is in a state of flux in the county. Our housing market is a perfect storm. We have the same crisis across all of Ireland but we now have this defective block crisis in the middle of it all.”
“I want to talk to the Minister of State but the issue of defective concrete blocks, not just in my home county of Donegal but in the west of Ireland. As he knows, the National Standards Authority of Ireland is tasked with coming up with a standard we can trust. Why is this a crucial issue now? When we go to hospital and we have a cancer diagnosis, we trust the diagnosis and the prognosis is trusted to try to heal ourselves and get back to a place we want to be. However, we have a diagnosis called IS 465, which is the standard that nobody trusts or stands over. We cannot, therefore, trust the prognosis. We cannot trust the remediation which the Government is asking the person to take. People are being asked to take down just the outer leaf of their houses when the whole house probably has to be demolished and rebuilt again.”
“I mentioned Killybegs but I could go to Greencastle in my own peninsula of Inishowen, I could work my way down to Ros an Mhíl, Castletownbere, Dunmore East, right around to Clogherhead and all the harbours and piers. Just talk to the industry. This is a tragedy. We are surrounded by the richest fishing waters in Europe, in fact, some of the richest fishing waters in the world. How can it be that we have an industry in decline in those circumstances? I ask the Minister as senior Minister, working with his colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, to meet with the industry, have a reset and a new focus. Talk to the Department of the marine and to Bord Iascaigh Mhara and let us turn this around.”
“A lot of it is our own doing in this State. I would say confidently that the level of regulation and oversight of our fishing and seafood industry from the SFPA is unparalleled anywhere else in Europe. If we look at the landings data, between 2022 and 2024 in Killybegs there was a huge drop in landings, not just for Irish vessels but for foreign vessels. The foreign vessels are voting with their feet but the Irish vessels are going elsewhere too. They do not face the same crazy bureaucracy at harbours elsewhere in Europe as they face in Killybegs. It is really hurting the industry, as is the lack of a strategy, even the lack of honesty. The industry tells me the data published by Bord Iascaigh Mhara is no reflection of the decline of the industry. All you need to do is visit the harbours.”
“I congratulate the Leas-Cheann Comhairle on his election. I know the Minister's colleague, the soon-to-be Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, will be assuming responsibilities next week in respect of fisheries and the marine. I would like the Minister to note what I have to say and I will speak to the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, about this next week face to face. The scale of the crisis in our seafood industry is unparalleled in the history of the State. I spoke to one of the leading representatives of the industry today. I visited Killybegs Harbour a number of times, most recently late last year. I was shocked to see the decline of the industry. As the Minister knows, in that south-west area of Donegal they built up a pelagic industry that employed thousands of people. It is in serious decline.”
“The Lacey report is very relevant because Government has chosen to not take that recommendation and to go with this model. We will bring forward amendments in the Seanad and I hope the Minister of State will engage with us on the matter. I also want to follow up on something Deputy Michael Collins said about Michael Kingston. I ask the Minister of State to meet Mr. Kingston as soon as possible to discuss not only this matter, which will be before the Seanad soon, but also his representation with honour at an international level based on his own tragedy. As he has gone on to have a significant impact internationally, this country should be proud of him and we should be working with in partnership. We should not be threatened by anybody who calls out practices that need to change.”
“I want to revisit the Clinch report. My clear understanding is that this report has not been published and is not available. If it has been published in full, perhaps it could be emailed to the Deputies who are here at the moment - myself and Deputies Pa Daly and Michael Collins - but I am not aware of it being published. Regarding excerpts, we are talking about the report. The Oireachtas committee, which was an all-party committee, called for this report to be released because it was crucial to us as legislators in terms of making sure that this Bill was fit for purpose and it has been withheld. I am seeking clarification on that matter. Has the report been published in its entirety? If so, where can we find it? Will it be emailed to us?”
“I appreciate the Minister of State cannot answer that question tonight but I ask him to come back to me on it. Has the MCIB - the current body - investigated that death? My understanding is there have been 15 or 16 deaths among fishermen in the past 15 years. Has the MCIB investigated every single one of those deaths, whether they happened at a pier or harbour or at sea, or whether they were work-related? Has every single death been investigated? Are lessons being learned? I ask the Minister of State to provide clarification on that point, either now or after the debate.”
“Why has the Government not gone down that road and considered that? Why was that recommendation ignored? I have referred to the Captain Clinch report. I again request that the Minister of State ask why it is not being released. Why are we being denied access to that report, which would assist us to do our job as legislators? My understanding is it is an eminent report and the recommendations are important. I am the Sinn Féin spokesperson on fisheries and the marine. When a person loses their life in a fishing accident - a fisherman - it is very important that lessons are learned in order that another family does not have to endure loss. There was a recent tragic loss in Carlingford, County Louth, when Gearóid McMahon sadly lost his life. Is the MCIB investigating that matter? I do not know whether it is.”
“While much of it is applicable to some European directives, the State needs to embrace the agreement. I have repeatedly raised this issue in parliamentary questions, and repeatedly the Government has not embraced it. Why has it not done so? This is going to happen. It is an international agreement to which more and more states are signing up. Why is it not being embraced? Why is the spirit of the Cape Town Agreement not at the heart of this legislation? Why, after our State has been called out in the international scene, do we continue to make mistakes and not handle this properly? I wish to deal with the whole issue of an accident and investigation office which would examine and encompass aviation, rail and marine. Everything would be under the one roof. It was one of the recommendations put forward by Róisín Lacey in her report.”
“Incredibly, the Clinch report has been withheld. It would have been crucial to us as legislators in contributing to this Bill and tabling amendments but it was withheld. The Oireachtas committee supported the call for it to be published but that did not happen. I ask the Minister of State to look at the Lacey report and ask why the Clinch report is not being published. Perhaps it could be published now, in advance of the Bill going to the Seanad. As the Minister of State is aware, the intermingling of the Department of Transport over-reaching and not ensuring we had independent investigative procedures led to the European Court of Justice ruling against us. That is why we are here tonight. The Cape Town Agreement is the international framework relating to the safety of fishing vessels.”
“I appreciate the Minister of State is new to his role but I ask him to take on board what myself, Deputy Daly and other Deputies have said here tonight. The Bill will have to go before the Seanad and I ask the Minister of State to please listen and maybe make some changes in the Seanad to make this Bill work. Sadly, we cannot support this Bill as it is presented tonight. It is a missed opportunity. It is not what it should be. We hope that if we are listened to, we will be able to support the Bill when it comes before the Seanad and it will be a Bill we can embrace when that time comes. I should point out the history. Neither of the reports from Róisín Lacey or Captain Clinch have been acted upon. They were brought in as experts to talk to the stakeholders and make recommendations, but those reports were not acted upon.”
“I am visualising the movie "The Perfect Storm". Deputies might recall it is about fishermen and a terrible weather occurrence on the east coast of the United States. I remember how the search and rescue team was sent out. It was an incredible movie in how it conveyed the unbelievable danger people endure when they are sent out to save lives. This issue is huge. It could be argued that many people in Ireland have lost their lives unnecessarily in recent decades because lessons have not been learned. That is the importance of what we are dealing with. I made a Second Stage speech on the Bill and identified a range of areas where changes were needed. None of that has been listened to. There will be an opportunity to do so.”
“It has been a long, sorry journey to get to this point. It is such a pity this is a missed opportunity in many respects. The eminent maritime safety expert, Michael Kingston, has come before the Oireachtas committees, as well as other experts, and they have given their analysis and views. It appears that not much has been taken on board. In the case of Michael Kingston, as mentioned by my colleague, Deputy Daly, his father lost his life in the Whiddy Island disaster. That has clearly motivated him to try to stop other families from enduring the same cruelty, unnecessary cruelty in many instances. It is about learning the lessons of tragedies and ensuring they are not repeated. It is about ensuring the necessary awareness and training is available for people who are sent out and put in harm's way to save lives.”
“Ag insint bréag arís. This is like Alice in Wonderland again. Michael Lowry is in the Opposition and "ag insint bréag arís" apparently does not actually mean "You are lying again" now. We have this continual demeaning of the Ceann Comhairle's office. We have repeatedly requested statements from the leader of Fine Gael. Fine Gael Ministers demanded accountability of leaders in this Dáil in the last term. They demanded statements in the Dáil. Their silence is deafening right now. Where are the statements from the leader of Fine Gael about the Senator Martin Conway affair? How can we not get the leader of Fine Gael, the Tánaiste, to come into this House to answer questions? Will the Taoiseach finally tell us why he demanded accountability of everybody else except for Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil leaders when controversies arise?”
“The Taoiseach was asked a question by Deputy Keogh from Mayo, one of the counties affected by defective concrete blocks. I received a reply to a parliamentary recently from the Minister for housing, which confirms that under the pyrite remediation scheme, almost 3,000 families in Dublin and north Leinster received 100% redress under a State-run scheme, and absolutely rightly so. Why are families and homeowners in counties Donegal, Mayo, Sligo, Limerick and Clare treated like second-class citizens? Why do they have to find tens of thousands of euro, in some cases more than €100,000, to make their homes safe through a grant scheme? When will the Government change the scheme to make sure all citizens who are victims of these scandals are treated equally and fairly across the State?”
“What we have asked for is basic decency for every Irish citizen who was failed by the light-touch regulation or absence of regulation and the close relationship between the State and the construction industry, particularly those who manufactured concrete blocks and concrete products. There is a plan for a review of the scheme. I am again asking the Government to, please, do justice and give equality to people, no matter where they live. If you are a victim, you should get the same treatment no matter where in Ireland you live.”
“They have to find contractors and the prices they are being given in the grant never match up to what it will actually cost. They have to replace their own foundations if the house has to be knocked down. They have to navigate all sorts of schemes. What has happened is that the vast majority of affected homeowners are giving up. Many of them are at an older stage of life and they are living in unsafe homes. This is a profound injustice. Why would you treat victims of a scandal who live in the west of Ireland - Mayo, Sligo, Clare, Limerick or my home county of Donegal - any differently from the victims on the east coast? Is it because of money? Are we in a situation now where you get justice, but only if it costs a certain amount of money?”
“I received a response to a parliamentary question today. I probably knew the answer, but it does not make for good reading. I asked for the number of families in Dublin and north Leinster who have availed of the pyrite remediation scheme to date. The answer is that almost 3,000 families have availed of the scheme. I asked what contribution they had to make to that scheme, and the answer was none. That is right and proper. They were victims of a scandal, and have been rightly compensated and their homes made safe by the State. In my home county of Donegal, many families will pay over €100,000 to make their homes safe. Those affected do not get redress or justice; instead, they get a grant scheme. They have to go out and make a square peg fit into a round hole.”
“I propose that we suspend the Dáil and convene an urgent meeting of the Business Committee to deal with the outrageous proposition that the Dáil will not return next week and that 39 TDs in Sinn Féin will be allocated ten minutes - the same as your Government's group in opposition. Michael Lowry is a member of the Opposition.”