Thomas Gould
Cork North-Central · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“I stand here in the shadow of Cork men and women who fought and died for Irish freedom. I think today of Mary MacSwiney, who went from her brother's deathbed to this Dáil. She was the true embodiment of a rebel. When we talk about the cost of Irish unity, Mary MacSwiney also spoke about the cost of Irish freedom in the Dáil.”
“The truth is the Six Counties have been economically trapped and cannot reach their full potential under Britain. If these economies were to grow like Cork and Galway, they would be a net positive financial impact on Irish unity.”
“The difference that Irish unity could make is much more tangible for them now. Ireland unfree shall never be at peace. I want to send a message to all of those young people. The cost of unity is the cost of their future. It is the cost of the life they could build here.”
“I welcome the debate today. Ireland has a proud history and tradition of myths and legends, from Cú Chulainn to Tír na nÓg to the Children of Lír, which have passed down through the generations. However, the latest myth and legend some people are telling is far more damaging. There are people who claim that we cannot afford Irish unity.”
“Professor Seamus McGuinness of the ESRI clearly stated that FitzGerald's hypotheses were based on a scenario that could never happen. Do you know what that reminds me of? For years, when we talked about climate change, climate change deniers were rolled out to give their opinions, even though all the science was against them.”
“The Minister of State referred to the new 90-minute fares and the fact that people can tap on and tap off. I want to let her know that the fare is €1.90 but next week, it will be €2.40. That is a 26% increase in the fare. How can that be justified?”
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“The Minister has said the Government will do something and then tried to blame local authorities, the council and residents. The Minister is trying to blame everyone. He is the Minister and is part of the Government. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have never given a damn about working class people or cared about people who live in flats because they never voted for them. They have abandoned and betrayed them for years. I live on Cathedral Road. Behind me is Mary Aikenhead. The houses are freezing cold. In Blackpool, Castleknock or Baker's Road, there are freezing cold homes. What is the Minister doing? He is blaming everyone instead of doing his job.”
“It does not matter if it is winter or summer; the flats are cold all year round because they have not been retrofitted or regenerated. The Minister has come in with facts and figures. Deputy McDonald and I asked the Minister, to come to the flats in the inner cities of Dublin and Cork to see what people have to put up with. I have been in some flat complexes in Dublin and met residents and it is the same in Cork. The conditions are horrendous. These are proud people from proud communities who keep their houses immaculate. They try to do everything right but if the windows are falling out, the doors are loose and there is no insulation or proper heating, what are they supposed to do? Some of these flats are 80 or 90 years old.”
“I recently undertook a housing survey across the State. There is more information in it than in everything the Minister or Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, said earlier because these are the facts. I will give the Minister a few facts. Some 83% of people said they had maintenance issues with black mould all over their houses. Some 77% of people said they had damp. They are major issues. Black mould, damp and cold in homes can do damage to people, including young people, people with asthma, people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD, and people with disabilities. Dublin City Council and other city councils are trying to increase rents. People have to leave their heating on constantly and Ministers have said summer is coming.”
“They add that everyday expenses like those related to food, rent and bills are becoming overwhelming, and despite working hard, it feels like there is no real support available. I have a list of people crying out for support. The Minister needs to do more.”
“If we are serious, the Minister has a job of work to do now. Over 300,000 people are in arrears on their energy bills. The Minister for energy has announced that there will be a 9% rise in energy prices, so more and more people will go into arrears. What is the plan? Has the Minister devised a plan in his Department to support affected people and let them know support exists? The fuel allowance ends today. In the next week, we will see temperatures drop to 5°C. What about those people who are going to struggle, who cannot afford to turn on their heating? It is going to be cold and the fuel allowance is to end. Let me put on the record the view of a 21-year-old who is trying to pay rent. The person says the cost of living has reached a point where it feels impossible to get ahead.”
“We know from information that came out this week that over 300,000 people are in energy arrears. The ESRI found today that more than one in ten households cannot afford a warm home. How do these figures match with that? They just do not.”
“Go raibh maith agat. I would have preferred to have the information in front of me so I could have gone through it. There has been a reduction of 40 payments made between 2025 and 2026, if what the Minister has said is correct. I find that unbelievable. More and more people are coming to my office every week in urgent need - people in debt, whether in arrears on electricity or on gas; people who have had a car break down and do not have the money to fix it; people who are struggling to pay for confirmations and communions at this time of year. For it to be less, that is a failure of the Government to let people know the payment is there. There are just over 1,000 people availing of the scheme in Cork; that is only a fraction of the people who are in trouble.”
“Will the Minister provide an update on the number of applications for urgent needs payments in Cork for the first three months of the years 2019, 2025 and 2026, by category of application and the numbers approved, in tabular form?”
“Most days, the Taoiseach and I fight and argue about policy and politics. Today, is not one of those days. I come in here today to speak on behalf of Craig Coady. He had a family, a wife and two sons. His wife now is in long-term hospitalisation. She has Huntington's disease. They buried their 13-year-old son Rory, who died as a result of Friedreich's ataxia. Their second son Paudie, who is 15 years old, is dying of the same disease. Skyclarys is not a perfect medicine. It is not a cure, but it has been shown repeatedly to have clinical benefits in slowing the disease. I am asking that under the compassionate access programme, as happens in France, this drug be provided to Paudie.”
“People come to me who have come out of treatment and are in recovery. They cannot get access to their children because they do not have suitable accommodation. They do not have a home. Their children are being left in foster care although Tusla say they could go with their parents or mother if they had a home.”
“If someone does not step in and provide aftercare and help for her now, what is going to be her future? The treatment of children and young people shows that the system puts rules, regulation and bureaucracy ahead of children. How can that be right? The system - from the courts to the care system - is not designed with children and young people at its core, as they should be. We do not need to look any further than the special emergency care arrangements for proof of this. We are talking about children being placed in unregulated, unsuitable bed and breakfast accommodation, hotels and rental accommodation. How in the name of God is that right in this day and age? Deputy Kerrane has described these as modern-day mother and baby homes. She is correct because they are. It is a case of out of sight, out of mind for these children.”
“I welcome the opportunity to speak on these very important issues. The reality is that State is failing vulnerable children. A lady contacted me in my clinic on Monday. She was in foster care the majority of her life. For a short period when she was 17, she tried to go back home and rebuild a relationship with her mother but this did not work out and she went back into residential care. When she turned 18, she was told there was no aftercare service for her. For the majority of this young lady's life she has been in care. Now at 21, she has been homeless for three years. I could not believe it when talking to this young woman on Monday that for her whole life, she has been in foster care, residential care, and now in homeless accommodation, with no support. The State has abandoned this young woman.”
“The Minister's speech here in my hand outlines all the Government is doing. I will tell her what it is doing. There are children who have no school places, and that is the Government's responsibility.”
“It is illegal what this Government and what Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have been doing to these children for years. This did not happen today or yesterday. For six years I have come in here every year fighting for children. I see mothers who have to be like warriors outside the doors of Leinster House and who walk the streets of Cork and Dublin and every town and village looking for places for their children. How can that be right? Every child has a right to an education. It states in the 1916 Proclamation that "all the children of the nation" will be treated equally. It does not say "except if you have additional needs", "except if you have a disability" or "except if you are autistic". Every child should be treated the same. I come in here and listen to Ministers.”
“On the 13th of this month a boy in my constituency turned six. Boys and girls his age organise parties, but there was no one to come to his party, only his family. He has been without a school place for a year. I contacted the NCSE about him last August and still he has no school place. It is nearly May and they still do not know whether he will have a school place in August. He is not alone; there are hundreds of other children like him. Every single year children - boys and girls - are forced to watch their friends, their family and their neighbours go down the road in their school uniforms with their schoolbags on their backs while they are left at home. It is a sin. It is a sin on these poor children to be left at home without a school place. Not alone is it a sin; it is illegal.”
“If clubs from working-class areas or clubs from areas that are not as socially successful as others do not get all the funding they request, they will not be able to deliver the projects. That needs to be taken into consideration. We know that when kids are playing sports, especially kids from disadvantaged areas, it makes a huge difference to the outcomes in their lives. We are very proud of the women who won the other night. Denise O'Sullivan from my community is a true leader and role model for everyone. The soccer boys did us proud. We should not be playing any games with Israel and I stand by Joanna Byrne 100%.”
“That shows that Cork is not being supported the way it should be, and I believe the figure nationally is way too low. It affects the smaller clubs. There is a club in my community, Knocknaheeny Celtic. Over the last year it has had no dressing rooms. Through work by local councillors, Michelle Gould and Kenneth Collins, Cork City Council and Ross O'Callaghan, the club now has temporary accommodation, but it has no fencing. We are trying to get more people playing soccer but the smaller clubs in the most disadvantaged areas are always the ones that lose out the most. Four soccer clubs on the northside of Cork city applied for funding in 2023. Not one of them got the full allocation. I will explain.”
“Five other houses were damaged. Soccer teams are coming together - Pearse Celtic and Greenwood FC - and on Friday night they are staging the game as a fundraiser. That shows how soccer is at the heart of local communities. I wish them the very best with that. I want to talk about the amount of clubs in my area. It is unbelievable. There is Castleview AFC, Temple United FC, Rockmount AFC, St. Mary's AFC, Mayfield United AFC, Blackstone Rovers FC. My problem is that if I start naming them I am going to miss some, like Blarney United FC and Ballincollig AFC. There are so many, but they need support. I will give the Minister of State some figures because sometimes it comes down to figures and funding. Cork received, on average, €50 per capita in sports funding in 2023. That is €20 less per capita than the national average.”
“I am standing here as a GAA person. However, in my community I see the power and the work that soccer teams, soccer clubs and soccer coaches have done. I have seen over the last 40 years how the number one sport in Cork was hurling. The number one sport now in Cork is soccer. There are a number of reasons for that but I have seen it taking off. The amount of young people playing the game is unbelievable but some of the sporting facilities are horrendous. They are shocking. How this Government has failed soccer over the years is wrong. I look at the community in soccer and how important it is. This Friday night there is the Togher el clásico . It is a soccer game that has been organised. I send my sincere condolences to the family of Eileen O'Leary following her tragic passing. She was buried this week. What happened was a real tragedy.”
“Why must I come in here every week to stand up for the northside? Heather House has been built and the funding is supposed to be there. The Minister mentioned units at St. Finbarr's and in Midleton. I do not think they will be open before the end of the year. The Minister of State has said they will be opening and that those beds will be available but I have fierce doubts about that.”
“This unit is at the top of Gurranabraher, right next to Church Street. The family are saying they want to bring him home or as close to home as they can. For too long, the HSE and HIQA have not been giving answers or a date. I want a date so I can go back to the people of the northside. I could fill that dementia unit. Does the Minister of State see this notebook I am holding? It contains the details of people who could enter this dementia unit. I could fill the whole unit with people who are looking to get into it. I appreciate what the Minister of State is saying but we need a definite timeline for the opening of the unit. People on the northside are sick and tired of being the last to get anything and the first to lose services. Why is it that the northside must always fight?”
“I appreciate that the Minister of State has said he is going to look into this personally but I am really disappointed because four years on it is still not open. The 25 beds in the nursing home are also really important but people with dementia are really vulnerable. They are scattered around nursing homes all over County Cork when there is a purpose-built nursing home at Heather House. I was hoping that the Minister of State would be able to give me a date today. Regardless of whether it is June, July or August, I would like to have a date for those families. There is one gentleman who is in a special unit at Cork University Hospital because there is nowhere for him to go. His family are afraid that he is going to die in hospital. He comes from the area. He comes from Church Street.”
“HIQA was asked in January and it came back to the HSE four months later. Is there a reason that Heather House is not being opened? We have people with dementia in inappropriate settings. This is the unit that was designed and built for them. That is where they should be. I am not sure if the Minister of State understands the situation. We need compassion from the Government, the HSE and HIQA. We need to get this nursing home open. There is a huge crisis with nursing home spaces on the northside of Cork city. People from the northside are going all over Cork county to get nursing home spaces.”
“We do not have answers. I have another gentleman who is in Ballincollig. His sister and his two granddaughters try to get in to see him. The girls are working. His sister is looking after the family. Heather House is from here over to Dawson Street away from where those families live. There is also another family. We were successful in saving Mount Cara. I was also involved with successful campaigns to make sure that Sarsfield Court dementia unit and nursing home was not closed down. It is really important that we get Heather House dementia unit open. The thing about it is that it is a brand new purpose-built building that cost millions. It is ready. It is unbelievable - we are looking at a building that is ready. It is fully equipped. What I cannot understand is how after four years HIQA is now coming back looking for more to be done.”
“Cloyne nursing home is doing a great job but this lady and her family are all from the northside of Cork city. The lady has dementia, and what the staff tell the family is that on the days when they go out to visit her they can see an improvement in her. The problem is that she has two elderly sisters who do not drive. She has family, but they have their own families and jobs. Cloyne is a fair spin from the northside of Cork city. We are talking about 45 minutes, depending on traffic, and it could be even longer. If Heather House was open they would be in to her every day, sometimes multiple times a day. Family members and other family friends who live in the community could also call in. People should get nursing home care in their communities. That goes to the heart of looking after older and more vulnerable people.”
“As the Minister of State and I both know, a 19-bed unit in Heather House was first announced in 2022. Four years later this special dementia unit has not been opened and all we are getting is excuse after excuse and no date for when it will be open. The latest update from the HSE is that following HIQA's inspection, it is now looking to make amendments to the building. There is still no opening time. I was told in response to a parliamentary question last October that this was ready to go. I was told it again in November and in December. Then I was told that all the Government was waiting for was a licence from HIQA to open it. I want to outline to the Minister of State just how serious the situation is with the special dementia unit not being opened. I have a lady who is living in the nursing home in Cloyne.”
“There were fellas who could not afford to go to work because it was costing them more to work than they were making. This Government has betrayed the people. When the show "Reeling in the Years" is on in years to come this will be remembered as the night Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Lowry Independents put themselves ahead of the people of Ireland, but the people of Ireland will not rest until they are gone out of government. They should be gone. They should hang their heads in shame. They should stand up and be counted. If the Minister of State believes the Government is right, let us have an election because the Government will be run out the door.”
“They were told in Kerry that if they voted for this, they should not come back to Kerry. I tell the Government's members that if they keep going with what they are doing, not one of them will be back here after the next election. They have betrayed the people. They have put the interests of the party ahead of the people. How can that be right? In the last budget the Government gave nearly €700 million to speculators on apartments that were already profitable when people cannot put a roof over their heads and thousands of children are in homeless accommodation. I was talking to a man on the train up today. He, his wife and child came up here to protest. He said "Tommy, we never go to protests. Where is the future for my child? Where is the future for my family?" That is what people are saying. I was down in east Cork and met people.”
“Shame on them tonight. Shame on them for what they have done to the people. They have driven people to barriers and out to protest. They have united the people against this Government, against fuel taxes, against driving people into poverty and against driving people into being cold and hungry. How is it that a person can work all week long and have no money left at the end of it? The reason is that Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Independents are more interested in looking after themselves. What happened here tonight will be remembered. People will not forget what the Government has done. If its members think this is over, I can tell them it is not. The people's voices will be heard. We saw the Healy-Raes broke ranks tonight because they heard it in Kerry.”
“The first thing I want to say is that I am really disappointed in the Labour Party and the Social Democrats tonight and how they voted. I cannot believe they voted with the Government and against Sinn Féin when we tried to bring down the price of fuel and home heating oil. We are supposed to be united together in opposition against the Government. We stood against it, and we voted that we did not have any confidence in it. We stood and did that together. At the same time, the Social Democrats and the Labour Party break and vote with the Government tonight. It is unbelievable on a night when the Government betrayed the people of Ireland. The people were betrayed in this Chamber tonight with the vote of confidence in this Government because no one outside Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael and those Independents have confidence.”
“It is hard to imagine the heartbreak people had when they heard apartments were going to be built on this site. I take my final moment to thank those who have made sure that Zoei, John and every other baby in Bessborough will never be forgotten. In particular, I mention Carmel Cantwell, whose fight for William has shown what an excellent sister she is. There is a vigil there every summer. I encourage anyone to go to it to listen to the stories of the people, the mothers and the children, of Bessborough.”
“I object on behalf of Zoei and John and all of the hundreds of babies who have had their chance of dignity in life and in death robbed from them. I object on behalf of Nellie Sweetman, who was 86, when she died after decades in Bessborough, and Josephine Larkin, who was only 20 when she died of shock after extensive burns on her body. The mother and baby homes commission of investigation did not use all means necessary, and neither Cork City Council nor An Coimisiún Pleanála can see the results of the investigation. That is wrong. How can a decision be made without seeing the investigation? Planning should never have been approved, and it must now be refused. The Government should CPO this site and carry out the investigations. I attended a vigil recently and the level of upset was just indescribable.”
“People use the phrase, "to sweep it under the carpet", about Ireland's approach to mother and baby homes throughout the 20th century. Now, instead of sweeping it under the carpet, it is going to be swept underneath apartment blocks and concrete. How can that be right? What is planned is wrong and must not go ahead. This Government must step in. The solution is to properly investigate where these babies are buried, to find their graves and to give them peace in death. We will make a submission to appeal the planning permission granted. I want to say strongly here on the Dáil record that I object to it. I object to any development on this site until all investigative means have been used to identify where every child and mother is buried.”
“The State owes it to them to make sure that does not happen. They were not given dignity in life, but they should at least be given dignity in death. Over 923 children died. There are 64 graves. Only 64 have been found. It is hard to wrap your head around the number of children, babies and mothers who died in Bessborough. It is unbelievable. Three children died on this date, 26 March, over the years. There was John Coughlan, one month old, who died in 1923; Kieran Lennon, who was six months old and who died in 1945; and Vincent Joseph Finn, who was two days old when he died in 1959. There are no graves to visit them today to remember them and no headstones to mourn them. There is no dignity in their death. The atrocities inflicted on them in life, continue in their death.”
“Some 18,000 women and children went through or spent time in Bessborough. It closed in 1998. This is not just a historical wrongdoing; it is a modern one right up to today. There are people who still bear the scars and the trauma. To give a feel of it, John O'Brien died on 3 November 1922. He was ten months old. He was a young little baby, who was probably laughing and able to clap and what have you. He was the first child to die in Bessborough. Zoei Bonny died on 10 August 1994. She would have been 32 this year. She was only two days old and she was the last baby to die in Bessborough. From John to Zoei, 921 other children died on that site. I do not have the time here, unfortunately, to name each and every one of those children, but the stories of Zoei, John and all those whose lives were lost too soon cannot be erased from history.”
“A young girl who is going to college said to me yesterday that she is going walk to college because she will not have the money to put diesel in her car. She is going to college and working part time. There are pensioners who are putting extra cardigans on and people who are walking because this Government failed to deliver.”
“Forget about writing to them; drag them in here and tell them no more price gouging because price gouging is the same as robbing ordinary workers and people. The minute the war started, they put up the prices even though the price of oil and diesel had not gone up. What is the Minister doing? People are struggling and the Government is giving people crumbs off the table. The Minister needs to get energy companies in here. We have the highest electricity bills in Europe and over 300,000 people in arrears. Does the Minister know what is going to happen on the back of his announcement? More families are going to go into arrears on their electricity and gas bills and people are going to be cold because they will not have money to fill their tanks with home heating oil. People are struggling.”
“Today, 500 litres of home heating oil in Cork cost €900. That is less than half a tank. What the Government has proposed is a €10 cut. How insulting is that? The Minister is an intelligent man. Does he not think that this is insulting to people who are struggling to keep the heating on? Does he accept this is not good enough? If he does not accept it, I cannot believe him. The way the Minister is treating people with home heating oil is horrendous. There are people, especially older people, who are afraid to turn on the heating because they do not know how they are going to pay their bills. The Minister came in here earlier and said the Government is going to write to the energy companies.”
“We have some of the greatest doctors and nurses, if we had enough of them. My final point is this. I had Irish doctors and nurses along with doctors from Pakistan, India, Hong Kong, Africa and all over the world. I remember lying in bed in the middle of the night and the people would be coming in with smiles on their faces and it did not matter what colour their skin was or where they were from. The treatment was brilliant; it is just that we need more of it.”
“I was not scared but my wife Michelle, and my daughters Aoife and Orlaith, my sisters, my dad and my extended family, they always feel it. For anyone with cancer, their family feel it more than them. That is why this is such an important motion that Deputy Cullinane has brought here today. It a really important piece of work because everyone deserves to have the opportunity to live as long as they can and to spend as much time as they can with their family. This is just a simple thing: in CUH last year, €3 million was collected from parking fees. A lot of that is from families of patients going to see them. I remember a lady who had skin cancer and she could not get a medical card. There should be no barriers to health. I just want to say to people who are going through the journey, I know it can be scary but have hope.”
“I stand here today as a cancer survivor. A year and a half ago, I was diagnosed with bowel cancer and had to have a tumor removed. Then I had to wait a space of time so that I could get chemotherapy, which went on for over six months. I know that it will be years before I can say I am free from cancer. I know that and I am not counting my chickens. However, I want to send out a thank-you to all the doctors, nurses and staff, who are so professional and caring. The work they do is just unbelievable. I met patients in the hospital while I was getting chemotherapy. I was struck by the humanity when I was going through the treatment. For some people, treatment delayed can be a death sentence. I had stage 3B, which is right on the edge.”
“At the same time, this Government is giving data centres electricity for half price. Families are struggling. In the name of God, will the Government do this today and give the people the hope they need now?”
“He did nothing for three weeks. He has done nothing. This is in his remit. We have workers and families who have to use a car to get to work, college, hospital and school because governments never put in the rail infrastructure and the bus service is not dependable. Then the Government says it is going to help with its taxes. We are not in a cost-of-living crisis because it is a cost-of-living emergency now. People cannot pay their bills. What is the Government saying? The Minister and others say they will monitor it and look at it. The Minister just said they are going to analyse it. The Government should forget about analysing it and look after the people who cannot turn on their electricity. There are pensioners who will not turn on the heating in their houses because they are afraid they do not have the money to pay the bills.”
“I thank my colleague, Deputy Doherty, and the party for bringing forward this emergency motion and legislation, because we are trying to bring hope. We are trying to bring hope to the families out there who are absolutely struggling and are out of their minds with worry about how they are going to fill their car and buy heating oil. We are trying to be constructive and bring forward solutions. I just heard the Minister say, and virtually all the TDs on the Government side say, that we are not going to have a knee-jerk reaction. A knee-jerk reaction would have been two weeks ago. We are nearly three weeks into this crisis and the Government has brought forward nothing. Does the Minister know what happened on the first day of this crisis? Prices went up on petrol, on diesel and home heating oil. He is the Minister and what did he do?”
“We will support his legislation but we flag that we have some concerns. The way the State treated wards of the State in the past was absolutely appalling. We need to do everything to ensure and make possible that they are heard, protected and supported. Will the Minister of State re-engage with those who are raising genuine concerns to make sure they are listened to and that we do not make mistakes? Everyone is in agreement that this a really important Bill and we need to get it right. We need to get it right for that boy that I referred to and for his mother, Liz, given what she and her family have suffered.”
“He is a 17 year-old child, but the problem is that in three weeks, he will be 18. Who will look after him then? Who will be responsible given he has such complex needs? To see their beautiful son and brother go through this has caused heartbreak for his mother and family. It is so hard. Will the Minister of State step in with regard to what we are discussing? Will she also talk to Tusla and the HSE? More needs to be done to protect vulnerable children like this young boy. Facilities for vulnerable people are closed. In my constituency, we have a brand new dementia centre in Heather House. All it is waiting for is to be registered by HIQA. Everything is done. I have at least ten people who will go in there and, again, these are vulnerable people. Will the Minister of State find out when Heather House will open?”
“There were nights when I heard her cry. She told me she was a broken woman due to what she suffered. This system is flawed because to get him to court, he had to go to child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS. CAMHS would see him, but he would not engage with them and did not go. After much campaigning and fighting by his mother, she eventually got her son in front a judge and the judge sectioned him. He then went missing seven times in 21 days while he was on a court-ordered mental health hold. How can facilities not be equipped to manage and mind a 17-year-old boy who could be a danger to himself? He section just ended on Monday. He got an emergency discharge, but who is responsible for him? He went missing on Tuesday. His mother contacted An Garda Síochána and officers found him at 12 midnight on Tuesday.”
“There are serious concerns with the Bill. As is often the case with the Government, it waits until the last minute to try to rush through legislation. The concerns raised by academics and service providers need to be listened to. The University of Galway has raised concerns about the treatment of minors, the lack of meaningful engagement and the criteria for extending timelines. I want to raise concerns about the treatment of minors in this State when they are held involuntarily either as wards of court or through the mental health system. As often is the case, the State lets down the most vulnerable and those with the most complex needs. I am supporting a mother whose son was in the care of the State. She fought tooth and nail to have him held under the Mental Health Act 2001. This was heartbreaking.”
“We see buildings being left idle and communities left abandoned. Some of my colleagues spoke about the 257 post offices which closed in the past ten years but 34 were in Cork alone, the biggest number in any county, with 22 rural and 12 urban post offices. The Ministers came in here to tell us what they are doing. They slashed the post offices in Cork. The people in communities, both urban and rural, are feeling it. This Government, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Healy-Rae Independents and the Lowry Independents are backing the destruction of the post offices in this State.”
“In 2022 there was an announcement that Blarney post office was going to close but following a campaign by the local people in Blarney and meetings organised by myself and people in Sinn Féin, a man named Daniel came forward and he saved the post office and turned it around. I want to recognise the unbelievable work he and his staff have done and the people of Blarney. However, in 2018 the post office in Shandon Street, not 100 yd from my office, closed down. Promised were made that they would save Shandon Street post office. The building in the heart of Shandon Street in the heart of Cork city is derelict now. In Blackpool, another post office was closed. It was a miracle it was reopened but in the shopping centre. For villages and communities like Blackpool this is death by a thousand cuts.”