Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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I propose that the petitions considered by the committee at this meeting and previous meetings may be published, and that the replies from the Departments and other bodies may be published. Is that agreed? Agreed.

We have four petitions for consideration. The first is P00002/24 and is entitled "Fairness for Existing Work Permit Holders: We want to stay and contribute". It was submitted by Mr. Ka Wai Ho and reads as follows:

As an individual deeply affected by the recent change in the minimum salary requirement for General Employment Permits, I am seeking your support through this petition. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has announced an increase to €39,000, effective from January 2025. This sudden and significant increase has left many permit holders, including myself, facing an uncertain future in Ireland.

While I understand and respect the government's need to regulate in the best interest of the nation, I am deeply concerned about the potential impact this change could have on my life and the lives of many others. We have made Ireland our home, contributing to its economic growth and societal diversity.

This petition is not in opposition to the policy change, but rather a plea for consideration for those of us who are existing permit holders. The prospect of potentially having to leave the country due to not meeting the new salary requirement is deeply unsettling.

I urge the government to consider a transition plan or a grandfather clause for existing permit holders, allowing those of us who have been contributing to Irish society to continue to do so without fear of displacement.

I kindly request your support in this matter. Your signature can help ensure that my voice, and the voices of others in my situation, are heard. Thank you for your consideration.

Before submitting this petition, the petitioner reached out to the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, expressing his concerns about the new minimum salary requirement for general employment permits and he asked for clarification on whether this change will apply to existing permit holders. The petitioner has contacted all local Wexford TDs, seeking their assistance and guidance on this matter. He says that these actions demonstrate his commitment to resolving this issue through open communication and dialogue with relevant parties. He goes on to say that he has made sincere efforts to understand the implications of the new policy, to seek clarifications, and to explore possible solutions within his professional environment.

The background to this is that a response was received from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, which was forwarded to the petitioner for comment. The petitioner replied and the secretariat forwarded the correspondence from the petitioner to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for comment and received a response.

The recommendation is that the correspondence from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment be forwarded to the petitioner for comment within 14 days. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Next is P00036/24, "Action needed for derelict buildings in Youghal, County Cork", from Ms Irene Karrouze. It states:

Many of you will know my parents have lived at 31 Friar Street for the past 52 years, they take pride in their house and maintain it to a good standard. They have worked hard, pay their taxes including their property tax. They are adjoined to 30 Friar Street, once a historical building now vacant and left to ruin. Living next to a derelict building has a very negative impact if you are attached. 30 Friar Street has no roof therefore the weather is causing the interior of the building to collapse causing damp and infestation of rodents especially in the winter months. Going to bed every night not knowing if the wall your bed is against may collapse is very stressful for my parents. This is compounded by the concerns over the potential danger to pedestrians if the beam collapses and falls through one of the front windows onto Friar Street. My father has asked the town hall councillors for help over this matter for over three years. As there has been no action to remedy any of the safety concerns he has asked me to help. Since January 2023 we have contacted the Councillors at Youghal town hall, the Garda station, requested freedom of information (FOI), Ombudsman, Director of service, East Cork Municipal District officer, CEO Cork County Council. Ireland has a Derelict site act and a Local government (Sanitary Services) Act 1964 that can be served on behalf of the Town council to ensure the safety of buildings to prevent public liability. A notice was served to the owner of 30 Friar Street in September 2022 with 8 weeks to respond. The owners of the property did not respond to the request. My parents were told that under Tort law it is their responsibility for the upkeep of their property and to go after the owners themselves if the property is causing a nuisance! However, the Director of Service has promised some remedial work but this has not happened. We have 100 vacant properties in Youghal and about 9 could be defined as derelict. Without the support of the Town Hall to use the law to protect this town and its residents these buildings are going to become liabilities for all and health and safety hazards for those in close proximity. As we have failed to progress this matter using all avenues available to us, resulting in no signs of a resolution or progress in any form, could we please ask for your help and support? 30 Friar Street is at risk of further deterioration and potential collapse in the coming months. The facade of the building is listed due to its historic interest. There are likely many other buildings across our town with similar fates. If you think that Cork County Council should prioritise the plight of derelict buildings, could you please sign this petition as putting pressure on this issue may support my parents and the health and safety risks, they inevitability face as the building continues to deteriorate.

Before submitting her petition, the petitioner went through all the usual avenues, starting with home insurance, logging it with the Garda station, local council, director of service and the CEO of Cork County Council, submitting an FOI request, contacting the owners and the Ombudsman and posting on social media. A story on the matter was published in a national newspaper.

The background is that the secretariat wrote to Cork County Council seeking a response, which was then forwarded to the petitioner for comment. The petitioner sent in a response.

The recommendation is that the correspondence from the petitioner be forwarded to Cork County Council for comment within 14 days. Do members have any views, or is that agreed?

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Yes, Chair, I want to make a brief comment. I know the building and it is an eyesore. In fairness to this lady, she has ticked every box that she is supposed to and she does not seem to be getting any help, at any angle. We are the petitions committee - the last resort. Could we also write to the relevant Minister and flag this lady's case? We need to find out, once and for all, who is actually responsible for it. If they have already made contact with the owners of that derelict building and no progress is being made, then surely there is either a criminal procedure there or there is a major health and safety incident that could happen. I can understand that it causes mental distress when that is a supporting wall for the other house. Would it be okay for the committee to flag it up with the relevant Minister as well as Cork County Council? We need to find out who is actually responsible for this. We should at least get an answer for the petitioner in order that she will know where to go. There has to be some kind of repercussion here. If people do not engage with the authorities, that property will go from an eyesore to a very dangerous building. That is when the crop will hit the fan, when nobody will be accountable for somebody getting hurt or killed.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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I agree. It is crazy that a family is living under that kind of pressure. The Derelict Sites Act 1990 and the Local Government (Sanitary Services) Act 1964 can be applied in this case. Surely someone in the county council or the Department should be able to identify who owns the site. They should be forced to take measures to make it safe. Health and safety seems to be a big issue there.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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There could be issues with preservation orders and so on. We have a Department that looks after that as well.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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I second the Deputy's proposal that we write to the Department and Cork County Council to try to get answers for the petitioner. Is that agreed? Agreed.

P00048/24, "Request for an Oireachtas committee to consider extensions to maternity, adoptive, paternity, parental and parents leave in the case of multiple births", is from Mr. Christopher McCann. The petition states:

I request the referral to an appropriate Oireachtas Committee to proactively consider extensions to current entitlements in relation to maternity, adoptive, paternity, parental and parents leave in the case of multiple births. Ireland has no material provisions in place in the event that a family has multiple births to support caring responsibilities. Many other European countries have provisions including the Netherlands, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland and Spain.

In 2023, the HSE began publicly funded fertility treatment services. Statistically, women who undergo fertility treatment have multiple pregnancies (twins, triplets, or higher-order multiples) at a significantly higher rate than women who conceive naturally. Studies quote ranges as high as 40% of fertility treatment related pregnancies resulting in multiple births compared to the natural occurrence rate of 2% in the general population. Research in this area outlines significantly higher levels of financial hardship in the case of multiple births and that twins and triplets experienced higher levels of material deprivation, and their families are more likely to separate or divorce. There is a realisable opportunity for the State to significantly strengthen protections/entitlements (with relatively minimal cost to the Exchequer) and to become an exemplar in this area.

Before submitting the petition, Mr. McCann attempted to contact the relevant Ministers and Departments. The secretariat wrote to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth seeking a response advising of its views within 14 days and received a response from it on 26 June 2024.

The committee recommends that we publish the response from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and that the correspondence from that Department be forwarded to the petitioner for comment within 14 days. Do members have any views, or is that agreed? Agreed.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I would be interested to see what comes back.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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P00049/24 on “Reform Irish Laws on Pet Theft” is from Ms Lisa O'Connor. It states:

On the 21st of July 2020 James Browne TD made a statement on his Facebook page where it was stated his office was preparing legislation to make it a more serious offence to steal a companion pet. Nearly 4 years later there has been no movement on this. In the words of Deputy James Browne 21st July 2020 - “Currently the theft of a pet is treated by the law as the very same as stealing a deck chair. Yet, the theft of a pet can have a devastating effect on its owners and their family. This should be reflected in the sanction given out for such a theft. Where the theft is of therapy or support dog there should be an even greater sanction.”

Dogs and other companion pets are still being stolen daily in Ireland. The theft of a pet needs its own classification and adequate punishment. Pet theft is a LOW RISK/ HIGH REWARD CRIME. I’m really concerned to the fact that the Junior Minister James Browne Stated in 2020 that his office was preparing legislation and now nothing.

My group on Facebook is Missing/Stolen Animals Ireland with just over 13,000 concerned members. Every day I share dogs that have been stolen around Ireland. Families left with little or no where to turn and little or no accountability for these criminal acts against their much-loved family members. I’ve also attached various statements made by Junior Minister James Browne in 2020. Dog theft may have reduced since 2020 but it’s still happening and unfortunately in the past couple of weeks it seems to be on the rise again. Just last week a female dog was lifted out of her garden in Co. Kildare and thrown into a jeep. It was caught on CCTV and through the heat of sharing on social media, the dog was dumped miles from home the next day. She was found by a passer-by and reunited with her family. The thieves were never caught and will probably do this again. So many families have been left heartbroken, children lost without the best friend, elderly left without their companions who give them someone to talk to during the day, get them out of the house or even a reason to get up each day. Action taken to resolve issue of concern before submitting the petition: Numerous email correspondences with the Department of Justice and James Browne’s office with no clear answers.

The secretariat wrote to the Department of Justice seeking a response advising of its views within 14 days and received a response from it on 24 June 2024. The committee recommends that we publish the response from the Department of Justice and that the correspondence from the Department of Justice be forwarded to the petitioner for comment within 14 days. Have members any views on that or is that agreed?

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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That is agreed. We will just have to wait until that comes back.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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Is Deputy James Browne in the Department of Justice? Yes. Can we contact his office as well-----

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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-----and ask him for an update-----

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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-----and ask where that legislation he was talking about is at the moment because the petitioner said they have had numerous emails but no clear answers about it? Can we try to clarify what stage that legislation is at or whether it has even been moved? Does Deputy Murphy wish to comment or is he happy with that?

Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Cathaoirleach for the new title first of all.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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Let us not be cynical.

Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail)
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I am happy with that.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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We have all had pets that have passed to different places. They just become part of a family so regarding having one stolen, something needs to happen. I think resolving this and bringing in legislation in response to that will get wide-spread cross-party support in this committee. We will write to the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, to see where the legislation he was talking about is. We will also write to the Department if we have to and see what answers come back.

That concludes our consideration of public petitions this afternoon. I invite members of the public to submit petitions via our online portal, which is available at petitions.oireachtas.ie. A petition may be addressed to the Houses of the Oireachtas on a matter of general public concern or interest or an issue of public policy. Do members have any other business they wish to raise? I thank all the staff for the work they do on our behalf and wish everybody a good summer.