Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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The Order of Business is No. 1, Statute Law Revision Bill 2024 - Report and Final Stages, to be taken at 12.15 p.m.; and No. 2, ráitis maidir le Seachtain na Gaeilge, to be taken at 1 p.m. or on the conclusion of No. 1, whichever is the later, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, those of group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes, those of all other Senators not to exceed five minutes, time may be shared and the Minister to be given not less than ten minutes to reply to the debate.

Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Leader for being here this morning. I will use my time to discuss universal design guidelines for changing places toilets. It was a good colleague of the Leader, the then Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, who brought forward the change in regulations for Part M 2022. The changing of the regulations was to ensure that all of our local authorities would be in a position to make their public buildings more accessible and inclusive, particularly as regards changing spaces. On top of that, the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design at the National Disability Authority, NDA, produced guidelines to work with the legislative side relating to good practice when choosing the location of changing places, in their design and in managing and maintaining them.

Nearly 12 months have elapsed since the regulations were amended. Part M is in place and the guidance has been launched but only nine of the 32 local authorities have changing place toilets that meet an older person's standard and only six have some that meet the current building standards. That speaks volumes as regards where we are in terms of disability in this country. The NDA has communicated with between 17,100 and 36,000 people to see where the need is. We are locking people out of travelling around the country and leaving their home to travel to different local authority areas. We have fantastic facilities, be it walkways or greenways, but people do not have access to a basic need such as a toilet and a proper changing place that meets the requirements of Part M of the legislation and the accompanying guidance. What is in the guidance? A changing place must have a hoist, larger bins, a tracking system and a screen or curtain for dignity. Most importantly, it must have enough space for a person with a disability and two carers to enable them to provide assistance. I ask the Leader to arrange statements with the Minister with responsibility for local authorities. The Government has changed Part M. We now need the other local authorities to come forward. In addition, there is no point in giving funding to sporting organisations unless they are also prepared to meet Part M requirements.

Gerard Craughwell (Independent)
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I want to briefly talk about the move by the Government on the triple lock. It is important to point out that no Bill has been published yet. It looks very much as if the debate will go on until the summer because it will take at least that long before the Bill comes before the joint committee and, from there, through Parliament to be debated. It is a matter of great concern that the debate taking place in the public arena is totally ill informed. We have people talking about the great neutral state of Ireland. Ireland is an independent country but not a sovereign state. A sovereign state is supposed to be able to protect its citizens on all five pillars - land, sea, air, cyber and space - and we cannot do that, as is acknowledged by everybody in the country.

I am shocked to hear parliamentarians not having trust in the political system and the Government to put in place legislation that will protect our citizens. That means not sending young men and women to wars in other countries. Let us be honest about it. We have served under NATO, the EU and the UN, always in authorised UN peacekeeping missions. People are saying the United Nations Security Council - the Russians, Chinese, Americans, British and French - might have a veto but you can always go through the General Assembly. That is factually incorrect. You cannot go through the General Assembly. The General Assembly can make recommendations regarding peace, peace talks and anything else but it cannot make a recommendation on peace enforcement or peacekeeping. We have to have an honest debate on this matter.

This morning, I read that hundreds of academics have written a letter stating we should protect the triple lock. Really and truly, would we ask our next-door neighbours to make decisions for our family? Let us think about this. Should we go back to the days when we took an oath to his majesty in this Chamber to get permission to send our people? Should we impose the triple lock on politicians to require that no more than 12 politicians or teachers can travel anywhere at any given time? We need an honest debate.

Brigadier General Rossa Mulcahy has just been appointed the new Chief of Staff and congratulations to him. He has taken on the most onerous role ever for a Chief of Staff. Let us get him in to apprise and inform the debate when the legislation comes before the joint committee. Let us listen to people who know what they are talking about and are qualified to talk on these issues. Let us then make a decision in a calm way. None of us in this Chamber or the other House want to see a situation where troops are sent into battle situations without due consideration of all of the risks. As we saw, Private Sean Rooney died in Lebanon not long ago. Soldiers die when they go on active duty. I ask that, as parliamentarians, we try, as far as possible, to calm this discussion.

Chris Andrews (Sinn Fein)
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I raise the ongoing crisis facing residents in Glovers Court, a Dublin City Council flat complex off York Street, and O'Carroll Villas. Drug dealers run these flat complexes. Glovers Court is like a 24-hour drug shop, with dealers using Kinder eggs to hide their drugs in the playground at O'Carroll Villas.Gangs of young people are egging those using the local shops and businesses. The pace of the regeneration of Glovers Court is glacial, just like it is for almost all Dublin City Council flat complexes. Since there are so many empty flats, the drug dealing in Glovers Court is being made really easy. Drugs are being sold there 24-7. There are a lot of boarded-up flats because of the regeneration process. It means there are more drug dealers in Glovers Court than there are residents. At 10 o'clock last night, there were ten people queueing up to get drugs in Glovers Court. At 4.45 a.m., there were four people queueing to get drugs there.

This is the Minister for Justice's back garden. It is his constituency. The drug dealers are running the show in Glovers Court and O'Carroll Villas. The Minister was talking about introducing laws. He can have all the laws he wants in the world but if the Garda numbers are not there on the streets to enforce them, those laws are useless.

The residents have put up with this for years. It is completely unacceptable. None of us would accept it and there is no reasons residents in the inner city flat complexes should have to put up with it either.

The gardaí who are there are excellent, it is fair to acknowledge. The community gardaí are excellent. They do really good work, engage with residents and are professional, but their arms are tied. There are not have enough gardaí there. The superintendent in Pearse Street is an excellent professional, organised and very engaged with the local community, but the superintendent does not have the resources. The Government is not allocating the required resources, and Dublin City Council is found wanting on so many occasions in terms of the planning and maintenance of the flats and communication with residents. I ask that the Minister come in here and explain what he is going to do about the drug dealing in his own back yard.

Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael)
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I welcome yesterday's announcement of funding for cycleways and walkways across the country. Tipperary has received almost €650,000 to go towards cycleways and improving routes in the county. This is a critical piece of infrastructure. It is very good for well-being and good for people to be out and active.

Routes along Tipperary have been quite successful. The Suir blueway from Carrick-on-Suir to Clonmel is being extended from Clonmel to Marlfield and Cahir. With this funding, it will continue up to the Rock of Cashel. One of the most important elements of this funding is that it is going to connect the Suir blueway to the greenway in Waterford. We will have a cycleway from the Rock of Cashel down to Cahir, over to Clonmel, to Carrick-on-Suir, over to Waterford and down to Dungarvan, and it is extended on from Dungarvan to Youghal to Cork. It is a fantastic route. It gives people living in the area the opportunity to walk or cycle a couple of kilometres and increases tourism for the area as well, including for small towns and villages outside the obvious places such as Dungarvan, Waterford and Cashel. Towns like Kilsheelan, Portlaw and Kilmacthomas are now benefiting significantly from this type of investment. It is not massive money but its knock-on impact on regions across the country is huge. I welcome that funding. If we get a chance to have the Minister for Transport in at some point, I will talk about road projects but, in fairness to the previous Minister, there was an awful lot of work done on this sort of issue over the past five years and we are now starting to see the benefits right across the country.

Lynn Ruane (Independent)
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Today I want to raise two separate but interrelated issues. It is international women's week. However, throughout the whole year, we talk about domestic violence. We constantly see articles and news reports online about the number of women who have died in the country. What I am facing at the moment in terms of supporting women is that it is not only about safety, but the decisions that are being made about who has a right to safety. Currently, women in addiction who are trying to flee domestic violence are being faced with a question around substance use when looking to access refuges. They are being denied safety because of substance use. It is already hard enough to leave a domestic violence situation before we layer on issues in relation to poverty, social class, addiction, lack of support, lack of quality housing and so on. Right now, there are refuges saying they will not take women in who are experiencing any sort of addiction issues, be those issues lived or living. Services working with women are not referring them to those refuges out of fear of highlighting that they may be linked in with them for supports in respect of substance use. During one phone call to a refuge, the woman on the other end of the line said the refuge had to think about the safety of the women and children in the refuge. Hang on a minute. That is saying that a woman, because she has some experience with substance use, is somehow a threat to the women and children in that refuge, those apartments or whatever the setup. It is completely wrong.

In another situation, a woman had left her house in a working class community at the request of the Garda under a threat to life notice. She was seeking safety as a woman, under a threat to her life, in a domestic abuse situation. She is now in a bedsit with three teenage children. She is still paying rent on the house that is boarded up. The council bureaucracy is now saying it will not move her into other accommodation unless it is like for like, because it was a two-bedroom unit. Women who are already in a very unsafe situation are being told that, because of their socioeconomic background or their experiences with addiction, refuges care about their safety, just not enough to make sure to put them in a better position. To have the Garda request someone leave her house is a big threshold to meet. That person is now in a one-bedroom bedsit with three children she is not able to get into school.

I ask that we have an honest conversation, not only around domestic violence and refuges, but about who is making decisions about who has a right to actually access safety.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I welcome French and Belgian politicians from the Francophone parliamentary assembly to the Visitors Gallery. We have Mrs. Anne Lambelin, a Belgian Senator; Mr. André Reichardt, a French Senator; and Mr. Fatmir Leci, a councillor in the Parliament of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. They are accompanied by Ms Isabelle Kempeneers. I look forward to meeting them later. They are here this morning with our colleague, Senator Mullen.

In the Distinguished Visitors Gallery, I welcome back a former Member of this House, Lynn Boylan MEP, and her guests. I hope you all enjoy your visit to Leinster House.

Alison Comyn (Fianna Fail)
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I am requesting a debate with the Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan, on the need for a commission of investigation for victims and survivors of Michael Shine. As of today, there are 363 known victims and survivors of Michael Shine, the former surgeon and convicted sexual offender who abused young boys, teenagers and young men over a 30-year period in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda. I met last week with some of the victims and survivors and they say they have had piecemeal justice. They have lived through decades of lengthy civil cases and have seen him receive a criminal conviction and a sentence of four years, of which he served three years. Despite reports of sexual abuse first made in the 1960s and 1970s, Dr. Shine continued to practice, having access to young boys in the hospital, in his private practice and in a local orphanage.His victims feel that there has been no full and effective statutory investigation into who knew of the sexual abuse, when they knew and how it was allowed to take place. Last year, exhausted from lobbying, six men namely, Gerard Murray, Larry Torris, Peter O'Connor, Ian Russell, Ian Armstrong and Cianan Murray, felt they had no option but to go public and tell their upsetting stories of how they were sexually abused by Michael Shine, to encourage Government action. In response, then Taoiseach, Deputy Simon Harris, prior to the election late last year, said that action would be taken in relation to this "vile paedophile" within the lifetime of this Government.

As we speak, no definitive steps have been taken to address this issue. In the meantime, these men, some of whom I met last week, and hundreds more, continue to live with the trauma of their experiences and many questions are unanswered. Victims and survivors are understandably sceptical but are still very hopeful about whether they will ever get the answers they need through an open and thorough commission of investigation. At this juncture, a debate with Minister for Justice, Deputy O’Callaghan, would be a crucial step in rebuilding trust and showing a commitment to meaningful action on a commission of investigation.

Cathal Byrne (Fine Gael)
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Today I raise the issue of local clubs and the access they have to acquire land for playing pitches. At the moment the Department of sport runs a very successful sports capital programme funding many clubs. I am aware of the two individual streams. The first assists with the purchase equipment and the second assists with the development of playing facilities.

I am thinking specifically of Castledockrell United, which is a club just outside Enniscorthy. It is a small club, fielding teams from under-six right through to men's. There will soon be two men's teams. At the moment the club does not have a pitch of its own. It is a small, rural club. Unfortunately, while the current model of the sports capital programme will facilitate the development of, say, playing pitches, dressing rooms or showers, it will not assist in the purchase of a pitch. The club found itself in a situation where two years ago it did not have a pitch of its own. It has been relying on the generosity and kindness of neighbouring clubs that share their facilities. Unfortunately, that is not sustainable. The club has achieved significant underage success by winning the Wexford youth cup and the premier division grade of Wexford youth soccer.

I call on the Minister for sport to examine the possibility of a targeted sports grant, through the sports capital programme, for clubs to purchase and acquire a pitch.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I call Senator Joe Conway.

Joe Conway (Independent)
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I did not indicate; I am more than happy to just listen to the communal wisdom.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I apologise. I call Senator Keogan.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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I raise the issue of the abuse of the lis pendens system in Ireland. The filing of a lis pendens renders the sale of the land over which it is filed virtually impossible as no purchaser would be willing to take the risk of buying a property with litigation pending over it. As the system stands, it is possible for a lay litigant to file a lis pendens with the court for virtually no cost. Meanwhile, undoing a lis pendens is extremely expensive for the person who owns the land it is filed against. It can take years to overturn and requires the person effected to go to the High Court. Members of the House, reform of the current lis pendens system has been called for on multiple occasions in the past and many proposals have been made on this. In 2020, a report was issued by the Review of the Administration of Civil Justice, chaired by the former president of the High Court. It recommended that the life span of a lis pendens be restricted to 28 days. Other straightforward reforms could involve requiring the plaintiff to swear before a judge that they are filing the lis pendens in good faith, or, mandating that it be followed up by an application to the court within a certain time span, or that a court could award damages to the property owner if the lis pendens filing is found to have caused financial damage.

This is a real issue that causes severe problems for people. There is the obvious need for reform and there are many solutions. I call on the Minister for Justice to come before this Chamber to answer why the Government has taken absolutely no action on this issue since.

Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Fianna Fail)
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I would like to discuss tourism. There is no doubt that tourism in Ireland is on the decline. We all know that. To prove to myself that it was not just in my mind, I compared a similar period and category. I researched the number of foreign visitors who completed a trip to Ireland in December 2023 and December 2024. Unfortunately, there was a 12.2% decrease in the number of people who visited us and, more worryingly, there was a 20.4% decrease in spending. There is something radically wrong. I am biased in saying this but I come from probably the most scenic place in Ireland. We are very dependent on tourism. I call on the Minister for tourism to come before us and lay out his plans to try and get tourism back up and running in Ireland. We have a beautiful country with an awful lot to offer. It is a shame to see numbers decreasing like this.

Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)
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In the run-up to International Women's Day, I want to acknowledge and recognise a woman who is suffering greatly in a bid to get justice for her son, Noah Donohoe.

Each and every one of us is someone's child. Many of us have a child or children of our own who we know could very well have been Noah. If what happened to this family was to happen to any one of us, none of us would ever stop looking for answers. We would never give up and I know, with this case in particular, the public are keeping a tight eye on it.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I am sorry, Senator, but you have to be very careful when you are raising people's names here in the Chamber, unless you have their permission.

Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)
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I do.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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Okay.

Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)
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The support for Fiona Donohoe, Noah's mother, all over Ireland is incredible and I want her to know that it is unwavering. We all know that something is not right and that Fiona is not getting all the information that is available and that she rightly deserves. Every woman and mother I know, North and South, talk about this case. They stand united in full support behind Fiona in her quest to obtain the truth and in her fight for justice for her son, Noah. I ask that we, in this House, ask the Minister for Justice to speak with his counterpart in the North to ensure a rigorous, open and transparent police investigation into Noah's death and that there be no more delays to the inquest. Noah was Fiona's son, Belfast's son, but we know in our hearts that Noah could have been anyone of our sons. Will the Minister meet with the family in question?

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I ask Senators to be careful when naming children in the Chamber because they are underage and it will be on the public record. I ask Members to be careful unless they have permission of the family. I call Senator Mark Duffy.

Mark Duffy (Fine Gael)
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I raise a matter that has been, politically, incredibly pressing over the past number of years in counties Mayo, Donegal and Sligo. That is the issue of defective concrete blocks. In my home county of Mayo hundreds of homeowners are affected. It has been the scourge of their lives and has brought financial and mental health challenges to every homeowner who has been negatively impacted by it. There is a commitment in the programme for Government for a review of the scheme. I ask that we bring the Minister for the housing in to provide an update on how he plans to move forward with this review.As matters stand, improved supports have been provided. The system needs to be much more flexible to suit the needs of each individual homeowner, however, because every situation is different. Boundary walls could be affected or work on a semi-detached house might not be able to proceed because of an issue with the neighbouring home. Myriad issues need to be addressed. We need to put the homeowner at the centre of this and work back from there. I ask that we engage and deal with this matter head on and deliver for all these affected homeowners and communities who have been devastated by the scourge of pyrite and mica in defective concrete blocks.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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As no other Senators are indicating, I ask the Leader to respond.

Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Chathaoirleach. I thank all Senators for their contributions.

Senator Rabbitte talked about the changing places facilities that are being rolled out slowly across the country. There is a new facility in Salthill. I acknowledge Councillor Clodagh Higgins, who spearheaded that project when she was mayor of Galway city a number of years ago. Senator Rabbitte is right about the design and standards. Obviously, the Oireachtas has legislated and there are regulations in place. It is now incumbent on all other bodies to ensure that those designs are followed through and that, more importantly, those facilities are followed through on in order that local authorities can have them in place for adults and children. They have to be usable, available and located in the correct places. The Senator might put down a Commencement matter or raise the issue with the Minister when we have statements on disability or local authorities.

Senator Craughwell again referred to the triple lock. We will have a debate on this matter. The heads of a Bill went to Cabinet, so we will have time over the coming months to fully thrash out this matter. There are different views in this Chamber and across the country. It is important that all facts are presented and thrashed out. A fact is a fact, and you cannot have two versions of the same fact, so either the Security Council has a veto or it does not. Both cannot be right. As a result, we need to ensure the facts are presented by Government and are debated.

Senator Andrews talked about the Glover’s Court and O’Carroll Villas flats complexes. He raised two issues. One is the glacial pace, as he put it, of regeneration and the other relates to drug use and Garda deployment. Perhaps he could table a Commencement matter on the regeneration or engage with Dublin City Council. I will follow up with the Minister, Deputy O’Callaghan, on Garda deployment. That is obviously a matter for the Garda Commissioner, but we are seeing increased numbers of gardaí coming through the training system. Unfortunately, Templemore was closed during Covid. We have seen changes to allow for further recruitment, such as admission up to the age of 50 and later retirement. These changes are to be welcomed.

Senator Ahearn talked about the importance of greenways and blueways and the wonderful funding that was announced for a project that will eventually link up the Rock of Cashel, Dungarvan, Youghal and Waterford along one greenway. I have a concern about the pace of delivery of these projects. There are issues in Galway. There is a photo of me from 2014 with the then Minister for Transport where we are on bicycles shaking hands about a project. Nothing has happened in respect of that project since. Announcements are great, but we need to ensure the follow-up is there, the planning permission obtained and the projects progressed. When people see the end product, namely large stretches of greenway and blueway that are useable and available for kids on tricycles, people on bicycles and walkers, elderly and young, it is great. We would like to see more of that, but I am conscious of the need to ensure delivery.

Senator Ruane talked about a very important issue relating to refuges. Someone else raised it yesterday in relation to domestic violence. It is a very important point I would not have considered. I am aware of the issues with refuge spaces and how not all counties have refuges. We need to get on top of that and address the lack of spaces or issues with spaces in the counties that have refuges. However, I had not contemplated the ancillary issue of women who are victims of domestic violence but who also have substance abuse problems, and how they can be denied access and left in a more vulnerable position. That is a very important point. I will ask for the Minister to come in for statements on domestic violence in order that we might try to tease those matters out.

Senator Comyn referred to another very important issue, namely the request for a commission of investigation into Michael Shine and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda. She has met some of the victims – and they are victims – and is calling for a full statutory investigation. I will raise that directly with the Minister, Deputy O’Callaghan. It is obviously a very important decision and anything like that would have to go from the Minister to Cabinet for approval, but I will certainly raise it with him.

Senator Cathal Byrne was talking about the funding of clubs. There has been a rule and a principle that the sports capital grant is not to be used to purchase land because once the land is purchased we are then going back to the Department again for the funding for the redevelopment of it. That is not to say it would not be considered, but it would represent sea change in policy. If it was one or the other and there was money to buy the land but no funding to develop it, we have clubs with land they cannot develop. It could be done but it would be a sea change in policy. Perhaps the Senator could raise it as a Commencement matter with the Minister of State with responsibility for sport to see what the view is. It would depend on the funding issue. There has been a policy for the past few years that where sports clubs have valid applications, they have been funded. If, therefore, purchase of land is included in the pot, we would have a greater number. It could be as simple as increasing the funding pot, but, again, there are limitations on all these things.

Senator Keogan talked about lis pendens, which puts any third party on notice that there is a pending legal challenge regarding land or property. Again, I am not up to date on that matter and perhaps the Senator could raise it directly via a Commencement matter with the relevant Minister. I am not sure whether it is in the remit of the Minister for Justice or the Minister who has responsibility for Tailte Éireann, namely the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

Senator Murphy O’Mahony talked about how west Cork is second to Connemara as the most scenic and beautiful part of our country and asked for statements on tourism. I will certainly try to facilitate that with the Minister, Deputy Burke. The Senator raised important issues about the number of tourists who come here. Obviously, we have a great product, but we cannot take things for granted. We must look at availability of accommodation. We cannot get tourists into the country if there is no place for them to stay. That is an issue, as is value for money.

Senator Sarah O’Reilly referred to the tragic death of Noah Donohoe. Again, I ask her to raise that directly with the Minister for Justice, perhaps via a Commencement matter. It is a different jurisdiction, because the matter relates to Northern Ireland, which means that the Minister does not have direct responsibility. I am not sure whether he could comment or engage on that matter or whether it is a question for the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs. It may be for the latter, notwithstanding the unique position of the Six Counties. Perhaps the Senator could take that up as a Commencement matter.

Senator Duffy raised the very important ongoing issue with the defective concrete blocks affected by pyrite and mica. Again, I will ask for an update on this. The Government has committed over €2 billion over its lifetime to deal with this issue. It is a very emotive issue and a very real one that people are living through. There has been some progress. Money is being drawn down, but we need to ensure whatever roadblocks are there are removed in order to try to fast-track matters.