Jennifer Whitmore

The older I get and the longer I am in politics, the more frustrating I find it when International Women's Day rolls around every year. We come in here and people from all the benches say the same things. We talk about the challenges women face and the progress being made. It sort of seems, though, that everything is just set aside for that day, and then we all go back to our business. Those funda…

I thank Sinn Féin for introducing this motion. It is, unfortunately, very timely. We are witnessing the worst oil crisis the world has ever seen. It is worse than the oil shocks of the last century and worse than the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, which we can all remember very clearly. However, for Irish people, this comes during an existing cost-of-living crisis. People are already struggling a…

I raise the issue of Go-Ahead Ireland services in Wicklow. We have seen consistent problems with the service being provided by Go-Ahead. I raised this issue in the Dáil most recently a month ago. There were instances when Go-Ahead buses were not travelling the entire route and were skipping a number of stops. In one instance a young woman who has intellectual and physical disabilities was on the b…

That is what I was told as well.

The Minister is correct that I am being told a different story by people on the ground. I will come back to him directly on this. I am worried about how no-shows are being recorded. I am being told there are no-shows, yet the NTA is not recording them or they are not being recorded in the systems as no-shows. I will speak to the Minister about this because it may require a more in-depth conversati…

The war in the Middle East is spiralling out of control and the impacts are already being felt. Prices for home heating oil have already shot up by 40% which means people having to find an extra €250 or €300 for a 500-litre fill. Who has that kind of money? Gas prices are also skyrocketing within the UK, with the UK recording a 100% increase in wholesale prices in just two days. That is the bigges…

We want targeted.

I echo my party colleague's sentiments on the importance of post offices to our local communities. Everyone in Ireland appreciates the work of our postal workers and, indeed, those who man the post offices. I want to raise with the Minister of State a specific issue about Daly's postal agency in Hollywood in west Wicklow. They are a small shop but they perform certain postal services. Their mini-…

Eight years ago, the Irish people voted to repeal the eighth amendment. Many people voted because of the tragic stories they heard about women who were forced to the UK to have their terminations. Unfortunately, eight years later, far too many women still have to go to the UK for those terminations. My niece is one of those women. She bravely told the story of what happened to her on this morning…

-----like my niece who are still facing that awful challenge-----

-----of trying to get their babies home to bury them with respect.

They could not say whether she would live beyond the 28 days.

93. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Transport if he intends to set a road deaths reduction target for phase 2 of Vision Zero; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16152/26]

We have seen an incredible loss of life on our roads over the past few days, never mind over the past year. Can the Minister of State let me know if he intends to set a road death reduction target for phase 2 of Vision Zero and will he make a statement on the matter?

It seems that every day, or every second day, when we wake up there is the most tragic news that another person has lost their life on our roads. Each of those lives lost is avoidable. I would imagine the worst thing possible for any family is to get that call or that knock on the door to let them know their loved one has lost their life. It feels that it is getting worse and worse. It seems that…

There is no panacea to this. There are many issues involved, and the Minister is right that driver behaviour is one of them. However, the reality is that, as we have seen, some driver behaviour is very poor and unless there is enforcement and a fear of being caught for this behaviour on the road, it will continue. While there a lot of actions are needed, the absolute priority here is enforcement a…

We heard from Deputy Rice about the extortionate cost of GP care for families all across the country, which ranges between €50 and €100. Not only is that incredibly expensive, but woman will probably pay double that to get basic healthcare once they are premenopausal or menopausal. GPs will charge between €120 and €200 or, perhaps, €250 for a consultation when it comes to menopausal clinics. That …

Last week, I sat in and listened to much of the debate on this particular amendment. I agreed with a lot of it. I agree that Government made an absolute mess of this entire issue. There was a lack of preparedness. The Government did not take on board repeated warnings and repeated recommendations as to what it and the country needed to do to house and process asylum seekers. I absolutely agree tha…

People were working with those within the IPAS system and getting them involved in Tidy Towns. They were out painting railings. There were groups like Bray Welcomes, Wicklow Welcomes, Blessington Welcomes and Newtown Together - so many groups and people within communities who recognised that this situation was a difficult one and that there was no perfect answer, and that actually the best thing t…

I am really disappointed with the message that was sent by Sinn Féin.

The reason Sinn Féin can get away with sending that message is because the Government has failed. It failed to prepare. It failed to respect people's dignity, and it continues to do so. The Government created this situation where there is a vacuum of information and supports and that is feeding what we are seeing now. When we talk about social cohesion, the Minister is absolutely right, there is a…

13. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on health will next meet. [9926/26]

The Irish State was a real leader when it came to the smoking ban - I know the Taoiseach, Deputy Martin, played a big part - but there are equally concerning issues in relation to other nicotine products. While work is being done on vaping, I want to raise with the Taoiseach the issue of nicotine pouches. I am not sure if the Taoiseach is familiar with them, but teenagers use these little pouches,…

Yes, the schools want to deal with this themselves. They are looking for guidance from the Department of Health about nicotine pouches specifically, but the legislation also needs to incorporate this.

They should.