Pat Buckley

I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for tabling this motion. It is not just ordinary workers who are being made to fear for their futures as artificial intelligence continues to develop and expand. Musical artists, writers and filmmakers are also being badly hit by this AI revolution. Their copyrighted work is being used without their consent or any remuneration to build systems that spew out AI art that di…

I thank the Social Democrats for bringing this motion here today. I sat here last night and have sat here again this morning, listening to the debates. The first thing I have noticed is there is absolutely zero from the Government bench. It is absolutely shameful. It is crocodile tears we see in here. I do not like scripts but I will speak very bluntly. The Government just does not have the balls …

I thank the Minister of State for being here. A Labour Court recommendation on 22 October 2022 recommended that Stryker management in Carrigtohill should enter into negotiations with SIPTU, with a view to concluding a collective agreement that covers procedural arrangements within which normal industrial relations business can be conducted. It would have given members a voice at the negotiating ta…

I thank the Minister of State for her response. She stated, "When disputes arise and engagement at workplace level breaks down, the State provides well-established institutions to support resolution." I understand that the Labour Court recommendations are generally non-binding. She also stated, "Nevertheless, such recommendations are intended to be treated with seriousness by both parties." I unde…

I thank the Minister of State.

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. This is bonkers. I have sat here and listened. I thank Deputy Doherty for bringing this motion and for the upcoming legislation. We come in here and we talk about having solutions but the Minister is in government and the Government is supposed to serve the people, not profit from their misery as it is at the moment. The Minister heard a while ago about 64% of…

The Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, will be aware that the postal services have been crippled with closures and cutbacks. Since 2015 a total of 34 post offices have been closed in Cork, the vast majority of which were in rural areas. The shocking number of closures has also resulted in threats to other community services. I will give the example of Ballynoe. It had a shop that was part of the pos…

I thank the Minister of State for being here. I listened to her last night when she said that urgency was required with the Bill. I and Deputy McDonald tabled a Private Members' Bill on this as long ago as 2017, so I hope we will not be here as long again to get what we need pushed forward. Sinn Féin supports reform of how wardships of court are legislated for. It is a no-brainer. We certainly hav…

It is called-----

Homelessness is displacement. We all know what displacement is like in Gaza. People are calling it an absolute disaster. We have displacement of more than 5,500 children. That is happening today and is a disaster. The number of homeless adults in Cork rose by 24% in the past year, the biggest year on year increase in the past five years. These figures show a dramatic increase in the number of peop…

I welcome the statements by the Minister and the Minister of State confirming there will be no cuts to SNAs across schools this year. From speaking to SNAs and parents, however, they are worried that this is just a pause. What will happen next year? I listened to the Minister's speech. She spoke about SENOs knowing our education system. A lot of Deputies spoke today and yesterday about the 2014 c…

I thank the Minister of State for being here today. I am here again today to discuss flooding. I have been raising this issue since I was first elected back in 2016. I have gone through four Ministers of State on this issue. Ten years later, the people of my town Midleton are still waiting for the flood relief scheme to be implemented. I acknowledge that the Minister of State visited, as did the f…

I thank the Minister of State for taking this question. As a Sinn Féin TD representing Cork East, and in line with my party's strong focus on tackling inequality and investing in disadvantaged communities, I ask for his active support in progressing fair DEIS provisions for students in Youghal who are experiencing persistent socioeconomic disadvantage. The Youghal urban area is home to 7,075 peopl…

I thank the Minister of State for the reply. Sometimes, it is hard to comment on individual cases. Going back to this school, it is three years on. The Minister of State spoke about the urban bands 1 and 2. I understand that the Department has to be fair and tick all the boxes. It is similar to what we have been dealing with in terms flooding with tranches 1 and 2. The Minister of State mentioned…

They would be very glad to hear that. I thank the Minister of State.

He is making up stories now.

I thank Deputy Clarke for tabling this motion and all the speakers, including the Government speakers, who contributed to the debate on this very sensitive subject. I thank the Mental Health Commission for its work. I welcome the opportunity to again address the House on the topic of mental health services, having first done so back in 2016. I am sad that there has been very little change in the …

I will stick to two areas, namely, accountability and communication. On a rating from one to ten, both of them are one. There have been ten years of a boil water notice in Whitegate, east Cork, with diabolical communications, even with me as a public representative. Some other speakers have mentioned that already. There is zero accountability and no information any time you can actually get an ema…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. This is about being proactive and taking positive health initiatives. As an ex-smoker and a vape user, I know the difference between the two. I am worried about the reactive, as opposed to proactive, stance this Bill takes. While it moves us forward, it still does not do enough. I have read the latest press release from Responsible Vaping Ireland. I…

I listened to the debate in my office today. The industry will be decimated, full stop. We have seen it with the fishing industry. We cannot say we went out and bargained for this, that and the other. The fishing industry was sold out. We should have a fishing industry worth billions of euro worth here. The Minister mentioned in his speech about quality of life. How can a person have a better qual…

I am lucky enough to be here a long time. I have seen stuff before, but this one can walk under a snake's belly with a bowler hat on. It is so embarrassing what the Government is doing. I had a gentleman on to me last week who is on a waiting list for meals on wheels. The Government is on about a cost-of-living crisis, and it brings in this extortionate disgusting charge on blister packs for peopl…

There are no words for what the Government is doing to people. It is one of the most dangerous things. I have spoken on the radio about this. People have a system because, as I said at the start, this was brought in as a health and safety issue.

People will die. There is misinformation-----

-----misdiagnosis, overdoses, underdoses, you name it.

The Minister is playing a charge here. Please do not talk me down. I am giving her respect, and I have always been respectful to her.