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suffering that was endured but we can do better and we can learn. The report illustrates clearly that the Irish State, through its laws, its services for children and its sex education and awareness but, more than anything else, its combined culture of protecting the powerful, was blind … shock and confusion of abuse. I note that the report also recognises that changes in legislation, services, and understanding of child exploitation have been profound. The approach of statutory services has changed beyond recognition. I also want to say that those changes came many decades later

What action does the Department intend to take to address the serious shortfalls in the services for children with additional needs at Le Chéile national school in Limerick? The Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, visited this school with me last week, and I have raised … suspected disability, the Government is in constant breach of the law. The State is basically repeatedly breaking the law every day with regard to children with disabilities and this has to stop. The State is legally required to carry out an assessment of need within six months

fleet, legislation is being passed that will enable Naval Service personnel to board them or our naval vessels to intercept them. They will also be able to put queries to the operators of these ships regarding their legality and a whole range of other issues. There … disrupted by a number of EU member states. They have been boarded and so on. The idea was to try to disrupt the modus operandi of the shadow fleet and to make it less efficient in terms of its service to Russia during these times. Deputies Ó Cearúil

permits and student visas, we should take into account our capacity to house and integrate people, as well as the availability of public services. That is an argument for basic planning, something that was clearly missing in recent years. I am looking at the most recent push notification … adequately account for Ireland’s unique status as an EU state sharing a common travel area with a non-EU state. We need better data collection on entry and exit and the urgent pursuit of a legally binding, bilateral agreement with Britain. Irish citizenship is deeply valuable

opinion. This did not have to happen. The issue of services was introduced by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael after the 2024 general election. The concern about services did not originate in the legal advice given by the Attorney General to the last Government. This is a political … everyone here accepts that action at an EU level on restricting trade for goods and services with the occupied territories is the better approach, and I welcome the statements the Minister of State, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, and the Taoiseach have made, we have no certainty of success

here every year to talk about the issues with services for children with additional needs and children awaiting an assessment of need. The average waiting time in Cork at the moment is 27 months, notwithstanding the legal requirement that all children should receive their assessments of need … within six months. I spoke to a woman yesterday who had received a letter stating that her child would be waiting 36 months for assessment, which is six times longer than the legally permitted time. Government members come into this Chamber trying to cod the people. They

tonight that more than 330 special classes have been approved this year, with more to follow in the coming weeks. As Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion, I continue to meet officials of the National Council for Special Education, along with senior officials … This education therapy service will provide a multi-tiered model of support for children, parents and school communities. The service will focus on education-relevant goals, supporting children to fully participate in their school environments and maximise positive outcomes. During the debate, legal cases were mentioned. The Department

without prejudice to any grounds other than a claim of legal professional privilege that could be relied on for non-disclosure of legal advice. We are again careful not to be overly prescriptive and, as I have said, there is no requirement that the advice must be published … passed in full, covering goods and services. It is not helpful that it appears we cannot see the Attorney General's advice. All too often this has been used as a cover, in my view. The Minister of State said it is a long-standing practice

legal sense. The Government is breaking the law in respect of these children, and despite the assurances the Minister of State and others have provided to us, this has real-life implications. Many of these 634 children are being denied access to other services because their assessment

well as goods. I supported that recommendation. The ICJ's advisory opinion draws no distinction between goods and services, and there is no moral distinction either, but the legal advice is clear. The 2015 EU basic import regulation provides a public policy exception for goods. There … equivalent for services under EU law. A Bill that includes services would face a real risk of infringement proceedings without solid legal ground to stand on. I have come to the view that a Bill which takes effect from day one and does what it sets

objectives in achieving these milestones. I recognise the work they do every day to try to achieve value for money across our public services. The Government has in place a range of oversight mechanisms pertaining to public expenditure. I would like to put examples of these frameworks … code of practice of the governance of State bodies; public financial procedures; public procurement guidelines; arrangements for oversight of digital and IT projects and initiatives; and internal and external audit processes that provide validation of public expenditure. It is the legal responsibility of Departments to ensure that they

will have to offer a repair service beyond the legal or commercial guarantee period, either directly or subcontracted. The manufacturer can offer the repair service for free, or for a reasonable price. The length of time the repair service needs to be offered for will depend … initiatives will be able to include their details on this site to enable consumers to find the most appropriate repair service. Article 13 states that member states will have to take at least one measure promoting repair, and this must be reported to the Commission five years after

legal advice. That distinction only arose in the programme for Government that was signed in January 2025. The argument that there is a public policy justification to limit goods but not services does not stand up. There is a clear provision within EU law where member states

State and for providing essential services that prevent hospital overcrowding and delay the need for residential care. We in the Social Democrats have long advocated for a rights-based model of care. That means putting people first, not processes. It means making home support a legal entitlement

legal authority to do so. Only the Government can dismiss someone at that senior level of the Civil Service. The Minister acted alone. Her actions were not legal and were not constitutional in any basis whatsoever. Worse still, the dismissal relied purely on a disciplinary investigation … person about whom the complaint is made or who has perpetrated the wrongdoing. Meanwhile, this State uses its vast financial resources to power itself and spends endless resources in legal fees, all to destroy the whistleblower. A whistleblower cannot do the same. That imbalance tells a story

home for the selling of war bonds that assist Israel in carrying out the genocide. No assistance should be given to the terrorist State of Israel. It is inconceivable to assist Israel at a time when its forces are engaged in terrorism, genocide and ethnic cleansing in Palestine … side. The Office of Parliamentary Legal Advisers has advised that this can be done. I commend the Labour Party on putting forward this motion, but we need to go much further. We need to: pass the occupied territories Bill and include services and goods in it; stop

legal prosecution in Israel. I urge the United States to adopt a more assertive role, not just in brokering a ceasefire, but in guaranteeing it. The world cannot continue to look away. The suffering of Gaza's civilians, the ongoing displacement and the deliberate targeting of essential services

this Bill because the ICJ and international law make no distinction between trade in goods and trade in services. In committee, the Minister's own Department of foreign affairs legal advisers accepted that a ban on goods alone would be only "partially compliant" and would move us "towards … stronger the message it will send, which is why services matter so much. That is where the real sanctions lie. As a modern open economy, 70% of Ireland's trade with the wider world is in services and just 30% is in goods. The same is true

decisions must always be open to challenges where genuine legal issues arise, but we must recognise that lengthy and complex court procedures can delay housing, public infrastructure and investment projects for years and years, as the Minister of State can see himself. I welcome the reforms … housing delivery. This measure strengthens the State's ability to support local authorities, approved housing bodies and wider housing initiatives. Of course, legislation alone will not solve our housing challenges. We must continue to address issues relating to infrastructure provision, the servicing of lands, construction capacity

situate the balance, the dynamic and the compassion in healthcare for gender-diverse people. Along with the Minister of State and the Government more broadly, I recognise that gender diversity is absolutely part of the human experience and that gender-diverse people should be respected in their identities … what the Act we are celebrating ten years of does today. They may also explore their gender and socially or legally transition without needing healthcare services. Some people, including children and young people, may experience gender dysphoria, which refers to the psychological distress that results from an incongruence

Ireland's legal obligations under that ruling in terms of settler violence and illegal settlements in the West Bank. I will talk about one specific case which will highlight the reality and take this discussion down to a human level when we talk about excluding services … very negative impact. It could be used by other states to say "this much but no more". It is not overstating the case to say that doing so could be extraordinarily harmful not only to the international legal order but to the very people and the very rights

European Union that has published any draft legislation on that. Now, weeks on from when we published our legislation, with goods or services, they have not produced any legislation. That is interesting in and of itself. However, the Government has an obligation to our citizens to tease through … legislation will be viewed and the legality of it. That is an important part of the work of my Department in engaging with interlocutors abroad. It does not change our position. We have a vastly different view from the United States of America and particularly the current Administration

Appeals Panel led by a Senior Counsel and with experts from the legal and engineering professions appointed by the Minister under a clear and transparent process managed on his behalf by the Public Appointments Service; — the appeals system is an independent statutory function under the Remediation of Dwellings … engaged proactively with the financial sector (banks and insurance companies) around the interaction of the DCB Scheme with their services, banks and insurance companies have clearly stated that homes certified, as being remediated under the DCB scheme will be treated in the same manner as all other homes

that day. In 2013 a legal case started to try to understand if it was possible for the security forces to have prevented the Omagh bomb. Five years ago, in 2021, Mr. Justice Mark Horner at the Belfast High Court stated that there was a "real prospect" that … taken before the Irish courts for the purpose of the Omagh bombing inquiry. It allows a specific legal mechanism to facilitate the taking of sworn testimony from State bodies and former ministerial officeholders before a judge in the High Court. It is modelled on the Criminal Justice (International

come into my constituency office who are frustrated at the long waiting times for their children and who cannot progress or get the service they require without first having this assessment carried out. It is important that children are assessed at an early age so that they … initial contact from the children's disability network. This is contrary to the terms of the Disability Act 2005, which states that children are legally entitled to an assessment of need within six months of applying. In reality, only a tiny percentage of those who have applied