Leading off for Sinn Féin this morning is Senator Boylan.

My first point is to note the Sinn Féin Seanad team’s disappointment at the manner in which our MEP, Mr. Chris MacManus, was invited to today’s debate on the future of Europe. As someone who was an MEP, I know how difficult it is to manage a calendar that sees one in three different countries every month and it was a disappointment that Mr. MacManus was put at a disadvantage to his constituency counterparts by those being contacted earlier. Sinn Féin, therefore, will not participate in today’s debate with the MEPs.

The key issue I want to raise today is once again - I cannot believe I am here saying this - the issue of funding for the inquest into the Stardust fire. From September 2020 to February 2021, the Department of Justice and the legal team representing 46 of the 48 families engaged in a six-month negotiation regarding how the costs should be covered. Despite the legal team continuously warning the Department of Justice that an inquest of this magnitude and this significance would require a bespoke arrangement the Department insisted that the legal aid route would be the route to use. The legal team proceeded in good faith and is now being told by the Legal Aid Board that it was not informed of this decision. This is despite a letter from the Minister and the Department of Justice saying that it is now up to the Legal Aid Board and the lawyers because it has agreed that the Legal Aid Board is the route that the families are going to take and that they will be paid a month in arrears. It now appears that the Department of Justice is trying to wash its hands of the fact that it gave that written confirmation to the legal team and the families it represents and is saying that it is up to the Legal Aid Board and the lawyers to once again negotiate and thrash this out. Is it seriously suggesting that having wasted six months on negotiating how this inquest was going to be funded, the Department now wants the lawyers to start that process all over again with the Legal Aid Board?

I also have very serious concerns about the statement by the Minister of State in the Dáil this morning on the costs and the funding that was allocated in the budget to help with the cost of the inquest. We had a commitment from the then Minister, Deputy Flanagan, at the time the inquest was granted that all adequate resources would be put in place. We had the Taoiseach talking about €8 million being allocated for the funding of the inquest and today we had a statement from the Minister of State that the Government will put in place €8 million to help cover the costs of the inquest. That is a significant move and shift in position from what we were told when the inquest was granted. I am absolutely disgusted by the senior Minister and the Department of Justice in how it has treated the families of the Stardust fire. I ask again why it is that the State continuously forces these families to go through the mill in order to get the answers as to what happened to their loved ones on that night in 1981.

I express my sympathies to our colleague, Senator Annie Hoey, and her family. Just a number of short weeks ago we were congratulating her on her wedding. Thankfully her father, Ray, was able to attend it but after a very long illness, he lost that battle last night.

The issue I raise this morning is one that many Deputies, Senators and other elected representatives from north County Dublin have been most anxious about over the past number of days, namely, the leak last Sunday in respect of MetroLink and the prospective delay in that project to 2034. While it is understandable that communities in north County Dublin are outraged by this, it is also important to say that this is a very important issue for the communities in the north inner city and the communities of Cabra, Glasnevin, Phibsboro and Drumcondra. These communities were very excited and very much needed MetroLink, believing that it was going to be a game-changer for them. These communities are the gateway to the city. They have to bear the brunt of commuter traffic and deal with emissions with nitrous oxide levels often 25% above the EU maximum limits. MetroLink is, therefore, very important but now we hear that it may be delayed and, indeed, the question is being asked as whether it will happen at all.

The important issue for me is that MetroLink is not a stand-alone project. MetroLink is crucial to the full roll-out and success of BusConnects and it is also dependent on the DART+ South West project, in particular as it is connects Heuston Station to the new station in Glasnevin. Anybody cycling or driving in the north inner city or just north of that area at the moment will know of the congestion in these communities.

I listened very carefully to the Minister’s reply to the Leader of this House when she posed the question about MetroLink this morning and a number of things stood out. The Minister said that MetroLink is an option. How can one call something an option when €170 million has already been spent on Metro North and another €49 million has been spent on MetroLink? It is crucial that we see this project progressing.

The Department is also playing games with us because it is said the dates that were given were provided at the early part or start of the consultation. At the start of this year the National Transport Authority and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, said that the railway order application would be made in August of this year but that has not happened. The Department has wantonly attempted to mislead public representatives on what exactly is happening. We need a clear answer from the Government as to whether it is committed to this project and, if it is committed to it, a clear timeline on when it is going to happen. It is not good enough that these communities have for the past two decades dealt with uncertainty around this project. They are now looking at another two decades of increasing congestion in their communities.