I want to pay tribute to Austin Currie, former Deputy and Minister of State, who sadly passed away yesterday. He was born in Dungannon in 1939 and educated in Queen's University Belfast. He was a leading light of the civil rights movement. He was one of the founders of the Social and Democratic Labour Party, SDLP, alongside the late John Hume. He was a dedicated and committed politician who made an important contribution to the lives of many throughout the island, North and South. He served as a Minister of State at the Departments of Education, Justice and Health during the 1990s. I send my sincere sympathies, along with those of all Senators, to his wife, Annita, and his children, especially our colleague, Senator Emer Currie. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

I join the Cathaoirleach in his words of sympathy and condolence to the Currie family, our colleague, Emer, all of his community and his colleagues and friends in the SDLP, Fine Gael and the Parliaments on this island. He led an extremely interesting life and made a significant contribution to public life. He has left a fantastic legacy. May he rest in peace.

The Order of Business today is No. 1, Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill 2020 - Committee Stage, to be taken at 1 p.m. and to adjourn at 2.15 p.m., if not previously concluded; No. 2, Official Languages (Amendment) Bill 2019 - Second Stage, to be taken at 2.30 p.m. or 15 minutes after the adjournment of No. 1, whichever is the later, and to conclude after 105 minutes, if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; No. 3, Planning and Development (Amendment) Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021 - Order for Second Stage and Second Stage, to be taken at 4.30 p.m. or 15 minutes after the conclusion of No. 2, whichever is the later, and to conclude after 135 minutes, if not previously concluded, with the time allocated to the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 4, Private Members' business, Safe Access to Termination of Pregnancy Services Bill 2021 - Second Stage, to be taken at 7.15 p.m. or 15 minutes after the conclusion of No. 3, whichever is the later, with the time allocated to the debate not to exceed two hours.

On my behalf and that of the Fianna Fáil group, I wish to be associated with the Cathaoirleach and the Deputy Leader in sending our condolences to our colleague, Senator Currie, on the sad passing of her father, Austin. As the Cathaoirleach rightly said, his decision to squat a house in Caledon, County Tyrone in 1968 was widely seen and historically recorded as the beginning of the civil rights movement. He was one of the co-founders of the SDLP and, in political terms, successfully traversed the Border by later becoming a Deputy representing Dublin West. His legacy is great and I extend our sympathies and condolences to Emer and her mother, Annita, as well as her four siblings, the extended Currie family and the large circle of friends Austin accumulated during his distinguished career.

I wish to raise an issue that has been raised on several occasions in the House. I refer to the backlog of passport applications. It is the passport issue again. I welcome the moves that have been made by the Minister to provide Members with an Oireachtas contact line. Although it has had some teething problems and may not be the silver bullet we were all hoping for, it certainly has helped in many situations. All Members know why the backlog exists. Covid has been blamed, with people having to work from home and so on. However, Covid or the other aforementioned reason cannot be blamed for the lack of a little bit of common sense and a personal touch.

On two occasions recently, I thought I had been successful in getting a passport for people at closer to the 12th than the 11th hour. In both cases, I was trying to get the passport on a Friday. One of them was on the Friday of a bank holiday weekend. When we got confirmation that the passport had been printed, the confirmation also stated the passport had been posted. The passports were needed for flights that were on a Sunday and a bank holiday Monday, respectively, but the facility to collect them or even to organise a courier to collect them was not made available. There was no common sense shown. There has to be a personal touch and some common sense used. I know the staff are under pressure trying to get through the backlog but it is very simple to recognise that a passport posted at 5 p.m. on a Friday evening to a person who desperately needs it for a flight on the Sunday of a bank holiday weekend will not reach the person in time and may as well not have been printed. The staff would have been as well served to put the effort into processing a passport for a person flying on the Tuesday.

It has been brought to my attention that in cases where further information is required, there is some fault in the application or the photograph is not up to standard, this is not being highlighted to the customers or clients until the due date for printing of the passport. These issues can be highlighted sooner to give people the opportunity to submit the extra information or an updated photograph or whatever the case may be in ample time. These are simple things. I do not wish to sound flippant but all it needs is a little common sense and a personal human touch. I ask the Deputy Leader to highlight these issues to the Minister such that he can bring them to the attention of supervisors or others in the Passport Office. I am not being critical of the staff. I know there is a backlog and they are working hard but it is nonsensical to post a passport on a Friday evening when it is evident and obvious it will not arrive in time.

I too wish to be associated, on my behalf and that of the Fine Gael group, with the remarks on the sad passing of Austin Currie. I offer condolences to his wife, Annita, who herself suffered greatly at the hands of loyalist paramilitaries, and to our colleague, Senator Emer Currie. Austin was a man of peace and decency who, with John Hume, Gerry Fitt, Seamus Mallon and others, kick-started the civil rights movement in Derry and across the North. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

There was an exciting and at times difficult public meeting in Athenry mart on Monday in respect of Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, proposals. Politicians representing east and west Galway were in the ring of the mart. There was a good crowd. The meeting was organised by the Irish Farmers Association and there was a significant turnout of very productive and active farmers from the east Galway area, as well as some from west Galway. I understand from the Leader that the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, will be appearing before the House as part of the climate change debates. The Minister of State, Senator Hackett, is due to appear in the Chamber on Thursday to discuss forestry. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Ryan, will come to the House in the coming weeks to discuss transport.

The majority of farmers understand that climate change is real and they accept that agriculture has to play its part. Indeed, it has been doing so for several years. However, it is a difficult area and there is some confusion regarding what is being announced. Farmers are experiencing several things that are happening at the same time. Obviously, there is the new CAP, which is enough to deal with on its own. There are also the climate change issues on top of that and, of course, the price of commodities such as fertiliser is very high due to the current input price of gas. All of those issues are coming at the same time for farmers, so it is a difficult period for them. Those at the meeting on Monday certainly expressed their concern about it.

It is acknowledged that Irish farming and food production is among the most sustainable, if not the most sustainable, in the world in terms of a grass-based system and long grazing periods compared with other countries. We have a responsibility internationally to be part of the movement, to acknowledge the reality of climate change and to be part of the COP26 proposals to limit the impact across the system, and farmers understand that. I look forward to the debate with the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, in the coming months. There are several points and questions raised by farmers that I will put to the Minister in that debate. I am sure he will be able to provide answers in respect of the minute details of the proposals outlined in the climate action plan. I look forward to a debate on that issue as soon as possible.

I thank the Deputy Leader for outlining the proposed Order of Business. My apologies for being delayed coming to the House. I know the Cathaoirleach, too, ran up the stairs. I do not think any Senator has delayed the start of the Seanad by ten minutes. I have just come from an amazing event. I thank the Cathaoirleach, the Ceann Comhairle and the Leader of the Seanad for presiding over the joyous and exciting unveiling of a portrait of Senator David Norris, our esteemed colleague. The Senator was very gracious and there were great speeches, as well as a significant press and photographer presence. The unveiling will be followed by further celebrations later in the day.

I wish to acknowledge David and his unique style, individualism, eloquence and energy but, more important, in this House I want to acknowledge the significance of David's remarkable crusade in respect of the decriminalisation of homosexuality, his crusade for marriage equality and his trips to the High Court, the Supreme Court and, eventually, the European Court of Human Rights. What an achievement by a man who is a Member of this House. It proves the importance of Independent politics, but also his ability to collaborate. While he may have had difficulties with some people, he always remained in good personal friendships with them and that is the mark of the man. In summary, he is a lover of life, humanities and antiquities, and an amazing mentor to young people coming into political life. I hope we will have many more days of David being a Member of this House.

I join colleagues in offering condolences to Senator Currie of Fine Gael and her family. These are sad times for them. Her father was a remarkable man who made a remarkable contribution to the political life of this island, and that needs to be acknowledged.

I raise the issue of local government funding. I know Senator Kyne has been very much to the fore in calling for this action on this issue in the context of Galway.

Five municipal districts in Galway - Loughrea, Tuam, Ballinasloe, Athenry and Connemara - have rejected the municipal district budgets to take a stand about the lack of adequate funding. We need a debate in this House on local government funding. We need a debate on how the local property tax, LPT, is being administered. We need a debate about the major reduction in commercial rates. We certainly need to debate when we hear that local authorities are seeking commercial rates from private individuals who have small offices in their homes. Particularly post Covid, the scenario has changed. I join others in calling for an extensive debate on local government financing, especially focused on the problems in Galway County Council. The people in the Galway County Council area, the staff of the council and the councillors deserve our support. I would welcome an early debate in the House on that issue.

I apologise to the House for starting the Order of Business ten minutes late, but as the Leader of the Opposition has outlined, it was in the course of unveiling a portrait of the great Senator Norris. His contribution to this House in the longest unbroken record of service was marked by the unveiling of a portrait of him. As Senator Boyhan outlined, he championed minority causes when nobody else would speak on them. Often forgotten as we go through this pandemic is the previous pandemic of the AIDS virus, which was a silent killer in Ireland. Nobody in the establishment or society in general wanted to talk about it, but Senator Norris raised it here time and again until he ensured there was a change in public policy. That shows the power of him as an Independent and the power of the Seanad in its role of raising issues that were uncomfortable for society. He forced change by his presence in this House. It was great to be there this morning to honour his great service to the country.

On behalf of the Green Party, An Comhaontas Glas, we closely associate ourselves with the remarks of the Cathaoirleach and previous speakers in conveying our deepest sympathy to Senator Currie and her family on the sad passing of Austin Currie. Austin was a fearless voice and an advocate of equality. Articulating those views at that time meant putting one's life in peril. It is only a short few decades ago, but it is worth noting that he was not silenced nor were others in the SDLP, despite coming under attack from extremes in loyalism and republicanism.

There are different shades of green. Austin Currie may not have been the deepest shade of green, but perhaps the deepest shade of green is a galloping green that strives to achieve and realise a legitimate dream, but in the efforts of striving so harshly, at times it can prove counterproductive. Austin Currie did not believe in rushing. He came from a place whose only crime, which caused the SDLP trouble at the time, was a consent principle and to espouse the dream of a united Ireland exclusively by peaceful means.

It is also worth noting that another member of the SDLP, Gerry Fitt, was hounded out of his constituency in west Belfast. They shouted at him, "Fitt the Brit". What did he ever do? I accept he took a peerage and many people here might not like to take a peerage. While it is not something I would do, perhaps in taking the peerage he reached out to the other community. Margaret Ritchie also took a peerage and people from the nationalist community might find it hard to accept that. In a sense, from a different prism, that may be a form of reconciliation.

Austin Currie was also involved in what many would regard as the most bruising presidential election campaign. The father of the House might disagree. He would like the bragging rights of having been involved in a far more bruising presidential election campaign. I close my remarks by mentioning the father of this House. I commend the Independent grouping's beautiful and appropriate initiative to acknowledge the ongoing and selfless work of a public representative who has made his mark nationally and internationally.

On behalf of the Sinn Féin group, I offer our condolences to our colleague, Senator Currie, and her family on the passing of Austin Currie. May he rest in peace.

The latest Daft rental report confirms what anybody who is trying to rent in this country already knows, which is that rents are continuing to rise. Munster, Connacht and Ulster are facing hikes of between 15% and 18% and, incredibly, the average monthly rent in Ireland is now €1,516. There is no doubt the rental crisis is continuing and the Minister continues to be four steps behind with every measure he takes. For years we have said rent pressure zones were not working and yet the Minister thinks simply tweaking around the edges will fix it. Seventeen counties have double-digit rental increases and some counties have had increases of as much as 20%. What does the Minister propose to deal with it? He proposes to allow landlords to hike rents by a further 2%.

Sinn Féin has detailed proposals to support tenants, including a ban on rental increases, money back in renters' pockets through a refundable tax credit, and the prioritisation of genuinely affordable homes, including affordable purchase and cost rental. People waking up today will not be surprised with the Daft report because anybody who is trying to rent in this country knows how broken the system is. Tragically, they have a Government which gives them no hope of any change in the short term.

The recent budget offered nothing for renters and the policies coming from the office of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, continue to be developer, investor and landlord driven. The Minister said he would ban co-living but left a long enough lead-in time to allow the developers to get their applications in before the change came into effect. The Minister said he would curb investors' bulk-buying homes, but the Government is now embarking on a roadshow to calm the investors and to assure them to stick with us, as the Tánaiste said.

Later today we will debate a Bill to abolish strategic housing developments, SHDs, a developer-led planning process designed to bypass democratic oversight. We warned it would fail and now, unfortunately, we have been proven right. However, just like co-living, the proposal in the Bill to be debated today has such a long lead-in time that the SHDs will be with us until 2022. Throughout next year developers will be able to use planning processes to delay the system of getting houses onto the market. The housing system in Ireland is broken. Despite nine years of rent inflation, the Minister is repeating the same mistakes of his predecessor. Tinkering will not cut it. Housing is like climate change and transport. It will only be fixed by State-led capital investment.