I thank all Members who contributed to the Order of Business. Senator Kyne raised the issue, once again, of Inland Fisheries Ireland. I share the Senator's concerns. He has been quite consistent in this Chamber in advocating for the public interest and on issues that he sees as being quite serious with regard to how the organisation is being run. He has consistently asked very reasonable questions. I ask that the Department engage with Senator Kyne to try to bring a resolution to this issue. That is about as much as I can say in my capacity on the matter.

Senator O'Loughlin spoke on a number of issues. Both she and Senators Clonan, Wall and Craughwell all expressed their sympathies and condolences to the family of Declan O'Connell who passed away. He was a member of the Defence Forces from Newbridge. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. My sympathies to his family, his fiancé, Audrey, his daughter, Niamh, and, of course, to the defence community. It is a difficult time for them. Senator O'Loughlin also acknowledged that yesterday was Epilepsy Day. The Senator very interestingly said that while today is St. Valentine's Day, 14 April is the date in South Korea when being single is celebrated. It is something to bear in mind and an interesting bit of information.

Senator Clonan proposed an amendment to the Order of Business, that No. 130, motion 9, be taken ahead of No. 1. It has been seconded by Senator Keogan. I will accept the amendment, but I will flag that I only got notice today of the proposed amendment to the Order of Business. I ask that the Senator gives me a little more notice in future, because it did not give me time to take any advice on the issue, or have a proper response for the Senator. It does not really allow me to engage in any debate on the issue, or even give a view on it. I do not wish to divide the House either. The comments of Senator Ward show there is not consensus on the issue. It is good to try to build consensus on these types of issues and give a bit more time for debate and conversation before a motion is put. There is a motion on the Order Paper on Ukraine as well. It is my intention next week to bring a cross-party consensus motion. I believe the Dáil will do something similar. I ask the Senator to bear that in mind to allow me to be able to better respond in future to matters being raised, but I will accept the amendment to the Order of Business.

Senator Clonan also asked for a debate on Ukraine with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Deputy Martin, which I will request at the earliest opportunity. I share his concerns about the number losing their lives, on both sides. Given the loss of life, one would wonder what it is all for, really. We will request that debate at the earliest opportunity.

Senator Warfield spoke about the tragic loss of life of Brianna, the 16-year-old trans girl from the UK.

We send our solidarity, love and support to her family, friends and community. It was a tragic occurrence and an awful hate crime and it is something we also need to be mindful of in this country. I note a gathering will take place at 6 p.m. tomorrow evening at the General Post Office. I thank the Senator for alerting the House to that event.

Senator Wall spoke about a young girl, I think she was called Slaney - I hope I have the right name - who was diagnosed later in life, at the age of 24, with combined type ADHD. He said there is significant deficiency in diagnosis, especially for women who are dealing with ADHD and other mental health issues. He has requested a debate on that. It is quite specific. I will request a debate on mental health issues in general and allow Members to raise other issues as well. Senator Joe O'Reilly mentioned CAMHS. We had a debate on that a few weeks ago so we might leave that for a time but perhaps a more general debate on mental health would allow all issues in that space to be raised with the Minister.

Senators Ruane, Sherlock and Conway welcomed the news of the memo to Cabinet this morning on the citizens' assembly on drug use. It is long overdue and we are long overdue a debate and a change of response in how we deal with drugs. It might have been Senator Sherlock who correctly pointed out that dealing with it through the courts - I am paraphrasing - is not getting us anywhere. It is making matters worse. I think the terms of reference will be before this House next week. As soon as I have that information, I will circulate it to Members. I certainly welcome the work of the citizens' assembly and I wish all its members the best in their deliberations. We look forward to the publication of their recommendations in due course.

Hear, hear.

Senator Horkan put on the record of the House his sympathies on the death of Niamh Bhreathnach as he was unable to be here last week. He also extended his support to the people of New Zealand who have declared a national emergency because of the floods there.

Senator Joe O'Reilly commended Senator Ruane on her TV appearances. I concur with his remarks in that regard. Senator Ruane is doing a fabulous job. He raised a particular issue around home help and carers. I ask the Senator to table a Commencement matter initially. If that does not bear fruit, he should come back to me and we will schedule a more lengthy discussion on the matter.

I am happy to accept the amendment tabled by Senator Keogan. She raised the issues in Iran. I concur with the remarks the Senator made. I have also spoken about the issue in this Chamber. The significant severe human rights abuses and what women and girls are facing in that country are reprehensible. It is important we keep that issue alive and consistently debate and raise it in this House. I thank the Senator for putting that information on the record today.

Senator McGahon has requested a debate on local government and its structure. He suggested it might be wise to re-establish not all, but some town councils, perhaps the ones in his area at the start. I agree with the Senator. I am not sure that the removal of town councils was the right call at the time. Many communities are missing their town councils. I can certainly say that Castlebar-----

We might put one in Castlebar

Castlebar, Westport and Ballina miss their town councils. I notice the loss of representation and the focus on the town centre. Senator McGahon made a good point that some of the larger urban centres that do not have a town council would benefit from having extra representation and focus on their area. We will schedule that debate at the earliest opportunity. I will leave aside the opportunity to have a political nod at it; that debate has been had.

Senator Gallagher agreed with the re-establishment of town councils. He has also requested a debate on the hospitality VAT rate increasing from 9% to 13.5%. The Minister, Deputy Martin, will be in the Chamber next Wednesday and the Chair of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media, Deputy Niamh Smyth, will also be here. That will be an opportunity to discuss the matter and all issues affecting the tourism sector as they are coming to discuss tourism. Senator Gallagher correctly pointed out that tourism is one of the biggest sectors of employment in rural areas aside from multinational companies. It is an industry of great importance.

Senators Aisling Dolan, McGreehan and Carrigy spoke about the sheep sector. The Irish Farmers' Association, IFA, has been doing much work recently in briefing Members about the ongoing challenges being faced by sheep farmers and the sheep sector. We will request a debate with the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, at the earliest opportunity. I agree there are major challenges in the sector and we need to have a debate to address those issues.

Senator Sherlock not only raised the issue of the citizens' assembly but also asked for a debate on child poverty with the Taoiseach. I will see how that might work and request it.

On early years education, the Senator rightly acknowledges there has been much work done in recent years in funding to the sector and childcare costs have come down enormously, even in the space of the past couple of years. However, we have long way to go yet. It is not fully accessible across the country and there are pinch points. We will certainly look to debate that issue in the near future.

Senator Flynn asked for a debate around hotel accommodation. We had a debate last week around the accommodation of those seeking emergency accommodation with the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman. I wish Senators Flynn and Ardagh well this evening. Senator Flynn has notified us there will be an event in Ballyfermot at 5 p.m. to celebrate the diversity of the community, and also a further event in Drimnagh, at which she will be accompanied by Senator Ardagh, to tackle the issue of racism and call a halt to any racist comments.

Senator Craughwell asked for a debate on the issue of search and rescue and the Minister is happy to come to the Chamber to debate that. We are just working out what day and time he is available and, hopefully, it will be next week. We will let the Senator know as soon as we have a time locked in on that. We will get that debate for him.

Senator Boylan spoke to remind us that it is the anniversary of the Stardust tragedy. It is important that this be put on the record and that we acknowledge it is an important and significant date for all of those families in that community today. Obviously, we await the commencement of the inquest in April.

I note the comments of Senator Ward on the Iran motion. I also note his comments on outdoor dining facilities - a very welcome development that resulted from the pandemic - and the need to consult communities. We would like to maintain that option for people and businesses.

Senator Carrigy spoke about the IFA and its work in the sheep sector. As I said, we will get that debate organised as soon as possible.