I know the Cathaoirleach asked Senator Carrigy to finish up but as there is no one else here, perhaps we should have another few minutes each.

That is not possible.

I am joking. I am just saying that we should be allowed to speak for as long as we like as there is no one else here.

As the boys and girls in the Visitors Gallery know, the teachers set the rules. I am governed by Standing Orders, as Senator McGahon knows. I would be very happy to let him speak for as long as he wants. I would love to listen to him speak all day.

That is wonderful. I might start my two minutes again, if that is possible. I do not usually do this because I tend to focus on one topic, but I want to focus on two topics today.

First, as we come into the summer season, school transport is obviously going to be a big issue for all of us. I do not understand why Bus Éireann has introduced a rule that to be a bus driver with Bus Éireann, a person must be under 70. There are plenty of bus drivers who are able to drive very safely at 70, 71, 72 and onwards. That should instead be based around either a medical assessment, an eyesight assessment or any sort of driving assessment, which would be much fairer than having a cut-off limit of 70. There are many drivers who are driving all around Ireland on tour buses and everything else who are over 70, but they cannot do a five-mile run in and out the road for a school bus tour because they are over that age. I would appreciate it if the Department could speak to Bus Éireann with a view to looking again at that.

The second issue is in regard to the housing assistance grant in County Louth. Louth County Council has said it is not accepting any new housing adaptation grant applications until January 2024. This has been raised in the Dáil by most of the Oireachtas Members for County Louth. The Government provided Louth with €1.6 million earlier in the year and Louth County Council matched it, but it is saying it still needs a further €580,000 to facilitate the other applications that it wants to get across the line. It is asking the Department to facilitate that and I urge the Department to consider it.

I do not think it is acceptable that a local authority can say that it is not accepting any applications because it will not have sufficient money until next year. Some €1.8 million was given this year by the Department to Louth County Council. We cannot expect someone who is waiting for very serious alterations to their home with regard to medical needs, wet rooms and all of that type of thing to wait until January of next year. It is simply not fair. I do not think it is acceptable for a local authority to put the kibosh on this when it got €1.8 million earlier in the year.

I remind Senator McGahon that his good friend, the almost Leader of the House, would advise him that Members who are not group leaders can only raise one matter on the Order of Business, so he should perhaps focus on that. Well said, Senator McGahon.

I will take the Cathaoirleach's advice.

I thank the Cathaoirleach and all the Senators who contributed to the Order of Business. I welcome our two guests, Mia Galligan and Mya Doocey, to the Visitors Gallery and congratulate them on their really important work. It would have been a taboo subject for many years. When I was playing football, it just was not talked about. I am glad to see there has even been a move away from certain types of clothing and colours that are more difficult to wear at certain times. It is great that we are having those conversations. Their work will make a huge difference to the girls coming after them as well. Well done.

Senator Conway’s contribution was really profound. I commend him not just on his work this morning, when he did a Dip at Dawn to highlight the difficulties for those with sight impairment, but for his continuous advocacy for those with sight difficulty. There are very few people in either of the Houses who speak about that issue and he consistently makes sure it is top of the agenda. He has requested a debate on eye care and waiting lists, and we will request that debate at the earliest opportunity.

Senator Murphy spoke about the need to protect front-line workers and he acknowledged the huge number of gardaí who have been assaulted on our front lines. We know there is a lot of work happening in that space and that penalties have recently been increased for assaults on front-line workers through the Department of Justice.

Senator Clonan spoke about the story in the media around nursing homes and the sexual assault on a resident. It is an horrific case and I want to send our sympathies to her and her family, and to all of the other potential victims as well. The Senator also spoke about the submersible and the rescue operation currently happening off Newfoundland. He drew the attention of the House to the many drownings in the Mediterranean and the number of people who are losing their lives. It is important that the EU takes action on that.

Senator Flynn welcomed the Pride festivities in the House this week and she also spoke about her own pride that the Joint Committee on Key Issues affecting the Traveller Community is up and running again. The Senator hopes to Chair that committee.

Senator Malcolm Byrne made the point that refugees will always be welcome in Ireland and that we should remember our history. He also requested a debate on the exploitation of the developing south by China with the Minister for Foreign Affairs. We will request that debate.

Senator Seery Kearney drew the attention of the House to the ongoing challenges for workers at the Iceland supermarket chain, where some were not getting paid, and we certainly hope that that situation can be resolved. She also drew the attention of the House to the Not Our Fault campaign, whose representatives are in the audiovisual room at this moment speaking about their difficulties in getting that scheme moving. In fairness, the scheme has been funded by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage but there seems to be some delay in getting it moving.

Senator Boyhan spoke about the mother and baby homes redress scheme Bill that is going to be in the House again this evening. He has alerted the House to the votes he will call on that, and I thank the Senator for that notice. The Senator also asked for a debate on local government finance and I believe he is aware that is already scheduled for next week. That debate on local government was requested by many Members across the House. We have secured the debate for next Wednesday and I am glad to have the Minister coming in.

Senator Dolan spoke about the extension of courses across third level through the HEA and the provision of pharmacy courses in the west of Ireland, which is very welcome.

Senator Craughwell welcomed the consultative forum that is kicking off tomorrow in Cork. It will then go to Galway on Friday and will be in Dublin on Monday and Tuesday of next week. He welcomed the fact we are having an honest and open debate. I concur with the Senator’s remarks and believe it is long overdue.

Senator Burke raised issues around inland fisheries. It might be worth a Commencement matter at this point to see if we can get a publication date for that report. I am not sure if we have a date yet for the constitution of a new board but, certainly, that issue was not resolved. I pay credit to Senator Burke and Senator Kyne for consistently raising the issue. We might discuss afterwards how we can progress that.

Senator Cummins welcomed the President's apology to Louise Richardson, DBE, who was the subject of some unfortunate comments at the weekend. I think there were many unfortunate things about that whole saga, and maybe we will leave it at that. I hope that lessons have been learned. The Senator also welcomed the news from the Ministers, Deputies McConalogue, Harris and Stephen Donnelly, on the extension of veterinary and health places across the country, including in regional areas. It is very welcome that we can increase the number of students and the number of graduates coming out who will work in the health service and the veterinary service here.

Senator Cassells welcomed our two guests and spoke about the important work happening at the committee on sport around girls and the impact of periods on their sporting participation. He spoke about the importance of that work and commended the two women for their contribution to the committee on sport. It is no small thing to present to an Oireachtas committee. It is a great achievement and I have no doubt their families and community are very proud of the work they are doing and that they are here in the Oireachtas today, being the advocates that they are. Well done.

Senator Cassells also welcomed the establishment of the Media Commission and the publication of its work programme. He drew the attention of the House to the reduction in trust in media in the country, as highlighted in the Reuters report. It is very worrying and needs to be cut off at the pass.

We need to reverse that trend because trust in media is fundamental to our democracy. The Senator referred to the support being given by the Government to local journalism to cover things such as courts and local sporting events, which are very important but are not covered by national newspapers. It is important that we support local media.

Senator Carrigy called on the Minister to create additional places in universities and colleges for occupational therapists and speech and language therapists. He also spoke about tourism, the hotel sector and the price increases we are seeing. He drew attention to the significant increase in prices when concerts are taking place. That is unfortunate because many people who have a ticket for a concert simply cannot go to it because there is no affordable accommodation available. That is something on which the hotel sector should reflect because it is doing damage.

Senator McGahon spoke about school transport. I agree with his call for it to be based on ability to drive rather than age. Many people of that age are very fit and would run rings around us. They would be well able to do that type of work. It might be worth tabling a Commencement matter to ask the Minister to consider exploring that work within the Department, given that there is time before the next school term commences in September. The Senator also spoke about housing adaptation grants and the €1.8 million allocated to Louth County Council. It is remarkable that the council will not take applications, given the significant funding from central government. Council management should reflect on that and see if there is a way to start opening to applications. It is distressing for families or individuals to be told they cannot apply. People need to be processed and get into the system and have light at the end of the tunnel. I am sure engagements with the Department will yield results in terms of the initial funding required but the local authority has a responsibility to engage with people, accept applications and start processing them. It not doing so will cause distress.