The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding the orders of reference of the Seanad Public Consultation Committee, to be taken on conclusion of the Order of Business, without debate; No. 2, Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023 – Second Stage, to be taken at 11.45 a.m. and to conclude no later than 1.15 p.m., if not previously concluded, with the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes and that time may be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate; and No. 3, Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023 – Second Stage, to be taken at 1.15 p.m., with the opening remarks of the Minister not to exceed ten minutes, group spokespersons not to exceed ten minutes and that time may be shared, and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and that time may be shared, and the Minister to be given no less than ten minutes to reply to the debate.

I thank the Deputy Leader and support the Order of Business. It may be that in the new year we will have a debate on the proposals for the referendums that will take place on 8 March. We do not have a lot of time to tease out not only the legislation giving effect to that, but also how it will be implemented practically in terms of changing the constitutional references to the role of women in the home and the concept of a family. Those are important debates that we will have.

As the Deputy Leader is aware from her current and previous roles, the removal of the means test for carer's allowance has been debated repeatedly. The issue was raised recently in Kerry by Kathleen O'Sullivan from Portmagee, who looks after her daughter, Hannah, who has cerebral palsy. Kathleen cannot take on part-time work. There are all the issues in respect of pension entitlements. Of course, if the person in question is single, that brings its own challenges. A debate on how we treat the most vulnerable in society, and the carers who do such valuable work, should be organised for the new year. We should look after them in every way possible.