I call on the Acting Leader to respond.

I thank the 20 Senators who made contributions to the Order of Business. Senator Clifford-Lee spoke about St. Peter's GAA club in her area. She mentioned that three football clubs that have come together and are working together to try to increase and improve facilities for many kids in that area. It is good to see that that has happened because there is limited funding available across the whole country to fund sports facilities for sports clubs.

We often see sports clubs going separately looking for funding. It is often to the detriment of the full area. To see three clubs come together to try to look for funding is critically important. It is good that the Senator has raised it. I think the Minister is on record as saying that local authorities can step up as well and play their role. It is good to see the clubs are working with the local authority on a car park, because it always seems to be a big issue in urban and rural areas. The team is a third space. When we talk about communities, we talk about home and work, but amenities and facilities are critically important, particularly for kids.

Senator Boyhan spoke about the survivors of institutions. Senator Harmon raised the matter yesterday too. Senator Boyhan talked about the sad stories of people who lost contact or had broken links between brothers and sisters while in institutions. There is a good opportunity, considering that recommendations have been brought forward, which we have debated previously in this House,, as Senator Harmon said yesterday, for us to have a debate on it. When we talk about redress, we are talking about justice too. It is important that this be recognised.

Senator Scahill spoke about more parking being needed in hospitals. That can be seen that right across the country. Roscommon is at a critical stage and there is nothing worse than people going to hospital, having appointments, or an emergency, and not being able to find parking. It happened to my father last week in Clonmel. We had to drop him simply because parking is difficult to find. It is frustrating as a public representative. Councillor Valerie Duffy is working hard at this but when people are just fobbed off and told that some sort of master plan is happening at some point, but with no detail or information, and they are expected to go back to their constituents and tell them that something can be done, it is very frustrating. I acknowledge, as the Senator did, Kathleen and all on the Tidy Towns committee and the work they do. We see that across the country. People often do it when they are supposedly retired, yet seem to work harder than ever before.

Senator Collins spoke about the Bloom Festival, which has been so successful for the past ten years or more. She raised a key point, which is that when we have a festival like this, which is being sponsored heavily by Bord Bia, we have to make sure that most of the products there are Irish products, or if they are not, it should be clearer than it normally is. She spoke about merino wool, which is a popular type of wool for clothing. Much of that is imported. We have labelling issues, whether in wool or in food products, that have been highlighted in these Houses a number of times. It needs to be improved.

Senators Stephenson and Higgins spoke about taking Nos. 12 and 13 before No. 1. I have no problem with that at all. We had a debate with the Minister, Deputy McEntee, about international relations and development, and we discussed many of the issues that the Senators raised. There is no problem with doing what the Senators requested to change the Order of Business.

Senator Paul Daly congratulated Deputy Seán Kyne and then spoke about farm safety, which was raised by a number of Members yesterday. It is a good opportunity to have statements on farm safety, considering it is a week when we are off. Any of us who live in rural Ireland at the moment are seeing more tractors on the road. All it takes is one accident, whether on the road or on the farm, to have a massive impact on a family. As we always say, a family home on a farm is a workplace too, and something can happen very easily. We always need to be conscious of that and do as much as we can to raise awareness regarding the safety of family farmers.

Senator Boyle raised an issue that can be frustrating for people with disabilities. When they are going to the local shop in their town, a supermarket, or anywhere else, all of the disability bays have been taken up. I do not understand how people who are not entitled to take these parking spots can take them. Even now, there are parking spots for people who have young families, which are bigger for a reason, to let mothers and fathers take young kids out, and they are just randomly taken by people. That is a smaller issue but there is a reason there are parking bays for people with disabilities close to facilities, which is ease of access that the Senator or I do not need. We should always be aware of that. A 60-second walk is not that stressful and there is loads of parking in this places where we see parking bays.

Senator Keogan spoke about the sad passing of that gentleman outside Arnotts. I am not doubting what she said but we have to remember that someone died here and it is a very sad situation. There is an investigation, which is being carried out at the moment. It is not for me or the House to talk about it. I am not aware that anyone in these Houses called security guards murderers. If they did, no one knows the full story. Let the process happen. A person died and there are grieving people. Regarding the issues the Senator referred to, my view is that we should focus on the person who died first and see what happens. It is not for me to comment on that, with an investigation happening.

Senator Flaherty spoke about a garda in Longford. I do not know the details of it. I am not doubting what the Senator aid. I know Senator Brady raised it too. It is an internal matter for An Garda Síochána. We have a new Commissioner. It seems like the person the Senator is speaking to has more confidence in the new Commissioner. Mr. Justin Kelly has hit the ground running and is doing a good job. I hope that things like HR matters are dealt with. I appreciate that the Senator raised it and wants to support a constituent, but a HR issue in An Garda Síochána is not something I can comment too much on.

Senator Duffy raised the new strategy for renewable energy. He has raised battery storage numerous times and how much energy is being wasted by not having battery energy storage and energy clouds around the country. Since this strategy has been announced, it is a good opportunity to have a debate with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien. I will request that on the Senator's behalf.

Senator Andrews spoke of the very sad passing of Alex Coughlan. It is good to see that two suspects have been arrested but let us see how the process plays out. It is not for me to speak about that, but on the wider issue, as the Senator said, people feel unsafe when things like this happen. They want to see more gardaí on the street. That is why the Government has invested in more gardaí and why we expect to have more gardaí at the end of this year than ever before. That needs to be seen on the ground in the Senator's constituency and across the country. We need more investment in it. It is a good opportunity to have the Minister for justice, Deputy O'Callaghan, who is always good to have visiting the Chamber, attend to discuss that. I will try to have that happen.

Senator Kennelly spoke about Kerry, beaches and safety concerns. Given the week that is in it, it is a timely opportunity to raise that. Kerry is a popular place to go when the sun is out, with 15 blue flag beaches. There is a responsibility on people and an onus on local authorities to make sure that popular beaches like Banna Beach in Kerry have lifeguards on-site in case something happens. Many people there are not massively experienced swimmers, including young children, and it is important that someone is there to oversee everyone's safety during the summer spell.

Senator Black raised the occupied territories Bill. I understand her disappointment. She raised the Bill and where it was going to go only a week or two ago. I said it was very close to coming to Cabinet and would be coming through the Houses. It was brought to Cabinet yesterday and will be published at the end of this week. I was on the foreign affairs committee, as the Senator knows. We did an awful lot of work on it. We had views in the committee. We did that work before the Attorney General had given his advice. I understand the Senator's concerns. I know there will be amendments. I have no doubt that we will make sure that this House has ample time to discuss that Bill when it comes through. As the Senator knows, a lot has been done by this Government in support of Palestine, recognising the ambassador and the State of Palestine and supporting South Africa in the court case. I have not seen the Bill yet. When it comes to the House, it will go some way to following through on that judgment.

That is important. It has always been the Senator's goal. We will try to do that and come to a consensus.

Senator Byrne spoke about the lack of roads funding. This seems to be a continuous issue every year. Wexford has been hit by a number of storms. It is not fair that local authorities have to use their own money in 2026 to spend on something that happened very early on, and they are waiting for money from the Department. When it is promised, that funding needs to be given to the local authorities as quickly as possible. We are quite good at giving it to businesses as quickly as possible to get up and running but there is no good in that if the roads are not being improved following storms, and if the councils have to use their own funding on the promise of getting funding, but not knowing when they are going to get it. That is not sustainable. It has happened in Roscommon and other counties. It is incredibly frustrating. We will raise the issue of emergency funding with the Minister for Transport.

Senator Cosgrove spoke on the issue of services and the occupied territories Bill. We will have a debate on that. The Senator spoke about Spain banning services, as did Senator Black. It is a bit more technical than that, as we know. I hear what the Senator is saying. We will have an opportunity to discuss it further, and I suspect that many amendments will be tabled.

With regard to Sligo County Council, those figures can be very frustrating, and they are very different in other councils. It seems that, across the country, there is a different priority in the different schemes that are available, whether it is the tenant in situ scheme or the CPO of properties. It is very different across the country, which can be frustrating. It is important to highlight that Sligo should be using more money. It needs to ramp up the tenant in situ scheme, which can be beneficial to people living in homes. A lot of money is spent on private landlords but that is also housing genuine people who need housing. It is capital funding that is needed for the tenant in situ scheme to buy a property. If there are homes to be bought, the council should be doing that.

Senator O'Donovan spoke about infrastructure development. This aligns with what Senator Clifford-Lee said about the third space. When we talk about towns, whether Bandon or Clonakilty, we want more homes, and to get more homes, we need infrastructure, whether it is wastewater, water or roads. We need to create an environment on top of that for families and young people. It is a good opportunity for local authorities to assess a town and ask how it can develop this into a wider, long-term plan for where we want to see Bandon in ten or 15 years and what funding is needed for that. I will talk to the Minister with responsibility for rural affairs. That Department was set up ten years ago to invest in rural Ireland, to encourage people to live in rural Ireland and to make changes in order to create jobs in rural Ireland. However, we need amenities and a quality of life. People do not just go to somewhere because there is a good job. They go because there are good schools, good facilities and good road infrastructure. It is all about the quality of life. We can have a good discussion about that.

Senator Sarah O'Reilly raised the issue of building homes. This touches on the point made by Senator O'Donovan. As someone from rural Ireland, I know exactly what the Senator means about the challenges with connections, whether for the ESB or wastewater. People spend a lot of money before they have a block in the ground. We have seen an increase in the numbers this year. I know the Senator is talking about inflation for apartments but apartments are homes too. They may not be in rural areas in Tipperary or Cavan but they are still homes. There are a lot of supports, whether it is the first-time buyer’s grant, the first home scheme or others. I will see if we can have a debate on that.

Senator Lynch spoke about hydrotreated vegetable oil, HVO. One of the biggest problems in agriculture is that people are being asked to move from green diesel but there is no alternative. Here is a possible alternative. There are simple things we could to with VAT, but certainly with capital investment. As the Senator said, and as I and other colleagues know, Councillor John Reilly has been raising this for a long time to try to prioritise HVO. We will see if the Minister is available to discuss that. It could also be tabled as a Commencement matter.

Senator Brady spoke about mental health and young people. It is a good week to talk about it. We are in recess next week. More than 60,000 kids around the country will sit the State exams. It is an incredibly stressful time for them and their parents. We can all have good exams and bad exams but life still goes on and we can still succeed. However, for a child who is 16, 17 or 18, it can be incredibly stressful. People need to be mindful of that. These are just exams at the end of the day. It does not have to be a situation where someone gets depressed and does something unthinkable. We will not be here next week but I wish everyone well in their State exams next week. They can look forward to the summer after their exams.

Before I deal with the Order of Business, I welcome our visitors from Wicklow Educate Together National School, who are the guests of Senator Pat Casey. We also have the guests of the Minister of State, Deputy Colm Brophy, with us. As is customary in the House, there should be no homework for the rest of the week for those from Educate Together. Enjoy your visit today.

Senator Stephenson has proposed an amendment to the Order of Business: "That No. 13 be taken before No. 1." This was seconded by Senator Higgins. The Acting Leader has indicated he is prepared to accept this amendment. Is the amendment agreed to? Agreed.

Senator Higgins has proposed an amendment to the Order of Business: "That No. 12 be taken before No. 1." The amendment was seconded by Senator Black. The Acting Leader has indicated he is prepared to accept this amendment. Is the amendment agreed to? Agreed.