The Order of Business is No. 1, Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) (Amendment) Bill 2025 - Committee Stage, to be taken at 1 p.m. and to adjourn at 3 p.m. if not previously concluded; No. 2, statements on rural planning, to be taken at 3 p.m. and to conclude at 4.30 p.m. 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, 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, Air Navigation and Transport (Amendment) Bill 2026 – Second Stage, to be taken at 5 p.m. with the time allocated to the debate not to exceed two hours; and No. 4, Garda Síochána (Powers) Bill 2026 – Committee Stage (Resumed), to be taken at 7 p.m. and the proceedings thereon shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion at 10 p.m. by putting one question from the Chair which shall, in relation to the amendments, include only those set down or accepted by the Government.

I welcome to our Distinguished Visitors Gallery the ambassador from Portugal on Portugal Day, which celebrates its great poet, Camões, whose death occurred on this day in 1580. He famously wrote the epic poem, The Lusiads, which celebrates Portuguese history, culture and identity, and is a symbol of Portugal's great nation. This day not only celebrates Portugal's culture, but also unites Portuguese people around the world. Nearly one third of Portuguese people live outside of Portugal. That is why Ireland and Portugal share such a unique history, having so many people scattered to the four corners of the world. We also established diplomatic relations at a challenging time in the world, 1942, when we had a chargé d'affaires in Lisbon and then a full embassy in 1975 after we joined the European Union.

Our relationships, however, go a lot further back. We believed in a zero-tariff area in the 15th century. There were close trade connections between my home county of Kerry and Portugal. I do not think anyone believed in paying tariffs back then. It took a few centuries to formalise that under the European Union. The connection included selling of silverware, wine, textiles, port, ceramics and leather goods from Portugal to Ireland, and of fish, beef, wool and timber to Portugal from the west coast of Ireland.

We wish the ambassador and all the Portuguese community in Ireland, about 15,000, a happy national day. I will do my very best Portuguese: Feliz día nacional, which is, I think, something around "Happy Portuguese national day". I wish Ambassador João Pedro de Vasconcelos Fins do Lago, his embassy and all the people from Portugal in Ireland a happy national day. I thank the ambassador for being here.

I extend a welcome on behalf of Fianna Fáil to the ambassador. I look forward to working with him.

I extend a warm congratulations to all involved in Bloom this year. It was incredibly successful and I want to recognise the outstanding achievement of Newbridge native Joe Eustace, who won the gold medal at Bord Bia Bloom for his "Future In Mind" garden. The garden was also named best in the medium garden and planting categories. Joe is only 24 years of age. His dad Ken is very well known for his work in the business. Joe has demonstrated exceptional creative talent in the horticultural area and it is credit to him and all who support him. Kieran Dunne and Kildare Growers also had very successful exhibits at Bloom. The horticulture industry is incredibly important and I would like to see a debate in the House with the Minister on supporting Irish horticulture.

The Special Olympics Ireland games start on Thursday, 18 June, with the opening ceremony in Tallaght. We will have 1,200 athletes from around the island of Ireland competing in 12 sports. There are 600 coaches and 2,500 volunteers involved in making these games an incredible experience for the athletes and all involved. They are just a fraction of the athletes involved day in, day out in local clubs, communities and centres. This is an important milestone because it is the qualifier for representing Ireland in Santiago, Chile, next year. I wish all the athletes the best of luck and thank everybody involved, including the 2,500 volunteers, in ensuring the games are a great success.

I want to mention a visa application from a group of 20 dancers, musicians and youth leaders from the Lajee Center in Palestine who have applied for visas to do a cultural tour of Ireland. This has happened on a number of occasions. It is an important cultural exchange. Their visa applications were lodged last week to do a tour in July. I would appreciate the Acting Leader's support in terms of asking that these visas be dealt with in a timely fashion. We must do everything we can to make sure this can happen and to give a glimmer of light, life and hope to those 20 individuals.