Latest news with #Seanad
RTÉ News
14 hours ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
Inquiry begins into prescribing of anti-epilepsy drug
An inquiry has begun into the historical prescribing of an anti-epilepsy drug which can cause birth defects if used during pregnancy. The non-statutory inquiry into the use of sodium valproate, sold under the brand name Epilim, is scheduled to last between 12 and 18 months. It is estimated over 1,000 children have been impacted in Ireland since the 1970s. The inquiry, which will be chaired by barrister Bríd O'Flaherty, will be divided into a number of strands. The first will be the review phase, which will establish a timeline of the use of the drug including information on safety and regulation. The Department of Health said the inquiry will have responsibility to request documentation from a range of stakeholders and will be obliged to record any difficulties where such requests are refused. The second phase will be made up of oral statements from affected families. These sessions will be held in private. Other phases will focus on assessing the health services' current capacity to respond to safety issues related to the use of anti-seizure medications in women. The department said necessary data regulations were passed last week in the Dáil and Seanad. Families have been campaigning for years for an inquiry to be held and have welcomed the fact that it began today. The department has previously said sodium valproate is an effective medication for some and those taking it should not make any changes to treatment without first discussing it with their doctor. The department has also previously said while sodium valproate is an effective and essential treatment for some patients, it can cause birth defects, neurodevelopmental disorders and autism in children whose mothers take such medicines during pregnancy.
Irish Post
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Post
President Michael D. Higgins to release spoken word album
PRESIDENT Michael D. Higgins is to release a spoken word album featuring his poetry set to music by Myles O'Reilly. The 10-track album is due be released on September 5, not long before the end of Higgins' second term as president in November. The title track, Against All Certainty, has already been released and is available now via streaming platforms. 'Incredibly interesting life' Higgins, 84, began his political career in 1973 when he was appointed to the Seanad by Taoiseach Liam Cosgrove. He later served two terms as TD for Galway West and for several years was Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht. However, throughout his political career, he also worked as a writer, broadcaster and poet. He had a regular column for the music magazine Hot Press and has had four poetry collections published, as well as a number of non-fiction books. Against All Certainty is the president's debut spoken word album and will feature 10 of his most well-known works. "Listeners can expect to find themselves fully transposed into the incredibly interesting life and times of the poet before he became Ireland's President, from childhood to adulthood," press for the album states. The album was recorded in Áras an Uachtaráin, the official residence and office of the President of Ireland. The tracks will be set to musical compositions by O'Reilly, a member of the band Juno Falls, who has also directed a number of music videos and documentaries. 'Prodigious poems' Against All Certainty will be released on CD, hardback CD book and vinyl formats by Claddagh Records. Irish novelist, playwright and poet Sebastian Barry, who was Laureate for Irish Fiction from 2018 until 2021, hailed the president's work. "These are truly prodigious poems by Michael D. Higgins — not just a milestone in his own work but in Irish poetry," he said. President Higgins will step down from his role later this year, having served the maximum two terms. The album is available to pre-order from Claddagh Records by clicking here. See More: Claddagh Records, Michael D Higgins, Poetry
BreakingNews.ie
5 days ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Seanad count challenge: Returning officer had no reason to doubt accuracy of vote, court told
A returning officer who refused a former Seanad candidate's request for a full recount of the vote during the recent election has told the High Court he had no reason to doubt the accuracy of the count. Martin Groves, the recently retired clerk of the Seanad, said a narrow margin of votes separating Cllr Angela Feeney and the final successful candidate in the agricultural panel was not grounds in and of itself to direct a full recount of votes. Advertisement Cllr Feeney, a Labour Party councillor in Kildare, was eliminated on the 23rd count by a margin of .116, or one-ninth, of a ballot, missing out on the final seat to Fine Gael's Maria Byrne in January's election. Each valid Seanad ballot paper is deemed to have a value of 1,000 votes. The total valid poll for the 11-seat agricultural panel was 95,667 votes. Cllr Feeney, a member of the Labour Party's central council and former head of Technological University Dublin's school of languages, law and social sciences, has brought a High Court petition challenging the conduct of vote counting for the agricultural panel. Cllr Feeney's case claims there should have been a full recount of the ballots, rather than simply a repeat of the 23rd count. Cllr Feeney wants the election result overturned and a recount ordered. Advertisement Giving evidence at the hearing of Cllr Feeney's action on Wednesday, Mr Groves said legislation allows returning officers conducting Seanad election counts discretion to direct full recounts in circumstances where they are not satisfied with the accuracy of the count. Mr Groves said his discretion to direct a full recount of votes is restrained by those circumstances. He said a narrow margin separating candidates was not a reason in and of itself to order a full recount. During the count, after considering Cllr Feeney's request for a full recount, Mr Groves said he concluded he had no reason to doubt the accuracy of the count, noting that no errors were uncovered following two partial recounts. Advertisement He said there were lots of potential circumstances where he would begin to doubt the accuracy of the count. On Thursday, Dr Eoin O'Malley, a political scientist and professor at Dublin City University, told the court he was 'surprised' Cllr Feeney was not granted a recount. Dr O'Malley, an expert witness called by Cllr Feeney's side, stipulated that he did not have expertise or experience with Seanad counts, but had experience of observing Dáil election counts. He agreed with Conor Power SC, for Cllr Feeney, that recounts in election counts with tight margins can lead to greater satisfaction with the outcome of the election. Advertisement Dr O'Malley said he believed part of the reason for the granting of recounts in those circumstances is to satisfy all candidates that the count has been conducted fairly and properly. In the case of Cllr Feeney, Dr O'Malley said it would have been better for democracy and the electoral process had a recount been granted, and noted it would have been quicker and cheaper than pursuing the issue through the courts. He said he believed that granting Cllr Feeney the recount could have satisfied the candidate that there were no errors in the count. The trial, before Mr Justice Míchéal O'Higgins, continues.
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Healy-Rae firm linked to election fraud case, Kerry senator claims in Seanad
"Every dog and divil in Kerry" knows that a man who pleaded guilty to election fraud works for a business owned by members of the Healy-Rae family, the Seanad has been told. Fine Gael senator Mike Kennelly today accused a man — who last week avoided a conviction for voting in last year's local elections using a polling card that was not in his name — of being an employee of Healy-Rae Plant Hire. The company is run by the family of Kerry Independent TD Danny Healy-Rae, including his son Johnny, who is a councillor for the Kenmare area. In the Seanad on Thursday, Mr Kennelly told junior housing minister Christopher O'Sullivan that the issue was a 'worrying and serious matter.' Under parliamentary privilege, the Kerry senator said: "We had voter impersonation at a Kenmare polling station at the local and European elections in June 2024, caught on CCTV. "A Cahersiveen man pleaded guilty but avoided a conviction for election fraud after he used a polling card not in his name that went missing from a vehicle. It is even more extraordinary to learn, as every dog and divil in Kerry knows, that the defendant works for the Healy-Rae Plant Hire company. He was cited in court as a farmer and a contractor, but his employer, the Healy-Rae firm, was unusually not identified, even though he has worked for it for years. "I called for a thorough investigation into the facts of the incident last week, and we still need clarity as to how this was quietly hushed up. It has made a mockery of our democracy. There have been no answers as to how this man got the polling card before he drove 40 miles from his home to vote in another town. "He did not acquire it himself, the court was told, so who exactly gave it to him? The electors of Kerry, and indeed the rest of the country, deserve to know." Mr Kennelly went on to say that there were more irregularities in the Kerry electoral area. He said that he had been elected a councillor in 2014 by two votes and that individual cases do matter. "Another case in Kerry centres on potential criminal wrongdoing in the form of irregular supplementary registration. This case centres on allegations that, ahead of the May 2019 local elections, a garda officer in the Killarney electoral area stamped hundreds of supplementary voter registration forms without the applicants being physically present, which is a legal requirement. "An Garda Síochána launched a formal investigation led by a superintendent from outside Kerry and a file was prepared. As of April 2024, GSOC forwarded a file to the DPP, with a decision still pending. This is over six years ago. When will we see this case brought to a conclusion? "I have stated that these cases have made a mockery of our democracy. Illegal voter fraud strikes at the very heart of our democracy." In response, Mr O'Sullivan said he could not comment on individual cases but that trust in the system was paramount. "We all, as the Senator said, have put ourselves up for election. It is a stressful time, including for our families and our friends, and one does so in the hope that we can trust the electoral system. If there is fear that fraud may be carried our or that votes are cast inappropriately, it undermines that. "It undermines not only us as candidates but also democracy in general and means that people's voices, essentially, are not heard in the way they should be." Danny Healy-Rae has been contacted for a response to Mr Kennelly's statements.
Irish Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
The law is deeply flawed when a retailer who asks a customer for ID can be sued for defamation
The Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2024 reaches Seanad third stage on Thursday at 11.45am. High Noon. So far, this deeply flawed Bill has sailed through the Dáil and Seanad, unperturbed by anything other than a few TDs and senators mourning the ending of jury trials for defamation. The fact that the vast majority of defamation litigation takes place in the Circuit Court without juries has so far escaped notice in the Oireachtas. So has the fact that Ireland has a higher number of defamation cases than England and Wales combined. In 2023, courts in England and Wales handled 250 defamation cases; Ireland had 360. That means Ireland has a defamation litigation rate 19 times higher than England and Wales on a per-capita basis. This is because our laws encourage litigation, not resolution. READ MORE Retailers, in particular, are being hit hard. Did you know that asking a customer at an off-licence for ID can be framed as a defamatory statement? Or asking for a till receipt? Or quietly refusing to accept a €50 that failed a counterfeit check? All have resulted in legal actions. This is 'retail defamation': situations where businesses are sued (or threatened with being sued) for doing nothing more than protecting their stock or enforcing their legal obligations. The allegations are often minor, exaggerated, manufactured or plainly unfounded. The cost of fighting them in court is so high that many businesses choose to settle, even when they have done nothing wrong. On legal advice, many retailers now operate a 'no challenge' policy toward suspected shoplifters because it is far cheaper to let them steal than it is to defend a defamation action. [ Proposed defamation law reforms fall short of addressing free-speech concerns, say campaigners ] One major Irish grocery operator budgets losses through theft amounting to between €70,000 and €90,000 annually for each of its convenience stores and between €120,000 and €140,000 for its supermarkets. There is another example where a licensed premises successfully defended a defamation claim in the Circuit Court, only to face a threat of a High Court appeal unless they agreed to cover the plaintiff's legal costs. The business ultimately had to pay €3,000 in the settlement and absorb €12,375 in legal fees, with a subsequent rise in their insurance premium. This case underscores how the system incentivises legal threats against SMEs, regardless of merit. The original General Scheme for amendment in 2023 promised to introduce a defence of 'transient retail defamation', a common-sense measure to protect retailers, pharmacists, hospitality workers and others dealing with the public. That protection has been quietly dropped in this Bill. Instead, the Government now points to an expanded 'qualified privilege' defence, which already exists under the 2009 Act. It is already successfully used by retailers to defend these claims, but these are immediately appealed to the High Court. Retailers are still being threatened. Insurance costs are still climbing. And the legal threats keep coming. Worse still, the Bill does not include a harm test to prevent frivolous cases. This is not reform. It is retreat. Some people have framed this Bill as an assault on the right to a good name, but it is an attempt to rebalance competing constitutional rights. Unfortunately, the attempt falls far short of what is expected by the European Court of Human Rights . Both Article 40 of the Constitution and Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) protect freedom of expression. That right is more honoured in the breach than the observance in Ireland. Why the Irish media has been so quiescent on this issue is a mystery. The International Press Institute published a report in 2023 called Ireland: how the wealthy and powerful abuse legal system to silence reporting . It detailed 19 cases of Slapp (strategic litigation against public participation) lawsuits referred to it by various parties. It could not identify plaintiffs of course; to do so would be viewed as defamatory in Ireland. To suggest that a defamation plaintiff is engaged in a Slapp suit in Ireland is ... defamatory. The Irish Small and Medium Enterprise association ( ISME), retail representative group RGDATA and the Index on Censorship have made direct appeals to senators to amend the Bill. Thirty bodies and civil society organisations, including the National Union of Journalists , RTÉ and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties have also called for amendment of this Bill. It is objectively not fit for purpose as legislation intended to address the legal and constitutional shortcomings in the Defamation Act. ISME has made it very clear to TDs and senators that this Bill falls drastically short of what is required to stop abusive defamation litigation. We have tried to compromise and have sent senators proposals for just two amendments: one on the definition of defamation and the other on the capping of damages. Even these will not close the gaps which the EU Anti-Slapp Directive requires Ireland to address no later than May 2026. This Bill will not vindicate freedom of expression. EU justice commissioner Michael McGrath last week described freedom of expression as 'sacrosanct'. If this flawed amendment is enacted, we will be forced to take the matter to the European Commission's Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers on Article 10 grounds under the ECHR. However, we hope that the prime motivator for the Seanad this week is not the threat of referral of the State to the European Commission. Rather, we would like to think our legislators' greater motivation would come from their desire to ensure citizens' rights granted by the 1937 Constitution. Over to you, Seanad Éireann. Neil McDonnell is chief executive of ISME, the Irish Small and Medium Enterprise association
