The Seanad was suspended for a number of hours on Wednesday after a Government minister became unwell and medical help had to be called.
Minister of State for Housing Peter Burke was due to take committee stage of water-related environment legislation when he was reported to be feeling light-headed.
Mr Burke, who has special responsibility for Planning and Local Government, was about to enter the Upper House chamber when colleagues reported he suffered a drop in blood pressure, briefly affecting his sight.
A doctor was called and Oireachtas staff stayed with him for some time in the Seanad ante-chamber until ambulance paramedics arrived to take Mr Burke to hospital “purely as a precaution”.
Michael Harding: I went to the cinema to see Small Things Like These. By the time I emerged I had concluded the film was crap
Look inside: 1950s bungalow transformed into modern five-bed home in Greystones for €1.15m
‘I’m in my early 30s and recently married - but I cannot imagine spending the rest of my life with her’
Karlin Lillington: Big Tech may not get everything it wants from Trump
The 40-year-old Longford-Westmeath TD was due to deal with Water Environment (Abstractions and Associated Impoundments) Bill. The Minister, a chartered accountant by profession, was first elected to the Dáil in 2016.
Senators waiting in the chamber for the 4pm start of the debate were subsequently alerted to the delay in proceedings. When business resumed two hours later, they discussed a motion on vaping, calling for it to be banned for anyone under 21.
