Child Poverty
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-21
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Micheál Martin (FF), Cork South-Central

I know the HSE is funding some equine centres but they may be of a different kind than the one in Clondalkin. I think the one in Clondalkin is more generally directed at youth so the Department of Education and Youth should be dealing with that. I will take that back to the Minister for Education and Youth to see what we can do there.
Deputy Heneghan spoke about the plug-in solar system. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is very open to that. Anything that enhances the ability of people to reduce their energy costs is something we should be doing and investing in because it leads to a permanent reduction in their costs. I know the Deputy has been a very strong advocate for novel approaches to energy efficiency, such as the private wires Bill and plug-in solar. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is very open to this and I will ask him to meet the Deputy to pursue this and to engage on it.
Deputy Ó Murchú raised a very distressing and sad case. I am always somewhat reluctant to discuss individual cases of children in the Dáil or in public. The HSE should develop capacities to help children in situations like this to avoid having a child locked up in what seems to be a mental health unit in a hospital. It is Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, is it?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-21T01:01:08+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-21