The limited availability of speech and language courses that are specifically focused on the disability and mental health sectors makes it difficult for prospective students to find a course to meet their interests and career goals. As a result of this limited availability and the many students applying for a small number of places, competition is fierce. This makes it difficult for students to secure places on their preferred courses. Clinical placements are also a crucial part of speech and language courses, prov…

I thank the Minister for his response. I know he is committed to addressing the challenges and shortage in our therapies and practitioner sector around health. As a former Minister for Health, he will be acutely aware of the challenges being faced within the different sectors. It has been widely reported that access to speech and language therapy is essential. I know of one community in Achill that does not have access to these services for young children. We must ensure that child developmental difficulties do not…

The solution to this problem is to provide readily available access to courses in speech and language for students. This would give parents access to early interventions through the HSE and not cause those parents to have to fork out hundreds if not thousands of euro privately for these services. I talked to the Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists, which recognises that communication is a basic human right and that we must address this anomaly. We are seeing many more diagnoses of people who have mi…

I would like to address a pressing concern I have that has the potential to reshape the very fabric of our rural communities. I refer to the question of who will farm the land if our sheep farmers, faced with a sectoral crisis and low incomes, decide to abandon their farms. Can the Minister imagine a future where the sheep farms that once dotted the picturesque countryside of my constituency in Mayo have vanished and been replaced with overgrown fields and abandoned homesteads? With each farm that closes its door, …

There are serious concerns among the farming sector about the looming crisis which could occur if the nitrates derogation is not maintained at the current level. Any reduction of the 250 kg of organic nitrates per hectare rate to 220 kg will have a detrimental impact on the livelihoods of farmers in my constituency in County Mayo and across the country. Any derogation towards 220 kg will require farmers to reduce their stock numbers considerably and will have a knock-on effect on the viability of their farms. It co…

The wave of vile abuse, harassment, physical attacks, antisocial behaviour and shoplifting in shops and supermarkets was highlighted on RTÉ "Prime Time" last night. The owners of a business in my constituency of Mayo stated that they are currently going through a pandemic of petty crime, with children as young as primary school age committing these thefts. The Ballina-based owners stated that there are not enough repercussions for young offenders involved in retail crime. When owners report these offences, the perp…

I express the deep frustration, anger and disappointment that has been expressed to me by the staff of Davitt College in Castlebar over the pausing of the building programme at the school. A commitment was given to the school two years ago that the accommodation issue would be prioritised to facilitate the growth in numbers if it increased its cap to 170. The school did that but the Government commitment has not been fulfilled. The school was informed on 30 January that the building programme has been stopped to al…

The Irish people have played a massive role in supporting and welcoming thousands of Ukrainian refugees and international protection applicants into the country. Public service delivery to support this influx of people has been inadequate, especially in rural communities. Those I represent have raised issues such as those relating to public transport, mental health support, disability services and access to GP services. These matters must be addressed. We must do more and respond accordingly. Has the Government ass…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Environmental Protection Agency (Emergency Electricity Generation) (Amendment) Bill. This temporary emergency electricity generation will provide capacity to mitigate the security of supply risk for the winter period at the end of this year and into 2024. It is crucially important that Government plans are in place to ensure a reliable and resilient energy supply in times of crisis or disruption. The Bill will ensure essential services continue to operate, reducing economic…

I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach for his co-operation. Has the Department of Finance evaluated the potential for job losses that could result from the proposed increase in VAT rate from 9% to 13.5% this September, especially in the services sector which employs a significant number of people?

I thank the Minister for his response. The Government's announcement on the final extension of the 9% reduced VAT rate for the tourism and hospitality sectors, which includes hairdressers, for a further six months, as part of the cost-of-living measures to deal with the increases was exceptional news for many businesses, as were the alterations to the temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS. If we look at the current VAT rates in Europe, at 13.5% only two other countries, namely Denmark and the UK, would be…

I commend the Minister on his efforts on the final extension to the end of August. However, I ask him to engage with the key stakeholders in this sector over the summer months and to provide a cost-benefit analysis of this measure. The economic outlook for this country is positive. We will have the wind behind us in our tax returns when we reach the next budget so I ask that this would be reviewed and for the Minister to come back to the House with some kind of report.

The ICF was established in 1984 to facilitate payments to insurance policyholders with regard to risks in the State when a non-life insurance company goes into liquidation. This fund is financed by a levy set at 2%. This is imposed on premiums paid by policyholders to insurers. Is the insurance compensation fund adequately funded? Is it transparent and effective in protecting policyholders in the event of an insurer's insolvency?

I thank the Minister of State for her response. The importance of the insurance compensation fund lies in its ability to provide a safety net for customers, particularly in the event of unexpected and unforeseeable circumstances such as an insurer's insolvency. In the past we have seen how the ICF has been activated to provide compensation for policyholders of insurers that became insolvent in Ireland. There was Setanta Insurance, a Maltese insurance company, and Enterprise Insurance, which was from Gibraltar. As t…

I too thank the Minister of State for allowing me to discuss this Bill. I wish her the best in her new role in the Department of Finance. I know she will hit the ground running. This is the first substantive credit union legislation for over 12 years. More important, this Bill has been welcomed and supported by the Irish League of Credit Unions, which says it has many positive aspects. That is an important endorsement. Credit unions play an important role in providing financial services and support to communities i…

I want to raise an issue of staffing affecting voluntary and community organisations across the country as interest in the labour activation schemes continues to drop, despite some reform initiatives last year such as those concerning Tús and the community employment scheme. Participant numbers are continuing to fall. GAA clubs, community councils and Tidy Towns organisations are all suffering from a shortage of applicants. To resolve this issue, I urge the Government to consider expanding the community employment …

One of the most pressing projects in County Mayo is the long-awaited extension to the emergency department, ED, at Mayo University Hospital. The ED was initially built to cater for 20,000 patients. It now sees more than 40,000 annually, and that number is growing. An extension to the unit has been promised for the people of Mayo for the past ten years. Following a recent HIQA inspection in August 2022 at Mayo University Hospital, long-term action to address the shortcomings in national standards to protect service-…

This has been an ongoing issue within my part of the country. The importance of the IFI within its remit of protecting rivers and lakes is enormous, so it is vital we get a resolution to the ongoing challenges relating to governance and accountability within the IFI. There is a significant issue relating to the withdrawal of services within the board of the IFI, but the Minister of State's response to the issues Deputy O'Rourke put to the House was very unsatisfactory. The previous board of the IFI failed to get sa…

The town and village renewal scheme is vital to the continued sustainability and enhancement of rural areas across the country. Since its introduction in 2016, hundreds of towns and villages have benefited from the development of community amenities, public spaces and local businesses. I ask the Minister when this year's application process will open and what the priorities or themes will be when included in the upcoming scheme.

I thank the Minister for her response. We certainly see the benefits of the many schemes that she has rolled out through her Department. Many rural towns and villages really benefit and seek solutions from these successful funding programmes to address challenges that they face, whether limited employment opportunities, a decline in population or the lack of essential services and amenities. Certainly we are putting funds in place that are having enormous benefits and are a real game-changer in rural Ireland in sup…