I thank the Minister of State for his detailed response. I appreciate much of what has been said, including his honest appraisal and acknowledgement of the problem. I acknowledge the commitments that have been made and that are ongoing to address this issue, with the provision of new permanent staff and the allocation of temporary staff from other Departments to help. I agree that there is potential for this country to respond in a way that can benefit us all, notwithstanding the difficulties associated with the in…

This legislation is the Government's response to the excessive costs and burdens being placed on households by electricity bills. It might be a welcome reprieve for the moment at a cost of €215 million, but it does little to guarantee that we will not be here again throwing hundreds of millions of euro more of taxpayers' money at meeting bills that are far too excessive and well in excess, I might add, of genuine contributing factors like international gas prices. As I have stated in the Dáil and media commentary, …

As an elected Member from the Tullamore area, I was anxious that I place on the record of Dáil Éireann the ongoing condolences of the people of Laois-Offaly to Ashling Murphy's parents, Ray and Kathleen, her sister, Amy, her brother, Cathal, her boyfriend, Ryan, and the extended Murphy and Leonard families. We know an act of depravity has robbed us of one of our own; one reared in the best of Irish traditions by decent, solid people and communities who taught Ashling to love life and live it to the full, which she …

I note my disappointment that the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, is unavailable. I raised a similar issue some weeks ago and the Minister did not show up then either. I am in receipt of an independently commissioned report and analysis of recent details and figures pertaining to the wholesale electricity market in Ireland known as the integrated single electricity market, I-SEM. The I-SEM was created to integrate the Irish-only market with European power markets, includ…

I thank the Minister of State. I do not, nor does anybody else, expect the Minister, Deputy Ryan, to be able to change international gas prices. We have a right to expect, however, a competitive, efficient and well-served wholesale market. I contend that successive failures by the Department, EirGrid and the CRU have resulted in the present situation where we have too little generation capacity to meet our needs. The ESB, because of that failure, is now the dominant entity and market power which has shown itself on…

The political crisis in Belarus continues to pose significant challenges for the European Union. It is apparently engineering a migration crisis on its border with Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. The Belarusian leader, Lukashenko, appears to want to force the EU to negotiate with him and his country to ease sanctions against them. That would apparently give credibility to his status despite many European leaders talking about his illegitimacy. Will the Minister elaborate on the questions posed and the response from t…

I thank the Minister. I would welcome his opinions and impressions of the impact the Polish migration crisis is having on exacerbating the issues in regard to migration at the Belarusian borders. As we know, the Polish Government is talking tough in regard to its stance on migration. It not engaging with the tools available within the EU creates the type of stand-off that means a similar case in terms of the Belarusian issue in regard to its borders. What potential is there to address this issue? I note the Ministe…

I acknowledge the Minister's commitment and efforts to ensure that this is internationalised to such an extent that every help and assistance is given in the first instance to those impacted who, as rightly identified by the Minister, are the migrants. We must also ensure that behind that wall there are efforts to resolve this issue with a view to ensuring the Belarusian authorities do not gain the sort of credibility they feel they deserve, especially considering what the Minister alluded to in his initial respons…

During the Minister's recent visit to Israel and Palestine, did he meet with anyone from the Israeli Government and, if not, did he seek to do so? Does he get any sense from this trip that, because of the change of Government in Israel earlier this year, there has been any step change in the Israeli approach? Do any of the Palestinian groups with whom he met have even the slightest hope of any reset? Does he agree the recent designation by the Israeli defence ministry of six prominent and well-respected Palestinian…

I welcome the Minister's statement and his articulation of the issues raised. I acknowledge the delicacy with which he broaches these subjects as a member of the European Council. From the perspective of his being the Minister for Foreign Affairs of this country, I likewise acknowledge the commitment he has made in regard to the Palestinian people and the funds that have been made available to assist them. Having spoken to both sides during his trip and in the context of a new Government having been formed and, unf…

In the Minister's discussions with Israeli Government representatives, was there reference to the motion that was passed by the Dáil stating Israel's action in the West Bank is a de facto annexation? Are there any moves of a similar nature from other European countries conveying the same sentiment?

I expect that the Minister of State will confirm that the role and responsibilities of the entities accountable for the energy sector, namely, EirGrid and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, can be summarised as "EirGrid's task is to deliver a safe, secure and reliable supply of electricity now, and in the future" and the "CRU's mission is to protect the public interest in Water, Energy and Energy Safety" by ensuring "safe, secure and sustainable energy and water supplies at a reasonable cost" and "to …

I thank the Minister of State. I respect that he may not be privy to some of the information and queries I have relayed in my presentation. I acknowledge the CRU might well be accountable to an Oireachtas joint committee, but the same cannot be said for EirGrid. EirGrid is the responsibility of the line Minister. On the questions I asked, I am led to believe the amount paid by EirGrid to the ESB, approved with the sanction of the Minister, was €10 million and that €10 million was a down payment on a €110 million co…

I wish to share time with Deputy Niamh Smyth.

We have an extra few minutes due to the absence of speakers before us in the debate. We came into government in difficult circumstances. It was about who could coalesce because of the nature of the result. It was about who could best put together an objective to address those issues that mattered most at the time of the election, which were housing, health, climate change and the associated just transition. We set in train a programme for Government seeking to deliver upon those areas. The pandemic, unfortunately, …

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. On that very issue, on the auctions that EirGrid talks about into the future, I was checking back on when this issue emerged and on the severity associated with it. Previous auctions, for example, were won by the ESB. On four separate occasions, when the four-year period had almost expired for the provision of these projects into the national grid, the ESB withdrew from them and paid penalties. The grid was at the loss of 430 MW in addition to the 270 MW that was lost as a result …

I am glad of this opportunity to offer my commiserations and sympathies, and those of my constituents, to Glenisk, the Cleary family, their staff and their suppliers, as a result of the devastating blow inflicted on them by a major fire at the plant on Monday. I thank the staff for ensuring that everybody got out safely and the emergency services for the quick response and the manner in which they dealt with the issue. I met with Vincent Cleary and other staff at the site yesterday. They are shaken but resolute and…

I thank the Minister of State for reaffirming what the Taoiseach said on the floor of the House yesterday on behalf of the Government that this will be acted upon. When I talk about the responsibility of other Departments and authorities, I am mindful of the professional commitment made as early as yesterday by the company. Its commitment to its community and excellence will be maintained. I am sure it will be done at a facility that is commensurate to the company and will be rebuilt as soon as is practicably possi…

I wish to raise the matter of the Housing for All document and the commitments contained therein. A section of the document refers to a planning reform Bill that may come before the House. I am particularly conscious of a proposal I put forward earlier this year, the purpose of which was to find a means by which a time limit on the decision-making process of An Bord Pleanála would be put on a statutory basis. Can the Tánaiste confirm that such a time limit will be a part of the proposal that is brought before the D…

Notwithstanding the debt of gratitude we owe front-line workers, healthcare workers especially, I wish to raise, as my colleague has done, the issue and the plight of the ambulance services. There are serious concerns, worries and fears in my community and constituency as a result of incidents relating to ambulance services. Reports from crews and patients around the country over the past year or so suggest serious concerns about delays in ambulances arriving to treat patients. These delays were once an occasional …