We can all agree the closure of a post office is a bad thing. I understand the need for consolidation and the business case for reducing the number of post offices because of the costs associated with each one but we have to recognise that each post office is more than just a monetary unit within An Post's business model. It is a community lifeline, it is a facility for the local community and it is a rallying point for people in that community. The loss of it is a loss for that community. I will speak of my consti…

I move amendment No. 2: In page 8, line 17, to delete “A person shall not sell a single-use vape in the State.” and substitute the following: "A person shall not invite an offer to treat for, offer for sale, keep for sale or sell a single-use vape in the State.". Section 9 essentially creates a prohibition on the sale of single-use vapes. Section 9(1) provides that a person shall not sell a single-use vape in the State, subject to all the definitions that come earlier in the Bill. The amendment changes the wording …

I accept entirely what the Minister of State said. There is a provision in relation to the definition of "sell". There are two problems with that. First, it is very much at variance with the terminology that is used in legislation that attempts to do similar things. Being health led does not prevent the Government from making provision in law for an offence that is actually applicable. That is the concern I have. The offence is created in section 9(1), and in section 9 in its totality. A question will arise in any …

I had not realised that my amendment had been ruled out of order. I do not think I was notified of that fact. More importantly, as we came into the House today, copies of the Bill were not available to Members and neither were copies of the numbered list of amendments. It is very difficult to deal with legislation in here when I am trying to work off my phone. Looking at a PDF on my phone is very difficult. It used to be that these things were available. It would be much easier for Members if they were available.

I had indicated my opposition to this section. I know we are flying through the legislation, but I wonder if I might just address that. Section 18 changes the provisions of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851, which creates a six-month statute of limitations or a jurisdictional limit on the prosecution of matters. Where we are dealing here with minor offences. These are offences for the purposes of prosecution insofar as they would be dealt with summarily in the District Court. There is usually a six-month time l…

I am not trying to make it easier for businesses that have broken the law. We are talking about the criminal justice system. There are certain principles that exist in that system to ensure that it is fair. We benefit from a system that is actually very fair, which is why we do not have mass certificates-----

I am outlining my opposition to section 18, which was skipped over. We do not have large numbers of certificates of unjust prosecutions or miscarriages of justice because we actually respect the rules. The Minister of State saying that it is a standard provision in other Acts does not answer the question. I do not accept that there is a reason why this is being done. It is not the case that everything has to be complete and ready to go within six months; it is merely the case that the complaint must be made to the …

Ba mhaith liom tosú agus leanúint ar aghaidh le rud a dúirt an Teachta Ó Cearúil ansin faoin láidreacht a bhaineann leis an nGaeilge inniu. Is maith an rud é sin, ach bhí mé chun scéal gairid a insint faoi chara liom, Seán Ó Tuathail. Is múinteoir é agus mac leis an iarTheachta Breandán Ó Tuathail, a fuair bás cúpla seachtain ó shin. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. Bhí mé ar an tsráid ar an nguthán le AXA. Bhí mé ag déanamh rud éigin leis an nguthán leis agus ag fanacht ar an bhfear teacht ar ais chugam. Tháinig Seán …

I want to ask the Tánaiste about the SNA circular and the recent bad handling by the Department of a reorganisation of SNAs. It has caused huge upset within and without this House. I pay tribute to Michelle Cotterell, who is the principal of Our Lady of Good Counsel Boys' National School in Johnstown in my constituency. Ms Cotterell was one of the leaders in highlighting this issue. One of the reasons for that was that her school was one of the ones that got the really bad news about SNAs. I welcome the steps taken…

I thank the Tánaiste. One word he used in his answer is really important, and that is "understanding". The circular needs to represent an understanding of what teachers face and what school communities face in terms of the additional assistance they need to put in place. I attended a meeting earlier this week with approximately 30 principals from my constituency. One of the comments at that meeting was that the Government does not trust teachers. I do not think that is the case. There is an issue of trust with the …

Most of the wastewater in south-east Dublin is collected at the West Pier pumping station and then pumped under the sea to Poolbeg for treatment. There is an attenuation tank at the West Pier to handle overflow because during high rainfall events, run-off means that there is more water there than can physically be pumped to the pumping station. The attenuation tank at the site is 70,000 cu. m, so it is huge, but when there is an awful lot of rain, it is not big enough. When it fills up and there is no room in the t…

I do not need to tell the Minister of State the upset this has caused. He will have heard it from his constituents, as well as Members of this House. I want to address the circular. It is deeply disrespectful the role SNAs play. It does not properly define the spectrum of issues they have to deal with. It does not address the various issues that prevent children in our schools from achieving their best possible outcomes and does not outline the basis on which every one of them should be addressed, rather than narro…

I welcome this apology. Our State was founded on very lofty principles. Many of them have been delivered but so many of them have not. During the last century, the State fell short in terms of delivering for it citizens. This is one example of that. I met these people in September outside the Dáil. I acknowledge the courage it took for them to take the steps they did, and I am glad that it has resulted in a conclusion or a closure of some sort for them. The apology is merited and appropriate and I welcome the fact …

Bhí mé ag éisteacht leis an díospóireacht anseo agus an méid a bhí ráite maidir le fuinneamh gaoithe go háirithe. Wind energy as it applies to coastal communities, in particular, is such an important aspect of our drive to meet the targets that are so often spoken about, yet there is no operating offshore wind farm in this country. What are we going to put in place to support communities, particularly coastal ones, in delivering wind projects and ensuring we will have wind capacity into the future?

I thank the Minister of State. I have no doubt about the value of offshore wind energy to local communities, particularly, where it is being landed onshore, and about the benefits it brings. I am aware of the community benefit funds, which the Minister of State mentioned. Two major projects are being run from Dún Laoghaire in my constituency, the Dublin Array and Ocean Winds projects. RWE is a partner in the Dublin Array project. Their office is now based in Dún Laoghaire, so it has a close connection to the commun…

The Minister of State is absolutely right, and the value of the community benefit funds, in particular, is huge. We will not feel the effect of this until these things are up and running. Again, in relation to linking them into local communities and the people who are elected to represent those communities, he referred to the professional delivery of community benefit funds. Is there a role for local elected representatives or community councils or other democratic local bodies to have a say in how that money can b…

The thing I find most tiresome about debates on housing and the solutions is that every side presents its proposal as the silver bullet that is somehow going to solve the problem. There is no silver bullet. I do not pretend to know what the answer is. It is something that better minds than mine have grappled with. It is an incredibly complex problem with its roots going back well over a decade. I have some sympathy for this motion. I understand where it is coming from. In 2024, 13,000-odd residential properties wer…

The issue I raise is hydrotreated vegetable oil, HVO, which is an alternative to diesel. It is an extraordinary product that comes from the treatment of plant matter with hydrogen. I am not going to pretend for a moment that I understand how it works, but I know that the product that results from it is interchangeable with diesel in cars, for example, and results in a 90% reduction in carbon emissions when it is used. We have this fuel and 20% of the global output, which is over 30 million tonnes, originates within…

Topical Issue Debates are a really important way that we can raise issues and get direct answers. I entirely respect that the Minister of State is taking a number of matters that do not come under his Department’s remit. However, it is a source of some frustration that the line Minister from the Department is not here because that would be much more useful. I could just have tabled a written question on the matter. It would have been more helpful if a Minister from the Department to which this issue relates had bee…

We can all recognise the importance of animal welfare groups and the work that they do. I particularly welcome the increase in funding to them, to €6.5 million, in accordance with the commitment in the programme for Government. The 94 groups which will benefit from that do incredibly important work. Can we, however, put a bit of certainty in place for organisations like that? Multi-annual funding allows them to plan more into the future and increase the quality of the work they do, for example to provide support fo…