I thank the Taoiseach for his answer and his contribution at the conference. I was privileged to be present for most of the conference, which was excellent. It was inspiring to listen to those people who brought peace to our island by reaching the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. I was struck by many of the comments, particularly the contribution of former Senator George Mitchell. Two or three of his comments resonated with me in particular. He said it was his "genuine sincere hope, that people of Northern Ireland wi…

I very much welcome the success of the shared island initiative to date. I welcome the funding for a project in my constituency, namely the Ulster Canal, which will bring economic benefits to many counties in Ulster. As the Taoiseach may recall from his days at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, I have continually raised the value of developing enterprise centres and business hubs in towns and smaller communities where it is not possible to attract inward investment. We have had the development of …

As the Minister is well aware, there is outright opposition in communities in Monaghan, Cavan and Meath to the proposal to put overground the transmission cables for the proposed North-South interconnector. Over the years the Minister has heard me state that if the project is to go ahead those transmission cables should be put underground. The communities affected and the landowners have outlined very clearly their total opposition to the proposal as it stands. The reports undertaken to date have not been as compre…

I thank the Minister for his reply. I vehemently disagree with him that the views of communities, farmers and households have been taken into account in preparation for this project. This has not been the case. As the Minister knows better than I do, since this project was first initiated 16 years ago there have been great advances in technology which have enabled more undergrounding of similar transmission cables. We know there was a proposal to have overground cables in the Meath and Kildare project. Thankfully, …

In every engagement I have with individuals living in our counties, on a person-to-person basis or at public meetings, they all state they fully understand this is critical infrastructure. They say they are not against the project but they are against the project going ahead in the form of having overground transmission cables. In other countries in Europe, similar projects can be put underground. The Minister quite rightly said that for the past 20 years there have been great advances in technology. We have seen p…

The Deputy has got in twice.

As the Tánaiste is aware, there is a shortage of bus drivers and drivers for heavy goods vehicles. This impacts on the operation of school transport services at times. Bus Éireann will not employ qualified drivers aged 70 or over. In instances where a school bus driver is off sick, Bus Éireann finds it extremely difficult to recruit a temporary replacement. There is no prohibition on a person of that age driving a bus that is not engaged in a public contract. Additional drivers are needed or we will face more probl…

The Taoiseach referred to the threat from republican paramilitaries as being an ongoing priority of the Government. Those thugs and criminals masquerading as republicans or loyalists do threaten security, in particular in the Border region. In that context, in all discussions that the Government has with the Garda Commissioner, it must be emphasised time and again that adequate resources for Garda divisions should be prioritised at all times. There are unique policing demands in a Border region and that should be f…

I also welcome President Biden's successful visit and it was great to see the international media coverage throughout the three days. I am glad that the Taoiseach outlined in his reply that he raised immigration reform with President Biden and in other fora when he was in the United States. It is extremely important that this issue is kept on the agenda in regard to the undocumented Irish. According to the embassy, consulates general and Irish immigration centres, it is estimated that 10,000-plus Irish people in th…

Like others who have spoken on this very important issue, I take no pleasure in participating in today’s statements. While we rightly congratulate An Tánaiste and Minister for Defence on both the speedy publication of the report of the independent review group into the Defence Forces and his commitment to implementing a comprehensive programme of immediate actions to address the shocking findings of this report, we should both acknowledge and regret that it took a sustained campaign by the Women of Honour group to …

Some weeks ago, I raised with the Minister for Justice the need to introduce additional measures to tackle the scourge of drugs now prevalent in every community throughout our country. As we know, drug addiction and drug abuse are complex issues. We need a multifaceted approach that includes the health service as well as the criminal justice system. The Minister, Deputy Harris, replied to me that some additional legislative measures aimed at those who direct gangland crime and drug-related crime would be introduced…

It is a very important question. I came across a few cases in which people who were on prepay systems found it hard to get the household energy credit from the relevant provider. I saw a reply to a parliamentary question from the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, in which he said that if people did not get their energy credit, they should go to the Department for an additional needs payment. Some of the people I know who had not been credited did not want to go to the Department seeking the additional needs payment. It …

The programme for Government 2020 commits to the introduction of a total contributions approach aligning a person's contributory pension more closely with the contributions they make. This will include a provision for credit contributions, ensuring that people who take time off work to care for loved ones are not disadvantaged. Will the Minister outline to the House the progress to date in dealing with this issue and making good the commitment in the programme for Government?

I welcome the progress the Minister outlined. We all remember that back in 2012, there were some changes at that time to the method of calculation which caused many difficulties for people who had worked for more than ten years full-time but had insurance contributions going back many years. I came across one case of a person who came to Dublin and worked in a pub for two weeks at 17 or 18, went to England, had no insurance contributions and then paid contributions for more than 20 years. When that person applied f…

It is very important that people who were at home caring or who had to leave the workforce get the relevant credits. This is a separate question. It was an issue that arose some years ago and I raised it with one of the Minister's predecessors. Farmers who had been on farm assist might have had a good year, gone off farm assist and through the fault of the Department, Revenue and their accountants, they were not alerted to the fact that they needed to be putting on a stamp. The Minister would have had some of the c…

One of the many benefits of the Good Friday Agreement was the establishment of all-Ireland bodies, including Tourism Ireland. Tourism Ireland has responsibility for marketing the island of Ireland as a premier holiday destination. Its remit is to promote increased tourism to all of our island. The Taoiseach is aware of the British proposal for an electronic travel authorisation scheme. Unless there are proper exemptions for visitors from the United States and elsewhere, this will cause serious difficulties. Some 70…

Tánaiste, for many years there has been an unfair and unacceptable divergence in the rates of subvention made to different private nursing homes. This affects small nursing homes in rural areas in constituencies such as that which I represent, Cavan-Monaghan. The Department of Health, the HSE, and the National Treatment Purchase Fund have not listened to the very reasoned claims of smaller scale nursing home providers. These nursing homes need additional financial support without further delay. Decision-makers shou…

I thank the Taoiseach for his detailed and positive response to my question. As he is well aware, substantial public funding has been committed to an all-island investment from 2021 to 2030 through the shared island initiative, PEACE PLUS and Project Ireland 2040. I know from engagement at the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly and the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement that there is a warm welcome from both political traditions on this island for the shared island initiative and t…

The Windsor Framework agreed between the EU and Britain is a welcome development and we hope it will eliminate all potential obstacles to trade between our islands. For some time businesses have outlined the need for certainty and clarity. Understandably, this clarity is so important for businesses trading North-South and east-west and for those planning for long-term investment. The further development of the all-Ireland economy will bring benefits to every community on the island. This morning I spoke to a senior…

The despicable shooting in Omagh reminds us starkly of that awful era in our country when so many innocent people lost their lives and so many were seriously injured. Last night's horrific incident strongly reinforces the message that the Government must always ensure every necessary resource is provided to An Garda Síochána and all other relevant statutory agencies to rid our society of this small number of criminals and thugs who shamelessly masquerade as so-called republicans. It is also essential we continue to…