That knowledge is not readily available without our Permanent Defence Force being based locally. At different times, that knowledge and the work of our Defence Forces played a critical role not just in day-to-day security matters but in our State's work in keeping our country free of animal diseases over the decades when there were outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease and BSE that threatened our farming and food industries. We must never underestimate the importance of local knowledge and the advantage of decision-m…

As we all know, the situation in the Middle East is desperate. It has to be of the utmost concern to all of us. We have witnessed horrific scenes in Gaza, Lebanon and elsewhere. Unfortunately, the Israel Defense Forces again breached the blue line, including the Irish-Polish battalion area of operations. The situation is obviously very tense. I know the Tánaiste continues to monitor the situation closely with our partners in the UN. It is very important, in reassuring us as a country, that there is reassurance for …

I welcome the Tánaiste's confirmation and reassurance with regard to liaison and contact with families, which is extremely important. I understand that the Tánaiste had a virtual meeting with his EU counterparts recently. Did they all agree that the attacks on UNIFIL peacekeepers by the IDF we have seen in recent days are completely unacceptable and reprehensible? Was there full agreement that all parties, including Israel, must respect their obligations regarding the protection of peacekeepers and avoid any activi…

This Government and the Minister, in particular, have advocated very strongly for people to use public transport, and I am very glad that new and additional services have been provided to areas like my two counties of Cavan and Monaghan. Next Monday, a new Local Link service linking Cavan, Cross Keys, Ballyjamesduff, Virginia, Mullagh, Moynalty, Kells and Baile Ghib will be introduced with good frequency. My particular concern, however, is the lack of adequate capacity on the Cavan-Dublin commuter belt, particularl…

I thank the Minister for his reply. I must say I am disappointed that the performance review does not recommend some changes to the Dublin-Cavan route. What I am talking about, in particular, is the need to introduce, in the morning time leaving Cavan, direct services from Cavan, through Virginia, Whitegate, which is on the Cavan-Meath border, then to Dublin. Similarly, in the late afternoon and early evening, I would advocate, as others would, for direct services from Busáras to Whitegate, Cavan, through Virginia …

The point I want to make is there are people getting on the buses that are bound for Cavan who are not travelling to County Cavan. They are getting off between Dublin and Cavan. When the buses arrive to either Virginia or Cavan town, those buses are not full. Cavan people quite understandably say to me - they would say it to Bus Éireann workers and others - that they were left behind. There were people on that Cavan bus who have very good services to other towns in County Meath, whereas if those few buses in the mo…

On this route-----

May I make one point?

Buses are leaving Dublin full and are then unable to pick up extra people.

I welcome that the Minister agreed to my earlier question that he would raise with the National Transport Authority and Bus Éireann the possibility of introducing early morning and late afternoon direct services between Cavan, Virginia, Whitegate and Dublin. That would ease a lot of the problems in relation to the disappointment so many commuters have on an ongoing basis in not getting a bus at the scheduled time. They are standing at a bus stop, many of them coming from hospital appointments and so on. It is not a…

I raise the need to have medical interns assigned to Cavan and Monaghan hospital, which is a large level 3 hospital. Interns have not been allocated to the hospital despite its services expanding over the years. Cavan General Hospital has been approved as an intern training site. The vast majority of level 3 hospitals have interns but Cavan and Monaghan hospital, despite promises, has not been facilitated in this respect. Without trainees, the hospital will have difficulty recruiting and retraining Irish-trained do…

They are not being assigned to it.

Decisions need to be made by the workforce planning people to assign people to Cavan and Monaghan. They would be very well trained and well looked after, as the Tánaiste knows.

I think he was married to a good Cavan woman.

The Tánaiste would have heard me in this House and elsewhere, on numerous occasions, highlight the unacceptable delays in children with additional needs in Cavan and Monaghan getting an assessment of needs and, where necessary, follow-up therapies. I fully appreciate the substantial increase in funding for such services since 2020, but the bottom line is that services are far from satisfactory. I heard some people in education say that, in some instances, less than the full assessment of needs would be sufficient. …

Unfortunately, we come across daily unacceptable delays in children getting dental treatment. Children should be screened in second, fourth and sixth classes. In Cavan at present, the children who are in the programme for sixth class have gone to second level before they actually see a dentist. It is a shortage of personnel. The local personnel are working extremely hard but they do not have the resources to give the service that children in Cavan-Monaghan need.

I thank the Minister and acknowledge the substantial increase in resources he has got for his Department for the forthcoming year. I congratulate him on his work in the Department together with his Ministers of State. One area we need to address, which I acknowledge I did not specify in my question, is patients with disabilities and complex and additional needs. I am thinking particularly of children with additional and complex needs. Oftentimes, a multidisciplinary team is needed with all relevant medical professi…

I appreciate that. I know of the Minister's concern for children with complex and additional needs. I will read a communication that I saw from a parent of a child who got dental treatment. The parent wrote: I feel saddened that those with special needs and who may be non-verbal can often suffer in silence, distress and anxiety due to pain, sadly [my son] suffered for a while before we realised what was wrong. In an ideal world it would be great if those with special needs had scheduled check-ups so that extreme pa…

I am sorry, a Cheann Comhairle. All of us should have an opportunity to contribute.

Yes, but the debate used to go on until midnight at one time.