New speed limits were introduced on 7 February. We all hope this will be a significant step in the right direction, particularly in introducing improvements in road safety and, most important, reducing road fatalities and serious injuries, most of which can be life-changing. All one has to do is take a look at the number of people being sent to the National Rehabilitation Centre in Dún Laoghaire following significant injuries. As part of the broader initiative, it is hoped that this change will make an impact, part…

I welcome this very important motion from the Labour Party. What we have had is the Government hoodwinking and misleading the people during the election campaign on a number of issues but spectacularly on housing. People were told that 40,000 homes would be delivered in 2024 when in fact the number was going to be 30,000. The facts were there to prove that. We have to increase supply. It must be doubled to meet demand and prices need to be brought down. The affordable home purchase scheme is in need of major reform…

The programme for Government commits to a review of the school transport scheme. The biggest obstacle within that scheme at the moment is the ban on drivers over 70. We have the ludicrous situation where such drivers cannot drive a minibus bringing ten pupils to school under the school transport scheme but later in the day they can drive a 72-seater bus full of children to the local swimming pool or on a bus tour to Dublin, Cork or Killarney. This is a crazy situation. Many of these drivers depend on this part-time…

I will focus on health in the short time I have. I read the programme for Government document with interest. As the area of health is obviously extremely important, I want to focus on that. The programme for Government references a universal healthcare mission but from reading the pages attached to that, it is anything but universal healthcare. It cannot be delivered based on what is on those pages because there is no commitment to it there. It references developing healthcare networks in communities but that canno…

The effects of the storm in County Laois were severe, with hundreds of roads blocked and trees down. I acknowledge the work of the ESB staff, the outdoor staff of Laois County Council, the volunteers in Laois Civil Defence and all the others who played a role in dealing with the emergency situation. Lessons must be learned. The grid needs to be upgraded but some parties in this House are talking out of both sides of their mouth in this regard. On the one hand, they talk about upgrading the grid, yet they oppose the…

The occupied territories Bill must be passed as a matter of urgency. We need to stop the fooling around about it. The terrorist State of Israel has carried out a campaign of genocide against the Palestinian people. There are almost 50,000 dead in Gaza alone, an estimated 10,000 buried beneath the rubble, hundreds of thousands of people injured and lives ruined. Most of Gaza lies in ruins, including schools, hospitals, homes, other buildings and infrastructure. Having reluctantly agreed to a ceasefire, the Israeli G…

I congratulate the Taoiseach on his appointment. We now have a new Government but we have a new Government of two old conservative parties and one regional group. The two Civil War parties are united now like never before. The problem is that nothing separates them, except one letter; they are FF and FG. The Government's first action was to create more jobs for the boys - the girls seem to have been forgotten - and to suspend the Dáil yet again until 5 February. We now have a programme for Government which, on the …

Déanaim comhghairdeas mór leis an gCeann Comhairle. I thank the people of County Laois for electing me to the Thirty-fourth Dáil. It was a great honour to be elected. It truly showed that the seat does not belong to any family or party. It belongs to the people of Laois. In fact, all three seats in Laois belong to the people there. There are huge challenges ahead in the constituency I represent. We need affordable housing for those caught in the middle who cannot get a mortgage or get on a social housing waiting li…

Social housing. What about that, Micheál?

I wish to raise the issue of the cross-Border health programme and its funding. Some of the people who go to the North for cataract surgery have been waiting for four or five years. It is a scandal in itself that we cannot do this surgery in this State. However, people, who are, typically, elderly, are going to the North to have this surgery. The cost of it is just in excess of €2,000. Until recently, the reimbursement was to the tune of €1,928. As the Tánaiste and I know, many of these people have taken credit uni…

It has gone from €1,928 to €863.

The Tánaiste promised me last week he would come back to me and he has not done so. Can he ensure I get reply on this?

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I raise this important issue with the Minister, Deputy McEntee, this morning regarding the nine counties that do not have domestic violence refuges. This is a very serious matter. We know there is a huge problem out there. A commitment was given some years back that the nine counties would have services. The Minister has stated publicly that she is making it a priority. We all want to make it a priority and, certainly, the party I represent, Sinn Féin, believes it needs to be give…

I thank the Minister for the reply. She mentioned the increased funding, which is welcome. In the case of Laois, a location has been identified and the council is very much on board, both the elected members and the council management. It is important that we try to move that on. We have an excellent service in the county, the Laois Domestic Abuse Service. The level of funding for these services is very important. Unfortunately, and I say this carefully, there is a huge demand for their services. I wish it were oth…

I commend Natasha O'Brien, who is in the Gallery, and thank the Social Democrats for bringing forward this motion. It is another motion, at a time when we need to move from talking to action. According to the Sexual Abuse and Violence in Ireland, SAVI, report, domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is at epidemic levels in our society. All of the reports on this matter show that. One such report by Women's Aid reported an 18% increase in disclosures of domestic abuse in 2023, compared to the previous year, the …

I raise recycling and bin collections. The deposit return scheme has come in and the good people of the State are, by and large, doing the right thing with plastic bottles and cans. I support the scheme and use it but because less stuff is going into recycling bins, the private companies that collect waste are now charging us for that. We are charged for the levy on plastic bottles and cans, which is fine, but because of the reduction in the volume in the recycling bin, companies are now charging more. The privatis…

It has gone out of control. The Government needs to take back control with a franchise or some other model with local authorities. Other EU states are doing it. Will the Government look at this issue again? The scheme is good but these are the unintended consequences.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for his indulgence.

I have noticed it.

Will the Government stop them? The company I use is putting the price up.