I say to the Minister and the Minister of State that the proposed deal between Gresham House and Coillte is nothing short of a land grab. This time, it is not English landlords with an army in front of them clearing off the peasants but the Government, which is facilitating the transfer of hundreds of millions of euro to a British company to snap up large tracts of Irish land and to put it out of the reach of rural communities. See how this goes down in Camross and Clonaslee if the Minister of State thinks that peo…

I welcome the people in the Public Gallery who are affected by building defects. They and homeowners across the State who are similarly impacted have been badly let down by successive Governments. Our proposal calls for support to finance a scheme for homes that require emergency works, with priority for those with the greatest fire risk and structural defects. I heard what the Minister of State said in that regard. Poor regulation and light-touch regulation by successive Governments have left tens of thousands of …

I raise the issue of e-scooters with An Taoiseach. Legislation is due on them soon. There is a rush on this and it has to be dealt with as a matter of urgency because we have lists of serious injuries being reported where members of the public, pedestrians, cyclists and, indeed, users of e-scooters are being injured. Many parents will buy them now as Christmas presents for their children, and I would urge them not to do that, particularly for young children. They are not toys; they are a dangerous vehicle. Some are…

-----in secondary legislation. This is an important issue, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

They are very dangerous.

This is also in small towns.

I welcome the news that the toll increase across the PPP roads and the M50 will be deferred until July 2023. However, this does not go far enough. Workers and families across the State are in a cost-of-living crisis and the Government's only solution is to kick the can down the road until July. The Minister for Transport was notified in early September, prior to the budget, of these price hikes and decided to do nothing about them. Now, following the Sinn Féin motion to scrap the toll increase and under public pres…

I raise the issue of primary care centres. As the Tánaiste knows, people are presenting at hospital emergency departments because they cannot get access to a GP or primary care services. The population of towns like Portlaoise has increased, and there is no primary care centre in the town despite the population is heading towards 30,000. There is also a shortage of GPs. The Tánaiste will be aware of this from his background in the medical profession. People are piling into hospital emergency departments and this is…

I do not have any in my constituency.

The Tánaiste has three.

Perhaps the Tánaiste would send that on to me.

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this. The proposals being put forward by Sinn Féin are to address the retention crisis, particularly in the retained firefighter sector. This is a matter the Minister must address. We do not have time on our side. Correspondence from the National Retained Firefighters Association outlines that the current staffing level is now at crisis point. The service is no longer fit for purpose. Sixty percent of staff intend to retire or exit in the near future. We are at crisis point due…

Fianna Fáil objected.

Sinn Féin's proposal is to ensure that older people and others who need home support have it, and can stay in their own homes and be cared for there. As the Minister of State said, we have more than 6,200 older people on waiting lists for home care assistants. That is an increase of approximately 11% this year. We also know that many more people have far fewer hours of support than they require. I compliment the Laois-Offaly Carers Association on the work it does but the lack of community care alternatives has left…

I want to raise the issue of the need for a domestic violence centre in County Laois. I raised this issue on 19 January on the floor of the Dáil and raised it again on 30 March. I have raised it at the Committee of Public Accounts a number of times and have also raised it in a series of parliamentary questions. I am raising it again this morning because it is really important that we get a domestic violence refuge in the county. The third national strategy on domestic violence issues was launched recently and I wel…

I welcome the Minister of State's reply. The point I want to make strongly is that typically, women and children fleeing domestic violence would be sent to emergency accommodation or refuges but the supply of emergency accommodation, which is typically in the private rental or bed-and-breakfast sector, is drying up. In many cases it is also not suitable for women and children fleeing domestic violence situations. I welcome the fact that the strategy has a particular focus on prevention and on ensuring that victims …

The proposals Sinn Féin have are for a detailed plan for a reliable public transport service. If we want people to use public transport, however, we first need to provide the proper infrastructure. I have raised the issue of bus shelters many times. Borris-in-Ossory and Castletown on the R445 need bus shelters. I raised this issue numerous times with the NTA and the Department. They are also needed at Ballylinan, Newtown and Crettyard on the N77. In weather like we had over the past week or so, people have been sta…

I raise the commitment in the programme for Government around the improvement of dental services. In Laois-Offaly, we are in crisis. The Minister is standing in for the Taoiseach today. I want to get this addressed. The public scheme is not functioning properly. Dentists are not interested, in the main. Dentists have stopped taking patients for the dental treatment services scheme, DTSS, full stop. Services cannot be gotten and people cannot access them. Those are the facts. The school scheme has also collapsed. In…

-----through the HSE to provide a dental health service to the children and adults in Laois-Offaly?

I have raised this many times with the Taoiseach.