Just as the shocking unemployment figures, showing that 59.2% of young people now stand unemployed, have been revealed to us, the Government intends to contract out the local employment services many of which are run by local partnerships. When the Taoiseach was in opposition, I sat on the social protection committee chaired by a Fianna Fáil Deputy and well attended by Fianna Fáil Members, all of whom opposed the JobPath model mainly run by Seetec and Turas Nua which was basically a punitive model that chased the u…

Deputy Barry will not be here but I am sharing with Deputy Murphy. I want to start by saying something the Minister may not believe or his party may not believe. I can honestly say that those of us in People Before Profit had hoped we would welcome the Bill and engage in the debate on the basis of support for the Bill that would begin to tackle the greatest issue of our time and the biggest threat to our people and planet. We genuinely hoped to support it along with the school strikers, the children who stood outsi…

I thank the Office of Parliamentary Legal Advisers, OPLA, for its help in guiding us through these measures. Employment permit legislation is very complex, difficult and labyrinthine, deliberately so, because it speaks of the State's attitude to migrant workers, which in many cases is one of barely concealed contempt. Getting a permit, renewing a permit and surviving here is not made easy by the State or by many employers who are willing to use the labour of migrant workers but are unwilling to pay them decent wage…

I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."

I and the other Deputies raising this issue are making a plea to the Government. The issue was raised by Deputy Joan Collins during Questions on Promised Legislation earlier. We are seeking a change to the regulations in respect of groups such as the Ballyfermot Sports Complex, which is located on Gurteen Avenue. It is a wonderful sports complex that has been open since 1985. It has had to change its modus operandi over the years but, basically, it is used by an impressive number of community associations, groups, …

We appreciate the positive response from the Minister of State and look forward to the Government going back and looking again at the schemes and the benefits that may be available. We are representatives of Dublin South-Central and it is important that the Ballyfermot club remains in situ . It is an interesting club because it is lean in its staff and flexible with the community but it caters for a huge number of groups and individuals and schools. I think it is worth a little bit of flexibility from the Departmen…

I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this very important motion. I also thank the carers in our State who have done an amazing job of looking after their loved ones, year in and year out for long periods. My sister gave 20 years of her life to looking after my mother, and she did it 24-7 without question. It is not an easy thing to do. All of the statistics show that making this sacrifice comes at a high price in a person's life. In dealing with families and people who are challenged mentally or physically, peopl…

I ask about the vaccination programme. I listened carefully to the Government's announcement yesterday and again this morning when it was replayed during a radio interview. To put it mildly, the Government's plan to reopen the economy is almost 100% dependent on a successful roll-out of the vaccination programme. One could say that is fair enough because it is expected we will get a million vaccines in May, June and afterwards, so there shall be plenty of them in the country. Let us say that happens and there are n…

Déanaim comhghairdeas le Sinn Féin on introducing the Bill. I welcome that it is not being opposed and will be allowed to progress. I have not heard all the debate and do not want to repeat what others have said. It is important to recognise the relevance of the monument. The space between the GPO and Moore Street is very significant in our history - the history of struggle in this country to rid ourselves of British imperialism. Those most associated with it were the heroes of 1916. For me, one of the greatest her…

The programme for Government states the Government does believe it makes sense to develop liquefied natural gas, LNG, import terminals importing fracked gas, in light of Ireland's net zero targets. That is the formal Government position but the position on imported fracked gas and LNG is still confusing. The Shannon LNG project remains on the EU's list of projects of common interest, PCI. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, has stated there will be a separate policy statement on this but it is not clear, given that it…

The housing crisis is extreme and has not abated at all under the Taoiseach's watch. There are 8,313 households registered as homeless and another 62,000 families on the housing list. This is shocking, but just as shocking is the fact that there are 230,000 empty properties across the State. It is not that there is a lack of housing. Rather, there is bad housing policy. Not enough public housing is being built on public land and the rents and prices paid for housing are ridiculously high and unaffordable. The rent …

On Saturday, in the Tánaiste's constituency, George Nkencho will be buried and his family will, I am sure, be extraordinarily sad about this. I send our solidarity and support to the family. Given the disturbing circumstances relating to George's death at the end of last year - he was killed in his home by gardaí - does the Tánaiste accept the deep disturbance of his family and community regarding his death? Will the Tánaiste join with them in calling for an open public inquiry into the circumstances of the death o…

We would like to wish the Minister for Justice all the best as well. It is a great moment in life for her. It illustrates the fact that women's participation in politics is made difficult by the structures in the system and they absolutely have to be changed. We have several councillors who have been impacted by this. That also has to be taken into consideration. Will the Taoiseach clarify who will be filling in? Will the Minister for Social Protection be doing two jobs, involving the Departments of Social Protecti…

I did not realise I would have to speak to this.

I move: That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Climate Action pursuant to Standing Orders 95(3)(a) and 178(1).

We have heard often, correctly, during the Covid crisis much concern about mental health impacts, especially on our young people during all the restrictions that have been imposed on them. Sometimes those expressing concerns for young people and their mental health do not generally have a record of concerning themselves about the plight of young people or the issue of mental health in our society. There is no doubt that Covid has impacted on young people in a dangerous and unpredictable way. I am struck by the ofte…

There is growing alarm at the spread of data centres, what they are doing to our hopes of reaching the Paris Agreement targets, as well as our climate goals, and whether an economic policy based on the unlimited growth of data centres is compatible with any chance of tackling a climate catastrophe. I am not assured by what is being said about them using sustainable energy. Based on what we see, they will swallow increased amounts of renewable energy. Will the Minister comment on this?

First, people should be aware that there is an astonishing growth in the number of data centres in the State. There are currently approximately 54, mainly based around Dublin. Another ten are under construction and planning permission has been granted for another 31. Although the argument the Government makes is that they will have their own renewable energy, that means that by 2030 half of the total renewable energy produced in this country will be gobbled up by data centres. In anybody's book, that does not make …

I do not believe it is sustainable, or that it is possible to make it sustainable. If we take the climate crisis seriously, we will not go down this road. It is not in our interest to gobble up renewable energy and water on this scale. Ireland bends over backwards to facilitate foreign direct investment. That is fine; that is a different argument for a different day. This is also a facilitation. No other country in the world will have this level of data centres and facilitation of them, including fast-track plannin…

By prior arrangement I will take Deputy Kenny's question for him. Like many others we are alarmed at the use of and over-reliance on negative emissions technology, NETs, in the climate action Bill. We have been warned repeatedly by the science and by the scientists that over-reliance on technology that does not actually exist and that gives us hope for the future without dealing with the here and now is the wrong way to go. I would like the Minister to make a statement on that. If we are over-reliant on NETs we may…