That is incorrect. The Tánaiste is misleading the Dáil.

We did not have the opportunity. The list rotated.

Could we have this corrected because this is not the way the procedures run? The Tánaiste is giving misleading information. We are just asking for it to be corrected. It is very unprofessional of the Tánaiste to make such a charge here. It is not factual.

I move: That Dáil Éireann: notes that under Bunreacht na hÉireann (Constitution of Ireland): — Article 40.1 guarantees that all citizens shall, as human persons, be held equal before the law; — Article 40.3.1° protects the right to bodily integrity of all citizens; — Article 40.6.1°.ii guarantees the right of citizens to assemble peaceably, subject to laws to prevent meetings which are a danger to the general public; and — Article 44.2.1° guarantees to every citizen the right to freedom to practice his or her relig…

As the Taoiseach will be aware, a report on the proposed regulation of veterinary medicines was recently published by the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I have a copy with me. It contains clear commitments. These commitments and recommendations were agreed in a unified manner and received cross-party support. Many stakeholders in the industry also support these recommendations. When will these recommendations be fully acted upon and implemented? Time is running out. Thousands of jobs connected…

When the local property tax was first introduced, we were told it was intended to improve services and infrastructure, such as roads, across the State. It has not done that. Therefore, I can understand the frustration, anger and bewilderment experienced by families, especially ordinary working families, when they hear the local property tax will be increased and will include sheds, outhouses and, in the case of farm families, farm outhouses and buildings. It is very wrong. People were deceived when the local proper…

I am delighted to be able to speak on this motion. I commend the Regional Group on bringing it forward. We spoke on this issue ourselves only a few weeks ago, when we held a press conference outside of Leinster House. This issue needs urgent attention. There is much talk and gestures from Government and many references in the programme for Government about supporting our post office network. However, this has not been matched by action. The post office network, in rural and urban areas, is facing significant challe…

I welcome the opportunity to speak briefly on this issue in the House today. I am aware the European Council focused on several issues such as vaccination rates throughout the EU, the new variants of the virus, as well as the EU economic recovery in post-pandemic times. We saw this week that the economic recovery here is on a knife edge in terms of the ongoing restrictions and draconian measures put in place, which will force many small businesses to close their doors permanently. When I speak about small businesse…

It is because taxpayers' money is being wasted.

I ask the Minister if he is aware of the findings of a survey carried out by RACO indicating serious issues around pay and conditions and showing that highly trained personnel continue to leave the Defence Forces. We know this has been an ongoing matter and it has come up here a number of times from parties and Deputies across the House. It is a serious matter. It has also been highlighted that highly qualified people, including one in three officers, have stated they would not recommend the Defence Forces as a car…

Clearly there is a need for significant improvement. The findings of the survey carried out by the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, RACO, show us this. The Minister has called out some of these issues. It is concerning that Defence Forces numbers are now at 8,500, which is an all-time low. As reported by Sean O'Riordan, the RACO survey found that almost two thirds of respondents said they left the Defence Forces for better pay in the private sector. Does this not suggest the need for improvement…

There are personnel who have served in the Defence Forces and enjoyed their time there, but many of the personnel felt they had no choice but to leave to work in the private sector where they could earn a decent living to support their families. This is the crux of the situation. The general secretary of RACO, Commandant Conor King, has pointed out that 2020 was the year the Defence Forces recruitment and retention crisis should have been resolved. The conditions were perfect: coming into the new year with a health…

The motion states that there are now thousands of 65-year-old people on the jobseeker's social welfare rate of €203 per week instead of the State pension rate. There is a difference of €45.30 between the jobseeker's payment and the State pension, leading to an annual loss of €2,355.60 for pensioners. The urgency with regard to the pension age issue, as provided by the Government, is that there is a massive financial cost coming down the tracks as a result of the increasing number of older people. However, this is a…

As we all know, the impact of Covid-19 on the delivery of health services in the State has been catastrophic. We also know that waiting lists across nearly all medical specialties have increased significantly and that it will be years before we can finally determine the real magnitude of the crisis that has been created in non-Covid-related areas such as cancer, coronary and paediatric care. It also needs to be pointed out, however, that it was wrong of this Government to decide to close down cancer services during…

I thank the Taoiseach for his response. Our healthcare staff certainly were commendable and did a fantastic job. This chaos we have is not of their making. However, an expert in cancer care, Professor O'Reilly, has pointed out that we will see higher numbers of cancer patients for the next decade because services that should have been operational, including screening services, were not operational and, unfortunately, there will be delayed diagnoses. I want to point out to the Taoiseach that when I call for a radica…

There needs to be an assessment.

There is massive anger and frustration among farmers. They genuinely feel that their concerns are not being listened to. The IFA is in Dublin today with members from all around the country, and many other organisations such as the Irish Cattle & Sheep Farmers Association, ICSA, and the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, ICMSA, have been sounding the alarm on these issues and concerns. I listened to this debate for at least 45 minutes and heard many rural Deputies speak about the importance of protecting fam…

I wish to speak to amendment No. 19 on the just transition. I come from a county that is bearing the brunt of a just transition. The Minister felt the need to only mention "transition" once in a 7,000-word document. As that is a huge insult to the people of the midlands, I suggest the Minister go back and revise this. It is shameful that the Minister has rejected amendments from all the Opposition, which put forward constructive amendments, reached out and tried to be collaborative. It is appalling. It reeks of eli…

On a point of order-----

We submitted 90 amendments and it is not right to just completely dismiss them.