I thank the Minister for his response. He has listed some of the additional challenges and costs these businesses are facing. I would like to highlight one of them. Just last week, we all saw supermarkets unveiling new bottle and tin can recycling machines. They cost €15,000 apiece but there is no Government support for that. They have all had to go down this route. There is a whole lot more that can be done for these businesses. Many are on the brink. Since 2019 our local shop and local pub in our village have clo…

I thank the Minister for taking my parliamentary question this morning. Approximately one in every 50 Irish people has a diagnosis of coeliac disease. A trip around the supermarket does not leave them many choices. Products they buy that are flour based have to be gluten free and they are expensive. Will the Minister and his Department consider making all gluten-free products for people with coeliac disease subject to VAT at 0%?

I thank the Minister. That was a very detailed response and it was very much appreciated. Many in my family have coeliac disease. It is quite prominent in Ireland and its diagnosis is on the rise. The Minister has explained really well why addressing this is tricky. Mothership Europe and the EU VAT directive govern much of what we can do here, but I argue that gluten-free products are somewhat similar to oral medicines, which are subject to a 0% VAT rate. Once someone finds out he or she has coeliac disease, he or …

This is probably not the most exciting topic to be debating here today but it matters to so many. Having read through the technicalities, I believe that if the Minister has the scope to reclassify gluten-free products as medicinal, it will be beneficial. The gluten-free products are medicinal because the people affected have no choice but to pick them from the shelf. Reclassifying them as medicinal would untie the Minister’s hands somewhat in that he would no longer have to treat them like more regular biscuits or …

I, like many in the Chamber today, want to speak on the continued situation in Gaza and the horrendous war we are seeing unfold. Many Members have spoken about this since the October attacks by Hamas, which were atrocious and have rightly been condemned. Yet, the response from the Israel Defense Forces has been disproportionate. It has been an attack on civilians, including the vulnerable and the young. Most sick of all were the attacks on hospitals. They can talk about terror structures existing or co-locating in …

At the start of this week, I met with a number of schools in my constituency, particularly the special education teams. They were bemoaning the fact, and we have heard it everywhere, that children in their schools cannot get assessed quick enough and cannot get therapeutic supports quick enough. The National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, works well for thousands of people, mostly older people who have problems like cataracts and varicose veins. Sometimes, they travel outside their jurisdiction for treatment and so…

If it just allowed the child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, and National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS, to clear the backlog, surely it is worth considering.

Yesterday's development whereby people can now bury the carcase of an animal on their farm is welcome. I spoke to a farmer yesterday with a mini digger. It is an easy job for him to do but many more do not have such a digger so it requires them to contact a local contractor to come over and the contractor may not get there immediately. Could the Minister provide small grant assistance to farmers to allow them to hire someone because burying a cow carcase is quite a big task? You are not going to do it with a shovel…

I must disclose that I keep a herd of Shorthorn Hereford cattle, so I have skin in the game here. One farmer at home put it well yesterday when he asked if you can imagine going to a 4-star hotelier and saying that you have looked at the hotel's costs and inputs and are now downgrading it to a 2-star hotel because that is what the market says it should be. That is what it feels like for many farmers. No matter how much the ICBF dressed it up yesterday at the Oireachtas agriculture committee, for many farmers this h…

I have a question for the Minister for Justice. Thankfully, that ridiculous vote last week is out of the way and we can get back to focusing on Garda resources. I have two questions-----

There are approximately 113 gardaí currently suspended, which, to put it into perspective, is approximately half of the total cohort of gardaí in my own county. I am sure some of them have done awful things while others have done very minor things but at the very least natural justice should prevail and the investigations, led by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, should be sped up. One of the gardaí concerned has been suspended for almost ten years, which is ludicrous. They are still being paid. …

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Digital Services Bill 2023. It is important legislation that will provide the full opportunity for Ireland to implement the EU regulation on a single market for digital services. That EU digital services regulation, more commonly referred to as the EU Digital Services Act, provides a regulatory framework to protect the fundamental rights of users throughout the Union in their engagement with digital services. It is important this legislation is juxtaposed and considered in …

Amendment No. 2 has been ruled out of order.

Amendment No. 3 has also been ruled out of order.

This Bill, which is certified to be a money Bill in accordance with Article 22.2.1° of the Constitution, will be sent to the Seanad.

Amendments Nos. 1 to 3, inclusive, 17, 18, 36 to 70, inclusive, 77, 91 to 96, inclusive, 98 and 100 to 102, inclusive, are related and may be discussed together.

The Minister of State is speaking to amendment No. 77, which is in this grouping.

Amendment No. 4, in the name of Deputy Bacik, has been ruled out of order as being outside the scope of the Bill.

Amendments Nos. 5 and 6 are related and will be discussed together.

Amendments Nos. 7 and 8 are related and will be discussed together.