Amendments Nos. 17 to 20, inclusive, 22 to 26, inclusive, and 65 are related and may be discussed together. Amendments Nos. 18 to 20, exclusive, are physical alternatives to amendment No. 17. Amendments Nos. 19 and 20 are physical alternatives to amendment No. 18. Amendment No. 20 is a physical alternative to amendment No. 19. Amendment No. 65 is consequential on amendment No. 20.

There are 26 minutes left.

The ground is still too damp in Clare to get the tractors in for the hay, but we are aiming for July, all things going well, and maybe we will get a bit of silage as well.

Yes, we are still hurling. I am glad to have the opportunity to speak in this debate. I support the Government amendment. I thank the Minister of State for his efforts. It is very important that we have fiscal prudence. I was elected on the same day as the Minister of State back in 2020. That whole five-year period felt quite different. There was relative global economic stability, whereas things have been anything but on the global scene since then, with several wars in the Middle East and the Russo-Ukrainian war …

There was a recent landmark An Coimisiún Pleanála ruling relating to the Ballycar wind farm in County Clare. The argument centred on whether building the wind farm proximate to a radar installation would make the radar unsafe. It was argued that the flicker - the turning of the turbine blades - would distort the radar and make aviation unsafe. Key to that case were the Irish Aviation Authority, AirNav Ireland and Shannon Airport. They all weighed in objecting to this and it was ultimately proven that it would be un…

The shared island unit has been a major success under the Taoiseach's stewardship. A lot of money, co-operation and good initiatives have taken place. I wish to raise an issue that I hope the Taoiseach will discuss with his counterparts at some point. At the moment, there are 6,445 Irish artefacts held in the British Museum. I know the Taoiseach is very interested in history, as am I. I would not have a major problem if those items were on display. History is a global commodity. I would like to think if I was in Lo…

He is opposing student housing in his constituency at Baker's Corner. He is a hypocrite.

He is talking out of both sides of his mouth.

Hypocrite.

Yes. I only need a little more time.

I thank my colleague for sharing time with me. This is a very important Bill and I welcome the opportunity to speak on it. As Deputy Brennan said, nothing in this time was perfect but the State had to very quickly step in and decide how we could manage assets at a time of global financial crisis. Since then, NAMA has been lauded internationally as one of the best structures put in place during the economic crash of those years to manage state assets. I can only think of one comparable initiative. A few years prior …

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak in today's debate. Central to all of this have to be the victims of road accidents. My own dear mother-in-law, Mary Fehilly, passed away around 18 months ago and it just left the family feeling hollow. What I have found every day since is that you very much tune into the radio when you hear of an accident up the country. Heretofore, you would hear an awful report of a life lost on the road and feel a bit disconnected from about, but now it very much connects you to those f…

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak on this very important Bill. I do not support the amendments. It is important that we get this legislation passed and allow critical infrastructure to be built in the quickest possible time. I hope the Minister will have an opportunity to visit Ardnacrusha power station some day. To give some background to that, in 1896 a young engineer who had qualified through UCD was over working in the province of Pomerania in Germany. His name was Thomas McLaughlin and he came back ho…

Those are to be administered by a different organisation. It is important that other projects also move at pace. University Hospital Limerick dominates so many debates in the House, whether at question time or during questions to the Taoiseach. I would like to see that project, above all others, progressed and advanced. A balance needs to be struck between advancing critical infrastructure and public projects and listening to the voices of objectors. It concerns me hugely that just this week, a large wind farm comp…

I want to raise the issue of the possibility of an air ambulance for the mid-west. There was some good news for the north west the other day, as it now has an air ambulance based out of Sligo. There is real need to have one in the mid-west. Recently I was part of a delegation of TDs from the region who met the National Ambulance Service. It costs it at around €4 million per annum to have an operational service. It is really needed. For many people in the western and northern extremities of County Clare there is no …

Earlier this afternoon, I attended an event down the street organised by Limerick Chamber of Commerce about the scope for developing renewable wind energy along the Shannon Estuary and up along the coastline of Clare. The panel of speakers spoke about the huge opportunities and the bright future for this area but they also dealt with some of the risks that this involves, delays that could be encountered and the non-configuration of some of the ports along the west coast. What potential does the Taoiseach see? Are t…

I want to ask the Taoiseach about a situation in the mid-west at the moment. I am one of the first people who would be out defending the rights of people to come here under international protection and beneficiaries of temporary protection coming from the war in Ukraine. They have a right to be safe and a right to be looked after. However, I want to tell the Taoiseach about someone who has been in this country three months and who at the weekend committed his eighth crime. He has been charged with his eighth crime.…

How else do I convey a situation, a Cheann Comhairle?

I respectfully disagree. I have a representational role here for my constituency.

I am glad to have the opportunity to contribute on post European Council statements. The discussions at the meeting were very much dominated by the war that is still going on in the Middle East. It is an impossible thing because it is changing by the day. A meeting of the European Council could be convened, and all terms could have changed by the evening time. Nearly all of this is outside the control of the Government and the European Union bloc, but how we respond to it is within our control. I, like other Member…