I thank Senator O'Reilly for raising this issue and welcome the opportunity to discuss it on behalf of the Minister for Transport, Deputy O'Brien. The Senator's question relates to the funding provided for both Cavan and Monaghan county councils for the maintenance and improvement of regional local roads. I assure the Senator that the Government is strongly committed to our existing road network. Local authorities are responsible by statute for the maintenance and improvement of regional and local roads present in …

I understand the challenging situation in which everyone in the Deputy's county finds themselves and, indeed, the challenge that presents for its Deputies as public representatives as well to seek to address and have this remedied. The reply that I have given on behalf of the Department of Transport and the Minister outlines the funding that was provided this year, namely, €23 million to Wexford County Council and €15 million to Wicklow County Council, which was up on the previous year. It is clear from the respons…

I thank Senator O'Reilly again. I will pass on her feedback and comments to the Minister and Department and raise with the Minister the fact that she has raised this significant issue in Cavan and Monaghan and is seeking additional funding. As regards the response from the Department, it outlines the level of funding for this year, which was announced in February, with €19 million for Cavan and €17 million for Monaghan. It also outlines that funding for the upkeep and renewal of roads is allocated on a per kilometr…

I move: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that: — the conflict in the Middle East has, once again, exposed the vulnerability of the Irish economy, and Irish society more generally, to imported fossil fuels; — these strategic dependencies have major macroeconomic implications, the risks to macroeconomic and fiscal stability cannot be ignored; — at a minimum, the large upward shift in energy prices is likely to impart a stagflationary impulse to the global economy, a combin…

I thank all Deputies for their contributions today. This has been a thoughtful and wide-ranging discussion, and it also reflects the shared understanding across the House that the pace of change we are experiencing is both significant and accelerating. Ireland has transformed profoundly over recent decades. We have built a strong, dynamic and outward-looking economy, supported by a workforce that is skilled, adaptable and ambitious. That resilience remains evident today, even as we navigate a period marked by geopo…

I thank the Senator for raising this. He is bringing the capacity to advocate on behalf of his county on a sporting matter into the Oireachtas in the same way I know that he and many of his family have done on the football field in Kerry. This is an important matter and something of great interest to people across the country, particularly in both our counties with regard to the matches coming up this weekend. The reality is that the GAA is an independent body that makes its own decisions about matters such as this…

This would be a good issue for the committee to explore and something the Senator, working with the committee, would be able to do. We do not have any plans to extend the reach of Government in relation to deciding what games should and should not be on TV. We all want to see as many games as possible. We have many more now than we did a few years ago. It is challenging when a game like this, that is so looked forward to, is not shown on television. It would be a worthwhile conversation to have in relation to exami…

It is fair to consider where the balance lies, and it is open to the Senator to engage with the sport committee on that. In the meantime, I know we will both be-----

-----looking forward to the contest this weekend.

I thank Deputies Ahern, Lahart and Crowe, and Deputy Murphy as well, for bringing this matter to the Chamber and raising it with me. The Deputies will already be aware of the statutory structure of An Post. It is an independent commercial State body and makes its decisions in this regard. These decisions are operational in nature. I know Deputies are aware of that. As they have outlined, it is an important issue in their area and they are bringing it to the floor of the Dáil. They are seeking particular engagement …

The most important engagement here will be between An Post and its staff in relation to the proposal and the management of that, and taking on board any concerns that are there. It is important that that continues and is detailed and respectful of everyone. The Deputies, as public representatives, are raising how this issue will impact on the wider public and the importance of staff engagement. I will request that a meeting be organised with them to discuss these issues further. We all know and accept, I think, tha…

They will be back next week as well so.

I thank Senator Scahill. I have been asked by the Minister of State with responsibility for school transport, Deputy Michael Moynihan, to take this matter on his behalf this morning. He apologises that he is not available to do so himself. I certainly will relay the conversation back and the discussion that we have on it here this morning and the particular point the Senator is making in relation to those who drive buses for special education students in terms of that particular challenge, which is not included so …

I have no doubt but that the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, will be glad to continue to engage on the matter. The Senator has put the argument very constructively here. He has also outlined the specific case of Councillor Reilly, as a bus driver in County Louth. There has been movement here as can be seen, in regard to the smaller public service vehicles. That is a step forward. I have seen this issue raised on a number of occasions. There is significant validity to the safety considerations that have to be pa…

Ireland's first ever national swimming strategy was published in 2024 and sets out a vision to provide everyone in our country with an opportunity to swim. It includes an action plan containing over 50 actions across five thematic strands, focusing on providing improved facilities, increasing access for people with disabilities, improving the culture of inclusion, better coaching supports, increasing safety awareness and providing a pathway that allows for the nurturing and development of potential high performers.…

From a Government point of view, this is something that we want to see addressed and the provision of swimming opportunities and facilities improved. That is why we paid for the Swimming Pool Gap Analysis Report, which Swim Ireland commissioned. We are considering the full findings of that report. From a Government point of view, there has been investment through the LSSIF in swimming facilities. We have seen a total of €41 million allocated over the latest two rounds to support pools, namely, Askeaton pool in Lime…

It is something we want to do more on. Swimming is the second most participated sport in the country. It is wonderful in that it can be from a very young age throughout one's life. There are challenges. The gap analysis report has addressed those. Funding streams continue to be available and will be available this summer. In relation to how we consider the challenges to try to make sure that the opportunity is available to everyone to be able to participate in sport, we are considering the Swimming Pool Gap Analysi…

I thank Deputy Boland for her question. I know she is very committed to the development of a swimming pool in Balbriggan. Further to a specific action in the 2024 national swimming strategy and enabled with funding from my own Department, Swim Ireland was commissioned to carry out an in-depth analysis of swimming pool provision across the country. This examined the condition and age of facilities and the provincial and county-level distribution of pools. The resultant swimming pool gap analysis report was subsequen…

I accept that. I know there is a particular challenge in the north Dublin area in relation to swimming pool availability. The gap analysis report certainly identifies that. We are considering that gap analysis report at the moment to get a sense of the scale of the challenge and to assess how those challenges can be matched by our current funding streams, including the community sports facilities fund and the large-scale sports infrastructure fund. The Government is focusing on this issue and wants to see it addres…

I thank the Deputy for her ongoing advocacy and for identifying the challenges and the need for swimming pool facilities, which mean that everyone can avail of sports and that we do not have long waiting lists. I look forward to continuing to work and engage with her on this with a view to identifying opportunities to invest to make sure that projects such as the one in Fingal can be moved forward.