I agree with everything Deputy Leddin said. The pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, has been a very effective support mechanism for thousands of people who were rendered unemployed overnight. Thankfully, many of them are now exiting the PUP support because they no longer need to avail of it. However, there are thousands in the entertainment sector who will find themselves on a very rocky road back to work. It is not a sector that can be switched on or off overnight; doing so will take a considerable period. The way…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this issue on UN World Bicycle Day. In February last year, the European Transport Safety Council published a report on cyclist deaths across the European Union. It revealed that Ireland had recorded the highest annual increase in cyclist fatality rates among all EU member states in the past decade. In fact, our rate had risen by an average of 8% per annum over that period, which was four times the rate of the next worst country. All of those deaths were avoidable…

I thank the Minister of State for that very helpful response. All the good things that happen in this country, the ones which make it a better place to live in with a better quality of life, happen when we see Government Departments collaborating. This happens when a good idea is grabbed with enthusiasm by those leading in the Departments, when it is brought to fruition and made happen. There is no reason why the Departments of Justice and Transport could not collaborate to create the portal I am referring to. I me…

We saw a very ambitious but realistic plan being published yesterday on how we return to normal. The plan is creative in suggesting that we do not return to an old normal but a reinvigorated and deeply ambitious Ireland. I want to deal with two aspects of the plan, both of which seek to support the artistic community. The first is the continued extension of the PUP all the way up to next February, which is exceptionally important for musicians, entertainers and artists who will find themselves on a very rocky road …

Our programme for Government has balanced regional development at its heart. It states: "all parts of Ireland must thrive if we are to prosper as a country". Project Ireland 2040 envisages, approximately, an additional 250,000 people living in rural Ireland in the next 20 years. If that is to happen, our planning policy must show some understanding of rural Ireland and of the needs and rights of the children of farm families to continue living on their family lands as they have done for generations. When is it prop…

Our programme for Government contains some very significant commitments to rural transport and sustainable rural mobility. It commits to developing and implementing a sustainable rural mobility plan and to protecting and expanding regional connectivity and connectivity between towns and villages in rural Ireland. Unfortunately, what is happening in rural Ireland right now to public transport is the exact opposite. A slow but steady erosion of public transport options is occurring. Just two years ago, Bus Éireann de…

I also congratulate the Tánaiste on seizing the initiative and ensuring that as people enter into the world of remote work, there is a strong legislative structure underpinning that process and protecting workers’ rights in how we move forward. Grow Remote, an entity which has essentially welled-up from within rural communities across Ireland, has identified that there are thousands of remote working jobs available to people living across the country. Aligning with the Tánaiste’s ambitions, is there any way of fast…

In the context of a commitment from a health Minister yesterday that he hopes that four in every five adults in Ireland can be vaccinated by the end of June and have at least one dose received based obviously on incoming suppliers, is it now time to begin moving the parameters whereby we establish or lift lockdown to something beyond infection rates or an R number, to reflect the fact that the risk associated with 500 cases, for example, last October and 500 cases right now is significantly different? We need to mo…

We all acknowledge that the hospitality sector will be the last to recover from the pandemic and to be rebooted and restarted. The Government has established an excellent tourism recovery task force that will oversee that process and try to determine how we carry out that valuable work. We found out yesterday in an Oireachtas committee that hotels, bed and breakfast accommodation and tour operators are represented on that group but there are no representatives from our thousands of pubs across the country and in ou…

I thank the Tánaiste and his ministerial colleagues for all the work they have done in putting in place significant supports for our small business sector. Unfortunately, there are thousands of self-employed people running small businesses in this country who are finding it exceptionally difficult, if not impossible, to gain access to those supports because of the way in which they were initially designed. The Tánaiste and Dr. Mike Ryan have often made the case that speed trumps perfection, and in this instance it …

My question is grouped with Deputy Sherlock's one.

Can I ask it if Deputy Sherlock is not here?

What has happened in recent months is that as a direct response to the pandemic, companies and their employees have collaborated to allow employees to work from home. Many have described this as remote working. The founder of Grow Remote, Tracy Keogh, would rightly argue that this is not remote working as it should be but that this is effectively crisis management. That is what has been happening in recent months. We urgently need to sit down with bodies such as Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and the WDC to set ou…

I thank the Minister for her comprehensive response. Her passion for this is obvious to all. One thing the Government should be doing is encouraging the public service to become leaders in this area so that others might follow. We attempted in the past, albeit it was a poor attempt, to decentralise public service operations to various locations throughout the country. Perhaps the technology, knowledge and know-how to do that well did not exist back then. It exists right now and from talking to many public servants …

The programme for Government contains a commitment to balanced regional development, in particular the delivery of sustainable transport solutions across the regions. Those transport solutions need to be sustainable from an environmental and economic perspective. We are making fundamental decisions as to how we invest in rail infrastructure, in particular in the west of Ireland over the coming years. We are doing that without all the information we require. The former Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Shan…

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the opportunity to discuss the need to expedite the double tracking of the Irish Rail line connecting Athenry, Oranmore, Ardaun and, ultimately, Galway city. I thank the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, for being here today to discuss this matter. Athenry has a population of just over 5,000 people and the town has doubled in size over the past 20 years. Oranmore also has a population of about 5,000 people and the population has doubled over the past 20 years. The development of a n…

I thank the Minister for that very positive response. It is indeed heartening to hear that the feasibility study for the development of the twin track option will get under way quite quickly and will be completed by quarter 2 of next year. The land required for the development of that twin track option is already within State ownership under Córas Iompair Éireann, CIÉ. One would hope that the feasibility study would arrive at a conclusion that this would be a very positive development and one that could be easily d…

I thank the Minister for taking this Topical Issue matter. The July stimulus package to be announced shortly will, I assume, focus on revitalising our economy, especially the rural economy. The rural economy in the west along the Wild Atlantic Way is highly reliant on the tourism sector. This year we are, rightly, encouraging our people to stay at home. We are focused on supporting tourism across the nation. To have these iconic heritage sites not available to tourists would be a seriously retrograde step in trying…

Along with my colleagues, I ask the Minister to seriously consider the funding submission made by Shannon Heritage on keeping crucial sites open. The establishment of the tourism recovery task force acknowledges that it is a critically important part of the economy. I am of the view that the temporary wage subsidy scheme is destined to be extended for a number of months. I hope that, along with a minimal investment by the Department, would allow these sites to remain open for the foreseeable future.

The programme for Government contains a commitment to consider the report on the future of the western rail corridor and to take appropriate action. That report was commissioned by Irish Rail and carried out by EY-DKM. It was assessed again by Irish Rail after the report was produced and assessed by officials in the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. It has been resting on the desk of the former Minister, Shane Ross, since last October. This infrastructure is critical to the development of the western regi…