The functioning of the Passport Office has significantly improved, as Senator Mullen might have been aware if he had attended the other times I talked about it, and we are clearing that backlog. As for the matter the Senator did raise today, the staff are working diligently to carry out their work. There is a delay because the service required a certain amount of space and way of delivering the service, pre-Covid-19. I am sure Senator Mullen would not want to put staff's health and safety at risk by continuing in t…

We had to reallocate the work practices, as to how we deliver the service during Covid-19, but we will clear the backlog. By the way, we process more than 290,000 passports in a normal year and we are well within our capacity limits to deliver the passports.

I thank the Senator for raising this matter and for giving me the opportunity to respond on behalf of the Minister for Defence, Deputy Coveney. Since the establishment of the Defence Forces, it has been a long-standing practice to allow sporting organisations and local community groups access to military lands. This policy reflects the importance to the Defence Forces of being front and centre within the communities in which their military installations are located. In 2019, in a pre-Covid context, in excess of 100…

I thank the Senator for her interest in the matter. I assure her that it is not intended to dispose of any aspect of the military installation and that all of those availing of the facilities at Cathal Brugha Barracks will continue to be able to do so.

The Government stands in solidarity with all those impacted by the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. Some 33 people were murdered and hundreds seriously injured on that awful day in 1974, which was the highest number of casualties in any single day during the Troubles. We will continue to seek the full truth of these appalling attacks, as well as some measure of closure for the victims' families and survivors, in accordance with the three motions passed unanimously by Dáil Éireann to date. The all-party motion on the 1…

I have taken note of the Senator's remarks, particularly in regard to the passage of time. The Government will continue to engage with the British Government to secure the implementation of the all-party Oireachtas motions on the Dublin-Monaghan bombings. Our position on the Dublin-Monaghan bombings is consistent with our approach to the legacy of the Troubles more broadly. Every family bereaved in the conflict should have access to an effective investigation and a process of justice regardless of the perpetrator. …

I acknowledge that the Minister, Deputy Coveney, cannot be here. I know he engaged with Senator Black on this yesterday at some length. I would like to restate the Government’s deep concern at the intensification of violence in Gaza, on the West Bank, and in Israel. Now is the time for de-escalation, as the Senator correctly points out, before further loss of life. We need to encourage all efforts to reach a ceasefire. These events are terrifying for both Palestinian and Israeli civilians. The number of child casua…

I thank the Senator very much. I agree that it is incredibly difficult to see the pictures and the absolute horror of what is taking place, and see people who are effectively trapped in Gaza coming under the most sustained very sophisticated military weaponry with absolutely nowhere to go. We all take on board the horror of what we have seen and, obviously, the impact in Israel of rockets coming in in an uncontrolled way and landing on civilian populations there. What is happening in Gaza, particularly to children,…

I thank the Senator for the opportunity to update the House on the current operational status of the passport service, which has significantly scaled up operations since 4 May 2021. As an essential service, attendance levels are now increasing and I am sure the Seanad will support me in commending the staff of the passport service on the emergency services they operated throughout the pandemic and for their commitment to returning to the Passport Office issuing sites as restrictions have eased. At the end of April,…

It is important to note that the passport reform programme continues to deliver major upgrades for the passport services technology platform and business process as well as for the customer service experience. It is also worth noting that the development of the online service is the future direction of improvements within the passport system. The appropriate way to speed up delivery and the provision of a better service to people wishing to obtain passports is through that process. It also has tremendous benefits f…

I thank the Senator for tabling this Commencement matter and for his remarks at the start. Unfortunately, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is not available to attend today. He has asked me to take this matter on his behalf. Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended. The 2011 reg…

I thank the Senator and I will convey his remarks back to the Minister. The review of the household means policy has taken place and the position remains that there should be no deduction from assessable income in regard to the maintenance paid. However, I clearly understand the points the Senator is making and the situation he is describing. I thank him and I will bring this to the attention of the Minister.

I welcome the opportunity to represent the Government and to speak in support of the motion on the Good Friday Agreement and the shared island initiative. I will not oppose the amendments. The Good Friday Agreement, signed 23 years ago last month, was both an end and a beginning. It was an end to long years of hard work and difficult compromises on all sides. It was the beginning of a new process of peacebuilding and reconciliation. That process has not always been an easy one. It has seen many days and nights of c…

I thank the Senator for raising this case and for the opportunity to provide an update on behalf of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on this matter. I appreciate that the issue of defective concrete blocks is particularly emotive for households and I sympathise with all those affected by this distressing situation. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage met members of the Donegal Mica Action Group earlier this year and one of the issues raised was that of finance and the po…

I thank the Senator. He is correct that I will be conveying his remarks to the Minister later today. As outlined, there is a commitment to keep the issue under review.

Before I begin the official reply, I want to make a personal comment. As the Senator said, I know this area well as my mother's family parish is Ardfinnan. Knocklofty House is an absolute treasure. It was so disappointing to hear the description the Senator gave because, from my early earliest years as a child, going down on holidays every summer and looking out at Knocklofty House, and then attending functions later on, it was an absolute treasure for the area. It is stunningly beautiful in its location on the ban…

I will certainly ask the Minister of State to visit. If we are allowed travel, the Senator can rest assured that I will most definitely be in Ardfinnan this summer. I will call him and we can do that together. As I said, Knocklofty House is an amazing building and heritage site. It is vital to so many people in the area that a preservation order be placed on it to ensure it does not deteriorate further. I am willing to come down and take a look. I look forward to that visit when inter-county travel is allowed.

I thank the Senator for the opportunity to address the essential work of the passport service, which has continued to deliver throughout the global pandemic. At level 5, employers are asked to only undertake essential tasks to help stop the spread of Covid-19 in our community. I am satisfied that the passport service is continuing to provide an essential service while respecting the level 5 restrictions announced on 23 December. The passport service provides a same-day service for citizens who need to travel for ur…

I will make some concluding remarks. When the service is paused, people are requested not to submit supporting documentation or documentation they may need because once it goes into the system, there is a problem returning it as staff are working remotely. Again, I thank Senator Davitt for raising the issue again today. The Department is willing to engage in a reform programme as it has been doing for delivery. We have undertaken substantial reform and expansion of the service. The online service will be expanded t…

I cannot comment on an individual case-----