The next grouping is Questions Nos. 8-13. If we work together we can get through all the Taoiseach's Questions. I ask Members to be brief and keep to the questions.

I call Deputy Bríd Smith, followed by Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett.

Absolutely. I would like to think I do it all the time. Is that a complaint?

I am sure the party has sold loads, Taoiseach, but let us-----

That concludes Taoiseach's Questions.

I welcome the opportunity to examine the Bill. It is a largely technical Bill to amend the EPA Act of 1992 to enable the Government to make arrangements to provide emergency generation capacity. Given the instability brought on by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, there is an onus on the Government to provide confidence to households and businesses with respect to the security of Ireland's energy supply. As a Member of the Oireachtas climate committee, I am very familiar with the issues at hand and the urgent n…

The matter the Deputy raises is not quite national security related.

It is a bit of a stretch.

Deputy Boyd Barrett will have one minute. This session will finish then. Then I will go back to the Taoiseach. If Deputy Boyd Barrett takes longer than one minute, the Taoiseach will not have time to respond.

It would be a very confusing debate if that were to continue.

I congratulate my constituency colleague on her elevation and welcome her to the House in this forum. I also welcome and support this Bill. Local credit unions are at the heart of our communities. They play a critical role in supporting the local economy and they are more important now than ever. The Minister of State will be aware that in our own area in the constituency of Dún Laoghaire, Core Credit Union, and its branches in Monkstown and Blackrock, do superb work. They are very much engaged with the local commu…

I add my voice to those of previous speakers who condemned the attempted murder of Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell during a brutal shooting incident in Omagh last night. This was an attack on his community, on the people of Omagh and on peace. We cannot go back to the bad old days of violence. My thoughts and prayers are with Detective Chief Inspector Caldwell and his family and colleagues. I welcome this debate. I will be supporting the Bill. It marks a new departure for policing in Ireland, giving effect …

I thank the Ceann Comhairle, but I will give my time to the Minister to reply to this long debate.

I welcome this debate on the co-ordination of services for people seeking protection in Ireland. It is important to acknowledge how Ireland has benefited from growing diversity over the last two decades in particular. New communities have added to the rich tapestry of Irish culture and Irish life, just as the Irish abroad made huge contributions in the US, Canada, Australia and, of course, in our nearest neighbour, the UK. We should not forget the challenges faced by Irish people heading to the UK and elsewhere dur…

I welcome the opportunity to examine the Civil Defence Bill 2023, which will replace the current suite of laws relating to civil defence. The main purpose of the Bill is to ensure a modern and comprehensive legislative basis for civil cefence matters. Currently, the legislative basis for Civil Defence comprises the Air-Raid Precautions Acts 1939 and 1946 and the Civil Defence Act 2012. The current suite of legislation dating back to the 1940s does not adequately reflect the current role of Civil Defence and, conseq…

I welcome the opportunity to examine the treatment of historical nursing home charges and disability allowance payments. I might focus on the nursing home charges first. As I understand it, this issue originally arose out of the Health Act 1970, which granted people with a medical card free access to inpatient services. This was later determined to include long-stay nursing home care. However, in 1976, the then health boards withdrew medical cards for those in long-term care. This resulted in those patients and the…

The Taoiseach will be aware the programme for Government commits to dealing with asylum applications as quickly as possible to ensure people seeking international protection here do not have to endure long delays to have their cases assessed or determined. Given the significant increase in applications over the past 12 months, it is clear the Immigration Service Delivery, the International Protection Office and the International Protection Appeals Tribunal, IPAT, will need extra resources. For example, I understand…

That is Deputy Ó Cathasaigh.

I welcome the opportunity to examine the Bill. The Minister will be aware that I raised this issue on several occasions in the past year. I welcome the introduction of the Bill, which has long been sought by gardaí and their representative associations. The Bill provides for the use of body-worn cameras by gardaí and the expanded use of ANPR technology. It also contains provisions relating to CCTV footage and the recording of phone calls. It is essential that good oversight of data protection be initiated from the …

I thank the Deputy for that. Before we go to the Minister of State, I welcome the boys and girls from the primary school in the Gallery this morning. They are all very welcome to the House. There were a number of chuckles during the Deputy's contribution so I think there is agreement up there in the Gallery. I call the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan.