All I will say to the Minister is we are not recognising the amount of taxes that the people on these roads are paying. They are not getting value for their money.

I too am very glad to get an opportunity to speak on this very important matter. As has been pointed out to me, these medical students have gone through a five-year course and are highly trained with special skills. They are vital to the running of hospitals like University Hospital Kerry in Tralee, where I am sorry to say that many appointments have been cancelled in recent days. That is not fair on the people who need procedures. I hope that they are being carried out today. I have friends and special people who …

There is.

Kerry is out of that.

Kerry is out.

It is not on the list.

I am glad to have the opportunity to get in a few words in this timely debate. As Deputies are aware, there is a lot at stake at present in the context of the Good Friday Agreement. It is clear that the protocol and the legacy issues are all currently being discussed. All of us need to work extremely hard together and be united in ensuring that we maintain peace and protect the Good Friday Agreement. Brexit was a fierce disappointment which upset the harmony that existed between Ireland and England. Being nearest n…

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak on the Bill. I thank Sinn Féin, and Deputy Ó Broin in particular, for affording us this time to speak on housing. Certainly, housing for people who do not have homes is very important. We need to discuss all aspects of housing. I do not agree with the Bill. It is basically a Bill for Dublin rather than one for rural Ireland. Maybe it is a more dominant issue for Dublin than it is for rural Ireland. The Bill will not sort the problem we have with housing. The way to sort th…

I wish to raise the restriction by Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, which prevents many people who wish to exit onto national secondary roads from getting planning permission. This is adversely affecting applicants especially along the N72 from Rathmore to Killarney and from Killarney to Killorglin. We are talking about 22 of the 25 miles. In 2012 the Department authorised the National Roads Authority, NRA, now TII, not to grant permission to planning applicants to access the national secondary roads if the r…

I am grateful for the Tánaiste's reply. That is the point that I am trying to make. Where there is an existing exit, where it is safe and where it meets all the sight distance regulations, I am asking that we review the regulations that are in place because there is a complete blanket ban in place all the way from Rathmore, west of Killarney, around Killarney itself and from Fossa back to Killorglin. It is ridiculous that farmers' sons and daughters cannot get planning permission to build houses for themselves and …

I thank the Social Democrats and Deputy Cian O'Callaghan for allowing us these couple of minutes this morning. We are sick and tired of the Government blathering, blowing and boasting about affordable houses and Housing for All. It will build 5,500 affordable houses for Dublin and the rest of the 7,500 houses are for the remainder of the country. However, no affordable house will be built in Kerry in the next five years. People are asking me day in and day out where the affordable houses are and when they will come…

Farmers are under savage pressure with the increased costs of fertiliser, fuel and electricity. I welcome the €1,000 proposed by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine for 10 ha. While it is not an awful lot, it is a lot in a way. There are many farmers in east and south Kerry who do not cut their own fodder on their own land because the land is not suitable. We rely on people like Finbarr Marshall from Ballygarvan and Flor O'Brien from Kenmare to draw the fodder from other places like Cork. Will the Ministe…

Please do something for the farmers who cannot grow their own stuff.

I am afraid the Minister's understanding of a just transition is very different from mine and that of many other people. He kicked up a hullabaloo a number of weeks ago regarding the sale of turf. Given the small volume of turf being sold in the country, that he prioritised it in such a way hurt many people in my county, Kerry, where many people have traditionally cut turf over the years to keep themselves warm. In a way, I have to thank the Minister. Many people realise there is trouble afoot and that fuel and hea…

We welcome the Garda Síochána (Compensation) Bill, which seeks to reduce costs in the administration of Garda compensation claims by having claims assessed by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, PIAB, rather than the High Court. Under the revised scheme, an injured member of the force will make an application to the Garda Commissioner, who will then cause a report to be prepared. Where the report concludes that an applicant was injured as a result of a malicious incident, the report will be sent to PIAB. Under …

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk on this very important matter this evening. We certainly need a new maternity hospital in the city of Dublin, and for the country as well. I do not understand why the people who are objecting to this do not understand they are getting lands worth more than €50 million or €60 million, mostly free of charge or at a €10 per year for 299 years. How much is that when 299 years is several lifetimes? I cannot understand it, and especially some of the people who are against this dea…

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk on this very important matter today. It is gas to see Labour Party Members try to make amends after the harm they did when they were in government and were in power. I know better than anyone else that people's wages do not go far enough now because of the cost of everything, including the cost of travelling to work. In Kerry, people need to travel to work. There are no buses or public transport from places like Gneevgullia, Lauragh or Cahersiveen. In the hinterlands of thos…

I wish to raise with the Taoiseach a very important matter. Many elderly people are encountering severe problems in attaining home help. They are waiting for months. We cannot understand this because on the other side I know that people have qualified, are Garda vetted and are ready to go. The answer I am getting back day after day is that they do not have the staff and that they are waiting for them to be Garda vetted. There is something wrong. There needs to be an investigation into this matter because people can…

I am also glad to get the opportunity to talk about this very serious matter. It is sure we must do everything we can. It is very clear that what is going on are war crimes affecting civilians. The way they are being treated, bombarded, hurt, maimed and killed, it is clear war crimes are being committed at present. We must monitor and ensure that if it can happen, it should happen that this fella, Putin, will be prosecuted and get the proper penalty he deserves. In the past week, one of his lieutenants has suggeste…

I must declare an interest if my brother has an interest because of the fact we are brothers, even though I only have my own bit. The cost of rent is exorbitant in Kerry as well, in places like Killarney, Tralee and Dingle. It is also hard to find places to rent because there is no availability. While I, like everyone else, welcome the Ukrainian people here, we need to be inventive about where we can house them because we certainly cannot lose. There are people in Kerry who have been on the list, like youngsters I …