I did not mention 2026 in my remarks.

There have been considerable changes to the design and plan of the school. The Department is aware of the current condition of the buildings at Scoil Chiaráin. It is committed to progressing the major school building project and to assist the school to maintain its existing accommodation pending the delivery. As I said, the Department is currently reviewing all its building projects in light of the new, revised allocations. I will once again make the Minister aware of the Deputy's remarks.

I thank Deputy Andrews for raising this issue, which relates to the proposed Planning and Development (Street Furniture Fees) Regulations 2024. First, I must state that under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, the Minister with responsibility for planning is specifically precluded from exercising any power or control in respect of any particular planning related matter with which a planning authority or the board may be concerned. We agree with the Deputy that the hospitality and resta…

I can confirm that the power with regard to this fee falls under section 262(4) of the Act, which relates to the fees payable for street furniture, which amount to €125. I would also point out that this was done in 2021, 2022 and 2023, in non-election years. The Minister will sign the regulation at the earliest opportunity. We have just completed a range of supports for small businesses through the increased cost-of-business scheme, and in the coming days we will be able to provide figures, including for Dublin cit…

I thank the Deputy for raising the matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Justice. The Minister, Deputy McEntee, had the opportunity to attend the Prison Officers Association conference last week and spent time with the association talking about the important work prison officers do in our prisons. As the Deputy will be aware, prison environments can be very challenging but are professionally managed by the Prison Service and prison officers who work in them. Their commitment to providing all those…

The Deputy will appreciate we are in very challenging circumstances at the moment and the Irish Prison Service is doing everything it can to manage the prison population in a fair and equitable manner that continues to support the rehabilitation of those in custody. To ensure we have the capacity needed to provide that safe and secure custody, we have modernised the Mountjoy complex, constructed a new prison in Cork and provided additional prisoner accommodation in Midlands Prison. Capacity across the prison estate…

Before he goes, I thank the Chair of the joint committee, Deputy Quinlivan, the clerk, the secretariat and all the members for this comprehensive and forward-thinking report. The report set out recommendations on diverse, but connected, topics. For instance, it recommends: planning and consideration of sites for offshore renewable energy, a more integrated approach to delivering it and the research on supports needed to nurture and build this new industry for Ireland; further exploration of the opportunity for fixe…

I covered all the main issues in my opening remarks. I thank the Deputies. Deputy Boyd Barrett's remarks are probably outside the scope of the report in terms of the enterprise opportunities. MARA has been established for offshore planning and has responsibilities there. To Deputy Stanton's point on skills, that is something we are focused on. Working with the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, and the team in that Department through Skillnet, we are looking to make sure we have the necessary skills in place across many f…

Déanaim comhghairdeas le mo chomhghleacaí nua freisin. Cuirim fáilte roimhe chuig an Roinn. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an gceist agus as suim a léiriú san issue seo. We recognise the importance of businesses having due regard to issues of human rights. There is a strong expectation in Irish society that our values are reflected in the way we do business. Businesses are responding positively since Ireland launched its first national plan on business and human rights in late 2017. Ireland became the 19th sta…

I am aware of that report. We also need to acknowledge that there has been progress. We have not seen the level of progress we want. One of the benefits of the stakeholder forum is that we can engage all those parties around a table to directly reflect on that level of progress. There are many businesses that are utilising the United Nations guiding principles and OECD guidelines on responsible business conduct, particularly for multinational enterprises. There is a much greater engagement in this area. The Departm…

I have given the Deputy reasons. It is because we are engaging with stakeholders to try to get proper terms of reference that can be delivered on and measured. It is important that we have that engagement. On the specific instances the Deputy referred to, that is why it is so important that we have the Department of Foreign Affairs, which has a global outlook and reach, working with us. Through the responsible business forum, I will certainly begin to push these matters. Since 2011, we have had the CSDDD and CSRD a…

Gabhaim buíochas don Teachta as an ceist. Our Department is the national competent authority with responsibility for export controls, including controls on defence-related exports and exports of dual-use goods. Controls on the export of dual-use items are administered by my Department, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2021/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council, which set up a Union regime for the control of exports, brokering, technical assistance, transit and transfer of dual-use items. Dual-use item…

I absolutely share the Deputy's views on this space and can assure him that applications for dual-use licences in respect of exports to Israel are assessed pretty rigorously on a case-by-case basis in line with the assessment criteria I outlined. There are eight criteria, but the two specific criteria to which I referred are important in this context. We also seek real-time geopolitical observations from the Department of Foreign Affairs. It is not the Department of enterprise's view alone. We get the most up-to-da…

If there is any issue in terms of a licence not being followed through and the conditions of a licence being breached, we will bring those to the attention of the authorities within the export licensing section of the Department. If there is any question of the conditions of a licence being breached, that will be investigated.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta. The Government recognises those challenges referred to that are being faced by SMEs. That is why we have, since our inception as a government, put a range of supports in place to deal with Covid-19, supply chain disruption, rising energy costs and Brexit. The Government's White Paper on Enterprise, which we published in 2022, outlines how we will build resilience and sustainability in our economy as we engage with the two dominant trends of the 21st century - decarbonisation and te…

We see that. The Department commissioned that report so we could get a full understanding of the impact and that is why we are bringing forward a number of measures. The Ministers, Deputies Burke and Humphreys, are finalising an option paper on employer's PRSI. As I said, we are in the process of paying out €250 million of supports to the smallest of businesses. We are looking at a range of measures to reduce red tape. This will be done in the spirit of the kind of supports we have given to small business in recent…

I thank the Deputies. An enterprise hub will be launched in the coming weeks. It will be a one-stop shop so people can identify which specific support is relevant to them without having to go through a myriad of different forms. I keep coming back to this, but we have made the increased cost of business grant as easy to access as possible. I have given Deputy Moynihan the figures for Cork. In Cork county, 12,000 are eligible. In County Kildare, it is applicable to 4,980 businesses and as of now just over 1,400 have…

The Minister has asked me to thank his colleague, Deputy Troy, for the good wishes. We will bring forward further supports in addition to the €250 million. We are looking at the PRSI issue for action in the coming weeks. Other issues are budgetary matters and will be considered in the context of budget discussions. I refer to our track record as a Government and the incredible support the Deputy gave businesses during his time in this Department. That track record of direct, proactive support will continue. We will…

Gabhaim buíochas as an Grúpa Neamhsplách agus An Teachta Collins as an Bhille seo. The Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, has already highlighted some important difficulties with this Bill. While the intention behind the proposals is understood, it is important to acknowledge the policy and constitutional matters and potential regulatory impacts, including potential costs for businesses, that require detailed consideration in advance of progressing legislation in this area. It is unclear how the measures set out i…

I will try my best. There is a lot to respond to-----