There is no provision for homeless services or emergency services.

That is it. If the Deputy wants to shout me down all morning, the best of luck to him.

Would you stop? Sinn Féin made no provision for homeless services at all in its alternative budget.

He has been behaving like this all morning.

Ag tosú le cúrsaí tithíochta, leanfar leis an infheistíocht is airde riamh in 2023 le breis agus €4.5 billiún i gcomhair tithíochta. Is í tithíocht an príomhcheist in Éirinn inniu agus tuigeann an Rialtas é sin. Ní mór dúinn feabhsú a dhéanamh ar mhaithe lenár ndaoine agus táimid in ann é sin a dhéanamh. Cinnteoidh an buiséad seo gur féidir linn leanúint ar aghaidh ag tógáil ar an dul chun cinn atá déanta cheana féin i dTithíocht do Chách. Too many of our people are struggling to buy their own home, pay the rent or…

Well said.

We did one the last time. Deputy Ó Broin did not do great.

What happened at Deputy Ó Broin's press conference and his interview with Anton Savage?

I welcome the opportunity to speak to the House today regarding An Bord Pleanála. An Bord Pleanála, as I have said publicly, stands at the apex of our planning system and plays a crucial role as the final arbiter of many planning applications. In this light, I treat and have treated any allegations of inappropriate actions or behaviours by its members with the utmost seriousness. The public must have trust in the impartiality and integrity of our planning system if it is to function effectively in facilitating the …

I do not want to interrupt the Deputy-----

I am listening to him intently. However, unfortunately, the way this debate is structured, I do not have the ability to respond to what the Deputy said. It is not a questions and answers session. I can happily, in another public forum, give him direct answers to the quite serious things he said-----

I just want the Deputy to know that I am not being funny now. It can be put on the record of the House that I cannot respond here to that.

I acknowledge the Acting Chair’s ruling. I know that we have a number of amendments to get through. It might be helpful if I address some of the questions in the context of the overall debate as we get to other amendments. First, I will speak directly to the amendment, which is the definition. The Bill states, "“defective concrete blocks” means concrete blocks that contain excessive amounts of free or unbound muscovite mica or reactive pyrite or a combination of both, or excessive amounts of such other deleterious …

Okay. I will not respond to these questions.

It might be helpful to speak on the damage threshold.

We might.

Damage threshold ensures that the worst are remediated first. It is not to keep anyone out. Genuinely. That is the way it operates. The east coast scheme has been referred to as well. It is the principle of worst first, which residents wanted and which is what I want as well. There are thousands of homes to remediate. This scheme will be in operation for a significant number of years - probably ten to 15. Other counties will come in, such as Wexford, should the submissions come in too. That is the purpose of the da…

I will not be accepting amendment No. 1.

I thank the Senator for tabling the amendment. To be very clear again, it will be based on scientific research. The relevant research was sought and is being carried out. I understand why people want that. The process will take time. If the research, which is independent of me and my Department, indicates that there is a problem, that problem will be rectified. If there is a problem with foundations, then foundations will be included. The Senator does not understand. The definition is broad enough as it stands. We …

I thank the Senators for tabling the amendment. To follow on from what Senator Blaney said, that is fundamentally the issue. There are homes that are ready now to be remediated in the coming weeks and months and many homeowners will want to move that forward. The review is really important. Senator Boyhan's amendment proposes that the Minister request the National Standards Authority of Ireland, NSAI, to ensure that the review of IS 465 is completed in time for the opening of the defective concrete block scheme as …