I thank the Deputy. We have reached Question No. 42, given there have been so many others missing right the way through.

As regards modern methods of construction, MMC, I brought a cost-of-construction report to Cabinet a few weeks ago and published it. It is a comparative between costs in Ireland, those in five other EU countries and those in Britain. The report highlights the practice as well. We are looking at the MMC piece. I have a further report to bring to Cabinet. This year and next, 1,500 social homes will be delivered solely through MMC. That includes all steps from design right through to off-site construction. We have ide…

Gabhaim buíochas leis na Seanadóirí as a gcuid leasuithe. I thank the Senators for their amendments. I again thank Senator Malcolm Byrne and the other sponsors of the Bill for progressing it. I will address some of the remarks made. I want to focus my remarks directly on amendments Nos. 1 and 11 but, following on from what Senator Boyhan mentioned, it is worth reflecting on the issues the Bill attempts to address. Senators will be aware that the Government did not oppose the Bill when it was discussed on Second Sta…

I will come back in.

We take this legislation and the amendments very seriously. I served in the Seanad for five years and have great regard for it. I campaigned for its retention. Thankfully, it was retained. I believe in a bicameral system. The Seanad does important work. All Senators, be they from the university panels, elected from the other panels through local government or nominees of the Taoiseach, are Members of an important Chamber that I fully respect. I will get to the point on the register of electors in a moment. I reiter…

The Senator can raise that directly with Senator Byrne. It is a fair point.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir. As she outlined, amendment No. 3 proposes to amend the definition of “University Constituency” in section 1. The current definition is "University Constituency" and the "Universities Constituencies" means all graduates of universities in the State, and of institutions of Higher Education in the State, as determined by the Minister". I will deal with that in a moment. The amendment proposes to replace the phrase "as determined by the Minister" with "as provided for by law". Amendm…

They probably will not, particularly as it is a broader view on it.

I thank the Senator. I will go through them briefly. The Bill is useful, as I have mentioned. What I am about to say is not a criticism of the Bill itself, but it will show the types of things we need to address. There appears to be no clear definition in the Bill of what is meant by "institutions of Higher Education in the State", which is the term used in Article 18.4.2° of the Constitution. That would need to be defined. I acknowledge Amendment No. 4 attempts to address this and will be a useful starting point f…

There were electronic ballots in Fingal once.

I was.

We will make inquiries in that regard and revert to the Deputy.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an cheist thábhachtach seo. The Deputy is correct. I met with the interim chairperson of the board, Oonagh Buckley, on a number of occasions. The board now has 15 board members whereas it was as low as five last year and we had to stabilise it as it was in a difficult position. We brought forward the large-scale residential developments Act and there is now no backlog in that space and there are statutory timeframes. I have asked the board to work through the backlog. There are p…

I move: THAT provision be made in the Act giving effect to this Resolution for the charging of, in accordance with fees prescribed under section 150 of the Act, fees to accompany an application, under section 150 of the Act, for a licence in respect of the licensable activity specified in the application.

Thirty thousand houses last year.

Táim buíoch as an cheist thábhachtach faoi mhorgáistí. I assure the Deputy that no one has their head in the sand. No one will be left alone, as the Government has proved during the cost-of-living crisis with the additional measures we have brought forward for families and individuals across the country. The average interest rate on new mortgages in April, prior to today's expected increase in ECB rates, was 3.6%. Mortgage rates in Ireland are the fifth lowest among the 20 countries that use the euro. Roughly 90% o…

Unquestionably, there are people badly affected by the interest rate increases we have seen in recent months. I remind the Deputy that when Sinn Féin brought forward its alternative budget, it made no mention of mortgage interest relief whatsoever. What does that show about Sinn Féin's foresight or planning with regard to the economy? Every week, the Deputy comes in with further asks for additional spends, additional taxes and additional reliefs. That is not the way any responsible Government would manage an econom…

-----and appropriately so, as we did in the most recent budget in the context of the cost-of-living crisis. Let us remember the Sinn Féin proposed energy price caps that would have spiralled out of control. We targeted the supports for people and families. We targeted additional social protection payments for our elderly and those with disabilities. He knows what we did.

What he did every week was come in with the last thing he heard outside the door and asked for it here in the Chamber.

I thank Deputy Cairns for raising this important issue. I believe, as does the Government, that the proposed regulation to which she refers provides an opportunity for transformative change with regard to achieving nature restoration in Ireland and in the EU as a whole. That is absolutely to be welcomed. She made reference to yesterday's EPA report and the challenges we face when it comes to water quality in watercourses across the country. Healthy ecosystems provide food and food security, clean water, carbon sink…