I share the concerns that have been raised, which were not addressed in the Minister of State's response. The identified concerns include the impact on the ability of citizens to exercise their GDPR rights, that a redefinition of personal data may narrow GDPR protections, a risk to enforceability of rights, expanded derogations and reduced obligations, and the weakening of safeguards on sensitive data, including AI. Similarly, in regard to the EU AI Act, there are concerns regarding delayed or diluted high-risk AI …

This move cannot be stripped away from the wider context around AI and the conversations happening internationally about how the European Union is a difficult place to do business, how America needs to be the home of it and where Britain stands post Brexit. The real risk is that protections are hollowed out because Elon Musk and the huge tech companies will have their way. They have very willing allies in the White House. That is something against which we must caution. As a measure of the Government's assessment o…

In the programme for Government there is a commitment to increase the number of special schools and special classes across the State to ensure children can go to school in their local communities. At this point in time, hundreds of children across the State are not being considered for a special class or special school place, despite the fact that they have all of the paperwork in order, because they missed the 1 October deadline for the National Council for Special Education, NCSE. I am dealing with three principa…

I stand in firm opposition to this destructive legislation. It is the most profound change to the regulation of the private rental sector in a decade and will have a severe impact on renters across the State. At a time when families are already crushed by a cost-of-living crisis, this Bill is not a reset; it is a surrender. The rent-hike Bill of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael will allow vulture funds and big landlords to hike up the rents of 60,000 people every year. It surrenders their security to the profit motives of…

I do not mind.

What assessment has taken place of the potential impact of the Mercosur trade deal on the Irish beef industry? What measures will he will take to mitigate this?

The impact is tens of millions of euros and a very significant question mark over food safety, standards, quality and the environmental impact. “Non-negotiable” is an easy thing to say but we know in practical terms, whether in food safety or technology, that there are many examples and huge potential for this to be the thin end of the wedge. That is the reality of this. It is a concern, and all we have to do is look at the Irish Farmers’ Journal to see this. All of the incentives are there, of course. Regarding th…

The twin-track approach the Government took in relation to Mercosur was that it was for it and against it at the same time. If we look at the Government’s actions and efforts to oppose it, they fell far short of what was required, and they certainly were not successful in delivering what Irish farmers needed. We look at how Government MEPs voted on the referral to the European Court of Justice. They literally did both things, yes and no, and spoke with both sides of their mouths. There are real concerns as to the p…

Yesterday the Minister for Education and Youth listed 105 priority new school building and extension projects to proceed to tender and construction in 2026 and 2027 as part of the national development plan, NDP. While that is welcome for those communities, there were no objective criteria set out and no explanation as to why particular projects were selected for prioritisation over others. There was very significant geographic variation and some projects that were at a more advanced stage of planning were not liste…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion. I thank the Social Democrats for bringing it forward. People with disabilities are disproportionately at risk of poverty and social exclusion. Households that include people with disabilities require between 41% and 93% extra disposable income to achieve the same standard of living as households with no disabled members. A budget that leaves them significantly - by €1,400 - worse off than the previous year undermines Ireland's obligations under the UN Convention on …

The Government's plans are an admission of a profound failure on the part of successive Governments that consistently failed to co-ordinate and deliver. In County Meath, the Government's legacy is one of broken promises. We have unaffordable housing without adequate water and wastewater infrastructure in Dunboyne, Duleek, Kells and elsewhere. Communities in Ashbourne, Ratoath, Kells and elsewhere are without working public transport. We have a county waiting decades for Navan rail and families priced off an electri…

Affordability is the single biggest housing issue in County Meath. So many people who are working are above the social housing threshold but they cannot get a mortgage. The numbers the Minister talks about are nowhere near enough. In addition, they are not affordable. I can give the example of Foxwood Park in Kells that is about to come on stream. I am sure they are fine houses and the people who get them will be absolutely delighted to have them but they are far too expensive. They are not affordable. They are adv…

Could I specifically raise the issue this time round in relation to the design of the scheme? The question specifically relates to the redemption and realisation of the council equity. I do not think people are aware of the fact that there is a premium on the council equity. If it is 10% on a house costing €405,000 today, the percentage relates to the current market value. If I am in that property for 30 years and I am looking to draw down on the council equity, if the property is worth €450,000 or €500,000, I am r…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important Bill, notwithstanding the well-made points that have been raised regarding its miscellaneous nature and the number and range of proposals and measures therein. The Bill presents itself as progress but on the most contentious issue before us, the use of counselling notes in sexual violence trials, it represents a profound failure of ambition and a direct rejection of the calls of victims, survivors and experts. For years survivors and their advocates have campaign…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the River Boyne Task Force Bill. I thank Deputy Nash and the Labour Party for bringing it forward. I am sorry I did not speak after Deputy Nash, because I was enthusiastic at that stage. I am now coming after the Minister of State and he has put us on a downer.

It is an important piece of legislation and it deals with one of our greatest national and natural resources, the River Boyne. It relates to the Save the Boyne campaign and the effort to reject the proposal from Dawn Meats to emit waste into the Boyne. That campaign was successful and I was happy, along with Sinn Féin colleagues, to support that effort and to play our part. However, the real credit, as anyone who was a part of it will know, goes to the activists and volunteers in the community, in the Save the Boyn…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion and thank the Labour Party for bringing it forward. The people in County Meath are in a daily battle for reliable transport. Our infrastructure is failing to keep pace with our growing population, leaving commuters stranded and communities isolated. Motorists are crucified with increasing costs of petrol and diesel and toll charge increases. The infrastructure deficits are comprehensive and critical. Since 1994, we have had a long promised yet undelivered Navan rail…

I welcome the opportunity to speak today. Priority or urgent areas of focus for me include the need for new water mains in Dunboyne and Duleek but with the limited time available to me, I will restrict my comments to the urgent need for investment in surface water and wastewater infrastructure in Kells, County Meath. These issues are long identified but the responsible authorities from top to bottom and bottom to top have failed to address them. As confirmed to my council colleague, Councillor Michael Gallagher, at…

I thank the Minister of State for that response. I was prompted to submit this question, in the first instance, by the Swimming Pool Gap Analysis Report, which the Minister of State will be familiar with, published in December and commissioned by Swim Ireland and, second, as a parent trying to access swimming lessons for my kids. I recognise the picture on the front of this report. It is of Kells Swimming Club, which is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary this year. I went to school about 20 yards away from it and…

I mentioned my experience as a child going to school in Kells. We had pretty unique access to Kells Swimming Pool, which is a public swimming pool. There are a number of important findings in the report. I am glad the Department commissioned it. I hope it pays attention to those findings and acts on them. The important piece is access. I talk about Kells, and we think of areas in Leinster, Connacht and south Munster where it is very stark. The issue with hotel pools is they mask a greater problem. I talked about my…