I reiterate the point on the level of examination at pre-legislative scrutiny stage from across the political spectrum. There is a willingness and eagerness to get this work done. On this point, will there be 2030 targets? A significant point made by the committee was that it would not just be a matter of 2050 targets. Were the proposals on the Climate Change Advisory Council taken on board? Do the recommendations in respect of which the Minister is agreeable include that the Climate Change Advisory Council would b…

I ask the Minister if EirGrid has recently sought additional funding for grid investment; if so, the new and existing projects this will fund; the way in which he plans to deliver this crucial grid investment while also working with local communities; his views on delays to key grid improvements; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

It is acknowledged there needs to be significant investment in electricity and energy infrastructure. I want to raise the issue of data centres and the impact they will have on the grid. In addition, I want to raise the issue of our continued dependence on fossil fuels and the expectation that has been reported in the media by a number of commentators that we will be dependent on fossil fuels for far longer than the Minister intends or is providing for, and that we are facing a cliff edge in about 2026 and are not …

The question then arises of the Minister's and the Government's confidence that we are not walking ourselves onto a cliff edge in 2026 in terms of the increasing demands on the network, the shift away from fossil fuels and how to square the two. What is the Minister's expectation of demand into the future for fossil fuel for energy and electricity production in the State? Does he believe it will extend far beyond 2026 and to what extent will that be? What percentage of our energy might we still be expecting to deli…

I again raise the issue of the North-South interconnector. I want to know whether the Minister has spoken to An Taoiseach about the significant concerns of local representatives in regard to the project and what his plans are to address those concerns. Fianna Fáil was the party that tabled a motion on this issue to the Dáil. Its representatives at local and national level say they want a review. Have they made that request to the Minister and will he support them in it?

A judicial review is to take place in the North in the time ahead regarding the decision taken by the Minister, Ms Mallon, on her own, as is the nature of the executive in the North. Will the Minister insist that no works will progress on the interconnector project in the South until such time as the judicial review has taken place in the North? To prevent throwing good money after bad on this project in terms of design and the procurement of pylons and infrastructure, will the Minister insist that this does not ha…

In my priority question earlier, I raised the issue of EirGrid's ambition. In his response, the Minister referenced the public consultation. The truth is that what is happening in this area is a perfect example of how not to do planning. At a meeting of the climate committee yesterday, where we discussed ambition in terms of transport, one of the contributors raised a point around the planning process and the concept of procedural justice. The communities in counties Meath, Cavan, Monaghan, Tyrone and Armagh feel t…

What are the Minister's plans for all persons in Ireland to have access to high-speed broadband when commercial operators are reluctant or refuse outright to extend existing lines, even by a few metres, to other homes and businesses in need of it? Will he make a statement on the matter? I am referring to the gap areas.

The Minister touched on the issue. Any public representative can give an example. Stamullen, a growing urban centre, became very built up over the Celtic tiger period. When we made requests repeatedly, be it to Eir or National Broadband Ireland, we encountered the scenario in which areas were incorrectly categorised, thus requiring recategorisation. Regarding other areas within the group, we were told it would take a number of years before Eir, for example, would be back with the network bringing fibre to the home.…

I want to raise an anomaly with the Tánaiste. The Government provided clarity to leaving certificate students on 17 February. Five days before that, on 12 February, the window for external applicants to apply for leaving certificate 2021 closed unbeknown to many. I have a constituent who sat the leaving certificate 2020 examinations in November and wants to repeat one subject in leaving certificate 2021, but has missed the window. Every other year, there is a late application opportunity but it does not seem to exi…

I raise the issue of private school bus transport. Schools will be back, to some degree, on Monday and we also expect private school bus transport to return. I refer to non-Bus Éireann transport. These providers will fall very far short of the break-even point. Those working in some similar services are allowed to stay on the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP. I ask that the Minister consider allowing private school bus operators to stay on the PUP until such time as schools are back at full capacity.

I welcome the opportunity to speak about this Bill on Committee Stage. I support several of the amendments. Amendment No. 31 is in my name and that of Deputy Cullinane. I will echo several comments made thus far regarding the analysis that the Government's approach to this issue not being a serious one. It strikes me that the evidence shows that this Government dragged along in this regard. It has not just been this Government but the previous one as well. I remember discussing with the then Minister, Shane Ross, t…

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this Bill. To begin, I must ask why the Minister for Transport is not here taking this Bill through the House. Where is the Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, today? He should be anchoring this Bill but he is missing in action. I mean no disrespect to the Minister or the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, but their responsibility and focus should be entirely on the health system and the critical vaccination roll-out. It is wholly inappropriate that the…

Taxi drivers received an extension to the ten-year age limit rule last year in light of the pandemic and its continuing impact on the industry. The extension was necessary and welcome. Taxi drivers understood the measure was being further extended to the end of 2021 but it now appears that, instead of being extended further, the measure was replicated. In effect, they could benefit from a one-year extension and then that was it. The implication is twofold. Drivers who have made little or no money in the past 12 mon…

I raise the impact the pandemic has had on those working in the aviation and travel sectors across Ireland. Covid-19 and its necessary restrictions have had a devastating impact on the sector. Protecting public health is the number one priority but we must also think of the essential role of aviation and travel. It employs 140,000 directly and indirectly and is vital to our island's connectivity and to our society and economy. Without putting too fine a point on it, workers in the sector have no faith in a Green Pa…

I raise the issue of the decision to tax the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, in 2021 and its impact, particularly on low-income families. My office, as I am sure is the case in the offices of Members around the country, has been contacted by people who are fearful of the impact this will have on their day-to-day living costs, particularly when one considers utility bills and cost of living expenses. Will the decision be reviewed? There is another element to this that affects people who have already been asked t…

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate. We have been advised that the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications has stated that a permit application from an operator may follow shortly after the commencement of this section of the 1995 Act, which relates to the decommissioning of offshore oil and gas installations. I would like more information on that and the potential impact it may have on our marine environment. Will we have an opportunity to consider and debate this issue or will…

I will focus my comments and questions on international travel and the aviation sector and colleagues will pick up on other issues. The British Government's announcement on the introduction of mandatory hotel quarantine from Monday next completely exposed the Irish Government's excuses and delays in this area. Mandatory hotel quarantine can be done and there is no reason it should not be done here for all non-essential arrivals. The advice from the Chief Medical Officer, CMO, and National Public Health Emergency Te…

I appreciate that the numbers are down significantly but the risk is not a relative one. It is not a year-on-year comparison. The risk is a real one, given the numbers coming through. If we do not have an adequate system of checks and controls, it will not matter how few are travelling here. All that matters is how many come to Ireland with Covid, particularly its variants. I wish to raise the related issue of the aviation and travel sectors and the supports for same, given the public health measures' significant i…

Stepping Stones School is a special school for children with autism and complex needs in Kilcloon, County Meath. Its five classrooms are less than half the size of standard primary school classrooms and are housed in dilapidated, pre-fabricated buildings. Walls are paper-thin, to the extent that they cannot support wall-mounted hand sanitiser. The floors have rotted, been replaced and are rotting again. Technical assessments on the need for a new school building were eventually conducted by the Department, but noth…