The difficulty is that the task force has now been usurped by the Department of communications in terms of its own digital strategy, which is based on EU targets. These EU targets are based on continental Europe, where population densities are very different from what they are here. As the Minister knows, the telecoms operators have proposed a unified mobile phone network in the non-commercial rural parts of the country to provide universal coverage throughout the country. This is not being progressed. Furthermore,…

Things will get worse rather than better because we will see the 3G network being switched off. It is the one on which many people in rural Ireland rely. Our emergency services rely on an outdated Tetra system that must be mothballed anyway. The difficulty is that we cannot rely on the Department of communications. We must remember this is the Department with the Minister, Deputy Ryan, in charge of it but the same Department and ComReg are not prepared to ensure we have decent mobile phone coverage on our rail netw…

I thank the Minister.

I warmly congratulate the Minister of State on his appointment as the deputy leader of the Fianna Fáil Party. I wish him the best of good luck in that new role. Since the start of the year, I have regularly asked the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister for Health and the HSE about the future location of the genomics laboratory currently based at Crumlin hospital. This question arises due to the planned relocation of the children’s hospital in Crumlin to the new national children’s hospital site, bizarrely, withou…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. The difficulty is that it is abundantly clear that genetic and genomic services are a low priority for the HSE when no laboratory capacity was provided for in the new children's hospital. We even have the redevelopment of the Crumlin hospital site as an elective hospital without anybody pointing out that this laboratory service would be forced to close to facilitate this new development. This is just not good enough. However, it now provides TDs and the Government wit…

The aim of the migration pact is to create a fair and efficient asylum system, ensuring that EU member states share responsibility equitably, while also streamlining the asylum process. This is a commendable goal. What is imperative in this debate is that we have an accurate handle on the scale of migration. As of 1 January 2022, there were 23.8 million non-EU citizens residing within the European Union. This represents 5.3% of the population, with three quarters of them living in Germany, France, Spain and Italy. …

As the Ceann Comhairle knows, at last week's Business Committee meeting, I forcefully put across my opposition to the imposition of a guillotine this week. I made the point that every Member who wishes to speak on the migration pact should be, and must be, facilitated to do that. I have been in contact with the Taoiseach's office and that of the Chief Whip. I know additional time is being provided and that is welcome. If that happens, I will not oppose the moving of the debate today.

In Ireland cancer remains one of the leading causes of death. Timely access to new and effective treatments is crucial for improving the survival rates and the quality of life for patients. However, delay in accessing these treatments has become a significant issue, adversely impacting patients' health and survival rates. Currently the approval process for cancer drugs in Ireland involves prolonged assessments by bodies such as the Health Products Regulatory Authority and the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics. …

Patients with rare diseases face even greater challenges in accessing new treatments or orphan drugs, as they are often called. On average, they wait nearly 26 months. This delay is especially tragic, as approximately 30% of children with a rare disease will pass away before their fifth birthday. The impact of these delays on patients with rare diseases is profound. How can we defend a situation where these children may wait up to half of their short lives to access Irish-manufactured medications that could prolong…

On behalf of the Regional Group, I want to be associated with the best wishes for Deputy Whitmore. We hope to see her back in the House soon. I also thank Martin Murray for his 22 years of service in the House. Many Members may not realise the reason his boxing skills were headhunted in the House was because, in a previous Dáil, we had a colleague, former Deputy Joe Higgins, who handcuffed himself to one of the seats. That is why we needed Martin's particular skills and I wish him well in his retirement. Children's…

I move: That Dáil Éireann: recognises that: — the Nature Restoration Law aims to halt the decline of nature, work towards restoring habitats across the European Union (EU), whilst also targeting habitats that contribute most to the capture and storage of carbon; — the Nature Restoration Law will target 20 per cent of each EU Member States land area and, as Ireland comprises of 6.9 million hectares of land, the Nature Restoration Law will potentially be applied to 1.38 million hectares; — the Nature Restoration Law …

I thank all my colleagues who contributed to this debate. I thank the Minister of State for clarifying that, regardless of whether this is adopted at EU level, we will see a compulsion with regard to nature restoration in this country. It is set out in statute now and a plan needs to be put in place. What is in that plan is critically important and this is what we are talking about here. I was disappointed to hear the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, confirm to the House that stakeholder engagement has started. …

During his recent visit to the community around Lough Funshinagh, the Tánaiste witnessed the devastating impact of rising water levels. These levels have exceeded all previous records. Without intervention, it is predicted that four homes will be lost to the floodwaters next winter. As he knows, in its most recent modelling, the Geological Survey of Ireland has confirmed this dire situation. Research published last week by World Weather Attribution indicates that increased winter rainfall driven by climate change w…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this legislation. I am glad we have in the Visitors Gallery the students from sixth class, I think, in St. Mary's National School in Knockcroghery. I was saying to their classmates from fifth class just a few minutes ago that I was coming into the House to talk about the pension contributions that will directly impact each and every one of the students here today. I know it is going to be a long time before they reach 66, but the decisions we are making in Dáil Éireann today wi…

I congratulate Deputy Ó Cathasaigh on bringing forward the Bill. I welcome the principle behind what it is the Deputy is trying to do here. I am not sure if it is the exactly correct mechanism but it is important that we here in this Parliament and globally look to the future and look at the impact of the decisions we make today not just over our term in politics but the impact it has for future generations. The single biggest criticism I have about the political system is that we work on five-year cycles. It is al…

Long Covid is the title given to a range of illnesses that have left previously healthy individuals who have not recovered from Covid infections with no quality of life. These patients once led busy professional and family lives, but they are now in some instances bedridden, unable to eat and unable to communicate. Despite the severity of their condition, many are being denied medications and treatment that, while they would not cure them, could help to manage their symptoms and improve their daily lives. While hea…

The poll results also raise another issue of concern. It indicates that those aged between 55 and 64 are twice as likely as any other age group to state they have been managing the symptoms of long Covid for more than two years. This needs to be investigated further. Despite requests for patient involvement and feedback to the existing clinics, this has not happened. The latter has resulted in clinics failing to meet the needs of those with long Covid symptoms. This is clearly reflected in the poll numbers I have p…

That is not the position with long Covid, which is more challenging for younger people.

Ireland has the highest incidence of rare disease in Europe. It is one in every 17 people, including all children with cancer. One of the critical tools in securing a diagnosis, and, as a result, a possible treatment, is genetic testing. However, when the Crumlin hospital relocates to the national children's hospital, the genetics and genomics laboratory will be left behind. We have now been told that the Crumlin hospital site will be redeveloped as an elective hospital. Where will our national genomics laboratory …

By moving this motion, we wanted to acknowledge the invaluable contribution of 500,000 carers around this country and give them some small recognition for the valuable work that they are doing by replacing the current system with a non-means-tested scheme for the carer's allowance focusing solely on care needs. Yesterday, I had a conversation with the mother of a child called Willow. Willow has a life-limiting condition and for the first two weeks after her birth, her parents were planning her funeral. However, las…