Some 250 people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire. As of 11 November, there have been 282 breaches of the ceasefire. That is some ceasefire. That equates to about 10% of the number of people killed in the entire Irish War of Independence. The number of people being killed in Gaza every day is still enormous. There has been a lot of discussion about this ceasefire, this deal and so on. I certainly welcome any progress towards peace. I welcome the fact that progress is being made in that direction. I welco…

I want to take the opportunity to condemn the Russian attack on Ukraine last night. The latest reports are that at least 20 people have been killed, including two children, in a Russian drone and missile attack on the western city of Ternopil that hit two blocks of flats. Another 66 people were injured, 16 of them were children, in one of the deadliest Russian attacks on western Ukraine since the full-scale war began in February 2022. Yesterday evening we had statements on Ukraine, in which I had the opportunity to…

Some other Deputies and I referred to the situation in Sudan. While the EU is not a party to that conflict, there are concerns regarding a significant flow of weapons from the United Arab Emirates to Sudan. It has denied that but there are credible reports that suggest this. Some of the commentary in recent days indicates there may be a change in the United Arab Emirates’ position, at least outwardly. Was this discussed, and does the Irish Government have concerns regarding the connections between the UAE and the R…

I welcome all that but the point still remains that Ireland and the EU have no direct influence over the RSF. The United Arab Emirates does. Has Ireland raised directly, or at EU level, the need for the UAE Government to reduce its impact on the area? Who have we influenced in this conflict? It is not the RSF. We have limited influence on the Sudanese Government. Are we raising this directly, either through the EU or independently, with the Emirati Government?

Referencing briefly my first question, we have gone past the time for speaking generally. We need to be more direct. My next question is separate and relates to the area of overseas development. Obviously, a significant crisis is being caused by the huge cut in USAID. Whether anyone can fill the gap is a question. One of the proposals being explored by development organisations is the issue of debt held by Third World countries. I am curious as to whether this is being discussed at an EU level. I know the Minister …

That is not disputed.

That is not new.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle. Geall le ceithre bliana ó shin, rinne Vladimir Putin agus an Rúis ionsaí uafásach ar an Úcráin, agus is é "uafásach" an focal ceart agus cuí le n-úsáid. Ina dhiaidh sin, lean an choimhlint agus cogadh is mó san Eoraip le 80 bliain anuas, agus go leor teifigh ag teacht as sin. Deirim arís gur ionsaí ar chearta agus ar saoirse muintir na hÚcráine, agus ar chearta na hÚcráine mar stát agus mar náisiúin, a bhí anseo. Léiriú ab ea é ar an tuairim atá ag Rialtas na Rúise gu…

We have had a fair bit of airtime and a fair bit of discussion in this place in relation to the Government's plans to scrap the triple lock, and they are to end the triple lock, not to amend or adjust it. I recall that in the committee we were told there was a great rush to try to move along with pre-legislative scrutiny in order to ensure that legislation would be ready. That was far from ideal; however, we on the committee did our best. We are still none the wiser as to what legislation has come out the other end…

This is an issue that has seen a fair bit of discussion recently. In the context of a presidential election and a presidential candidate, or our President, it is not an area in which they have executive power, but the nature of all presidential elections is that there is discussion about Ireland's place in the world, how we see ourselves and how we can best exercise influence internationally. The candidate who, in my view, articulated very clearly a vision for an Ireland that holds its own course and that is neutra…

Opposition to this might have been up or might have been down, but if you lose a game 5-2 it is not last goal wins. At the end of the day, the bigger number is the bigger number.

The Tánaiste has made a couple of points. He is right: we cannot say the presidential election is the final word on this.

However, only one political party - it was not his party - came to the last general election with anything even resembling a manifesto commitment that gave it any kind of mandate. Deputy Murphy is right when he suggests there is a better way of defining public opinion. If the Government is willing - we are certainly willing - to put this to the people and have a clear question asked of them in order to get a clear answer in relation to this, I am quite confident as to what the outcome will be. The presidential elec…

The context is the commitments in past referendums.

No, to the triple lock.

The Tánaiste's previous answer tailors well enough with this question. One of the key priorities in how we tailor investment in our Defence Forces is our naval capacity and our understanding of what is in Irish waters. That is probably the number one issue of concern for us and for our neighbours. The most important piece of infrastructure is ensuring that we have that full radar picture, which is something we have been missing for a very long time. Can we get an update for the rollout of that and a timeline for co…

The primary radar system and the full radar picture is one of the cornerstones of the transformation of the Defence Forces and it is crucial we get it right, not least because it will cost a substantial sum of money. Can the Tánaiste give us a sense of what kind of sums we are talking about because it is important we apply lessons learned from other public contracts to this project? There was a discussion yesterday on the relationship between Britain and Ireland. There was a discussion about security. One of the po…

The cost is a consideration. It is vitally important that value for money is achieved but also that it is of the highest standard and it is secure. We talked about whether the naval and the aircraft capacity existed. There is also the issue of personnel. Will there be a requirement for additional specialist personnel in order to operate this? The Minister talked about it being rolled out in parts. Can he give us a sense of the sequence of those? What are the most advanced parts or the earliest parts of that to be d…

We have had discussions regarding a number of these issues. We have talked about the triple lock and that relates to the deployment of our troops abroad. A lot has been said about the world that is changing. It is my view that the Defence Forces were allowed to go significantly backwards by successive governments. That is true in terms of equipment but it is also most true in terms of personnel. We are well below establishment. It is not acceptable and it needs to be addressed quite urgently.

I welcome an increase in Defence Force numbers, given that this has been a matter of discussion in these Houses for a number of years in terms of the recruitment and retention crisis. The advance we are talking about is quite modest given the context. We are far from the commission on the future of the Defence Forces. We are below establishment and the minimum acceptable level of personnel. I want to focus on officers. Governance in the Defence Forces is a key factor when it comes to national security. There are 33…