The school transport scheme plays a crucial role already but it has enormous potential in terms of not only reducing the impact on costs on parents and families but reducing emissions and traffic. We need to significantly upscale it. What are the Minister's plans in that regard for the next school year?

I believe that with adequate vision, we can deliver transformative change in school transport that will take a large number of cars off the road and save parents a significant amount of money. It is at this time of year that parents' attention turns to whether their children will qualify for the scheme and the attention of school communities turns to the issue of eligibility and concessionary places, which have always existed, attempts to establish new routes and so forth. I urge the Minister to ensure that the sch…

While it is somewhat later than perhaps might have been anticipated, it is good to at least have a timeline for the review. The other element is that there is scope to reduce the costs for those who are already travelling on the school transport scheme. Has the Department considered that? I urge the Minister to consider that in the context of the forthcoming budget to encourage even more people to take part in the scheme. Another element is that in large parts of the State, school transport routes are operated by p…

Not for the first time, this question has been overtaken by events. However, I will take the opportunity to ask the Minister of State another question. What is the current state of play with regard to children without places in a special class or a special school in the Dublin area and in the State generally?

The Minister of State was absolutely right in acknowledging that there was a lack of forward planning. It appears to me that we have not moved beyond that and that we are still in that situation. She is also right that most schools open classes of their own volition. It has been my experience that any school that has opened such a class has never regretted it. However, that is not the point. The point is that for those schools that refuse, we are allowing this to creep into the eleventh hour. That is the problem. T…

As the Minister of State mentioned Cork, I will take the opportunity to once again raise the issue as it relates to Ballincollig, which is not in my constituency, where there is a significant shortage of post-primary special class places. To return to the issue in Dublin, the Minister of State has identified two cohorts, namely, those who require places in a special class and those who require them in a special school. Finding solutions for those children who require places in a special school in September could be…

There is so much I could say that I am not sure where to start, but I will begin with the Government's approach to the legislation. The context here matters. The Government has indicated it will not oppose or support it. In April 2019, Sinn Féin brought forward a motion in support of a special autism committee and an autism empowerment strategy, and finally, three years later, that first meeting happened yesterday. Within that time, there were two Sinn Féin motions in March, an Independent Group motion last year an…

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

I will repeat the point made by others that it is far from ideal when such significant and complex legislation is rushed. This Bill has significant implications, the most significant of which relates to allowing EirGrid to acquire new emergency electricity generation capacity. As Deputy O’Rourke flagged, it is unfortunate that our electricity supply is under such pressure partially as a result of the enormous footprint of data centres. The Bill also increases the borrowing limit of EirGrid and Bord na Móna, a propo…

The Minister of State knows family carers have had a very difficult two or three years, but it has always been something that is challenging. It can be rewarding but it undoubtedly offers significant challenges. Millions of euro are saved by the State through the sacrifices and efforts made by the 500,000 family carers. The least they deserve is the opportunity to have some respite. That is not just about reward or recognition but sustainability. It is about their ability to continue caring for their loved ones. Un…

First, I apologise to the Minister of State for being absent for the start of the debate. I was travelling up from an event in Cork this morning but I was listening to her contribution. I am often critical, but I recognise the Minister of State is well motivated and wants to see progress on special education. I believe I appropriately commended the Minister of State at the time of the budget on the additional budget for special educational needs. That was welcome. I listened to the Minister of State's speech and th…

We are in a climate emergency. Report after report highlights the escalating reality of global warming and the need for urgent mitigations. As the EPA stated last month, it is long past the time for climate rhetoric. What we need is climate action. Unfortunately, the Government, like the previous one, is ignoring some of the small wins and the low-hanging fruit that would be a positive step in the right direction. Two weeks ago, Sinn Féin moved legislation on solar panels for schools because we were frustrated at t…

I fully support the amendment and I thank my colleagues for bringing it to the House. It is impossible to memorialise something if we do not know or agree what we are acknowledging and it is not possible to properly memorialise a site if we do not know what happened there. On Sunday, I attended a commemoration at the site of the former mother and baby home in Bessborough in Cork. It was a very moving and emotional event. It was also a very insightful event and an excellent oration was given by Professor Conor O’Mah…

On a point of clarification, I did not necessarily say excavation for all cases, rather investigation. I emphasised it just for clarification.

I am not trying to be disorderly.

Ba mhaith liom fáilte a chur roimh an píosa reachtaíochta seo. Tá roinnt gnéithe de go mbeimid ag iarraidh a leasú, go háirithe go mbeadh gá go mbeadh an garda sa chúirt ag grád an tsáirsint nó níos sinsearaí ná sin. Ach tá sé luachmhar mar phíosa reachtaíochta. It is important legislation. It is logical. It is unfortunate that we have ended up in this situation as it has tied up gardaí who might otherwise be out on the beat. The Garda court presenter is a well-established position. Typically it is the local sergea…

I move That Dáil Éireann: notes that: — a child's right to education is enshrined in the Constitution and, under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, must be accessible on an equal basis with others in the community in which they live; and — the Government has made a commitment in its Programme for Government: Our Shared Future to ensure that each child with a special educational need has an appropriate school place, in line with their Constitutional right; further notes that: —…

Gabhaim buíochas le gach Teachta a labhair air seo. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire agus an Aire Stáit as fanacht leis an díospóireacht iomlán. Táim buíoch díobh as an méid sin ar a laghad agus táim buíoch de gach Teachta a thacaigh leis an rún. Ní ghlacaim leis an rún malartach atá ag an Roinn. Ní thugann sé aon earraí ná aon rud nua dúinn. Ní thugann sé aon ghríosú dúinn ná aon mholadh a gcuirfidh réiteach ar an bhfadhb phráinneach atá againn. Ní fheicim aon phráinn ó dhearcadh, ó mholtaí ná ó óráidí atá ag an Aire…

The Minister and I have spoken before about the enormous potential of Cork Harbour not only in employment terms but also in respect of the significant reduction in emissions because the offshore wind proposals in the long term can power homes for hundreds of thousands of people. In the first instance, there are issues to ensure that we get the benefit of this in regard to employment because there are skills shortages. What is the Department doing in conjunction with, for example, Skillnet Ireland and the Department…