Everyone was let down at the weekend and we all accept the responsibility for that, myself included, but-----

We meet on a daily basis about what is happening in the airport on a given day and the resource situation. This morning, there were 13 lanes open in terminal 1 and ten lanes open in terminal 2. In regard to the times, while not in the ordinary manner of the way an airport works, were nothing like the scenes that had been seen previously. We need to check on a daily basis to make sure that the public is not inconvenienced. That is the first and most important thing we discuss every day. It has been primarily about h…

The point about security is well-made and publicly acknowledged. It shows that the training, getting the right people and the skilled nature of this work are very real. One frustration in recent weeks has been from people who have gone through the training process but did not eventually get the job. When we were short and every number mattered, people wondered if we could just turn a blind eye, but we cannot do that with security. It is a highly-skilled, demanding and testing job. It is not just about the scanning …

No. That is why we cannot just turn around in an instant and say we will let everyone in. That does not work in aviation. Aviation is based on the most secure systems, with nothing being left to chance and with the highest protection levels. That is one reason it has been difficult for the airport to get the numbers in in the timelines we need it to.

The Deputy is right that there has been a long tradition in this country, because we are a small island nation, that we look out. Looking out on the world, why not look all the way, like Shackleton and others who engaged in that exploration and period of discovery and caught people's imagination? Today, the Antarctic is the subject of razor focus again because it is one location where the future of humanity on this planet will be decided. If the Antarctic ice sheets disappeared, the level of flooding would be beyon…

I met one of Shackleton's relatives recently. She is an organic farmer who is doing advanced, interesting science, research and farming, using new, innovative techniques to reduce emissions and create high quality food. That spirit and capability lives on in this country. We need the Department of Foreign Affairs to work with the other Departments, which it has committed to, to untangle a short treaty which requires complex legislative changes. The Taoiseach has been in communication with the Minister for Foreign A…

I agree with the Deputy. I was going to bring it up when I was answering Deputies Doherty and Catherine Murphy earlier but I did not have time. Out of what has happened in Dublin Airport in the past few weeks and last Sunday in particular, we looked to see if we could bring people up from Shannon Airport to help in the immediate crisis but that was not possible. We need to look the other way to see if we could bring people down. I do not disagree with the Deputy. We have an imbalanced country. It is not just that a…

Dublin will still grow but the others need to grow faster. That is what the national planning framework says. It is not that it is going to do down Dublin. If everything is in Dublin, that is not good for Dublin because we will not be able to cope. It is in Dublin's interests that Limerick thrives. Shannon is very much connected to Limerick and has to be seen as part of the Limerick metropolitan area. The centre of Limerick, particularly, has to thrive. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked earlier about what we talk about…

No, I cannot reply in Italian. It is a real issue. It is not good for Dublin or for anyone. What is happening has to stop. We have to find less expensive ways. It is not an easy challenge but the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, will work on it. The Tánaiste and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment also have a role. Tourism is one of the most important industries in the country. It brings some €6 billion into the country every year. It is not as much as we spend abroad, mind you, but it is still an …

Every Deputy in this House has an interest in this subject and every party has a commitment to do what it can for young people with autism or on the spectrum. As recently as Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Simon Harris, introduced significant new legislative measures regarding autistic people in universities. I have to be careful because I have a special interest. I had a son in a special educational needs centre school. It was brill…

It is still not enough, particularly in education centres. From personal experience, I believe the connection between the health and education systems is poor in this area.

I believe they are. We do not have a choice. The EPA report referred to European measures. These differ slightly from those in our climate action plan, which is our national plan, but they are analogous. Particularly with the increased ambition in Europe, and because of REPowerEU and the Fit for 55 legislation, there is not much of a difference now. If we do not do this, we will face fines, miss out on the new economies that are developing and face reputational damage. Also, there will be a missed opportunity. The …

I absolutely agree. I lauded some aspects of the system earlier but there is an issue, as I had started to say, particularly regarding the connection between the health and education systems. The special educational needs organisers and National Council for Special Education have a particular role in this regard. The Deputy is right that the role of the special educational needs organiser is critical. I did not realise there is none in Offaly, as she stated.

Or Portlaoise. I will contact the relevant Minister to see if something can be done about that.

As it happens, that is true. I took the train to Cloughjordan on Saturday and I wanted to come back on Sunday and-----

Yes. I had to get a bus to Roscrea and then switch to a minibus for the final leg. It was a lovely trip and great people but we had to take buses because the line was being upgraded. We have just spent €6 million on upgrading the track, which is the first thing we need to do to be able to get the speeds up. The reason the speeds were low was the track quality, so we put the money into the track. We were talking about better balanced regional development and I made the point about Limerick needing to thrive. Limeric…

Adare, for sure.

I will have to come back to the Deputy directly as I do not have a date. I do not believe the ESB is short of ambition. Its recent new strategic plan includes real ambition in terms of the roll-out of charging points for electric vehicles and, actually, it was one of the first companies to have a national network, so we were ahead of the game on that. This is recognised, and it was commissioned by the London Transport Authority to roll out its network. I do not believe the ESB is lacking but it is important it gets…

Absolutely. There is no intention of discriminating between commercial bus operators and public bus operators on either the 20% or the 50% discount that we have introduced. There were real technical difficulties on the 20% cut in particular, given we do not regulate fares and we do not monitor cash or other systems. On the youth travel card and the 50% reduction, because of that working group we are on the path to apply it across all bus operators, including commercial operators. While I do not have a specific time…

Those reviews are an ordinary statutory process. For example, we have just come through a review in Dublin. Those strategies tend to be reviewed every four years. That is a normal occurrence and it does not put on hold any existing plans within existing strategy. It is a normal process of assessing the latest information, including the census and other data material. I was in Galway recently to meet the local county council and city council. There is a recognition that of all our five cities, Galway is the one with…