The parties to that correspondence are probably following our debate here. It is up to them to decide whether they make public what is private correspondence. We must be careful regarding basic fundamental rights. There are rules around freedom of information and provisions governing which information by statute can be directed to be made publicly available. Private correspondence, however, is not included in that. Should the parties concerned wish to do so, I would welcome them releasing the correspondence. It wou…

I agree with the point the Deputy is making. Our maternity system is not sufficiently midwife-led. I think it should be. That is why I want to bring back to this debate something I raised earlier concerning how we implement the national midwifery strategy. It points in the direction not of a consultant-led, active management type of system, but, as the Deputy said, to a much more patient-centred and midwife-led system. This encompasses a range of different issues, including the arrangements referred to by the Deput…

This is a real issue. I am told there has been a significant increase in demand for HRT products, which has outstripped supply, as the Deputy said. A successful awareness campaign has seen demand for some products increase 4.5 to 7.5 times compared to 2019 levels. Suppliers have confirmed they have increased the planned supply of HRT patches to Ireland this year, while continuing to work to find solutions to the immediate supply issues. This is a global issue. Unfortunately, shortages of medicines have become incre…

Regarding the specific issues, I do not have details about the specific hospital, but I will pass this information to the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. I will also pass on Deputy Tóibín’s request for reassurance regarding Navan hospital. To make a general point, though, for all the failings of our system, recent analysis - and I do not have the exact figures, statistics or research here - has shown that our life expectancy in this country has increased dramatically. Independent international assessm…

Deputy Pearse Doherty asked a similar question last week and I was able to give some of the details on the specifics of what has been happening in Killybegs. I do not have those details in front of me now. My understanding from the Minister for Foreign Affairs is that it is a port designation issue. I might ask him to comment briefly.

There is a real need across the country for increased therapy for children and young adults with special needs. It is a real shortage. The shortage is also exacerbated by the difficulty in hiring new people. My understanding is that our assessment processes are so long that many of the therapists who should be engaged in therapy provision are actually in the assessment process. We need to look at that as part of the overall approach and measures. The issue was raised, debated and discussed at a Cabinet sub-committe…

The NTA is correct in what it said at the committee yesterday. Going back to what I said earlier about visits around the country, I visited Clare County Council and Limerick County Council and was very open and public in giving the reasons I believe the strategic development of Limerick is in the centre, in the existing county and the centre of the city. There is real risk to Limerick if it spreads, alternatively, into Clare, on a roads based development model. As I said earlier on in respect of the national planni…

"Yes" is the answer. I also believe it is important for the likes of Ennis and Clare to develop, not as an adjunct sprawl out from Limerick but to see strong towns in Clare and a strong city in Limerick developing. That is why I believe the northern distributor road is not the right way to go. Public transport in Limerick is the way to go.

The Deputy raises a serious issue. The Government this week brought the Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022 to the Oireachtas environment committee on Committee Stage. That provides a lot of the answers and reassurances to the company. In the development of the likes of the deposit refund scheme, where plastic and PET bottles are not just thrown into the green bin and the average waste stream, we get a very high quality stream of PET bottles that can be used…

I will follow up in my own Department and look for the correspondence from the Port of Cork. We do not want goods shipped from Cork to Dublin. I will follow up and reply directly to the Deputy.

The Deputy is absolutely right: there is a real problem. There are two key immediate solutions that the Government has to provide. I understand the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has, with the agreement of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, committed to additional staff for An Bord Pleanála. We need planning, ecological and science-based expertise, in addition to expertise in a range of other areas. The board needs additional resources; that is absolutely clear to me. The Attorney…

I can only imagine the stress that the family is under. I will talk directly to the relevant Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Rabbitte, to ensure the specifics of the case will be looked into. With regard to every child in the country, the way the system operates and the integration of services, not just the amount of resources, often comprise a key issue. I will ask the Minister of State to look into the specifics.

It is a real challenge to meet our climate targets. One of the approaches we will take to do so will involve setting up leadership teams or acceleration task forces within key Departments, bringing together agencies, other Departments and outside experts. The first meeting of one such team, which will focus on sustainable mobility, will be tomorrow.. Critically, we will be seeking to determine what we can do in the next three years, or the remaining two years and nine or ten months of this Government's lifetime, to…

I look forward to the details on that. The Deputy is right about the first point he made in that private coach operators have a critical role in the provision of public transport. I regard them as part of the public transport system. Prior to Covid they were expanding widely across the country, and very successful new routes were being created. Covid has obviously put a real spanner in the works but a lot of the operations kept going through the Covid period and we kept supporting them to do so. The lower-fare card…

I do not know whether those numbers reflect long Covid and its impact on respiratory illness or just the ongoing reality that respiratory illness is a significant and acute health issue in our country, which in turn means we have to address the wider issue. However, I will ask the Minister for Health to try to provide an analysis as to why the queues have lengthened and whether it is possible to use the National Treatment Purchase Fund.

My understanding is that the fare increase is out for public consultation. We differ on whether there should be a further extension. We provided one throughout Covid. If we continue to increase the age of the fleet of the taxi industry, it will become an issue for customers and the quality of the industry at a certain point. It is now time to go back to the ten-year rule. The Deputy is right that we have lost about 2,000 taxi plates, the number having decreased from about 21,000 to 19,000. There is a strange mix of…

I fully realise what the views of Clare County Council are. I listened to every single councillor over two or three hours when we discussed this.

There are very different views within various chambers of commerce and business interests. A significant number of business people realise that success for towns and cities will now come from those which are going green and in a sustainable direction. We cannot ignore climate change. Ever onwards sprawl is not going to work for development. Rather than the University of Limerick crossing the Shannon and going into the eastern part of Clare, we could ask it to have a satellite operation in Ennis town and bring the u…

No.

I thank Deputy Fitzmaurice for his opening contribution. The Government is not opposing this motion because I think we need to clear the air a bit. There is a lot of confusion, fear and misinformation on this issue. I will summarise what I see as some of the key issues. This goes back to the late 1980s and early 1990s when Dublin had a particular problem with smoky coal. I think Mary Harney as Minister of State introduced regulations to restrict those smoky coals. It had a profound effect. The situation in Dublin a…