I thank the Deputy. My Department has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding relating to the national road programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Acts, 1993 to 2015, and in line with the national development plan, the planning, design, improvement and upgrading of individual national roads is a matter for TII, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. TII ultimately delivers the national roads programme in l…

I happened to be in Cork at the end of last week and was on the road. The Deputy is right. It is not up to the standard for safety that we want and we have to do everything to try and improve the safety standards on the roads. The reality is we have a series of projects. I mentioned the Castlemartyr-Killeagh bypasses. The Cathaoirleach Gníomhach mentioned to me last week that there were very serious incidents at both locations in recent weeks and our thoughts go to all the families of those involved. Deputy Stanton…

I am glad to have this opportunity to respond. I will start by responding to Senator Gavan because he directly referenced our own party. He was missed during the earlier contribution of Senator Garvey, who made the point that members of our party have for decades put the rights and justice needs of the Palestinian people at the very centre of our political ambitions. I will not cite examples except perhaps for one. Four years ago, when this was not centre-stage in the political debate, we negotiated a programme for…

That was not insignificant. It took a lot of political capital and determination. We did that because, as Senator Black said, it is beyond belief what is happening in Rafah today, what happened yesterday and what has been happening over the past seven months, but more than that, because for several decades the rights of the Palestinian people have been denied and ignored. As Senator Garvey said, however, moral interest in this applies to all, whatever one's views or political designation. It does not belong to our …

Exemptions sorted under the orders typically fall into two categories. The first category is civil air operators contracted by the US military to transport personnel from locations outside the US. These operators are required to seek an exemption for transiting through Irish airspace or landing in an Irish airport when troops on board carry their personal weapons. The second category is where munitions of war are carried on Irish-registered aircraft, wherever they may be operating. I have asked my Department to giv…

That is my view. I encourage Senators to vote in support of the amendment to allow us to effect the change the Bill espouses.

I was very proud that the Green Party argued passionately for the recognition of Palestine in the programme for Government we agreed with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in 2020. Events have moved on since then, tragically so, but the case for recognising Palestine was as strong back then as it is now. It was not a question of if, but of when and to what effect. Today we deliver on that commitment as a Government and as a Parliament. The timing is important and right. First, we do not do so alone. Not only are we joined …

As the Deputy will be aware, the national planning framework calls for enhanced land-side access to Dublin Airport, particularly in public transport terms. I also note that the local authority’s local area plan for the airport requires that any planning application to increase passenger numbers at the airport must clearly demonstrate the transport infrastructure and measures required to accommodate any proposed increase. The Deputy will be aware that An Bord Pleanála recently concluded its oral hearing into MetroLi…

There has been a significant increase in public transport. As I said, 1,000 buses a day are going to and from the airport. This is a 10% increase on the bus services available last year. As the Deputy said, we have further bus improvements planned. There has also been a 20% increase in the number of taxi permits operating at the airport. The vast majority of passengers using taxis are able to get one within ten minutes. There are 23,000 car parking spaces at Dublin Airport. The Deputy is correct, though, that there…

Significant bus enhancements are coming. The first we want to see is the planning decision on the Swords bus corridor. As soon as that is delivered, we will go into the process of implementing the BusConnects programme. A series of new services are planned that will come in with that initiation. These include the L81, L83 and L85 services, which are planned to serve the airport and go through Swords to Sutton, Portrane and Balbriggan. This September, we will have a new service going from Parnell Square via Ballymun…

As I am sure the Deputy will be aware, the all-island strategic rail review has been undertaken by my Department in co-operation with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland. The review will inform the development of rail on the island of Ireland in the coming decades to 2050, in line with net-zero carbon targets in both jurisdictions. Work on the review is now at an advanced stage and a draft report was published for a strategic environmental assessment, SEA, public consultation in July of last year.…

It was not a short delay due to the absence of the administration in Northern Ireland. I wish it had been short but it took a long time.

Well, for the guts of two years the Assembly was not in place and the administration in the North was not in place.

No, but that is just the reality. The reopening of the western rail corridor is of vital strategic importance for the national planning framework and better balanced regional development in our country. It should include the section between Athenry and Claremorris. It does not propose an extension to Sligo. However, the reopening from Athenry to Claremorris is of huge benefit because effectively it creates a western rail corridor running all the way from Ballina right down the west coast down to the south east. It …

I have been clear in my position for the past two years and particularly since the publication of the review. It does not include the extension of the rail corridor from Claremorris north east towards Sligo. That makes a strong case for the use of that line as a greenway, as the Deputy suggested, and the benefit of that is we would be able to hold a line so that, if at some future date it was needed as part of this rail revival, the line would be in place. We should be looking at the use of such a line as a greenwa…

There are indeed different voices in that regard. That will need to be clarified in the coming months when we come to priority decisions around whether we make this strategic leap towards supporting the west and supporting rail freight.

I am very aware of the ongoing issues with the 103 Bus Éireann service in Meath, which was particularly bad in September and October last year, and the negative impact that was having on the travelling public. Unfortunately, these issues were exacerbated by ongoing challenges the public transport sector is facing in the recruitment of both mechanics and drivers. However, I am pleased to advise that due to extensive driver recruitment campaigns undertaken by Bus Éireann in recent months, this is now becoming less of…

I agree with the Deputy. It is not acceptable for passengers to be left waiting at the side of the road for the next bus. That is deeply frustrating, and it is not good enough. We have to make sure, through the NTA, that Bus Éireann is pushed so that the services improve. There are various ways we can do that. As I said, the first key issue is with mechanics and drivers. There has been significant action in that regard. Bus Éireann has recruited some 500 drivers since last year. The Department of Enterprise, Trade …

I do not have the details of that stop, so I will have to come back to the Deputy directly on that. I do not have information about the plans for that stop. On the wider issue the Deputy raised about enhancing the ability to get drivers and mechanics, I am open to all initiatives and suggestions. Bus Éireann has looked at a variety of different ways. We have looked at moving some of the maintenance services from Broadstone, which is the service depot for these routes, to other Bus Éireann depots that may have a ser…

I will not read out the written response because it is very similar to what Deputy Marian Harkin would have heard only a few minutes ago.