I thank the Deputy for this question. I am pleased to advise that officials are actively discussing the launch of the Irish component of the EU critical communications system with the European Commission with a view to Ireland becoming an early adopter of this. I hope the Deputy will be pleased to know that six weeks ago Government launched a new mission critical communications system that was built by Vodafone in partnership with the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer. It has been set up to be able…

I thank the Deputy for that feedback. I will double-check but it is my understanding that they would well be able to use it. I met with members of the Civil Defence based in Mayo who were already part of that active trial and it is great to see that the community initiatives are also built into it. For the Deputy's information, the European Commission is proposing to bring in legislation next year that will formulate that entire system. It is likely that will happen during the Irish EU Presidency. That will give us…

Absolutely. It was fantastic to meet public health nurses from the HSE who advised that they had clients in rural island communities who were badly impacted by people's inability to communicate directly with emergency services or the ability of emergency services to co-ordinate. That is what this initiative will help to resolve. Any systems deployed for the emergency services have strict requirements for both bandwidth and latency. That is to ensure the highest level of service is always achieved. From the time a r…

Migration, when managed well and planned well, works well. We see that in the people who staff our hospitals and care homes, those working on our building sites and buses, in our restaurants and hotels and across the local services we all depend on, and in entrepreneurs running businesses and employing people in our communities. I am truly grateful for the contributions many of those people make to our society, communities and economy every day. I am also very conscious that some people who arrive here do not come …

I acknowledge that at the centre of this issue is heartache. This is personal for children with scoliosis on waiting lists and their families. It should not be a moment of division or political point scoring. It needs to be a moment of doubling down on our efforts to deliver for them. The tragic death of Harvey Morrison Sherratt touched the lives of people across Ireland. We think of his parents, Gillian and Stephen, and their families and the parents and families of children who need and deserve better access to i…

I thank the Cathaoirleach. I am pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the debate on budget 2026, which was, of course, presented to the Dáil by the Ministers for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation and Finance yesterday. Each year, my Department is presented with a finite budget and is tasked with making things better for the people of Ireland. I know this is a cause that we all share and are passionate about. Budget 2026 is fair and inclusive, and has a focus on …

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and welcome our guests. I am going to attempt to respond to all of the comments raised today. I say “attempt” because a huge variety of comments were made. I appreciate the time people have taken to dig deep into the detail of the budget and to raise both positive feedback and concerns. Senator Cathal Byrne set the scene quite well when he spoke about the need to safeguard the economy, improve public services and deliver key infrastructure, including housing. Senator Kyne talked abou…

Every year Government is faced with the challenge of balancing finite resources with infinite ambition to make things better for the people of Ireland. No single budget can deliver that in full but budget 2026 certainly rises to the challenge. I thank everyone involved in putting together this budget, in particular officials in my Department and the Department of Finance who worked around the clock over these past few weeks to make this budget happen. They worked over the weekend, late into the night and indeed ear…

I thank Members for the opportunity to attend today and for their engaging and valuable contributions. It is clear from the contributions that there is significant interest in the work of the Department. As the Minister, Deputy Chambers, set out earlier, the Department operates from the centre of government. It does so to drive the delivery of better public services, improved living standards and infrastructure across the island of Ireland. As Minister of State, I have special responsibility for public procurement,…

I am happy to provide a response from my colleague, the Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy Helen McEntee, and to contribute on behalf of the Government to the debate on special education. As a public representative, I meet many parents of children with additional needs who experience huge challenges in securing appropriate places for their children. They should not have to deal with that level of additional stress in their lives. We need to do more and do better to ensure families have much earlier clarity on…

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important matter, not just for his own city but for all of us across Ireland. As Ireland’s second city, Cork occupies a very important position in the economic, social and cultural life of the nation. I would go so far as to say that Ireland’s overall success is closely bound to the success of Cork city. The Government is very aware of the challenges faced by our urban areas, such as Cork city, particularly in the wake of Covid. During Covid, we saw reduced footfall, changed…

I thank the Deputy for his observations and his support for the desire to work together on the rejuvenation of Cork city to make it a better place to live, work and experience its wonderful culture. The people of Cork have an immense and justifiable pride in their beautiful city but even the proudest Corkonian will admit there are a number of areas where we could do better to enhance the city's vibrancy and vitality, and the Deputy has listed some of them. There is no doubt that the growing population in Cork prese…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter in the House today. As he is aware, capital acquisitions tax is a tax on inheritances or gifts on an amount over a particular tax-free threshold. It is a beneficiary-orientated tax, which means it is payable by the recipient of the gift or inheritance as opposed to the person providing that gift or inheritance. Capital acquisitions tax, CAT, plays an important role in ensuring we maintain a broad tax base and it raised €854 million last year. For CAT purposes, the relation…

I thank the Deputy for his constructive engagement on this. I really hope the information that has been provided on the record of the Dáil tonight is of use to his constituents and many other of our constituents, too. Just to clarify and confirm, the Minister for Finance and his Department are satisfied to the constitutionality of the existing CAT legislation. This matter was considered earlier this year by the tax strategy group. It noted in its capital taxes paper that Ireland was not unique in providing a distin…

I thank the Deputy very much for raising this issue. The Government places great value on culture and the arts sector. As outlined in the programme for Government, we recognise that they are essential to a well-rounded society, providing opportunities for education, expression and community engagement. Deputy Byrne gave a very interesting statistic, for the want of a better word, when he said that, after the GAA, this is the largest voluntary movement in Ireland. It is fantastic to have that said and acknowledged h…

One of the key recommendations is to develop an arts capital and equipment programme for investment in local and community arts of a similar scale and structure as its sports capital and equipment programme. As part of that, we will look at the feasibility of a minor capital works scheme under the Arts Council.

I thank Deputy Byrne for raising this important matter. It is timely that we are discussing it a couple of days in advance of Culture Night. I also thank the Deputy for his obvious passion for this subject matter and the active role he plays in the amateur arts world in his community. Ireland is renowned for producing world-class art, both amateur and professional. That is why it is this Government's ambition that we continue to do that into the future. The Government places significant value on culture and the art…

I thank Deputy Gannon for his Topical Issue on this subject. I was born in the Rotunda Hospital and my mother used to work there, so I appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns relating to the expansion of neonatal facilities at the Rotunda Hospital. I do so on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. As the Deputy said, the Rotunda is one of the busiest maternity hospitals in the whole of Europe. More than 8,600 babies were delivered there in 2024 and more than 1,300 babies wer…

It is my understanding that at this point no objection has been lodged. I hope the Deputy's passionate plea tonight has an influence on whether it will be lodged. I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Increasing capacity at the Rotunda Hospital to ensure it can meet the needs of women, infants and families is a priority for the Government. The health needs of women and infants presenting to our services are becoming more complex. The National Maternity Strategy – Creating a Better Future Together 201…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. We were all very concerned to learn of the difficulties being experienced by Leprino Foods in Portlaoise. The Minister extends his sympathies to all employees and their families who may be affected by this decision taken by the company, and he knows that this news will be very concerning for all the workers involved and their families. I understand the Minister received a collective redundancy notification f…