I welcome the Land Development Agency Bill and thank the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, for his work on it and the former Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, for all he did previously. We can all agree that housing is one of the most pressing emergencies facing the country. This Bill offers real opportunity to deliver the affordable homes that we so desperately need. This year we will see the largest investment in housing in the history of the State. This is a huge opportunity to make a real difference to people of …

I support the request for equine welfare officers in local authorities. My Lovely Horse Rescue does extraordinary work in Clondalkin with horses which have been badly mistreated. The volunteer work would be greatly helped if local authorities, like South Dublin County Council, had equine welfare officers. Irish food and drinks companies have always had an exceptional reputation at home and abroad. This reputation is built on the standard of their products and the strength of their brands. Every year, these business…

There are 170 people in Irish intensive care units at this time. Fortunately, that number is reducing by the day but, right now, 170 people are critically ill with Covid-19 in Ireland. That is 170 people whose families are crippled with fear. I ask the House to imagine for just a second if we could change that. I ask colleagues to consider that we could introduce a simple and cheap intervention that could decrease the number of people fighting for their life in ICUs. I ask the Government to imagine what might happe…

I thank the Minister of State for her reply. However, all she has done is reiterate what we already know. I do not mean to be disrespectful to her when I say that I am frustrated that the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, is not here to participate in the debate. He seems to be avoiding this issue entirely. He is giving me evasive replies to parliamentary questions and promising updates on my meeting requests which never arrive. His role is not to sit back and blindly do what he is told to do by cautious, anonymou…

This Government has made a commitment to increase social housing stock. Last month, Sinn Féin councillors voted to delay 19 new-build social homes in Clondalkin by a month. The party's national housing spokesperson said this was because 19 homes were not enough. Locally, however, Sinn Féin was saying the opposite. This week, Sinn Féin councillors proposed to reduce that same plan further from 19 homes to 14. The original plan for this site was 28 social homes, so Sinn Féin wanted a 50% reduction. Sinn Féin's housin…

In many homes throughout the country right now, children with special educational needs, sadly, are regressing. For them, education is not just about learning a curriculum. It is about learning at their own rate, practising coping mechanisms and having a routine. For their parents, it is not just about school; it is also about respite. Caring for children with additional needs 24-7 is extremely tough. Doing so while juggling working from home or working on the front line and homeschooling other children is, for man…

I welcome this important, modern legislation. I thank the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, for prioritising this legislation which will prevent the sharing of intimate images and criminalise online harassment and bullying. There is no doubt this Bill will not just protect people online but will also save lives. Mental health is precious and it is fragile. The impact of online abuse on mental health can be deadly. The anonymity of the Internet breeds hurtful and harmful vitriol which can have long-lasting effec…

This Government has made a commitment to increasing the supply of social housing. This week, Sinn Féin councillors on South Dublin County Council delayed construction of 19 new build social homes in Clondalkin. The site is 100% public and the proposal is for 100% social homes. At first glance it appears Sinn Féin was delaying these homes unnecessarily after extensive public consultation by one month to allow for further informal consultation. However, tweets yesterday indicate it is Sinn Féin's intention to delay t…

The lockdowns have been tough on everyone but, for victims of domestic abuse, they have been hell. Their homes are not their sanctuaries. They find sanctuary outside their homes when they discover a safe space somewhere else. They were robbed of this chance for months during lockdown. The Minister gave them assurances and clarity that travel restrictions did not and do not apply to them. This was very welcome and an important move. What other actions is the Minister taking to support victims of domestic and sexual …

Last week in response to my Topical Issue matter on dancing, the Minister confirmed that the Arts Council would publish new guidelines this week. Today the Arts Council has advised community centres, which require the guidelines for insurance reasons to allow one-to-one dance practice to continue, that they will not have those guidelines for a number of weeks. The Arts Council has cited approval from the Taoiseach's office as a reason for the delay. It is imperative that we get this confusion cleared up and have th…

Can the Minister imagine being told this time last year that she would have to wear a face mask when walking down Grafton Street? The changes we have seen, including in our economy, have been unbelievable. This time last year, our unemployment rate was at just 5%, meaning that 95% of people were working. Today, the number on the PUP is three and a half times that unemployment rate, with half of them being young people. What are we doing to support our young people and reactivate the youth labour market?

Those are stark statistics. Almost half of under-25s are now unemployed, and when students are removed from that, we are still talking about one in three Irish people under the age of 25 being unemployed. That is absolutely startling. The Minister has today outlined a comprehensive response to that in terms of incentivising employment opportunities, apprenticeships and third level and further education places for those young people. We need to make sure they are not adversely affected in the long term, which is why…

Participants in sports such as gymnastics, basketball and karate are getting back to training in sports and community halls throughout the country. They need that outlet to keep physically healthy and active and for mental health as a coping mechanism to help them deal with this strange world we live in now. They also need it as a social outlet, even if it means reconnecting with people from a social distance. None of these benefits is limited to the world of sport and yet it is only sport training that we are allo…

I thank the Minister for her reply. This is the third time I have raised the issue of dancing in the Chamber, and she is the first Minister to take on board what I and the dancing community have said. It is exciting to hear her give us this clarification today. It is a promise to rectify the anomaly and to treat equally children who dance and children who do sport. The Minister's actions will give dancers back their rhythm. I am excited to welcome the formal guidance. I call on her to publish it as soon as possible…

I am glad we are on track to exit level 5 next week and that we are preparing to reopen gyms. I ask the Minister to allow dance classes with social distancing during level 3 to boost physical and mental health. If one lives on a county border, the opening up of one's county may not offer much hope of seeing one's family. It one lives in Lucan, one is more likely to have family in Leixlip than Lusk. If one lives in Rathcoole, one is more likely to have family in Kill than Killiney, but under county-wide restrictions…

I want to raise the need for the Government to rethink its Covid-19 advertising strategy. The message is not tough enough and it is not cutting through. The HSE's advertising campaign has become stale, predictable and it is not hitting home with the entire population. Back in March, we knew very little about Covid-19 or the impact it would have on all of our lives. The message then was that people should wash their hands, cough into their elbow and protect themselves and others. After months of upheaval, a great de…

I really believe that it is time for us to rethink our advertising strategy in respect of Covid-19 - not only what we are saying but also where we are saying it. I would like the Minister of State to work with the HSE to review whether our advertisements are hitting our entire audience because I fear we are not reaching young people. For many of them, their viewing platforms are social-media based. They are not all sitting on the couch with their mams and dads waiting for the nine o'clock news to come on. They are …

Working people are under more pressure than ever before. Many have been working at home since March and for many of them the distinction between work life and home life has blurred beyond recognition. Video meetings in different time zones, work calls in the evenings and the constant ping of emails arriving have heaped pressure on people. This is especially true for those who are struggling with their work-life balance, their mental health or the general upheaval that Covid-19 has presented. Current laws state that…

We all awoke in a brighter world this morning with hope that we may have a vaccine with a 90% effectiveness rate coming our way. In Grange Castle, in my constituency, Pfizer has done tremendous work, and the Tánaiste and I have been out there to meet them and see first-hand the work they have been doing. I would appreciate an update from the Taoiseach on how this will impact on us in Ireland, what the plans are for roll-out of the vaccine and any insights he has on this going forward.

All of our worlds are upside down right now. For many of us, nothing we did at this time last year is now possible. For many people, going to work is impossible and, for many of these, working from home is also not possible. These people, through no fault of their own, have become unemployed. Not one of us could have predicted that we would be where we are today. The stress, anxiety and uncertainty are unprecedented. For renters, this stress, anxiety and uncertainty would be compounded by the insecure nature of liv…