-----maybe you might agree with me rather than prejudging what I am going to say. The number of vacant homes-----

I ask that the Chair protect me from the roars and screams of those who disagree with me.

I wish to make my point, if I may. I welcome the empty homes tax. It is something that I have campaigned for in my party for a number of years. It is important, regardless of what figure one chooses for the number of vacant homes. A medium figure seems to be approximately 100,000. If we do this right, the tax will provide a benefit as well as a significant possibility for tens of thousands of people. Initially, though, we must change what we are doing. I do not agree with the regulation setting out that the tax wil…

Ba mhaith liom a rá gur buiséad an-mhaith é seo agus molaim an beart atá déanta ag an Aire agus ag an Rialtas. Níl aon dabht ach go raibh dianghá leis na rudaí atá sáite istigh ann. One thing in particular I have campaigned for in Fine Gael, and I put down a motion on this at the Fine Gael Parliamentary party some time ago, was an empty homes or vacant homes tax. I can think of no better way to have a go at the 160,000 empty homes around the country, in particular the 37,000 empty homes and apartments in Dublin cit…

At least I have no chance of getting that job.

When State or local authority employees are working at home, they are often uncontactable. Part of this process should include the provision of facilities at home for employees of the State, local authorities and the HSE, paid for by their employers, to correspond over the airwaves with public representatives and other people who are trying to get them. It is a big and serious issue and these employees should be supported to do that.

Two and a half years ago, Covid struck our shores and thousands of people have died since. Some 63% of those who died in the first four months of Covid in Ireland died in nursing homes. That figure compares to 41% in the UK and 47% in Sweden. The fact remains that we need an investigation into these deaths. If these were children, I would not have to stand here to ask this question. The Taoiseach said in January of this year that he was considering a variety of options to meet the needs and concerns of families who…

-----and his lack of accountability to the Oireachtas in dealing with them.

I agree with Deputy Carey. I welcome the action that the Minister and the Government have taken in regard to Covid, which was praised universally. We need to be in a position to praise a new dynamic response, which the Minister appears to be promising right now. This is having an effect right across my county and my constituency. I know of a company that has 140 employees whose bill has gone from €15,000 to €50,000 per month. I know of a well-established Drogheda company whose electricity bill has gone from €10,000…

We lost 50 jobs in Premier Periclase in Drogheda due to the rise in energy prices. The Tánaiste did his best. It was down to world prices and issues, as he addressed.

I welcome the Tánaiste's reply. In the case of manufacturing industry in my county, this is a very significant issue if a company has 140 workers and is considering lay-offs. It cannot increases its costs because it is tied into contracts internationally. The problem is that if people are laid off, they will be making claims on the State by way of supports. It is terribly important to try to add in those supports now and keep people at work if at all possible. There is not one formula to fit all the problems but I …

What plans, if any, does the Minister have to develop new locations for connected hubs in County Louth? The ones that have commenced working are working very well and I congratulate the Minister. As other Deputies have said, she is very welcome to visit County Louth any time. I refer to Ardee, Carlingford, Drogheda and St. Fechin's GAA. There are huge benefits to local connected hubs. They are keeping commuters at home and keeping families closer together. It is hugely important. Does the Minister have any plans fo…

I welcome the Minister’s comments. If I heard her correctly, there are ten other hubs in County Louth that have been invited in. If I could have the list whenever it is available, it will be very welcome. Dunleer needs a new library, and putting a hub in Dunleer would be a great idea. I appreciate that I do not have all the detail on who has applied, also in Louth village and in east Meath. At the bottom line, the transformation of our society because of Covid, and obviously the fact that we want to reduce our comm…

I would be very happy with that. Again, it is the transformation of our society. It is focused on keeping people as near to their homes as they can to work. As I said, it is a huge benefit to those communities. We hear much criticism of the Government but the funding that the Minister announced that she spent and will be spending is what the country needs. It is a banner she can be proud to hold high. Indeed, I welcome all the work the Minister is doing.

This is an important debate. I welcome the speech of the Minister and, indeed, the speeches and the iteration of some of the charges that are being investigated. It is important that each and every one of those will be fully and properly independently investigated, as I understand it, by the Garda Síochána. That is the way it should and must be. I pay tribute to former Mr. Justice Feargus Flood, who passed away recently. He was, in fact, the chair of the tribunal into planning corruption in Dublin city and county s…

During the first Covid wave in 2020, 23 elderly residents died in Dealgan House in Dundalk. Conditions there were appalling, inhuman, catastrophic and destitute of any compassion. The RCSI hospital group took over the operational control of that house. Since then, the families have been looking for truth, accountability and closure and believe only an inquiry will give them that truth, that closure and that accountability. They have met with the Minister for Health and with senior executives, including Mr. Reid, in…

Coeliac disease is a serious, lifelong illness. There is no cure for it and any person diagnosed with it must go on a gluten-free diet. The costs are clear. According to the Coeliac Society of Ireland, this food costs approximately €1,000 more per year on average. If you have a family, it affects the types of food that the whole family eats. It affects where you go for recreation and to eat. I welcome the Revenue Commissioners' letter to me in May, in which they acknowledged that progress was being made. The Minist…

I am unhappy with the Minister of State's reply. I reject it absolutely. I know he was only reading from a script that he was given, but he said "the arrangements exclude costs incurred in respect of gluten-free alcohol." I do not know who wrote that, but if he or she believes that people who suffer from coeliac disease are guzzling alcohol and looking for a subsidy for that, then nothing could be further from the truth. People are concerned about the health impacts on them and their families for their whole lives:…

It was absolutely unacceptable and offensive.

The HSE reports for 2016 to 2020, the period for which the most recent figures are available, show that there were abuse concerns expressed in the cases of 16,000 vulnerable adults over the age of 65. The human rights of these older people have been ignored and trampled on. The concerns relate to physical, emotional, sexual and financial abuse in HSE settings. We need to vindicate the rights of those older people. We need a statutory safeguarding authority with sweeping powers to protect and vindicate those rights,…