The Minister of State touched on a number of issues in a short time. The task force has the potential to be really important. Perceptions of safety in the city, and safety, are fundamental to fostering a positive atmosphere for retail and otherwise. When the task force reports in August, can the Minister of State guarantee that its report will be acted upon and budgeted for in terms of Garda presence, for example? Retailers are crying out for this when I engage with them. On footfall, hybrid work has changed the na…

I completely agree with the Minister of State. I have had some engagement with the task force on changes I would like to see made in the city. It is a cross-departmental body, with involvement by the Departments of Justice and Health as well as the Minister of State's Department. One of the recommendations I expect it to offer is to do with making the city more vibrant. That will require bringing people back in to live in the city. It is a recommendation that must be acted upon. From the perspective of the Minister…

The weekend revelations concerning the abuse of young women soccer players represent the lowest point in the history of scandals involving the Football Association of Ireland, FAI. The absence of FAI safeguards to protect women and young female players was simply unforgivable. It exemplified perfectly the power imbalance that lies at the heart of men's abuse of women. It was deeply unsettling to watch the "RTÉ Investigates" programme on Sunday evening as it revealed harrowing details of historic abuse allegations a…

The Taoiseach and various Deputies stated that the Government continues to raise with European counterparts the horrendous situation in Gaza. There was a time at the start of the conflict when Ireland stood out because of our rhetoric and because the rhetoric of others was so poor. As the horrendous annihilation of the people of Gaza progresses, however, words without action become increasingly less meaningful. UNWRA states that it has become excruciating to deliver supplies to Gaza and that deteriorating condition…

Just answer the question. You cannot keep on waffling.

Is this Leaders' Questions or is the Tánaiste just commenting on the Deputy?

Some 3,000 people with status to remain here are being told to leave their international protection accommodation services, IPAS, accommodation as of tomorrow. My very simple question to the Tánaiste is this. Where is the Government asking these people and their families to go? I think I know the answer. In the absence of a plan, there will be a merry-go-round of misery. This question - where are people simply to go? - was put to the Minister for Finance and Fianna Fáil's deputy leader on "Morning Ireland" this mor…

The Minister definitely does not believe that. He cannot believe it.

I thank the Labour Party for tabling this vitally important motion. Men's violence against women is insidious. It was in January 2022 that I last recall this Dáil gathering in a time of great national grief and astonishment at the brutal murder of a young woman at the hands of a violent man, to say the words "never again", and use language along the lines of zero tolerance and advancing calls for systematic cultural change. On that occasion it was Ashling Murphy, a young school teacher brutally slain at the hands o…

I begin with a simple assertion we can all agree with. The work Irish peacekeepers dedicate their lives to has never been more important. In 2023, we saw them work in incredibly difficult and dangerous conditions across the Middle East and other conflict zones around the world. In saying that, we should once again express our condolences to the family of Private Seán Rooney. I hope such a tragedy will never be permitted to happen again. It is clear from this report and from the rhetoric and actions of the Governmen…

I am speaking on behalf of my colleague, Deputy Catherine Murphy, at short notice. We can appreciate that Deputy Murphy has some other matters to attend to this evening and we wish her well. We know we are near a recess period when we are presented with very broad legislation with the infamous tag "miscellaneous" attached to it. I want to provide some context for the words I will speak. There has been a renewed Government interest in law and order since Simon Harris was elected Taoiseach in April. The Minister for …

The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, has analysed the Government's climate action plan and found that if every measure were fully implemented, we would only reduce our emissions by 29%, rather than our legally binding target of 51%. This is the second year in a row the EPA has come to this conclusion, so nothing the Government has announced in the past 12 months has led to a verifiable increase in emissions reductions. How does the Minister plan to change this record in his last few months in office?

We do not want to politicise this issue. Climate is too important for that. It is the Environmental Protection Agency and its analysis which has shown us we are missing the targets. I presume none of us take issue with its figures. As much as we talk a good game about the need for climate action and the importance of reducing emissions, with which we in the Social Democrats are, of course, in full agreement, rhetoric alone will not reduce our emissions. We need detailed plans across a variety of sectors and laser-f…

While I do not doubt for a second the Minister's vigour and belief in how we close the gaps, we are specifically looking for the kind of plans contained within this Government which are in keeping with the figures projected by the EPA. The reality is the climate action plan has a big hole. By the sounds of it, there are no concrete plans - none the EPA can measure - to address it. The experts are in the EPA. We talk often about the need to listen to the experts. The cavalier attitude the Government has adopted to o…

This is my fifth, potentially sixth, time having a Topical Issue during this Dáil year on the matter of crime in and around the constituency of Dublin Central. On none of those occasions has a Minister with responsibility for justice been here. While I appreciate that cannot always be the case, I would have expected that it would have happened on at least one of those occasions. I frequently raise the issue of antisocial behaviour in my own area in Dublin Central not because I want to talk the area down, not becaus…

I thank the Minister of State for that comprehensive response. I do not doubt for a second that no one has a monopoly of care for the city or that everyone wants to see it policed effectively. Nonetheless, too often we hear about initiatives such as the ones laid out by the Minister of State that have a displacement effect. Very purposely, I chose Dublin 7 with that in mind. Greater attention has rightfully been given to the city centre. While I question how effective that has been, there has been a bigger Garda pr…

I thank the Independent Group for this timely motion. It is an important motion for discussion as schools start to wind down at the end of the year and have an opportunity to rest and to start looking at what they had to do just to keep the lights on during the past year. Primary schools nationwide face a funding crisis. They face crises on multiple fronts but funding is to the fore. This has been the case for some time. Those most vulnerable in our education system, those who have special educational needs, are su…

These pre-European Council statements begin at a time when we have nominated a new EU Commissioner, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael McGrath. I wish him all the best. We are told that this week is a big week because this is when all of the negotiations and backroom dealing starts. I have heard it reported many times in the media and elsewhere that Ireland hopes to get one of those big jobs. I am really interested in what Ireland has to do in order to achieve that. Although I may move on and speak more broad…

It was in September of last year that the Minister launched the community safety partnership for Dublin's north inner city. Contained in that document were 51 action points, one of which was a strong Garda presence in the area, and we all accept that has failed. Another was keeping public spaces safe. To see the evidence of the success of this, I would ask the Minister to go to the Blessington Basin or Diamond Park. Another action point was to deal with the rise in hate crime. There has been a 12% increase in hate-…

We were not offered the chance.