It is Leaders' Questions.

It is Leaders' Questions. The Taoiseach could also answer.

Last week, I raised the issue of education with the Taoiseach under Questions on Promised Legislation and he assured me that his Government had moved heaven and earth to keep our schools open. I do not doubt his intention but we differ substantially with regard to our preferred approach, particularly in respect of mitigation. On Monday, close contact tracing for asymptomatic close contacts in primary schools ended. A clear explanation for this approach has not yet been given. I would like the Taoiseach to clearly s…

My question also pertains to the student accommodation crisis. Many of the 1,055 student accommodation units that have been transferred to short-term lets are in my constituency. I will switch angle and go another way on an issue similar to that raised by Deputy Kelly. There is a rental crisis throughout the country. The Social Democrats has been advocating a three-year ban on rent increases. There are a multitude of innovative and practical solutions that will alleviate the housing crisis experienced by the studen…

Today we learned that 10,000 of the air monitors due for delivery in schools across the country are defective and now we have a scramble to see how quickly replacements can be found. The mid-September deadline will be missed, similar to the original deadline of the first week of September. The Minister, Deputy Foley, said at the end of August that the order was put in three months ago but there was international demand during a global pandemic that apparently could not be avoided. This has happened even though the …

I wish that was the only issue but it comes on top of the fact that 12,000 children are not in school because of being a close contact. How many parents does that mean are being forced to stay at home?

My question is whether the Taoiseach is satisfied that enough has been done to help schools.

Across the country, the suspicion is that the Government has failed our schools.

As we are tasked today with coming in here and talking about the review of the inner city initiative, it would be remiss of me not to mention that tomorrow, once again, several hundred people from the north inner city will descend on the Dáil in protest. That protest will be in recognition of the 16th anniversary of the death of Terence Wheelock. I cannot separate the inner city initiative from the legacy of poor relationships between the community of the north inner city, which has for decades been disadvantaged b…

I understand how delicate this issue is and I do not want to put undue pressure on the Taoiseach when I am asking a question that I have not given him advance notice of-----

-----but GSOC was in its infancy when this case emerged, and maybe it requires a new look with fresh eyes. If that is from GSOC, so be it.

Tonight, the Social Democrats will vote no confidence in the Minister, Deputy Coveney. At the outset, I would like to depersonalise the debate as much as possible. As we vote this evening, I would like our vote to be a rejection of the culture that enabled this controversy. It is culture of arrogance at the highest levels of our State, one that facilitates those who have governed for too long to believe that both they and the decisions they take on our behalf are above scrutiny and, where necessary, consequence. We…

On 16 September, the day after we return to the Dáil, we will mark 16 years since the death of Terence Wheelock following injuries sustained while in Garda custody in Store Street Garda station. On that day I will once again join Terence's family and members of the north inner city community outside Store Street and march to the Dáil to call for an independent inquiry into the events that led to his death. I do that for a number of reasons. I do it because Terence was a childhood friend of mine and I want the truth…

I take this first opportunity the Social Democrats have had to welcome Deputy Bacik to the House. She is a wonderful and progressive legislator. It is 25 years since the report on revitalising areas by planning, investment and development, RAPID. The report founded the principles of community-led drug and alcohol task forces. The first of these was in my constituency in the north inner city. Twenty-five years on from the report, it is to my dismay that the north inner city drugs and alcohol task force has been susp…

There was no answer to my question specifically on the north inner city drugs task force.

For the benefit of the next speaker, who may wish to make his or her way to the Chamber, I do not intend to take the full 20 minutes allocated to me. I like this Bill. A large portion of what it seeks to do is to provide for better communication between students, parents, teachers and school staff, as well as embedding the student voice in every level of our educational system. My colleagues in the Social Democrats and I welcome it. However, I greatly worry that there is an appalling lack of self-scrutiny from the …

On a point of information for the previous Deputy, who said the language that I used was not in the Bill, it was actually introduced on First Stage by the then Minister, Deputy Joe McHugh, which I referenced when I mentioned the language.

The Deputy was able to point out language as being important.

When the Minister introduced the Bill, he used that phrase.

If the Deputy is not aware what happened on First Stage, that is up to him.