Hear, hear.

That is not directly comparable.

No better Deputy.

I thank my constituency colleague for his contribution. I am pleased to speak on this motion on behalf of the Labour Party. Listening to some commentators in recent days, you might think the cost-of-living crisis is more or less over. Nothing could be further from the truth, especially for those living in a permanent cost-of-living crisis. The rate of inflation might be slowing but it is important to remember that inflation was 7.8% when measured in 2022. The spike in prices, especially of essential goods, was much…

I detect an effort to hide this and to avoid calling it what it is because the proposers know fine well, as does everybody, that Sinn Féin has a very dubious record on, and a dubious commitment to, climate action and what needs to be done to decarbonise our society. Sinn Féin is opposed to any form of carbon tax and the party should just be honest about that and stop squirming and dancing on the head of a pin. That is it, simply put. Avoidance of the term will not persuade anybody otherwise with regard to Sinn Féin…

I move amendment No. 1 to amendment No. 2: To insert the following after "at their disposal": "— calls for mortgage holders with performing loans held by vulture funds to be provided with the option to refinance those loans through the Local Authority Home Loan scheme; and — calls for the passage into law of the Central Bank (Variable Rate Mortgages) Bill 2022". I am pleased to speak on this motion on behalf of the Labour Party and move one of two amendments tabled in my name. This is the third motion brought to th…

It will be next door to us.

The two things that define me are my football and my class. They are linked inextricably. One of my very first memories is of Northern Ireland playing Spain in the 1982 FIFA World Cup. I was playing football on the street in Newfield, an estate the Minister of State would be familiar with, and I remember being called in to watch a hugely-anticipated match. I drank that match in with two very close friends, with whom I grew up sharing a love of playing football. Twenty years later, one of those lads played for Irela…

My point is this: football fills us with hope. It fills us with dreams. It allows us to think big things for ourselves and for our communities. My colleague, Deputy Aodhán Ó Riordáin, articulated so eloquently earlier on the place of football in our society and history, which has often been derided, scorned and sneered at through our State's history. Nothing that he said was wrong. For example, I played at the highest level of underage and youth football. Our Drogheda team was consistently in the top eight teams in…

The very last phone call I got on my mobile phone before I came in here this evening was from somebody I have represented for many years, a person who has been told by his landlord that he is just about to receive an eviction notice. He is married with a large family and is now contemplating what he can do. He knows that if he looks around the Drogheda area, he will simply not be able to find, at an affordable price, the kind of accommodation that he and his family need. He receives no rental support and is working…

I asked for five minutes but I may wander a little beyond that if that is in order. It turns out I may have more to say than I originally anticipated, based on contributions from colleagues and the Minister of State's earlier response. One thing the Minister of State and her officials in the Department could usefully consider is directly engaging with people who work in the industry. She put on the record her own interest in the industry in her earlier contribution. On behalf of colleagues in Irish Equity, I made c…

The Minister rightly expressed shock two weeks ago at the plans announced by Tara Mines to put all of its 650 staff at the Navan mine on temporary layoff. Yesterday, a week after proposals were tabled by the unions to avoid mass layoffs, Boliden essentially pressed the button and said it planned to go ahead regardless. Since the announcement two weeks ago, can the Minister inform the House of the precise nature of his engagement with the company and the nature of the supports he is prepared to provide to avoid layo…

In the past, SIPTU, Connect and Unite have shown themselves to be extremely flexible and responsible when that company previously hit trading difficulties. They showed their leadership and responsibility again two weeks ago when they started to develop proposals on cost-saving measures. Unfortunately, they were rejected by the company and, extraordinarily, when the trade unions were in negotiations with the company yesterday, at the very same time, workers were receiving emails with regard to the company's plan to …

The company stated the obvious when it said the union proposals of themselves would not be sufficient to stave off the scale and quantum of layoffs it is considering at the moment. The assumption always was, based on comments made, for example, by the Taoiseach in this House in recent weeks, that an energy package would be worked on to try to provide some support to the organisation and we await that. If it is the case that the Minister is in discussions and continuing negotiations with the companies and trade unio…

Boliden Tara Mines plans to lay off 650 workers on 14 July. I raised this with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coveney, during Question Time earlier. I express my gratitude to him for his understanding of the issues of concern and his continued engagement. It is understood and appreciated. SIPTU, Connect Trade Union and Unite the Union put cost-saving measures to the company last week. Tara Mines management has decided to carry on regardless. Yesterday, it pressed the button in respect of …

I am happy to contribute to this debate on behalf of the Labour Party. I welcome the Minister's commitments in regard to support for apprentices in Tara Mines. We hope there will not be the kind of lay-offs initially unilaterally announced by the company. We also hope progress can be made on all of those jobs and a solution will be found to the problems facing Tara Mines, with the support of the Government and the trade unions. I am pleased that the local ETB and SOLAS, with others, are supporting the apprentices. …

I thank the Minister of State for his response to Deputy Ó Laoghaire’s very well-considered Bill. The Minister of State acknowledged that this is an issue that the Deputy has been working on for some time and in good faith. As the Deputy indicated at the start of his contribution, there is a similar situation in my constituency. It is a matter that was raised with me a short number of weeks ago. While the Clogherhead electoral district is not as large geographically or population-wise as Carrigaline, and this issue…

I am incredibly pleased to speak on behalf of the Labour Party in this very important debate. l am a proud LGBTQI+ ally. I always have been. I grew up in a State, as did the Minister, that was a very cold and hostile place for anyone who was considered to be different. I use the term "different" advisedly. My party has a long and proud track record of legislative social reform. Everybody in the House, regardless of their political perspective, would agree objectively that the Labour Party has done more than most to…

We would appreciate an update on the question of the inquiry into the concerns highlighted by the Women of Honour group and where the process is at.

The Tánaiste knows the Women of Honour group is dissatisfied, to say the least, at the narrowness of the proposed terms of reference that were produced. The women have raised this directly with him. They do not believe the terms of reference as they are drafted and the proposal presented to them have sufficient scope to encompass the range of issues they have very bravely and graciously highlighted. Based on the principle that we cannot and should not do anything to them without them, will the Tánaiste engage furth…