Some of them are technical and inconsequential. Having just 90 minutes to debate something of this import is disgraceful. It is a poor reflection on the Government parties, which are railroading an important issue through the Dáil with minimal scrutiny.

That was limited in 2015 when there was a limit placed on corporate donations. We changed the law.

Thanks to the Labour Party and no thanks to Fianna Fáil.

Not all Governments support Independents.

This is distraction.

Nearly 20% of all households in this country are experiencing energy poverty. Up to March, energy prices had gone up by almost 50% in a year. As the Minister knows this is hitting low-income households throughout the country the hardest. Energy companies, as he knows, have posted hyper-profits this year. What plans has he to ask the energy companies to do more to help the State and help citizens combat the ever-rising costs of keeping the lights and the heating on?

The Minister's response will be cold comfort to struggling families across the country. We need political leadership on this. The best way the energy companies can help consumers is by Government slapping a windfall tax on the hyper-normal profits of energy companies. It is perverse that there is evidence of massive profit-taking going on at this time when customers are really struggling to make ends meet. The Minister met the EU Commissioner for energy today and knows that the European Commission has given the gre…

Has the Minister ruled out a windfall tax in his discussions with the Minister for Finance? Deputy Ryan is the Minister with responsibility for energy. It is interesting that the €200 energy credit was very poorly targeted. I think everybody will agree with that. However, that did not cost the energy companies a red cent. That was derived from borrowing and tax revenue. The ESB, a citizen-owned company, posted €670 million in pre-tax profits and is paying a €126 million dividend to the Exchequer. It could be paying…

I thank the Regional Group for tabling this motion. It is an important debate and I am glad that we are having it. All of us, especially those who served on local authorities, are intimately familiar with the programme and the special housing adaptation grant scheme. It is a good, effective scheme. It was far-sighted of the Minister and local authorities that first introduced it. It is clear that issues face the scheme and its utility with the limits provided for. A sum of €30,000 will not get anyone far these days…

I move: That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science pursuant to Standing Orders 95(3)(a) and 181(1).

I agree with what Deputies Ó Broin and McAuliffe said. The pace of change in the evolution of online platforms is such that we will not be in a position to wait two, three, five or ten years for a reappraisal of the utility and effectiveness of this legislation. It is an important start, but we have to remain ahead of the game and keep a watching brief on how the evolution of those platforms impacts on the way we do politics in this country, the way we campaign and the activities of citizens and others, especially …

I will start where Deputy Conway-Walsh concluded. If I am correct, 90% of applicants are applying online now, which is the right approach to take and is what we always encourage constituents to do, but it does not mean that there are no problems. There are problems with the online process, as we have all experienced, especially in recent months. I will go into that in more detail. There is no way to describe this other than to call it an utter mess. Deputies are referencing experiences from our constituency offices…

I am delighted to speak in support of Deputy O'Callaghan's Bill. I believe it has considerable merit and addresses a yawning gap in the measurement of wealth in this country. All the evidence suggests that land, property and housing generally are inextricably linked to wealth inequality. We know from successive reports from the Central Bank and from various reputable think tanks that the vast bulk of wealth in this country is held in assets and most of those assets are property. That includes not just housing but a…

RTÉ reported today that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, will be bringing plans to Cabinet to amend the Electoral Reform Bill 2022 to ensure that finance from outside the State does not influence elections. This is a very positive development, which we welcome. We have been calling for it for some time, but it needs to be done properly. These amendments, strictly speaking, are outside the scope of the legislation. I spoke in detail on Second Stage of the Bill about th…

I very much welcome the opportunity to speak on behalf of the Labour Party on the Short-term Lettings Enforcement Bill 2022. It is very important that we have a proper ventilation of this issue in the Chamber this evening. Nobody is making any overstated claims about the utility of the legislation. It is not a panacea but it certainly is a contribution to what is a very live debate and important issue across our society. The issue of short-term lets is one, as the House will know, that has been ventilated very prom…

The securing of technological university status for Dundalk IT is fundamental to the economic and social development of County Louth and the rest of the north east. As the Minister knows, there are only two institutes outside consortia: Dundalk IT, DkIT, and the Institute of Art Design and Technology, IADT. The Minister recently visited Dundalk IT, for which I thank him. I am somewhat reassured by the informal conversations he and I have had about the direction of travel. Could he formally update the House on the p…

The Minister's preference is to have the relationships form organically. Every time I read about the creation of a new technological university in this country, my heart sinks. This is because Dundalk is isolated and has been left stranded. I see every announcement as a missed opportunity for DkIT and its students. The delays and obfuscation over the past few years have been inexcusable. In truth, there is a culture of impunity at the top of the college and, in my view, nobody is being held to account for the delay…

I am very pleased to speak on behalf of the Labour Party in this very important debate here today. In the first instance, real credit is owed to the Minister of State for delivering this plan. It is a very good one and has great potential. I also sincerely say that this is a great credit to the Green Party for ensuring that this particular initiative made it into the programme for Government. Great credit is also owed to the Minister of State personally because we are now at the point where we have at the very leas…

The medical scientist dispute is 21 years in the making. I noted the Taoiseach's earlier reply to Deputy Devlin. The Medical Laboratory Scientists Association, MLSA, has proposed some innovative solutions to this dispute at the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, over the last period. It is in the WRC at present. In my view, the HSE and the Department of Health want to resolve this issue but those standing in the way are represented by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. I ask the Taoiseach to send a …

I am proud to support and second the Bill, which is anchored in the very best traditions of the Labour Party. We fundamentally believe work must always pay. That is an absolute, fundamental principle for us and for the wider labour movement. It is timely that we now reflect on pay policy nationally, and when we do, we should do so in an informed and evidence-based way. For many, the market decides what they are paid; for others, it is a collective endeavour negotiated between the employer and trade unions through e…