That is not the point.

It has been trailed through the media for days that hauliers are going to get a rebate. That is fine. We will consider that. It does not mean anybody opposes it. Everybody accepts that hauliers require support. That is not the point. The Government knew earlier today that this was going to happen. It could have provided the Opposition with the information in a constructive fashion, and we could have worked on a collegial basis to get this business done. People are watching. They are worried about their livelihoods …

The people of Ireland have waited for an intervention from the Government to deal with this energy spike for weeks now. To say that today's intervention - this package of measures - is underwhelming is an understatement. In fact, it is a classic understatement. I said earlier today that these proposals are timid and anaemic. I stand over that. The evidence that is presented to us here this evening is the very definition of half-measures when people expected the Government based on its previous track record to go th…

I thank the Minister for her personal interest since her appointment in working with Dignity4Patients and the victims and survivors of disgraced paedophile and former doctor Michael Shine. It is to be recognised and noted that we are at a point now that we were not at a few months ago. The first contribution I made in this Chamber on my election 15 years ago was in relation to the actions of Michael Shine, who is probably one of Ireland's most prolific paedophiles. I spoke that day of the need for supports for the …

The announcement rushed out on Monday night was designed to do two things: quell the Dáil on Tuesday and silence SNAs and families on Wednesday. It has not succeeded. SNAs are not stupid. As Deputy Bacik said yesterday during Leaders' Questions, they know a pause is not a plan. The Taoiseach's performance yesterday during Leaders' Questions was incredible. It showed signs of a Government in absolute panic mode. It was a shambles. It was the leader of a country throwing civil servants in the Department of education …

It was shameful for and unbecoming of someone who delights in telling us he is a former education Minister. It would serve him and the rest of the Government better, and would restore some trust in politics, if he, the Minister and the Minister of State just admitted that they all got this horribly wrong. Instead, they apologised for how things were communicated. It was absolutely shambolic. They did not apologise at all for the policy itself. That is telling. I am aware that there are SENOs across this country who…

I certainly will not attempt to run through the names of local estates and roads the way in which my good friend and colleague Deputy Ó Murchú did in the context of County Louth. I thought that when he was eating in to that additional time, he was going to mention my own street in Drogheda but -----

-----he had the good grace not to and I have the good sense to live on the top of a hill, knowing that there are certain areas that are vulnerable to flooding and flood damage. The experience and topography in our respective towns is quite different. We are in a new era and a new normal, dare I say it, when it comes to flood events. Over the last few years and certainly before 2020, we got used to describing flash events as one-in-100-year rainfall events but the reality of climate change in 2026 is that the kinds …

We are debating this Bill this morning because the previous Government's so-called Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, which is less than three years old, has abjectly failed working people. Then again, we should not be surprised because it was set up to fail. We said that at the time and the proof is there for all to see in the operation of the terms of the Act in the WRC's annual reports. The debates on that Act were a waste of Dáil time. That legislation was an act of fraud perpetrated against co…

Hear, hear.

The accelerating infrastructure task force action plan was published towards the end of last year. Key to that plan is the accountability measures referenced in it and how they are implemented. The Minister, Deputy Chambers, might take the opportunity to put on the record of the House the details around accountability measures in that plan and how he intends to enforce and implement them.

The Minister will be aware that we in the Labour Party gave the action plan a fair wind. We did so because of the absolute dire situation this country faces in terms of infrastructure development, most notably in housing. The kind of economic development we all want to see simply will not happen if we do not address the key concerns we all have around housing provision, renewable energy, transport links and improving connectivity around the country. Will the Minister put on the record, in terms of the accountabilit…

We will be watching this very closely. The reason we gave the report a fair wind was because of the dire situation with infrastructure in the country. According to the IMF and others, our infrastructure is about one third behind comparable countries. Accountability is key because that has been one of the significant missing pieces. The problem is that if it is everyone's responsibility, it is nobody's responsibility. Ultimately, the Minister will be chairing the task force. My understanding, from re-reading the rep…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. Several of my colleagues have spoken on it over the last week or so. It is not an understatement to say migration, emigration and the policy that supports the area are complex issues. There is no doubt about that, but the policy we develop in here that finds its way into the legislation on our Statute Book cannot be done by simply appeasing the views of bar stoolers who get their news from Facebook. There is far too much of that in the reactive response we see to thi…

I raise with the Tánaiste the extension of the living cities initiative to five regional towns, including two in my constituency, Drogheda and Dundalk. When he has the opportunity he might state exactly when the initiative will go live for the new areas provided for under the Finance Act.

I thank the Tánaiste. We can all agree that vacancy and dereliction are a scourge in communities up and down the country. There is a particularly pronounced problem in my hometown of Drogheda. The Tánaiste will be aware of the extent of the problem in the historic core town centre of what is a very historic town, with some very significant buildings from an architectural and heritage point of view. Louth County Council did an analysis last year of the inner town centre area and identified approximately 58 vacant an…

It is one weapon in our armoury. There is no doubt about that but we need to take a varied approach to this. Another initiative, which was announced in the budget last year, was the transitioning of the derelict sites levy to a derelict sites tax. By definition, the responsibility for the collection of that tax will be given to the Revenue Commissioners. I have been campaigning for that for years; it makes sense. I always made the point that business owners who can afford to allow a building to become vacant and de…

I thank my colleague Deputy Ahern for providing me with some time to address a matter the Minister of State knows is very close to my heart and the hearts of the people of Drogheda. I have a very straightforward question for him. Where is Drogheda's new permanent driving test centre? He and I have engaged on this on a number of occasions in recent weeks. I appreciated the helpful updates he provided. For the benefit of the House, it is worth recording that in July of last year, the RSA said that the new driving tes…

I am pleased to have the opportunity to support Deputy Healy's motion. The contents of the motion will not be unfamiliar to those in opposition who have tabled broadly similar motions week in and week out over the last few years. What will not be lost on us either is the nature of the rather routine response that we receive from the Government, as we saw in the Minister of State, Deputy Dillon's, response to the motion earlier on. With respect, I have no doubt that in his response in closing the debate, the Ministe…

We disagree.