I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the terms of the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments, a copy of which was laid before Dáil Éireann on 27th October, 2023, and approves Ireland's accession to the Convention and to the depositing of an Instrument of Accession with the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organisation.

I move: Tuesday's business shall be: - Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023 Motion for a Financial Resolution (without debate) - Motion re Twenty-Ninth Report of the Committee of Selection (without debate) - Motion re Extension of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021 (to conclude within 57 mins) Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Housing, selected by Sinn Féin. Wednesday's business shall be: - Statements and Q&A post European Council meeting of 26th-27th October, pursuant to Standing Order…

No.

I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the Twenty Ninth Report of the Standing Committee of Selection in accordance with Standing Order 34, copies of which were laid before Dáil Éireann on 27th October, 2023, and discharges a member from a Committee and appoints a member to a Committee accordingly, with effect from 8th November, 2023.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. MCAP is operated by the primary care reimbursement service of the HSE and is a statutory programme to enable clinicians and patients to access prescribed cannabis-based products for the treatment of three specific conditions, as specified in the HPRA's 2017 report, Cannabis for Medical Use - A Scientific Review, which was commissioned by the Minister for Health. The three conditions are spasticity assoc…

I will pass on those comments to the Minister. The original 2017 HPRA report, Cannabis for Medical Use - A Scientific Review, recommended an access programme for a five-year pilot that permits patients with the defined medical conditions to be treated with cannabis or cannabinoids prescribed by their doctors. Due to the drafting of the required legislation needed to commence the programme and sourcing of cannabis-based products, the programme did not commence until 2021. Given the passage of time, the Department of…

No.

No.

I move: Tuesday's business shall be: - Motion re Ministerial Rota for Parliamentary Questions (without debate) - Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023 (Second Stage) (to conclude within 3 hrs 42 mins) Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Funding of the Health Service for 2024, selected by Sinn Féin. Wednesday's business shall be: - Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023 – Motions for Financial Resolutions (to be moved together and decided without debate by one question) - Statements pre European Council meeting of 26t…

No.

I thank all Deputies who made a contribution to this important Second Stage debate. I will now respond to as many as I can in the time available. In response to Deputies Doherty and Conway-Walsh, I note that the personal income tax package is built around three key pillars: changes to the tax credits, the standard rate band and USC. The Government has sought to use each of those levers to spread the benefit of the available package as effectively as possible. I am pleased to note Deputy Nash's support for the chang…

I welcome this opportunity to address the House on the funding for the health service in 2024. This was discussed in the House last week, and I would like to reiterate the Government’s commitment to ensuring our health services are well funded. The €22.5 billion health budget for 2024 is the biggest ever and will facilitate the continued delivery of quality affordable healthcare services. Deputies have referenced funding for waiting lists and emergency departments but it is important to point out that the emergency…

As Deputies are aware, ensuring people are healthy and active and that they get the healthcare they need when they need it is a priority for this Government. These are not just empty words. Let the facts speak to the Government’s commitment to ensuring that our health services are well funded. Over the past three years, the Government has delivered record investment in healthcare. The Government’s €22.5 billion health budget for 2024 is the biggest ever and will facilitate the continued delivery and expansion of qu…

I welcome the opportunity to discuss trends in mortality and estimates of excess mortality. The Department of Health actively monitors and reviews all available data on mortality, including excess mortality, as it becomes available, to gain a better insight on underlying mortality trends in Ireland and factors influencing these. While the Department does not produce estimates of excess mortality, it works closely with the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, HPSC, the Central Statistics Office, CSO, and other sta…

David Cullinane.

I move: Tuesday's business shall be the Statements on the final report of the independent scoping exercise into the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Shane O'Farrell ( not to exceed 112 mins ). Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Funding for Persons with Disabilities, selected by Sinn Féin. Wednesday's business shall be: - Motion re Appointment of An Coimisinéir Teanga ( without debate ) - Statements on trends in mortality and estimates of excess mortality ( not to exceed 147 mins ) …

He will not condemn Hamas

I am pleased to share details of the Department's budget 2024 allocations in the area for which I am responsible as Minister of State with responsibility for public health well-being and the national drugs strategy. As Deputies are aware, ensuring that people are healthy and active and that they get the healthcare they need is a priority for this Government. A key element of this approach is our healthy Ireland framework, at the core of which is the healthy Ireland fund. Established in 2017 with an initial annual b…

Yes.

I move: "It is proposed that— (i) in respect of the motions for the Financial Resolutions by the Minister for Finance, the following arrangements shall apply: (a) Resolution Nos. 1 and 2 shall be grouped together for the purposes of debate, and shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 45 minutes; (b) Resolution No. 3 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 30 minutes; and (c) each motion for a Financial Resolution shall be brought to a conclusion by one quest…