Yes.

It is the impact on-----

Next week sees the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. That means the brutal bombardment of Ukraine is about to enter its fifth year. We have seen appalling casualties and appalling attacks by Russia on the civilian population and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. It is in that context that I raise the alarming revelations on the front of today's edition of The Irish Times , following an investigation by Conor Gallagher, and also covered today in the Ukrainian media today. The story is …

This is the reality of life under Russia's grinding war.

What can the Taoiseach's Government do to ensure that Irish-made components do not end up in Russian weapons?

The decision to overturn planning permission for a new critical care wing at the Rotunda Maternity Hospital is deeply disappointing. The staff there provide exceptional care to women and babies. However, the building is failing them. The Rotunda is the busiest maternity hospital in Ireland and one of the busiest in Europe. Yet, vulnerable premature babies are being treated in facilities that are simply not fit for purpose and healthcare workers tell us that space constraints are already impacting on care. We all kn…

Oh, no.

I listened carefully to the Taoiseach's response and it is more of the same. It is Government as bystander and that is not good enough. It is not good enough for the Taoiseach or for the health Minister to say how disappointed they are with a decision of an entity created by the Government. It is simply not good enough either for the Taoiseach or the health Minister-----

You are critical of planning decisions.

Sorry, I did not interrupt you.

As I have said, and I hope I get more time, it is not good enough for the Taoiseach to govern as a bystander because he is in government and, indeed, he was in the previous Government. The planning process was established by Government. It is now up to the Government to do something about this decision. What I did not hear from the Taoiseach was any clarity about the long-term plans for the Rotunda. An Coimisiún Pleanála referred to a prospective move of the Rotunda. That has not been ruled out by either the Taoise…

It is not a soundbite.

Proposed by the Government.

That is not what we are saying.

Where is the clarity?

Some 60 years on, everyone agrees there must be a resolution to the State’s scandalous handling of thalidomide. What is needed now is a fair and full resolution for the survivors, for their families and for their mothers, many of whom are now in failing health. As the Irish Thalidomide Association has warned, the clock is ticking for this small group of just 40 survivors. They have had too many false dawns. There was renewed hope in December when the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste committed to taking personal charge, w…

And the Taoiseach will be meeting them before the end of February.

As we all know, it has been raining solidly since what feels like forever and communities across the country continue to deal with the fallout of flooding. In that time, my office has also been flooded - with pleas for help from terrified renters who are starting the new year with eviction notices. Things were already bad enough for tenants, but the Government's appalling new rent law has given landlords an effective amnesty on rent hikes; an incentive to evict. It passed the Dáil last night by a small majority. Pe…

I think we can agree on one thing. There is a housing emergency.

There is no doubt about that. I have certainly welcomed, as have my Labour colleagues, positive aspects of the legislation. However, the unfortunate truth is that these are undermined by the provisions that enable rent hikes, which incentivise rent hikes and incentivise evictions for the purpose of rent hikes. That is the problem, and it is a problem that renters across the country are experiencing. The real truth also, which nobody in Government is willing to admit, is that there is no evidence that this will work…