I note that the Taoiseach said the focus of the informal meeting of EU leaders was on security. Clearly, there is a huge threat to European democracy as we see increasing authoritarianism, both from Trump's Government in the US and much closer to home from the threat of Russia on Europe's borders and the threat of the Russian dictator, Putin, and his regime in particular. It is very positive to hear most European leaders standing in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. It is deeply concerning, of course, to see t…

I welcome the Taoiseach's recent attendance at the commemoration ceremony for the liberation of Auschwitz. It is particularly important as we see a rise in fascism and authoritarianism worldwide and a terrible rise in antisemitism. It is very important that the Taoiseach attended to represent Ireland. I always attend the commemoration in the Mansion House on national Holocaust memorial day and would urge parliamentarians on both sides of the House to do so. It is a powerful and moving event, which I attended this y…

Mervyn Taylor-----

I want to return to an issue I raised with the Taoiseach yesterday, namely, the crisis in special education. Last Friday, I joined a group of 50 parents, children and family members who had to resort to a 24-hour sleep-out in front of the Department of Education in Dublin in order to highlight the crisis they are experiencing. I heard harrowing stories of experiences from desperate parents who are frustrated and in despair at the battle they had on behalf of their children. One mother told me of a long waiting list…

I thank the Taoiseach for the response and saying so clearly that there is no freeze on SNAs. That is at odds with the experiences reported to us by principals. I would welcome a more detailed written response from the Taoiseach on that because we have been told there is a directive from the Department that amounts to an obstacle or blockage to the hiring by principals of the SNAs that are needed. We all accept demographic change, but there is clearly a lack of planning from the Department because we know the numbe…

-----to ensure every child who needs a special school or class will have access to that.

Yesterday, the Department of housing announced it had allocated €265 million for housing acquisitions but it is unclear how much of that will support the tenant in situ scheme. We know from announcements that there are some restrictions on who can access the scheme. It seems priority is going to families, older people and disabled people. Single renters slip into homelessness at a higher rate than any other group and already the scheme is failing to address real need, even for those who apparently would have priori…

I want to raise the climate crisis with the Taoiseach. Today, we see the devastating report from the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council and the Climate Change Advisory Council. They tell us that on its current trajectory, the Government will clearly miss our legally binding 2030 climate targets. We all know the consequences of that failure will be enormous. That is set out in the report: €26 billion in fines; and the really serious impact upon generations to come who will see a future stolen from them, generations who r…

I think we can agree on one thing: climate change is existential. The threat of climate change is clearly existential. Ach níl an Rialtas ag déanamh gach iarracht. The Government is not making every effort; clearly not. The trajectory of this Government is on course to miss climate targets, and to say otherwise flies in the face of the evidence that is being presented to the Taoiseach and all of us by these bodies. The whole thing is reminiscent of the Taoiseach's reliance on inflated home delivery targets during t…

That is €26 billion.

On a point of order, we indicated that we would come back.

This is completely out of order.

The Taoiseach had rejected my original proposal.

I raised with the Taoiseach last week my concern and that of my party about Government proposals to dismantle the triple lock. I emphasise again we in the Labour Party would oppose any attempt to dismantle or undermine the triple lock. Given President Trump's appalling attempts to humiliate Ukraine's President Zelenskyy, which we saw last Friday, it is all the more important now we stand in solidarity with Ukraine but also that we reaffirm our commitment to the international rules-based order, multilateralism and t…

-----that the mission must be in keeping with the spirit of the UN Charter, but if that is the case, why rule out the need for UN sanction?

What about-----

Work and job quality is one of the dimensions to the well-being framework. My party would have liked to see stronger commitments on workers' rights in the programme for Government. I want to raise a number of concerns around workers' rights with the Taoiseach. We introduced a Labour Party Bill to provide for reproductive healthcare leave for women experiencing early pregnancy loss in the workplace. The Second Reading of our Bill was delayed until 18 January this year to allow the Government to develop its own propo…

The Taoiseach has acknowledged the system is not delivering for children with additional needs who require particular provision in the school system. Indeed, I joined a group of over 50 parents, and some children and grandparents, who resorted to a 24-hour sleepout last Friday in front of the Department of Education. I heard some harrowing stories there from parents and grandparents, including some who live in my constituency. I am so well aware that even where their children are able to access a suitable school pl…

Yes.

I wish to return to the issue of the recruitment of special needs assistants raised with the Taoiseach by my colleague, Deputy Eoghan Kenny, earlier. Budget 2024 provided for an extra 1,216 SNAs in the current school year. Are all those SNAs in place? Will the increase of 1,600 SNAs announced in the budget for this year in fact take effect? We are all still hearing of children who have a place in a school but cannot get access to the additional support they need in class because not enough SNAs have been provided. …