The death toll in Gaza has reached more than 30,000 people. Gaza is one of the most densely populated areas in the world and under Israeli bombardment, its people have been brutally displaced and forced into ever more cramped and overcrowded spaces, most recently into Rafah. They are still being bombarded, even now in Rafah. We are witnessing Armageddon. There is nowhere left for a desperate civilian population to go in Gaza. On 7 October, we saw the horrific Hamas attack on Israel and since 7 October, we have seen…

I certainly acknowledge that Ireland's response to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza has been strong - stronger than that of many other European countries - but it is still not strong enough. It was important that the Dáil and the Government called for a ceasefire and that the Taoiseach and his Government colleagues defended UNRWA when other countries were not doing so, and we acknowledge that from the Opposition. I am glad to hear the Taoiseach spoke yesterday with the President of the EU Commission on the EU-Isra…

We have seen reports on RTÉ's "Prime Time" that 23 properties have been set alight in recent months. Setting these fires amounts to a form of domestic terrorism, as my colleague, Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, has said. Very concerningly, this spate of arson attacks is posing a real and serious threat to human life. In response to a request from Deputy Ó Ríordáin, on 5 March, the Garda Commissioner and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, will address the Joint Committee on Justice on this threat. Will the Government also allo…

News broke today that the latest attempt to curb HSE overspending involves plans to cut €250 million on outside agency staff. The cost of hiring healthcare staff from for-profit agencies increased by 139% between 2015 and 2022 to €619 million. The HSE should directly employ nurses, midwives and doctors and not over-rely on agencies. One agency healthcare worker affected by the current recruitment freeze said to me about agency work, "Every day is like your first day on the job - it doesn’t make sense to move around…

I want to return to the issue of renters' rights because today sees another damning report confirming the Government's failure in its basic duty to ensure all citizens and residents have a secure and affordable home. Today’s bad news comes from the latest report of the Residential Tenancies Board, and there is no explaining away the stark figures it presents. The report shows that renters are now being hit with rent hikes of more than double the legal caps in some rent pressure zones. Between quarter 3 of 2022 and …

The measures the Minister has described are simply not enough and I do not think anyone in government would dispute that. They are simply not enough to deal with the real levels of housing distress. The Minister speaks in the passive tense and refers to demand outstripping supply, but it is up to the Government to do something about that.

This Government has been in office since 2020. We need to see action on this. Week in, week out, we hear the Government dismissing constructive proposals from the Opposition. It dismissed restricting no-fault evictions, freezing rents, and the idea of linking increases to inflation. It dismissed increasing the new-build target to 50,000 homes per year years, but it has never explained why it was dismissing these constructive proposals that could make a difference. Instead, it resorts to explaining and re-explaining…

I recently met with a group of small business owners, mostly restaurateurs, based in my own constituency in south inner-city Dublin and in surrounding areas. They outlined to me the many challenges facing their sector and their concerns about potential closures, job losses and the loss of vibrancy in Dublin city centre and other urban city centres if the challenges for small businesses, particularly in hospitality, are not addressed by the Government. I was glad to have the Minister's engagement on some of the issu…

If I may, I will share time with former Labour Party leader and my colleague Deputy Brendan Howlin, who, of course, served with the former Taoiseach John Bruton in government. On behalf of the Labour Party, I wish to extend our sincere sympathies to the family of John Bruton: to his wife, Finola, to their four children, Juliana, Emily, Mary-Elizabeth and Matthew, to his sister, Mary, and, of course, to his brother and our colleague, Deputy Richard Bruton. We are so sorry for your loss. I extend our sympathies also …

The latest price increases by VHI Healthcare have exposed the ailing health of our national care system. VHI premiums will rise by an average of 7% from 1 March. That hike comes on top of two previous increases in March and October of last year. It means people who have private health insurance with VHI will have to front up anywhere from an additional €180 up to nearly €700 for just one year. Families may expect an increase of between €400 up to nearly €600 at a time when so many families are struggling with risin…

I thank the Minister for his response, I think, but regardless of whether you are on the left or not in this country, what saps public confidence in our public healthcare system is lack of Government investment. I listened carefully to the Minister's commentary and it sounded to me as if he was observing rather than speaking as a member of the Government. As a member of Government presiding over what has been a good time for the public finances, why have we not seen the level of investment necessary to deliver on p…

It is not enough.

But the recruitment-----

We are not seeing enough.

I welcome to the Public Gallery representatives from Helping Irish Hosts, the Irish Red Cross, Ukraine Civic Society Forum and Ukrainian Action in Ireland. I thank Helping Irish Hosts and the Irish Red Cross for providing a positive and uplifting briefing this morning which I had the honour of chairing. I thank colleagues from across the House who came along to the audiovisual room. We heard there are over 21,000 Ukrainians staying with Irish hosts, that 25% of displaced Ukrainians are in host accommodation and ple…

I, too, welcome the good news about the progress overnight in Northern Ireland towards the long overdue restoration of the Stormont institutions and the executive. Is í tithíocht an cnámh spairne is mó sa Stát. Tá géarghá le níos mó tithíocht a aimsiú agus a thógáil go práinneach ach teastaíonn go leor féinsmachta chuige sin. Níl aon dul chun cinn á dhéanamh. The housing disaster continues to dominate every aspect of Irish life. Last week, we saw new figures on homelessness. Thousands of people, including nearly 4,…

I welcome the Taoiseach's comments on the likely progress in Northern Ireland. I think we all welcome it. However, in terms of housing, there is simply not enough progress from Government nor is there enough ambition or urgency in the delivery of housing. I listened carefully to the Taoiseach's response on housing and I am glad that he said that the Government will take Opposition suggestions on board. Two years ago, we put forward a Bill to protect renters and provide for greater legal security for renters. The Go…

We spoke earlier about the welcome progress in Northern Ireland. I understand the details of the DUP deal are to be published tomorrow. However, we do not yet know exactly what Westminster will be asked to pass by way of legislation as part of that deal. Will the Government Whip allow for time this week or early next week for statements on Northern Ireland and on progress so that the Government can provide clarity, in particular on the issue of what it proposes to do, as one of the custodians of the Good Friday Agr…

Since the House last sat, provisional orders have been made by the International Court of Justice in the case taken by South Africa against Israel. This represents a significant step forward towards achieving justice for the people of Gaza. As we know, the court has now affirmed the gravity of the accusations against Israel and has called for preservation of human life for allowing humanitarian aid to pass and effectively for an end to the bombardment. All these measures are needed to stop war crimes and genocide i…

Last night was a missed opportunity in the context of the votes on the atrocities in Gaza and the proceedings before the International Court of Justice, ICJ. Our national Parliament had the chance to achieve unanimity in standing up for international law and against war, death and destruction. It is unfortunate that the House divided. I was particularly disappointed that the Government voted against the amendments from Labour and other Opposition parties to the Government motion. The amendments restated calls for a…