There is a collective view in this House on the shocking genocide that has occurred. As I have said to the Deputy's colleagues, the Government does not and cannot decide whether a fixture will be fulfilled. The FAI has set out its reasoning for fulfilling this particular fixture. We have heard the comments by the Irish manager, Heimir Hallgrímsson, who, like his players, is in total solidarity with the Palestinian people. The FAI has engaged with UEFA as part of addressing its concerns regarding this particular fix…

We are all agreed on the need to ensure lessons are learned from that particular contract. We have had independent evaluations of what occurred and they absolutely will inform future contracts, whether in health infrastructure or in other areas. That is well documented and has been well debated here and at Oireachtas committees. I do not have to hand the specific detail on the issues the Deputy has raised. No hospital should open unless it meets regulatory standards for patient safety.

I will ask the Minister for Health or Children's Health Ireland to respond to the specific concerns expressed by particular workers and raised by the Deputy today.

The sentiment of young people is absolutely essential in how we frame and decide different policies. The single biggest priority of the Government is ensuring supply and affordability of housing. We want to ensure young people have the prospect of owning or getting a home and that there is rent affordability. To give balance to the survey the Deputy mentioned, many young people are coming back to live in Ireland and are getting jobs here. Of course, I am as concerned as anybody by the sentiment reflected in the Nat…

I know people in some rural communities, where there is a certain level of demand, do not have a ticket or have had issues with the organisation or operation of this service. It is important to stand back and look at overall Government investment in the service. As I have said previously in the House, it has increased exponentially. The funding of the school transport system must be sustainable and must fit within our broader medium-term plan for growth and expenditure in the economy. The funding has gone from €219…

Budget 2026 allocated €27.4 billion in funding for the health system in 2026, which is a record allocation of current expenditure and an increase of 6.2% on 2025. We stood up a structure of regional executives that were given an employment allocation in the context of the record budget we introduced. In some instances, those executives recruited in excess of that. It is matter for those executives, in conjunction with the HSE and the Department of Health, to ensure that we absolutely prioritise clinical staff, nurs…

It is a matter for the HSE-----

-----and the Department of Health to prioritise any further recruitment in line with the budget we have provided.

This has been a big priority for Government over the past number of years. That is reflected in how we have budgeted for this and how we expanded the scheme. There has been a 50% increase in pupils utilising school transport this year compared with 2019. That has been reflected in how we are supporting it. I accept that there are particular issues in feedback from local communities where a ticket is given and not utilised and where another pupil who requires a ticket is not given one. There should probably be bette…

When canvassing over the summer, this was one of the major issues reflected in many estates right across my community. There is serious concern about the misuse of e-scooters and scramblers. We have taken action in the context of the existing laws. The Minister of State, Deputy Canney, has signed some of the regulations around this that are being introduced. We need to listen to the feedback of the clinicians appearing before the Oireachtas committee this week about further actions that may be required. We also nee…

I thank Deputy Collins for raising this important issue. I acknowledge the concerns raised by residents and by the Deputy relating to nursing services on Cape Clear. HSE South West has acknowledged challenges in the recruitment of nursing staff to Cape Clear in recent years. Notwithstanding these challenges, the HSE has advised that a regular nursing service continues to be provided on the island in line with population needs. A registered general nurse is based on Cape Clear from Monday to Friday and on alternate …

I thank Deputy Moynihan for raising this important issue. I will raise it with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, regarding the particular interpretation taken by the Road Safety Authority in respect of licence renewals. I am not familiar with the technical aspects the Deputy referenced. The Minister and Minister of State will need to evaluate the matter in line with what he said. I will ask them to respond to him directly.

The Deputy is correct. There are too many derelict properties in towns and villages across the country. We need to use all levers of Government to incentivise their use for community infrastructure or for enterprise. The Minister, Deputy Browne, has brought in a series of grants to help bridge the gap for different communities and for people interested in investing and turning properties around. The Tánaiste and the former Minister, Paschal Donohoe, have done work on moving this tax to Revenue, which will have a si…

The Deputy and I have engaged at meetings of Oireachtas committees on following through on that and moderating the growth rate of current expenditure from 9%, the average over the past five years, to 6%, the rate we have set in the medium-term fiscal and structural plan. Part of driving that involves ensuring we are much more effective in driving efficiencies in the existing base spend, achieving much better value for money for taxpayers and continuing to commit to the two structural funds we have established, name…

I regret that this has been the direct experience of many people in Wexford. The most appropriate structural intervention to improve provision of GP services across our State has been what we have done on the graduate side of things. The number of postgraduate places for general practice has massively expanded in the past number of years. That pipeline of graduates is now coming through the system. We should see the benefit of that in different communities. The HSE has also worked to address some of the deficits in…

I did not see the specific report in the Irish Independent . Following through on this is obviously a joint competence of the Departments of Health and Justice. We will ask that confidence in further co-ordination be ensured, particularly for families who have particular concerns. I will ask both Departments to respond to that issue.

The Deputy may have read news reports, but such reports do not supersede discussions on the Estimates. Nothing has been agreed on any matter relating to the budget yet. We will have to consider all matters in the context of what is available for 2027. The arts capital programme was referenced in the sectoral investment plan that we published. It is also reflected in the programme for Government. I will ask the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, to set out a timeline in that regard. A decision on what is possible for 2027 …

I thank Deputy McDonald for her remarks. As she knows, budget 2027 is being designed and delivered against a significant international backdrop and risk to the Irish economy. In the context of geopolitical uncertainty, we have gone through a significant series of shocks over the last number of months and years. The Government is cognisant of the serious pressures families face when it comes to day-to-day issues when filling their cars with diesel or petrol or buying home heating oil. The budget is taking place in t…

-----rather than seeking to politicise everything. How Sinn Féin can gain is the constant direction from the Deputy's party, and how it can exploit different areas and different people across our economy. I look forward to reading Sinn Féin's pre-budget submission, because we know that, while it has a loose attachment to many in the Russian economy, it plays Russian roulette with the Irish economy when it comes to all its pre-budget submissions.

Sinn Féin wants to cut taxes, massively ramp up expenditure and undermine our economic future. In this budget, we will prioritise, we will target towards those most in need, but we will also protect growth, prosperity and jobs for the Irish economy into the 2030s, ensuring that we continue to build enterprise, strengthen our labour market and give people that hopeful future. That is about protecting investment in infrastructure and housing as well, which is a critical part of budget 2027. The Minister, Deputy O'Bri…