I thank the Minister of State for his reply but I note the NPWS has been given significant extra funding. It is essential some of that is put towards a bounty on mink. We cannot let this predator continue to roam uncontrolled in rural areas and in the water. If it does, many species will become extinct. The Minister of State stated the NPWS “does not have the resources at its disposal to undertake such work on a wider scale”. I accept that but with a bounty, through the conservation clubs and fishing and angling cl…

If we are serious about wildlife, surely, we have to get a budget to exterminate the mink.

I raise the issue of access for private patients to GP care. A number of constituents have contacted me in recent weeks because they cannot get access to a GP. We welcome the many Ukrainians who have come to our county. We are building a village in Thurles with 60-plus modular units. We are providing other buildings for refugees from Ukraine. It is essential we have the services, both medical and educational, to ensure everyone has access to the services they need. The lack of GP services for private patients is be…

I acknowledge the work of the Minister and his staff in the Department in progressing this Bill. It has come in for detailed discussion at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, which I am privileged to chair. Antimicrobial resistance is a major issue that must be addressed. I have full confidence in the Minister that when we eventually pass the legislation in this House, it will achieve its objectives. Human health is paramount and we must do whatever we can to improve it. Antimicrobia…

I wish to address the benefits that can be generated by genotyping the national herd. Anyone with an understanding of the sector will agree on those benefits. In recent years, this House has spent a great deal of time debating emissions reductions and our battle against climate change. I have been a stout defender of the agrifood industry. While we must face up to the reality of climate change, we cannot hinder our ability to produce food sustainably. We must be able to protect our production base. We have an emiss…

I welcome the Minister's answer. I think we are in full agreement on the huge benefits of genotyping our national herd. The accurate information that will be generated will have huge benefits for us. However, with respect, I want to emphasise that this is urgent and we need to get it moving as quickly as possible. It is estimated that Exchequer funding of €40 million to €45 million will be required to genotype the adult herd, alongside an ongoing expense each year on genotyping newborn calves. To me, it is too good…

I want to raise the issue of Borrisoleigh national school, a successful school with a constantly increasing enrolment. It needs more special needs assistant, SNA, hours as well as building work to deliver extra space as quickly as possible. It also needs an additional teacher. There are 37 students in a classroom of 60 sq. m, which is not acceptable. There is a general acceptance by the Department of Education that extra resources are required for the school, but I wish to discuss the length of time it is taking th…

I am delighted to get the opportunity to talk on the climate action plan. The first thing I have to mention is the actions of the Germans in the last couple of days with the demolishing of a village and the extension of an open coal mine in Germany. As a farmer in Tipperary, we are all in the one EU. If that happened in this country there would be a huge outcry, and rightly so. We cannot get the climate of the world right. That is going to need the co-operation of all the rest of the countries in the world. I know …

I will raise the very serious issue of the availability of medicines. A number of pharmacists who are finding it extremely difficult to source medicines have contacted me in the past couple of days. Two pharmacists informed me this morning that they are out of penicillin. There is a virus circulating at present for which penicillin is the best medicine but they are finding it impossible to get it. Pharmacists clearly said to me that the lack of medicines in the Twenty-six Counties is due to the amounts reimbursed b…

I wish the community in Leinster House, Members and staff, a very happy Christmas. I hope they enjoy their Christmas and have a healthy and prosperous new year. I recognise the increase in band 3 to which Deputy O'Donnell referred. We are in band 3 in Tipperary. The increase is most definitely welcome and the €5,000 will bring many more eligible applicants in for housing support and get them on the housing list. I would be a bit greedy and say we need to go higher than €30,000. I have been lobbying for this increas…

The temporary Covid-19 wage subsidy scheme, TWSS, was announced on 24 March 2020 and ran until 31 August 2020. It replaced the Revenue employer Covid-19 refund scheme. It allowed employers to continue to pay their employees during Covid-19. It aimed to keep employees registered with their employers so that they could get back to work quickly after the pandemic. The employment wage subsidy scheme, EWSS, which replaced the TWSS, came to an end in May 2022 after two years. The EWSS was the biggest and most important o…

While the Minister of State was speaking, I read to the bottom of his statement. It is an extremely comprehensive answer and outlines in detail the Revenue Commissioners' treatment of the TWSS. The reality is that people who stayed working during the Covid pandemic and provided essential services for us are now paying a larger proportion of their wages in tax, making up for what happened during the pandemic. While the Minister of State's written statement is extremely clear, it states that "the Government has been …

There have been many reports in recent weeks on different sectors in farming. I am extremely worried about the focus of these reports. Any change in policy which impacts our ability to produce sustainable food will be termed a failure. We have the modern technology which can allow us to achieve our emissions reduction and we cannot hinder our production base because that will ruin the foundation on which our agrifood industry is based.

The Aylward family is synonymous with Fianna Fáil. Through farming politics, I became very friendly with Liam when he was an MEP in Brussels. My first contact with Bobby on a personal basis was campaigning on the 2015 by-election. I had recently got the nomination in Tipperary to stand in the 2016 general election. We were marshalled to go across the border to canvass for Bobby. I remember we canvassed on a very wet day in Urlingford. We were very wet when we came in about 4 p.m. to get some refreshments and we def…

I thank the Minister of State for being here to take this Topical Issue matter. I raise the issue of funding for the Circle of Friends Cancer Centre in Tipperary town. To provide some background information, when I visited the centre first it was operating in an old building near the railway which was completely unsuitable for the purposes the organisation was trying to achieve. With huge voluntary fundraising efforts and donations, as well as Government support, a pristine cancer support centre has been built, whi…

I thank the Minister of State for the positive response. I do not have to say that she recognises what the cancer centres around the country do. The centre set up in Tipperary town and its work are an example to any cancer support group. The centre expects its number of users to double in 2023. I acknowledge that the door is open for consultation with the HSE and that the Minister of State will use her influence to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion. When making my opening remarks, I made a point on …

I am delighted to get this opportunity to talk about the challenges that are facing us and the result of COP27. I am a farmer and proud of it. Thankfully, the next generation has gone into partnership with me. With every sinew of energy that I have, I will fight to protect rural Ireland and our production base. Yes, we have to meet the challenges of climate change, but if that hinders our ability to produce food for the world in a sustainable manner, we are failing in meeting that challenge. Last week in Tipperary,…

I want to raise the issue of the number of psychologists on the north Tipperary children's disability network team, CDNT. I recently received a response to a parliamentary question I submitted to the Minister for Health in which I was informed that there are currently seven whole-time equivalent psychology posts in the area. Following further inquiries, however, I came to learn that two of these posts are currently unfilled. As things stand in north Tipperary, we have two senior psychology posts and two staff grade…

I thank the Minister of State and I acknowledge her efforts in the area of disability. I also acknowledge the work the staff are doing. No staff working in this service want to see waiting lists. When parents who are waiting for an assessment and services for their child ring me, their frustration is so palpable. They very much feel they are letting down their child and not giving them the best opportunity to fulfil his or her potential. That is regrettable. The figure in the Minister of State's reply that national…

The issue I raise relates to Shannondoc services in north Tipperary. It is a follow-up to a parliamentary question I tabled a couple of weeks ago. In Tipperary, there are three centres, comprising one core centre in Nenagh and regional centres in Thurles and Roscrea. As the Minister of State will know well, given my constituency stretches into her home town of Portumna, the geographical area of north Tipperary is just too large for one core centre to cover efficiently. This is in no way a criticism of the staff of …