I thank the Minister. The report issued by the expert group in early September on funding and the Department’s report, Nurturing Skills, were both welcome and timely. Access to affordable early learning and childcare supports a fair society, sustainable communities and a thriving economy. The Minister is acutely aware of the challenges facing parents, childcare professionals and childcare providers, and he is working to address them. I regularly hear from constituents who raise issues concerning the affordability a…

I thank the Minister for his reply. Childcare professionals demonstrated incredible resilience throughout the pandemic in supporting children and keeping the services open.

The efforts Irish people have made in recent weeks to reduce social contacts and take care when they meet others, combined with the high uptake of the vaccination and booster programme, have made a considerable difference to the public health situation. I know this is the reason restrictions have been eased. We have heard from the Chief Medical Officer, CMO, that getting back to activity is possible now and we have much to look forward to. However, I have concerns, one of which is the case numbers and that people a…

I know the Minister, Deputy Harris, has left the Chamber but I want to thank him for visiting Carlow. When I invited him he said he would come down and in fairness to him, within about six weeks he was down to visit the two excellent third level colleges we have in Carlow. I thank him for all the work he has done for us in Carlow. Higher and further education have been greatly affected by the Covid-19 crisis. It is so important that we support the sector through these challenges, to ensure that educational opportun…

Today the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is discussing surrogacy which is very important issue. We do not have a roadmap for those who become parents through surrogacy and we do not have the correct status. A mother told me she had to sit in the carpark of a children's hospital while her young child was inside as she is not recognised as the child's legal guardian. Surrogacy advocates ask that children born here are legally recognised, but, and this is important,…

While I welcome the restrictions lifted last week, I have concerns about how people with medical cards are being looked after. I have been contacted by people with medical cards who were denied dental appointments. I sat with one elderly gentleman in my office last week and we went through a list of dentists together. We finally finding one in Carlow who sees patients under the General Medical Services, GMS, Contract. This is unacceptable. Are there fees for Covid consultations with GPs? I have had a few phone call…

I know it is clear we need to build housing but we need to make it affordable. I still meet people who do not qualify for the local authority home loan and they do not qualify for social housing. We talk about supply being the issue, but there have been other issues, including a backlog in housing applications. I thank the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for addressing that by means of fast-tracking the appointment of new staff. The housing department in Carlow has five new staff and Kilkenny ha…

My question is about the hybrid leaving certificate for 2022 students. The students and parents who contacted me today are so disappointed that the Minister has ruled it out. What are her plans now to reform the leaving certificate?

I thank the Minister. I am intensely aware of the interruption experienced by students due to take their leaving certificate examination this year. The level of stress as they awaited certainty about this year's examinations was felt by all of us. I appreciate that the Minister has made great changes to the examinations, but these students have missed an entire year of a two-year programme. I am really worried about students' mental health. It is time we reformed the leaving certificate and the steps to do that mus…

I want to ask the Minister about supports. What supports will be offered to students with long-term illnesses that might prevent them from sitting the examination on the assigned date? A student with epilepsy who experiences a medical emergency such as a seizure immediately before or during the examination and is unable to complete that examination, should be given the opportunity to re-sit the examination within the same examination cycle or before such time as the CAO offers issue. Such a provision has been intro…

I refer to delays in passports in Carlow and Kilkenny. There are concerns, as others have said. When someone applies for a passport, one wrong tick can mean the application goes right back to the start. I know the staff are working very hard but I would ask that a system be put in place so that a small issue that can be addressed is addressed. There have been loads of delays in my own area, including people who were unable to attend funerals and one family where two people could travel and one could not. I know tha…

I too want to ask about the update on the benefit scheme to credit domestic electricity customers with €100 in 2022. I understand that inclusive of VAT, that amount will be €113. When will people get the rebate? Are there any plans to increase this figure? While we all welcome these kinds of announcements, it is unfair that people are not given clear information and timeframes. We were delighted with the announcement that front-line workers are to get €1,000. That is good news. However, there is confusion surroundi…

Of the 453 live connection points, how many are in counties Carlow and Kilkenny? I would like the Minister of State to examine this issue, Has an independent study into the potential role of next-generation low-earth orbit satellites to deliver high-speed broadband to rural Ireland been conducted? In the past 18 months, enormous strides have been made in the provision of global satellite-based high-speed broadband. Is the Government actively encouraging and supporting the provision of high-speed broadband via low-e…

I thank the Minister of State; I am happy with that. I will contact the office. In my home town of Carlow, and in Kilkenny, there have been huge issues around businesses getting broadband connections. As previous speakers said, there are connections in one part of a town but across the road there might not be. I know the Minister of State is committed as is the Minister for Rural and Community Development. However, Covid has totally changed the concept of working from home. These issues need to be addressed. I know…

There is nowhere on the map for those who cannot get a connection to see when there will be a connection. That is something I will address. I thank the Minister of State for his replies.

A constituent of mine in Carlow cannot access an NBI connection because the website says the survey is still pending. NBI contractors have been on the ground throughout the country for more than 22 months and more than 291,000 premises nationwide have been surveyed. A total of 3,500 premises were surveyed in September last year. When my constituent checks on the NBI website and enters his Eircode postcode to see what stage it is at, his status is stuck. It is stuck on "survey pending" and that has been going on for…

I apologise. I tried to give the Deputy a little leeway but her time is up.

The Deputy is allowed five minutes and I am trying to stick to that. My apologies.

It is not on my list so the Deputy has five minutes.

Thank you. There was probably a little confusion there. We move to the Independent Group. I call Deputy Catherine Connolly, who has five minutes.