I thank the Minister for his continued engagement on this matter. We all need to tackle youth unemployment quickly. It is good to see that, after four months of being on jobseeker's payments, there are significant activation measures from Intreo offices to assist those young people to try to get back to work. I am sure all the Deputies in the House are contacted through their offices or social media about advertising jobs available in the local area. There are plenty of jobs, but we need to work with Intreo staff a…

I am talking this question on behalf on Deputy McCarthy. I remind the Minister that Deputy McGrath was always first in in the budget process in Cork County Council when he sat on it with me over the past number of years. It is good to see things have not changed since then. I want to ask the Minister, and it is a very timely question on behalf of Deputy McCarthy, about his plans to introduce a cost-of-disability payment and if he will make a statement on the matter.

It is great that, as of today, more than 80 submissions have already been made. I join the Minister in encouraging people with disabilities, their families, carers, representative organisations and all interested stakeholders to take part in the newly launched public consultation process relating to the cost of disability. The programme for Government includes a commitment to introduce a permanent-cost-of-disability support payment recognising the significant additional costs that many disabled people face in their…

I very much welcome that this consultation will inform the agenda of the strategic focus network summit on the cost of disability, which will take place in May and which the Minister will chair. I look forward to attending as Chair of the joint committee on social protection. The Minister said that every support will be given in the interim to people with disabilities in terms of any immediate payments that are required. People with disabilities need to contact their local Intreo offices to make sure that any suppo…

I am taking this parliamentary question on behalf of Deputy Noel McCarthy.

I thank the Minister of State. The current stretch of the N25 national route between Carrigtwohill and Midleton remains a safety issue. The configuration of the road is dangerous. There are frequent accidents, some of which have been fatal. TII's collision analysis has confirmed the collision rate for the route is above average. Low standard junctions, medium crossings and direct access points to the road for properties are not encouraging safe travel. At peak times, it is not unusual to see traffic on two busy lan…

I note that the N25 Carrigtohill to Midleton project was included in the latest national development plan review, which was published in November, as one of the roads projects to be advanced for future construction. It is, however, currently lagging behind the proposed upgrade to the Midleton to Youghal section of the N25 as no tendering or construction date has commenced or is yet outlined for the Carrigtohill to Midleton section. The situation is likely to worsen in future with thousands of housing units currentl…

I want to raise with the Tánaiste today the lack of wastewater treatment capacity in the town of Kanturk in north Cork. We are very lucky to have five or six sites in development at the moment, with a number of houses being developed right across the town. We have a number of other applications for planning permission which do not have a wastewater connection at the moment. I believe there is a plan to install a modular wastewater treatment plant alongside the wastewater treatment plant that is currently in place i…

I thank the Deputy.

I am here tonight to highlight an issue that is causing real pain, distress and uncertainty for families right across Cork city and county. I refer to the unacceptably long waiting times for patients seeking to be seen as outpatients by a consultant orthopaedic surgeon in the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital, SIVUH, in Cork. The SIVUH plays a vital role in delivering specialist orthopaedic care to people not just in Cork city but across the wider region. Every week, my office is contacted by patients, y…

I thank the Minister of State for her encouragement and engagement in the response. There is a glimmer of hope for orthopaedic patients in Cork. I know we had the fantastic publication of the service plan this week, where the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, announced €34 million for the surgical hub, which will allow capacity for up to 18,500 outpatient appointments. I hope that will reduce some of the orthopaedic waiting list for outpatient clinics. As the Minister of State said, it is currently at 7,444. I am …

I want to ask the Tánaiste about the communication this week from Tailte Éireann on early years service providers and childminders receiving bills for commercial rates. As he knows, they quietly provide a very important public service through the early childhood care and education scheme and other childminding services right across the country. To date, they have not been liable for commercial rates. It is big change. There will be a significant charge on different childminders, particularly early years service pro…

I thank the Minister.

I thank the Deputy and call on the Minister to respond.

Deputy Cummins has a supplementary question, as does Deputy Gould.

The Minister to respond. Can the Deputy sit down, please?

I welcome the opportunity to speak this evening on the importance of the N20-M20 motorway project for the Munster region and the urgent need to accelerate progress on its business case, the final design and planning during 2026. For far too long, the N20 corridor between Cork and Limerick has been recognised as one of the most congested, dangerous and inadequate national routes in the country. It is a road that no longer meets the needs of modern Ireland and certainly does not meet the needs of a growing and ambiti…

I thank the Minister of State for his kind words relating to this project. It is a very detailed project and there is a lot of money involved, but I welcome the fact that in his response, he said the scheme preliminary business case is expected to be submitted to the Department of Transport in the second half of this year. This is very welcome news. We need to keep this momentum going, and subject to Government approval, which I am sure will come as is required under the infrastructure guidelines, the submission of…

I want to raise the importance of proceeding with the N/M20 Cork to Limerick motorway project. It is not just a road project; it is a vital piece of national infrastructure that will shape the economic and social future of our region for generations to come. For far too long, communities and landowners along this corridor have endured congestion, delays and safety concerns. Families, commuters, businesses and emergency services all feel the impact of an outdated and overburdened route on a daily basis. Proceeding w…

The Minister of State, without interruption.