Deputy Durkan still has not reached his prime.

I would like an update on the investment in equipment for the Defence Forces. This is part of the five-year development plan launched in 2020. In that context, the Minister made reference to Russian aircraft off the coast of Ireland and developments and speculation in that area. Have we now reached a point where we as a country need to invest in the development of radar surveillance capability, in particular a primary radar system? Do we need to put money into that and is it being considered under the investment pr…

When does the Minister expect the Commission on the Defence Forces to report? The issue of radar surveillance equipment is very much in focus with the public and generally.

The legislation for the establishment of the first directly elected mayor in Limerick city and county went through as a plebiscite in May 2019. I see that legislation is on the priority list. When does the Minister of State expect it to progress? What is the timeframe involved? Pre-legislative scrutiny took place and was signed off on 11 November 2021. When does the Minister of State expect the election to take place? The people of Limerick voted and want to see it being delivered.

I have a few follow-up questions. When does the Minister of State expect the Bill to be published and come before the Houses of the Oireachtas? Obviously, Second Stage will be taken in the Dáil in the first instance. When does the Minister of State expect the election of the first directly elected mayor for the capital of the mid-west, and the third largest city and county in Ireland, to take place?

I have one question. When will the legislation be published? We cannot make progress until it is published. When, in this term, does the Minister of State expect it to be published?

The main reason I bring up this issue is that there is a new national retrofit scheme to be announced shortly by Government. Currently, there are three schemes available. There is the better energy warmer homes scheme, which is a free scheme that applies to people who qualify under a range of social welfare headings. It has been in place since 2009 but has changed over that time. In 2009, attic insulation and cavity walls were the main ones that applied. In 2018, that was extended to include internal and external w…

I thank the Minister of State. The one home, one visit rule needs to be amended. There needs to be consistency across all schemes in terms of what is covered and how the schemes are administered. Through the better energy warmer homes scheme, which is a grant scheme, and the one-stop shop scheme, everyone, no matter who they are, should be able to access the same range of measures. That needs to happen. The grants will have to be increased for the new retrofit scheme that is going to be announced. They will have to…

I refer to the safe school scheme in Limerick. There were eight schools granted entry in a recent round. Of those, two were secondary schools and six were primary schools. They were all city-based and that is to be welcomed. When will the Department expedite the roll-out of this scheme to all the schools that have applied in Limerick and north County Tipperary? We have villages like Newport, Castleconnell, Moroe, Caherconlish and Birdhill as well. The Minister of State might give us an update on where the scheme is…

On the rolling basis, let us say eight schools in Limerick were selected with two being secondary schools and six being primary schools. If one school is completed, does another school automatically come in then in Limerick? It is great we see eight city-based schools being included in the safe routes to schools programme under this round. However, we have schools in villages in rural areas. In north County Tipperary we have the likes of Newport and Birdhill. In County Limerick we have Castleconnell, Moroe and Cahe…

I welcome the fact 29 schools have been included under the 932 and that there are 32 in Tipperary. It is about the mechanism for me. Is there a time limit on when the local authorities must have the eight schools in Limerick and two in Tipperary that have been selected done? I ask that the Minister of State, as she has responsibility for this programme, look to see how we can expedite it. This is a win-win. This is something every parent, child and local area would buy into. The fact we are doing 170 schools this y…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle and all his staff in Leinster House, at every level, for their great help and support throughout the year. I wish them all, and their families, a happy and peaceful Christmas. I will concentrate on this afternoon's announcement by the Minister for Health that we will expedite the roll-out of the vaccine by opening vaccination centres for longer hours, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., which is very welcome. I have two provisos from a Limerick perspective. First, I am conscious that health staff are…

The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Hildegarde Naughton, undertook to commission a review of the financial situation of Shannon Airport, which was carried out by NewERA. I understand that, according to that report, there is a need to continue to provide financial supports for Shannon Airport into 2022. The regional airports programme, which has been extended to Shannon Airport for 2022, must be extended permanently. What is in the report in that regard? We welcome the fa…

I am a little surprised that this report was given to the Department last July. I am also surprised that the Minister of State said it was confidential and commercially sensitive because I read about its contents in the Irish Examiner . The article stated, "A review of Shannon Airport has found that the group should continue to receive State funding, the Cabinet has heard." I am a Deputy for the mid-west. Shannon Airport is vital. This is very simple. Shannon Airport must be included in the regional airports progra…

I want to follow up with the Taoiseach’s reference to his meeting with the hospitality sector yesterday, along with his ministerial colleagues. It is a huge sector for employment. It is very much about maintaining that link with their employees. We have a large hospitality sector in Limerick and in the midwest. I want to follow up with the Taoiseach on his discussions yesterday. When does he expect those to be concluded? When does he expect that the scheme will be announced, particularly considering the CRSS and th…

When?

I welcome the changes. Many of the questions I had intended to ask have already been answered by the Minister. We deal with carers as a group a great deal and they do phenomenal work, much of it hidden. I would love to see empirical work done on what they are saving the State in terms of healthcare. I do not know if that is being done, but it should be done. I welcome the increase in the income thresholds and the increase in the amounts. As a slight aside when speaking about groups, the living alone allowance has b…

In the time I have, I want to deal with a couple of items relating to Limerick. They come under the headings of testing and University Hospital Limerick, UHL. On the testing side, we have a testing centre in Ballysimon on the Ballysimon Road and RocDoc in Shannon is also being used. This morning you could not an appointment in Ballysimon. Later today you could not get an appointment either in Ballysimon or in RocDoc. We have an issue. We need a further test centre in Limerick. I ask that request be looked at seriou…

I raise the matter of University Hospital Limerick, UHL. It currently has the highest trolley count in Ireland, with 58 patients on trolleys. It has 56 Covid patients. Thirteen Covid patients are in ICU and 30 patients have been in ICU for a long time. That is above the number of ICU beds in the hospital, of which there are 12. There are also high-dependency unit beds, bringing the number to 28. Of the available beds in ICU, over 50% are taken up by Covid patients. I have a question about the winter preparation pla…

-----the resources to be able to employ staff and junior doctors and to make that submission for funding to get us through this winter period?