I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. It is that time of year again when we are starting to run into issues in respect of school transport. I know that such issues can cause a great deal of distress for many families. The best thing I can do is to let the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, know that the Deputy raised the issue and ask her to reply directly to the Deputy by correspondence.

I am afraid that I do not know why nobody was invited from that group. I do know that mica and pyrite have affected homes in Clare and Limerick and that it is not just an issue in Mayo and Donegal. We will have to ensure that they are part of the solution in some way. I will let the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, know that the Deputy raised the issue and ask him to come back to her on it.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. I am afraid that I do not have any information on it to hand. I will certainly let the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, or the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, whichever one is appropriate, know that the issued was raise and ask her to contact the Deputy directly.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I am afraid that I do not have a timeline in respect of the proposed legislation currently. It is very much part of the Department's work programme.

The scheme was temporary. Like all temporary schemes, it has to come to an end. The big change that has happened in nursing homes is that the residents and staff are now almost all fully vaccinated. Thankfully, the number of cases and outbreaks has been, and continues to be, very small. However, infection control is always a good thing, particularly in nursing homes. What probably needs to happen is an engagement involving the sector, the National Treatment Purchase Fund, the Department of Health and the HSE with a…

On the western rail corridor project, the national development plan is under review and the revised version should be published in July, if not a little later. Of course, as the Deputy is aware, other reports have been produced on the issue, such as the Jasper Consulting report, which came to different conclusions. The Government is very aware of the problems being created by the increase in the cost of building materials. A lot of is down to international commodity prices not entirely under our control. However, w…

The fact that the Deputy has to go out of his way to misrepresent what I say and to misquote me is emblematic of how dishonest and two-faced he and his party are when it comes to the issue of housing. What I said was a statement of fact, but I did not say under any circumstances that I thought it was desirable that we should see house prices rise further or get back to the level they were at 14 years ago. What the Deputy misquoted me as saying was absolutely incorrect and he should withdraw it from the record. It i…

Regarding the Deputy’s specific question-----

-----on the housing budget and the budget for social housing, that is under consideration at the moment.

The Deputy knows it is. The national development plan, NDP, review and the Housing for All document are all being considered now. Of course we want to increase social housing provision and the social housing budget-----

-----as much as we can. However, there are also other demands, and the Deputy is aware of this. Health, education and welfare all have to be catered for.

I note that I answered the Deputy’s question regarding the budget for social housing. I note, however, that he did not answer my question-----

I do understand the difference between the two and I answered the Deputy’s question, and the same thing applies. Social housing is an element of the public housing budget, which has a wider definition. I did answer the Deputy’s question on that matter. It is under consideration in respect of the national development review and the Housing for All document. We want to increase that budget by as much as possible, but there are also other demands which we must take into account in health, education, welfare, other inf…

The Deputy interrupts me. His party has delivered zero.

In Northern Ireland, his party's shared ownership scheme is not dissimilar to ours

Again, however, the Deputy interrupts and barracks me. He will not answer the fundamental question that Sinn Féin refuses to answer. Does the party actually agree with an increase in home ownership?

Does Sinn Féin want to see 70% of people owning their own homes in Ireland?

No, it does not.

Looking at the party's affordable housing policy, particularly when it comes to affordable homes-----

----it's policy for affordable homes is leasehold and not freehold-----