The advice we have from consistent Attorneys General, and it remains the advice to the Government, is that the occupied territories Bill cannot be enacted by the Dáil because trade is an EU competence and that is clear in the EU treaties. Even it were enacted, it could not have a practical effect, and that has been the view of three or four Attorneys General from all sorts of backgrounds over previous Governments. The Government favours the recognition of the state of Palestine. This House and the Seanad have passe…

As we are discussing matters Galway, it would be good to put on record the fact today is a good news day for investment in Galway, with a total allocation of €1 million confirmed for the east Galway sports campus, €2.5 million for the Renville sports and community centre and €20 million for the sports ground redevelopment at Connacht Rugby. The Deputy and I have been strong supporters-----

-----of that project for quite some time, as are the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, Senator Kyne, Deputy Ó Cuív and everyone in the area, and I am really glad that money is confirmed for Galway city and county. Of course, it is not just about rugby or sports. This will also be an important and much-needed events space and conference centre in what is the fabulous city of Galway. One thing that would make the city even better would be the construction of the Galway ring road, and I am a supporter of the project…

I will be in Galway on Monday morning and will have the great privilege of officially opening the Moycullen bypass. It is a project I was involved in initiating when I was Minister for transport. At the time, we thought it might be possible for the ring road and Moycullen bypass to be built at the same time, so I understand the frustration people must feel that one part is done and the bigger part is not. We know the backstory to this. Planning permission was granted by An Bord Pleanála. It was struck down by the H…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I concur with him about the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises. All small businesses together employ more people than the public sector and the entire multinational sector combined. They employ people in every town, village and parish in the country. We appreciate that costs are rising for businesses. That is why the Minister, Deputy Coveney, got approval this week for his €0.25 billion package to help SMEs with rising costs. We also appreciate that the admi…

As is often the case when it comes to a new set of rules or a new set of regulations, there can be a bedding-in period. Once they are in place for a few months very often they work well and people's concerns are allayed but that is not always the case, and we have to be flexible and mindful of these things and sometimes make changes if they need to be made. With that in mind, the Department of Finance will continue to monitor this matter as Revenue continues to engage with stakeholders. As it currently stands, ther…

The toll increases are linked to inflation. It is part of the contracts that we have with the toll operators and, in some cases, the companies that built the roads. We have done a deferral in the past, paid for by the taxpayer, but that is something that can only be done on a temporary basis. If it is Sinn Féin's position that it is going to breach these contracts if Deputy McDonald becomes Taoiseach, she should say so because that would be a significant matter legally and would probably open the country to very si…

I do not know the timeline but I will check in with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman and come back to the Deputy directly on it.

I may be incorrect but I understand this is a social protection matter, which the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is managing at the moment. I think this is only a discussion document or something at that level. It is not actually a proposal at this stage so of course we will listen to people who have views and submissions on it. Among the things that we have done to encourage more people with disabilities into the workforce are grants for employers to install equipment, subsidies to employ people with disabilities, se…

The position of the Irish Government is that we want initially to phase down fossil fuels and then phase them out. It is a realistic one, which understands that we will still need to use fossil fuels for a period ahead, but not forever, and it does understand that in ten, 20 or 30 years, technologies that may not be viable now may be viable in future and carbon capture and storage may be one of those. Provided that the carbon and greenhouse gases do not go up into the environment, they do not contribute to climate …

The Luddites for a start.

I rest my case. The Luddites were right. I thank the Deputy.

It is definitely not dead in the water. Negotiations are ongoing and we want to get those projects under way, particularly in SETU, but we want to get a fair price for the taxpayer as well. Sometimes negotiations take time. As we are talking about Waterford matters, I am sure the Deputy will acknowledge that this has been a good week for investment in Waterford. There was a significant announcement regarding funding for Waterford Airport to allow the runway to be extended and direct flights between Waterford and th…

A referendum on water ownership remains Government policy. We do not yet have a date for it. I want to reiterate that there are no proposals from the Government or, I think, any party in the House to privatise Irish Water. The fact that Irish Water has given the contract to a private company is hardly creeping privatisation. Some 100 years ago, the ESB gave a contract to Siemens to build Ardnacrusha. Come off it now.

I respectfully disagree. In the past two years, 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war have come to our country. More than 70,000 of them have been accommodated by the State. There are some 14,000 Ukrainian children in our schools and between 15,000 and 16,000 Ukrainians working in our economy and contributing by paying tax and PRSI. I know it has not been a perfect response but when people look back in ten or 20 years on what we have done as a country, they will be proud of what we have done. That is not to say that it is…

As the Deputy knows, large aspects of BusConnects are in planning. We expect decisions from An Bord Pleanála quite soon - in the next few weeks and months. The power to direct the NTA, to the extent that it exists, lies with the Minister for Transport. He is in Dubai at the moment but I will let him know that the Deputy raised this so that he can take it into account. As people know, the whole idea around BusConnects is to have direct routes that are much more frequent. The bus arrives quickly every couple of minut…

I am familiar with CUH but not ward 2D. I know some people who have been treated recently for leukaemia between CUH and St. James’s Hospital and they are very complimentary of the quality of healthcare and the competence of the staff there. I appreciate the infrastructure is very much out of date and, sadly, that is the case for many of our hospitals. In regard to the particular capital project that the Deputy mentioned, I will have to speak to the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, about it but we are keen to get as many …

I understand it is out for circulation among Departments at the moment. I had hoped, and still hope, that it could be done as part of the Social Welfare Bill before Christmas. If not, there will be a second Bill in the new year.

I appreciate that the severe weather has caused significant damage to public infrastructure, not just in Cork but in Waterford and other parts of the country. The process is that the relevant councils cost it, the cost gets double-checked by the Department of Transport and the OPW, and a special allocation is then agreed by the Government. It will be a special allocation on top of existing funding. That is what we did for Donegal when it had severe weather and it is what we will do for Cork as well.

I do not know. I am glad that we have come to that agreement with the retained firefighters. The Government will act in good faith in terms of implementation. When it comes to timelines, I will have to check with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and ask him to come back to the Deputy directly about that.