I thank Deputy Gannon for raising this matter. I am familiar with the Keltoi centre, it being a service located in my constituency, but I am not up to date on the plans to reopen and restore it to its former use. I will get an update from the Minister of State, Deputy Frankie Feighan, who is responsible for this matter, and forward it to the Deputy.

Deputy Doherty also raised this matter and I gave him a detailed response. Perhaps Deputy Boyd Barrett was not present at the time. As he knows, the majority of students are not paid. However, nursing students are paid in their pre-registration year in recognition of the fact that they are among a small group of students who do valuable work for which they should be paid. A review of their wider allowances and remuneration is under way. It will be discussed with their union. Any change that is made will come into e…

It would not be worth a euro to any student nurse. What is done will be done by us.

I thank the Deputy. I am advised that the Bill will be taken in the next session, that is, the spring session of 2021.

I am not sure if I have been in that hotel or at that golf course. Maybe I have, but people over the past couple of weeks have been placing me in all sorts of places I have not been. Perhaps this is one of the latest examples, but that does not matter. The task force has been established and its work is under way. Whether it can be extended to include the wider area is something about which I would have to speak to the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Peter Burke…

The straight answer is, it depends on the scheme. For example, staff who have been laid off will retain the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, regardless of what their employers decide to do in terms of reopening. They have to be available for work, but that payment will not be taken away from them while they are laid off. The employment wage subsidy scheme, EWSS, is based on a company's turnover and to what extent that turnover is down. The weekly Covid restrictions support scheme, CRSS, payment is only paid if t…

Recently, the Government approved the draft 12th action plan to the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers responding to the 2014 ruling in the Louise O'Keeffe case. In Mr. Justice O'Neill's review of 19 cases that had not been successful in their applications to the ex gratia scheme, he concluded that 13 were entitled to a payment from the scheme. Sixteen offers of payment have now been made. We appreciate that some people who did not apply to the scheme in the belief that they would not have been eligible wou…

The intention is that all parts of the country are treated equally when it comes to home care. I know that is not always the case, but it certainly should be. I am surprised to hear what Deputy Andrews has to say because the amount of funding put into home care was increased by 40% in the past couple of years and is being increased again in 2021. While some people may not need it anymore, those who do should continue to receive it. If the Deputy wishes to pass on any correspondence or issues regarding Ringsend or h…

Retail is changing. It is simplistic to put these things down to matters of company law or which fund bought what business. The truth is that retail is changing. People have moved online. Last week in Ireland, more money was spent online than physically. As a result, retail is going to transform before our eyes. It was happening anyway. There was inevitability that we would see more people shopping online. That means the number of people who work in high street stores will fall. No ideology or political party will …

I distinctly recall the Deputy calling for a dedicated Minister with responsibility for fisheries. As is so often the case, however, when people call for a new senior Minister, they do not tell us which Ministry should be abolished. Our Constitution says there can be only 15 senior Ministers. This week the Labour Party called for a Minister with responsibility for vaccines and now Deputy Collins is calling for a Minister with responsibility for fisheries. What Ministry will go? Is it education, foreign affairs or h…

Perhaps, the office of the Taoiseach. We could have a Government with no Taoiseach, perhaps. I do not know.

If one Deputy does not have a serious or substantive suggestion then the adage might be, "Call for a new Minister". The negotiations are under way. Everyone knows how the Common Fisheries Policy works. We are doing the best we can to make sure we secure as good a deal as possible for Irish fishermen and for the whole industry. We all know this is a difficult one, however. Some 35% of the fish we take out of the waters come from UK waters. The UK has now left the European Union and is no longer part of the Common Fi…

I will double-check, but I believe the intention is that the commission on care will be established next year. It is long overdue. The number of elderly people in the country is rising all the time and we need to make sure they are cared for properly in their own home and in their community whenever possible. I add my thoughts those of Deputy Ryan with regard to Christmas.

I thank Deputy Guirke for telling me about Conor Jordan and the difference that companion dog has made in his life. I have seen that with people who have been provided with a companion dog and the amazing difference it can make. I am not sure what the situation is regarding Government funding for those organisations but I am happy to check it out and see if there is something we can do.

I am sorry to hear about that situation. As I think the Deputy will know and appreciate, when it comes to any form of accommodation, it depends on the contract that was signed on the lease or licence agreement and no Government can change a contract retrospectively. If somebody enters freely into a contract to buy a service or pay for accommodation, it is what the contract states that matters. Unfortunately, there is not any way that any Government or Oireachtas can change a contract that people signed and freely e…

This has come to my attention too. There are a number of cases in my constituency, and I have discussed the issue with the banks and will do so again in the regular engagement I have with them. I do not think it is simple as a matter of discrimination. Banks have certain responsibilities and among them is to engage only in prudent lending. If they lend money to somebody who cannot pay it back, that has an impact on wider society. It means a loan is not paid back and harder credit and higher interest rates for every…

I am really not sure why it is taking so long to sort out this issue of medical cannabis. It has been discussed for years in this Chamber. Emergency arrangements were put in place, which the Deputy mentioned, but we should by now have in place standing arrangements that work for people for whom the drug has been prescribed by a specialist. It is an issue that falls under the remit of the Minister for Health, Deputy Donnelly, rather than me but I will take it up with him. It is an issue we are keen to sort out once …

I appreciate this is an important issue that the Deputy is absolutely right and entitled to raise in the House. Unfortunately, I do not have an update to hand and I do not want to mislead him. I will certainly tell the Minister the matter was raised and try to get the Deputy a written reply next week.

I am aware of that. I will meet the French minister for European affairs over the weekend and it is one of the issues I will discuss with him.

I thank the Deputy for raising this really important issue. I was very saddened to hear of the deaths of those two men in recent days. At any time of year, although particularly in the run-up to Christmas, the deaths of people who are homeless fills us all with sorrow. As I understand it, there have been media reports concerning the deaths of two individuals in Dublin between the evening of 24 November and the morning of 25 November. One of these deaths was of a man who had a tenancy in long-term supported accommod…