I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 6, inclusive, together. On 5 October, I met British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in the margins of the European Political Community summit in Granada in Spain. We discussed developments in Northern Ireland and the importance of the Irish bilateral relationship, as well as broader global challenges. The Prime Minister updated me on the UK Government's engagement with the Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, regarding the restoration of power-sharing institutions. I acknowledged the Pri…

I thank the Deputies. Deputy Tóibín asked about King Charles's speech in Westminster today. I have not had a chance to read it but I do know the UK Government is working very hard on securing agreement from the DUP to return to government in Northern Ireland to deal with many of the issues that need to be dealt with and that have been mentioned by Deputies, ranging from flooding to the environment and to the health service. We remain in close contact with the UK Government on this and also with the five main politi…

There is no deadline; we have not set a deadline.

Deputy Brendan Smith mentioned the Dublin-Monaghan and Belturbet bombings. I concur with his remarks and want to reassure him we continue to raise the issue bilaterally and at Head of Government level and foreign minister level as well. A comprehensive review of the Belturbet bombing investigation was carried out by An Garda Síochána, which identified several lines of inquiry. A senior investigating officer was appointed last year to lead the investigation and an incident room has been established at Ballyconnell G…

I answered that.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 13, inclusive, together. The Department's annual report for 2022 was published on gov.ie and laid before the Houses in September. The report sets out the work of the Department in 2022 to achieve the strategic priorities set out in the Department’s three-year Statement of Strategy 2021-2023. The Department is working to ensure that all Departments' policies align to the Government's agenda and develop Ireland in a sustainable way which assists economic development and social pr…

I join with Deputy Boyd Barrett in recognising the life of Andrew St. Ledger and extend my condolences to his family, friends and colleagues. I did not know him well but I think we met once or twice in the context of environmental meetings. I would have to check what the exact mandate of Coillte is in legislation but when I had the chance to meet it last year, it set out a mandate that really had three elements. One was the production of timber for commercial purposes, which we need, particularly when it comes to b…

-----in the midlands. It will not be connected to the electricity grid so this data centre will have no impact on electricity transmission-----

-----and, of course, it can be fuelled by biogas, which is a sustainable form of gas. Another company is turning the old peat-powered power station infrastructure in Shannonbridge to battery storage, so we can store excess wind energy when we have it and put it back into the grid. When it comes to beef, it is not necessarily about increasing production. We are seeing herd stabilisation at the moment. I do not think it is about increasing production. I do think it is about diversification because the more markets we…

-----a response on an emotional basis but it will not help the hostages or our citizens get out and it will not help bring peace and reconciliation any closer. I will come back to Deputy Cian O'Callaghan regarding day services and transport in his constituency. I do not have an update on that. I agree with Deputy Brendan Smith on the need for the Government to help councils in developing local enterprise centres. I will bring that up with the Minister, Deputy Coveney. In some ways, a county like Cavan is in a bit o…

Schemes for farmers operate on a case-by-case basis. A scheme for a particular area was approved by Cabinet today. The Minister, Deputy McConalogue, either has announced or will announce that scheme. I do not want to go into the details. It can be done but it is done on a case-by-case basis.

The only ongoing commission of investigation for which I am the specified Minister is the National Asset Management Agency, NAMA, commission of investigation. As with all such commissions, it is fully independent in its investigations. The commission was established in June 2017, following consultations with Oireachtas parties, to investigate the sale by NAMA of its Northern Ireland portfolio, known as Project Eagle. Its original deadline for reporting was 31 June 2018 but, following several requests from the commi…

I thank Deputies for their contributions. On the forthcoming inquiry into abuse in the Defence Forces, the Tánaiste has consulted the Attorney General on the establishment of the inquiry and its terms of reference. He has engaged with stakeholders, including the Women of Honour group, other groups such as the Men and Women of Honour group, PDFORRA and RACO and individuals. Draft terms of reference for the inquiry were shared with a variety of stakeholders. The Tánaiste considered the feedback on these draft terms o…

I will let the Minister for Justice know the case was raised in the Dáil again today.

The answer to the Deputy's question is that the Government makes these decisions. The Government acts collectively, signed off on the budget as a collective and accepts collective responsibility for the budget, including the health dimension of it, and ultimately, of course, it is a decision of the Dáil because it is the Dáil that votes on Estimates and it is the only body that allocates money to the health service, at least from a political point of view. The health budget is always a challenge and that is not som…

Every Minister around the Cabinet table looked for more in the budget package - whether on the tax side or the spending side. The Head of the Government - the Taoiseach - looked for more in the budget package than was possible. That is the reality of putting a budget together. Every agency, every Department and every Minister including the Department of the Taoiseach and the Taoiseach-----

The answer is "Yes." The answer is that was the case for every agency, every Department, every Minister and every Minister of State in the entire Government. That has always been the case. That is how budgets are done. People make a bid for a large amount of money, and they only get a fraction of what they ask for.

That is how budgets are done. The Deputy's use of the words "recruitment embargo" is deliberately misleading. As always, she is misleading the public.

An embargo is a ban on recruitment. There is no ban on recruitment.

The HSE will be allowed to increase its total number of staff next year by 2,000. Where there is a restriction it is only where the HSE has already hired the number of people it is allowed to hire for a grade.