Over the past year, there has been significant volatility in the tech sector. We have seen this in the media but we also know it ourselves. According to data from the CSO and Revenue Commissioners, the information and communications technology sector has experienced a sharp turnaround, with jobs growth swinging from 8% in December last year to 2.7% in September this year. Is it possible for the Minister to give me an update on his engagement with the sector, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland regarding the tech sec…

The number employed in the sector might be as high as it has ever been but it is down. The Minister himself has expressed concern over volatility in the technology and communications sector. It is of concern to workers. As the Ministers said, Ireland is one of the most important technology centres in Europe. What engagement has the Minister had with IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland to understand the skills profile of impacted staff and to be able to say people have actually been re-employed? Are the profiles of s…

As the Minister said, there have been significant job losses; that is a fact. I met representatives from Intel a couple of weeks ago. While these big employers are incredibly important, the jobs that are being lost are not just in large companies but also in the smaller companies. For every job lost in those industries, there is also a knock-on consequential impact on others depending on that job, right down the chain. We know there are issues. I want to hear if the Minister is engaged specifically. In general term…

I met representatives of the company yesterday. It has a recruitment freeze at the moment.

Deputy Doherty is helping you.

Not for the first time in this Dáil term Sinn Féin has won the broader debate on a fundamental policy issue. The parties of Government continue to shift position as they attempt to copy Sinn Féin policy. For a long time Sinn Féin has been calling for social welfare payments to be linked to wages. Ireland is unusual in the European Union in not having pay-related supports. The current system is called pay-related social insurance, but the link only refers to when you pay in and not when you are taking out. It is wel…

The temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS, only expended €150 million of its €1.3 billion budget. Businesses had hoped the underspend in TBESS money would be reprofiled and redistributed to help with the cost-of-doing-business crisis instead of reverting to the Exchequer. As insolvencies are up 38% across the first three quarters of the year and businesses are struggling with energy bill arrears, will the Government give a commitment that some or all of the €1.1 billion underspend in TBESS will be provide…

I remember the last moratorium, when Fianna Fáil was in government in 2009. It was a full public service recruitment moratorium. It was introduced in 2007 for the health service. The impact of that is still being felt today. The HSE did not recover from that and the evidence of that is all around us. The evidence of that is in the lengthy waiting lists in the health service and in the people who get left overnight on trolleys, on chairs, in corridors or wherever they can be put. That speaks to a staff shortage. Tha…

I thank the Minister of State for being here this evening. I would be very surprised if she is not aware of this issue in her area. On page 55 of the programme for Government, there is a commitment to introduce a social housing passport to allow households to move from one local authority list to another. This provision has been in every programme for Government for the past 15 years or so. I am struggling to understand what the issue is with it and why it has not been introduced. This is best illustrated with exam…

Rather than addressing the question, the reply encapsulates the problem. The Minister of State indicated that HAP tenants who avail of inter-authority movement can be offered access to the housing transfer list of the original local authority. That is exactly what I said. The constituent I mentioned was a young woman when she went on the housing list. She is now a much older married woman with children. Her circumstances have changed, but her need for permanent housing has not. It has travelled with her. She has be…

Israel is committing war crimes; there is no doubt about it. It is slaughtering journalists, aid workers, civilians and thousands and thousands of children. I wish to read a piece from an email I got yesterday from a concerned mother. She wrote: I tuck my baby into bed every night while parents in Palestine tuck their babies into a grave. Please, for the love of God or whomever you believe in, please do whatever you can to make the violence in Gaza against innocent men, women and children stop. My heart can't take …

I want to raise with the Taoiseach the issue of remote working. Last week, I met representatives of Dublin Chamber. They are becoming increasingly concerned about the delay in publishing the code of practice. It is not an inordinate delay but there is something of a delay nevertheless. As it stands, work patterns are being established by people who are concerned that when the code of practice is published, they may have to change them. Equally, workers who want to work remotely are being told by their employers to …

I very much welcome the opportunity to speak on this important legislation. Sinn Féin will be supporting it on Second Stage but intends to table amendments to strengthen it on Committee Stage. The vast majority of these amendments will be aimed at implementing the recommendations of the enterprise, trade and employment committee, as laid out in the pre-legislative scrutiny report it produced on this legislation. This Bill aims to deliver on the Government's action plan of 2021 and provides for several measures, inc…

In its most recent sentiment survey, Fingal Chamber of Commerce states: The slow delivery of infrastructure, specifically housing, presents a threat to Ireland's competitiveness and reputation resulting in a direct impact on recruiting and retaining employees and, worryingly the ability to attract additional FDI ... Almost 43% of businesses in Fingal said the availability of housing and rental accommodation is a serious issue for them. Shortage of housing to buy or rent are significant challenges for big companies …

That is misleading the House.

That is not true.

Where are the Minister's clinics?

Where are the Minister's clinics? He should publish the details.

It is 20 pages.

Nobody believes that.