What I understand from what the Minister is saying is that TU proposals are coming in at the moment and there may be potential delivery in quarter 1 of 2025 or that will be when a decision will be made. I raised this matter earlier this year with the previous Minister, who is now Taoiseach, and he indicated to me there would be a change in the initial approach. Rather than having institutions move off-balance sheet by being deemed autonomous public sector bodies like other universities they would instead be allowed…

The point I am making is that there would have to be a review by the CSO and approval by Eurostat in order for technological universities to be able to borrow off-balance sheet. The premise of my question is whether that is currently in train rather than it being on-balance sheet. I am referring specifically to student accommodation because it was my understanding that TUs were promised at the time that they would be able to borrow specifically for that. The concern about PPPs is, going back to our earlier discussi…

I want to ask about the expansion of mental health services across third level institutions. This is of huge concern to students at this moment in time, particularly because they are facing very long waiting lists to see a service. When the amount of mental health supports are compared with the number of students in the universities, they just do not seem to be adequate at this point. What are the plans in that regard?

I will give the Minister some context about why I am asking this question. First, I have met with many different students. This is a key issue that keeps coming up with the students' unions and broadly with the students as well. Galway is a place I know well. A GP came to me and said that because of the lack of adequate mental health supports within the universities, they are seeing a spillover into their own GP practices. That obviously comes at a cost for students and many students do not have access to that. Man…

There was a problem with the Minister's predecessor who had a habit of making reannouncements. I have mentioned it before and I saw it regarding mental health supports and the funding for them - unfortunately, I cannot get the figure, although I tried to search for it - where there was an announcement as though it was extra, additional funding, but it was actually just the funding that was already baselined and already being used. I take the figures the Minister is giving at the moment. However, I am just being hon…

Nuair atáimid ag caint ar chúrsaí turasóireachta, ar ndóigh caithfimid caint ar na hoileáin amach ón gcósta freisin. I mí Iúil, téann thart ar 3,000 turasóir in aghaidh an lae chuig Inis Oírr mar is breá leo é. Tuigim é sin. Is breá liomsa Inis Oírr chomh maith. Ach caithfimid breathnú ar an infreastruchtúr atá ann do na daoine atá ina gcónaí ann agus do na turasóirí atá ag teacht chuile lá. Chuile shamhradh, ó mhí Aibreáin nó mí na Bealtaine go dtí Meán Fómhair, bíonn srianta uisce ann ó 11 p.m. go dtí 7 a.m. Is l…

Vulture funds are the biggest players in student accommodation thanks to the policies of this Government. Not only are their rents too high but the leases are far too long, with 51-week leases for a 39-week academic term. The Taoiseach told us in February, March and April that he would bring in legislation before the summer recess to change this. The summer recess is in three weeks and we have not heard a peep. It has now been proven that vulture funds are the thin end of the wedge. A graduate-entry medicine studen…

What about the 51-week lease?

In three weeks?

Before the summer?

I thank the Minister.

This is an important pact for us to make a decision on, and it is my view the Dáil should vote against the Government's decision to fully opt us in to this pact. As a result of that, I will be voting "Níl". It is often that we hear from Ministers that they cannot do X or Y because of some EU regulation, and that something is out of the hands of Ministers and the Government and their hands are tied. Here they are choosing for their hands to be tied and to lose any room for manoeuvre. Here we have a pact we can opt o…

Is mian liom ceist maidir le toghchán bhoird Údarás na Gaeltachta a ardú leis an Taoiseach. Dúradh ar dtús anuraidh go mbeadh na toghcháin sin ar siúl ar an lá céanna leis na toghcháin áitiúla ach, ar ndóigh, níor tharla sé sin. Anois, táthar á rá go mbeidh an reachtaíocht rite roimh bhriseadh an tsamhraidh. Tá briseadh an tsamhraidh ag teacht aníos go sciobtha. Cén uair a bheas na toghcháin? Cén uair a bheas an reachtaíocht ag dul tríd an Dáil? I raise the issue of elections to bord Údarás na Gaeltachta. It was in…

I move amendment No. 1 to amendment No. 1: After “good;” to insert “to give further effect to International Conventions and Directives of the European Parliament and of the Council as listed in section 2 ,”.

Tá mé ag iarraidh an cheist a ardú arís eile a d'ardaigh mé coicís ó shin maidir leis an rang speisialta i Scoil Chaitríona sa Roinn Mhór. I want to raise the issue again of the special language class in Scoil Chaitríona in Renmore, which I raised with the Minister of State exactly two weeks ago. Unfortunately it appears still not to have been rectified. This is causing serious concern among parents. As the Minister of State knows, seven children currently avail of this class. These children get this special langua…

Gabhaim buíochas le People Before Profit, PBP, as é seo a chur chun tosaigh inniu. It seems very much that there is a war on neutrality at this time. There is a war on Ireland’s position on neutrality and a drum is being beaten by those who are cheerleading for war and those who want to militarise the EU and turn it into a geopolitical bloc. They keep telling us that we need to confront this nation or that nation but who are these people? Who are these people who seem to have the Government’s ear? Because one thing…

I thank the Minister of State. We have had many conversations on this legislation. I understand that this particular amendment is technical in nature and I have no issue with it. I wish to make a few general points that I have not made previously, which are important. It is a pity amendments that I and others tabled were not considered to any great extent. I refer to parity of esteem between disciplines not being mentioned specifically in the Bill. I believe it could have been spelled out better. There was also no …

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

Today, we formally recognise Palestine as a state. We recognise that Palestine is a state like any other and we recognise that it belongs among the family of nations. Ireland is often said to be Palestine's strongest European supporter, owing to our shared colonial experience. The people of Ireland have long recognised Palestine and it is good the Government has finally caught up with the Irish people on this. We share this recognition with Spain and Norway today and with Sweden, which recognised Palestine in 2014,…