I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive response and I thank the Government for the €200 energy credits. I know people on social welfare will receive another one next week with their payments. This has been a help. In contacting the energy companies, I found that those providing electricity were much more amenable to answering questions than those providing gas. That is only from my personal experience in contacting them on behalf of concerned citizens. In respect of these high profits that we see, I ho…

I welcome the publication in The Irish Times yesterday of a letter from eight veterinarians supporting the call for a veterinary college for University of Limerick. I have met the president of University of Limerick and her team on this matter. The concerns highlighted by the veterinarians in the letter in The Irish Times concerned recruitment and retention and the fact that many people training to be vets have to travel abroad. There is a process that is live at present and I understand there will be a decision wi…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, to the House.

When this amendment was debated previously, Senator McDowell spoke twice and the Minister of State was due to reply.

Amendments Nos. 5 and 12 are related and may be discussed together, by agreement. Is that agreed?

Is Senator Higgins withdrawing amendment No. 5?

Is the House happy for them to be separated? Agreed.

Amendments Nos. 6, 9 and 10 are related and may be discussed together, by agreement. Is that agreed? Agreed.

I welcome the announcement by Shannon Airport this morning that passenger numbers are up 21% compared to 2019 and up 22% on 2022. This is really good not only for Limerick but also for the mid-west region. There are currently 33 destinations available from Shannon Airport, with flights to 11 countries including the UK, the US and European countries. Certainly, the new routes announced today to Naples, Porto, Béziers, Newcastle and Liverpool are most welcome. A flight to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago will …

The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, is very welcome to the House to discuss this all-important issue.

I thank the Minister. Group spokespersons will have eight minutes each and all other Senators will have five minutes.

I thank the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kieran O'Donnell. I call Senator Frances Black, who is sharing time with Senator Eileen Flynn.

I thank the Minister of State for coming here. This is the first time the Minister of State has been in the Chamber when I have been here. I congratulate the Minister of State on his new portfolio. He is my constituency colleague in Limerick. I am delighted that we are discussing the important issue of housing. I compliment the Government on the work it has done to date in working with co-operative organisations and housing associations and on the number of social and affordable houses that have been delivered. The…

I rise to welcome the good news announced yesterday in respect of the arrival of Eli Lilly in Limerick. It is currently based in Cork and employs 38,000 people globally. An investment of €500 million was announced initially but the figure has now gone up to €1 billion. It will be a state-of-the-art development and 1,200 people will be employed in its construction, which has already started. There will also be 300 permanent jobs on site. This is a good news story. The Eli Lilly campus has been designed to take clima…

I thank the Minister for coming to the House to discuss this all-important Bill and for introducing this measure. It is all about the cost of living for families and making sure they can afford to meet their costs. As the Minister knows, there are many issues in Limerick where a lot of people are staying away from hospitals. This Bill will encourage people and will help families by reducing costs. The cost of healthcare for some families has been severe, especially for families with cancer care patients. I complime…

I rise to welcome the fact that fDi Intelligence magazine, which is published by the Financial Times , has rated Limerick city as the top-ranked European city of the future not only in respect of attracting foreign direct investment but also in respect of the economic and financial side of things and business. Limerick city came second in respect of economic potential and was highly ranked in respect of business and human capital and lifestyle. This is most welcome when the Government is trying to create balanced r…

I want to raise the issue of the hospital in Limerick where there are more than 100 people on trolleys today. The new CEO of the HSE was before the health committee this morning. It was enlightening to hear him confirming that he intends to make changes. He has admitted that in many locations the HSE is very top-heavy and that changes need to be made. It sounds like he is going to hit the ground running from his contribution at the health committee today. That does not resolve the issue of the more than 100 people …

Before I call on Senator Blaney to move the motion, I am sure Members of the House will wish to join me in welcoming some family members of the disappeared and the WAVE Trauma Centre to the House today. I welcome Gerry McGinley, Michael McConville, Oliver McVeigh, Ann Morgan and Sandra Peake. They are very welcome to the House for this all-important motion. I would also like to welcome the Minister for Justice, Deputy Harris, who is here to take the motion. I call Senator Blaney to move the motion.

I thank the Minister of State for attending to discuss this all-important Bill. I agree with my colleagues that we do not want the lights going off. The ESB has submitted two applications, one in Offaly and one in Tarbert. It is not the case that the floodgates will be opened and that every site will be looked at. I understand that specific sites will be covered by the legislation in terms of companies that are currently generating power. It is not that the legislation will give a right to many companies to come in…

I thank the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, for coming to the House to discuss this important issue. For the past number of years I have been working closely on applications for grants, mainly with older people and people with disabilities or illness. It has been a beneficial grant, of which people can avail, to replace a bath with a shower, to put in a wet room, central heating, or other amenities covered under the scheme. I was in a house recently that still does not…