I thank the Deputy for his question. I am taking it on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien. Under Housing for All, the Government's strategy to increase housing supply, we have an ambitious target to deliver 300,000 new homes in the next decade. This includes social, affordable purchase, cost-rental, private rental, and private ownership housing. It has seen the Government make funding available for 54,000 affordable home interventions, including 36,000 affordable purch…

I will take on board what Deputy O’Donnell said and feed it back to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. What the Minister said, as Deputy O’Donnell said, was that the transitional arrangement ensures that near-term delivery will continue, mindful that increasing the percentage could make developments unviable where the original financial appraisal had been based on the original 10% contribution which was prior to this new Bill. As sites that fall under the new Part V provisions begin to obtain …

Hear, hear.

I was astounded but not surprised by the level of arrogance of Sinn Féin frontbenchers as they took to national media in the past week to justify their latest political stunt. None of us should be shocked, however, as this opportunistic manoeuvre is straight out of the Sinn Féin playbook. It is a party that is there to delay and disrupt at every turn for political advantage. It even sought to influence the right of Independent Deputies to vote with their free will and according to their conscience.

The Deputies from that party who have gone on radio and television in recent days apparently believe they are Ministers-elect and want to force an election as soon as possible. It is a pity they were not so eager to act in the immediate wake of the most recent election. They chose instead to prioritise political opportunism over the national interest. Those of us on this side of the House acted and worked in collaboration, in the face of a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, to form the stable Government the country neede…

Deputy McDonald's party should give the Irish people more credit.

The party should give the Irish people more credit. The electorate will not be fooled by its populism.

I welcome the opportunity to address the House on the important matter of the cost of disability. I, along with my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, welcome all those who have travelled here this morning. They had an early start. At the outset, it is important to state that this issue spans government and several Departments. Several Departments have contributed to the Government response to the motion and that is indicative of the breadth of cross-departmental working involved in addressing this is…

I thank the Deputy for his question. As he quite rightly said, I am responding on behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, who is unable to attend. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has responsibility for administering the European Union's Brexit adjustment reserve in Ireland. My colleague, the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath, is best placed to provide an overview of how Ireland's approach to the BAR is evolving more generally. I am, however, on behalf of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the…

I again thank the Deputy. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is currently assessing whether these evolving impacts are eligible to be addressed by the BAR-funded measures that would future-proof the sector against such impacts, as the Deputy stated. It is also engaging with stakeholders and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to confirm which impacts and measures are eligible and meet the criteria for BAR funding. I again assure the House that the Government will explore all opportunitie…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and giving me the opportunity to provide an update to the House on the paediatric diabetes clinic services at Cork University Hospital. I take on board the situation he raised in respect of a four-year-old with type 1 diabetes who is starting school for the first time and trying to cope with all the intricacies of that. As the Deputy is aware, type 1 diabetes is an intensive condition to manage. Commencing a child on an insulin pump requires intensive education for not only…

I see the Acting Chairman is multitasking today. I take on board everything the Deputy said. As we mentioned, diabetes is a very serious illness and commencing a child on an insulin pump requires intensive education for the child and entire family, with close monitoring of glucose levels and insulin doses required, particularly in the early stages of insulin pump use. Type 1 diabetes is an intensive condition to manage and in order to provide safe care for the entire paediatric diabetes patient cohort, the service …

I note the Deputies representing Cork are out in force today. This is the third Topical Issue from Cork. Kudos to them. I thank Deputy Stanton for his question on the Cork county development plan, which I am answering on behalf of the Minister of State with responsibility for planning and local government, Deputy Peter Burke, and the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. The Cork County Development Plan 2022-28 was agreed by the elected members of Cork County Council on 25 Apr…

I know the Acting Chair is also interested in this discussion. It is important to note that the two-week public consultation began on the draft direction on 17 June, which is open for submissions up to and including 1 July. The process is ongoing. I have listened carefully to the views expressed today and I thank the Deputy for his valuable contribution. I will bring it to the attention of the Minister. I trust the process I have detailed is helpful to the Deputy and all Members present in understanding the arrange…

I thank Deputy Connolly and the other co-sponsors of this motion. I welcome the debate. As the Deputy said, this does shine a spotlight on things. When I saw on the Order of Business last Thursday that there was to be a debate on respite, I was delighted because I believe it is a matter that we need to be debating. I am responding to the motion on behalf of the Minister for Health and the Minister of State with special responsibility for disability, Deputy Rabbitte. I am also responding to it on my own behalf as th…

Where is the facility the Deputy mentioned?

I thank the Deputy very much for raising this case. I am aware of the case to which she alludes but I cannot discuss it on the floor of the Dáil. It was brought to my attention by Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan a couple of weeks ago and we have been working on it. The Government does remain firmly committed to enhancing specialist eating disorder services, including improved access and shorter waiting lists. A total of €6.85 million has been allocated, and a further €1.15 million again this year. The current situati…

I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the following Regulations in draft: Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 (Section 95(3)) (Variation of title: Chiropodist) Regulations 2022, a copy of which has been laid in draft form before Dáil Éireann on 27th April, 2022.

I acknowledge the input of all Deputies to this debate. I know there is a shared concern to ensure patients in Meath, the north east or any part of the country can access the services they need. That is a core element of the planning for any potential reconfiguration at Navan. More widely, access and quality are core to the Government's unprecedented investment in the health system. Patient safety is at the heart of the changes proposed for Navan. The main goal of the proposed reconfiguration plan is to change the …

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I will bring his comments back to the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan. Just before I came down to take this matter, it was being addressed on "Prime Time" tonight so it is getting, I believe rightly, focus. The regulation of the small public service vehicle, SPSV, sector, is the responsibility of the NTA under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013. The number of drivers licensed to operate in Dublin rose by 381 from a total of 14,572 at 31 December 2021 to 1…