That is contested too.

The case for a citizens' assembly on drugs has been made for a long time and there is an urgency around it. I support it. I wish it could be brought forward more quickly than the Taoiseach has indicated but I appeal to him to stick to the commitment and to the date as set out. Would the Taoiseach believe me if I told him that for the past year and a half there has been no functioning drug and alcohol task force in Dublin's north inner city? Can he imagine that? It was ground zero of the heroin epidemic in the 1980s…

The Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, GREVIO, which is tasked with monitoring signatory states' implementation of the Istanbul Convention, is meeting with Irish stakeholders this week. In its submission to GREVIO, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, IHREC, has called for the urgent implementation of multi-agency domestic homicide reviews. A former Minister for Justice commissioned an independent study into familicide and domestic homicide reviews a number o…

We once again have record homelessness figures. Nearly 3,500 children live with that trauma. I ask the Taoiseach, as his first move in dealing with child poverty, which requires dealing with poverty itself, to commit to extending the ban on evictions, which is due to run out in a short number of weeks. As a confidence-building gesture around this commitment to deal with child poverty, I ask that the damage that was done post crash, in Fine Gael's years in government, to the community sector, community development a…

We are approaching the first anniversary of Vladimir Putin's barbaric and illegal invasion of Ukraine. It is important that we once again extend our solidarity to all of those fleeing the horrendous bloodshed. Everything that can be done must be done to bring to an end this cruel and senseless war. As a neutral country, we can play a unique role in advocating for peace and dialogue to end this war. I hope we will use our voice wisely, powerfully and consistently. It is important to impress upon European leaders the…

Workers and families are experiencing a really tough start to the new year. The post-Christmas period is always a time of financial pressure but the soaring cost of living sees households really up against it. People are due to be hit with massive energy bills as Government supports are swallowed up. Parents are finding it difficult to put food on the table as the price of groceries has skyrocketed and households continue to cut back on the basics just to get by. The cost-of-living crisis has not gone away. For man…

I thank the Taoiseach. Notwithstanding the measures the Government has taken, people are still struggling, as I have described. The Taoiseach has confirmed that he also recognises that. All along, we have said to the Taoiseach and his Government that the one-off measures that were introduced to assist people were, of course, welcomed by people. All help is good help when you are under pressure. What people really have needed and still need, however, is a sense of certainty and an ability to plan. They need to know …

We heard all that before. People are still struggling.

Coillte's proposed joint venture with a British investment fund must be stopped. The Taoiseach has stated that the Coillte deal was not the Government's preferred model. Of course, the Taoiseach has been aware since 2021 that Coillte was exploring such a joint venture. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Charlie McConalogue, confirmed that on 2 June 2022 a shareholder letter of expectation was issued to Coillte, directing it to develop initiatives precisely such as this joint venture. As the T…

Precisely.

The controversy surrounding the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Donohoe's undisclosed election donations raises again Fine Gael's relationship with big business and its influence at the heart of Government. The whole saga carries the stench of cronyism and favours for insiders. The businessman at the centre of the controversy, Michael Stone, issued a statement today in which he revealed he gave a second undeclared donation to the Minister in the 2020 general election. This means the Minister fail…

Nice try. That is a nice try at a distraction. If the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has a very faulty memory, then I have to say the Taoiseach is of Olympic-level competence in trying to breed further distractions. This is what has happened. Every rule in the book has been broken. Spending limits, I suspect, have been breached. Certainly, a corporate donation was made by somebody who was not registered as a corporate donor. But here is the rub: a very wealthy individual who is a beneficiary of State co…

That has nothing to do with donations.

Michael Stone did not pay for that, though, if that is your concern.

You are.

Michael Stone, under cover of darkness, stole Paschal's posters.

Okay. Bang on.

When launching Croí Cónaithe last year, the then Taoiseach described the scheme to advance the delivery of new apartments as a crucial strand in the Government's housing response. A Department of Public Expenditure and Reform document tells a very different story. It warns that the size of the initiative is too small, too complex, and has had a low take-up from developers. It also reveals a staggering capital underspend of €1 billion in the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage's 2022 budget, with soc…

I again raise the redress scheme for homes with Celtic tiger-era building defects that was announced last week. As my party colleague, Deputy Ó Broin, has acknowledged, the announcement is a step in the right direction but we, like the homeowners affected, would like the Taoiseach to clarify some aspects of the scheme as proposed. The legislation will not be completed, we are told, until the end of this year and the scheme will not open for applications until sometime next year. Will he explain this delay and tell …

The independent review from the Mental Health Commission makes it clear that the failures identified in Kerry child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, last year are, sadly, reflected across the community health organisation network. I heard the Taoiseach say earlier that there is a plan to appoint a clinical lead in this area. I have to put to him that much more than that needs to be done, and done urgently. As with disability services, the ageing out of children and young people once they hit 18 years o…