I thank the Taoiseach's officials for their behind-the-scenes engagement over continuing recruitment anomalies for our cardiology services at University Hospital Waterford, UHW. Hopefully, there will be no further snafus with building on the Taoiseach's promise to the people of the south east. It is fair to say that we had all better keep a beady eye on the delivery of these future approved appointments. With that in hand for the moment, it allows me to use my time to address an issue of national importance, that i…

Insurance is not working, as the Taoiseach knows. It is becoming unaffordable and unavailable for a significant number of sectors. Many only have recourse to one underwriter and they have to pay whatever is being asked of them. The Taoiseach mentioned PIAB and he knows PIAB claims are being circumvented with the attachment of post traumatic stress to soft tissue injuries. That was never meant to be where we were going in terms of the personal injuries guidelines committee, PIGC. There has been no attachment of cost…

I note the Comptroller and Auditor General's recent report on the accounts of the public services shows, once again, a worryingly high success rate for social welfare appeals. From approximately 26,000 appeals, some 14,000, or just over 50%, appear to have led to a revised decision. This raises important questions about the fairness, transparency and efficiency of social welfare decision-making. If that decision-making were robust and dependable, one would expect few decisions to be overturned. How many people do n…

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate. We are talking about reducing the amount of money paid to insurers by way of risk equalisation on the basis of the criteria of age, gender and level of cover, also known as age-related health credits. We are introducing a new system of high-cost claim credits and reducing the stamp duty payable on all health insurance policies that feed into the central support fund. I presume these actions have been costed and are deemed to be beneficial or else I do not expec…

We are debating again a serious policy, a Bill "to provide for the continuation in operation [...] of the Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) Act 2020, the Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Act 2020, the Health (Amendment) Act 2020 and the Health (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2021, in the public interest and having regard to the continuing manifest and grave risk to human life and public health posed by the spread of the disease known as Covid-19 [...] i…

I am pleased to be part of this debate, which is about amending large-scale residential planning and development. I hope what the Minister proposes will streamline the planning process, which is required if we are to affect the current lack of supply in starter homes in the country. I welcome the Minister's decision to dispense with the strategic housing development policy. As the Minister knows, where schemes were applied in regional towns and villages, some of the configurations are largely unworkable in market t…

That is no problem. I ask the Minister and Minister of State to look at the issue of adequate and proper funding of Irish Water. It is a significant disruption at present to the development of housing in this country, particularly to smaller scale rural developments. Another area that others have touched on is the availability of skills, particularly the wet skills such as blocklaying and plastering. I am a member of the Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment and we have been discussing the possibility of ex…

Can the Taoiseach put our minds at rest that the recently announced €126 million aviation package, of which €40 million is allocated to Cork Airport, will not count as state aid? Some €40 million was recently spent on runway works in Cork Airport on what was described as the fastest capital project in the State, having been green-lighted soon after the Taoiseach took office. I raise the concern because for years, Waterford Airport has requested modest supports from Government which have been denied, supposedly due …

The issue is money for Waterford.

However, the Government is withdrawing €350,000 at present.

Some €126 million versus €350,000.

I thank the Minister for coming in and for the continuing support she offers to my office. My question is in regard to whether greater clarity will be provided in regard to antigen testing in schools, the way it is to be implemented within the school setting, if it will be used within both primary and secondary school settings and what protocol will be operated for same.

The Minister might not be aware but I actually brought antigen testing to NPHET in April or May 2020 and I am somebody who has been promoting this technology for quite a while. The antigen test for infectiousness is very important and we are probably being too slow about rolling it out given the way we are proposing to roll it out. I accept it has limitations in terms of its effectiveness, whether it is in a managed setting or in a less formal setting. However, as I said in the House recently, I have a sister-in-la…

I thank the Minister. I accept that response as the Minister has given it but, as I said, I do not think we are doing enough. I heard the CMO on radio the other morning and, basically, he was not gushing in his praise for what antigen testing can do. I think that is a mistake. The other thing I would point out to the Minister is that there is a significant cost differential between PCR testing and antigen testing, probably at a rate of 10:1. Therefore, it suggests we could be doing a lot of antigen testing for the …

I extend my sympathies to the family of Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, chief pilot, Mark Duffy, winch operator, Paul Ormsby, and winchman, Ciarán Smith. I also want to remember the four Air Corps members of R111 who lost their lives in Waterford in 1999, also as a result of a tragic accident: Captains Dave O’Flaherty and Mick Baker, Sergeant Paddy Mooney and Corporal Niall Byrne. They were all courageous people who risked their lives and ultimately gave them to help others in significant and perilous danger. The R116 re…

I asked a question on night vision technology, which has been deployed in Sligo. I asked why there is a delay in deploying it to other aircraft and why it is only approved for helicopter emergency medical services activity. Will the Minister of State come back to the House and to me with regard to search and rescue?

During Leaders' Questions on 19 October, I questioned the Taoiseach on his commitment to deliver 24-7 cardiac care in the south-east region. He informed me then that recruitment was taking place to expand hours, that money was being provided, that service expansion was happening and that the service could build towards operating on a 24-7 basis. Further to responses to parliamentary questions on these issues, I can now confirm that no recruitment of cardiac technical personnel has taken place since 2018, no funding…

The last recruitment was in 2018.

Not for this service.

The Taoiseach does not need to check it.