They are not agreed.

I again raise the issue of Seán Meehan, a 65-year-old Tipperary man who built his own log cabin to house himself following a marriage breakdown. Tipperary County Council has refused planning permission and retention permission. Mr. Meehan is facing jail if he does not have the structure removed by 4 April. How come hundreds of modular units can be placed by the State on land without planning permission, for example, at Flood's Cross in Naas, to house refugees, while the State is threatening a single Irishman who pl…

A statutory instrument.

I concur with every word that an Teachta Nolan has said. It is rather ironic we are having this debate when we are having a vote this coming Friday to erase the words "mother" and "woman" out of the Constitution, and to diminish them in many ways. I take great faith and solace from my late mother, Mary, who was a woman of faith who worked so hard, and the late Breda Laffey, a great woman of prayer who was very good to me. I can mention a number of people, including the iar-Chathaoirleach of the Seanad, the former S…

Go raibh maith agat.

Go raibh maith agat, a Theachta.

I ask the Minister for Health if he will ensure a local recruitment campaign is carried out for the National Ambulance Service in south Tipperary and if the NAS will commit to improving recruitment processes, providing a recruitment officer to attend job recruitment seminars and visit local schools and developing an advertising campaign to recruit ambulance personal for south Tipperary.

The national recruitment campaign has not led to significant improvements in staffing levels in south Tipperary. I also compliment the very hard work and dedicated service all the ambulance services provide across the country. What is difficult is that there are no efforts to recruit locally. The Minister said there was a recruitment campaign but the 45 km rule means that paramedics will be assigned to a base within 45 km of their home unless a recruitment drive happens locally. That is the problem. There are huge …

The main issue is local recruitment, which the National Ambulance Service has not undertaken seriously in south Tipperary for a number of years. The only recruitment is what south Tipperary ambulance personnel have done themselves but they have limited local resources and the staff are under constraints due to the number of vacancies. The National Ambulance Service needs to be in schools and at job recruitment seminars as standard. That is simply not happening. We know that the 45 km rule has benefits but it is imp…

I have reservations about this legislation. I understand and respect the bona fides of an Teachta Collins but as a small employer running a family business employing up to 25 people, I know the relationship between workers and their employers is very important. We see so much going on today with big businesses. I also accept the bona fides of the Minister of State but there is a front page story in The Irish Times today about a care company called Ideal Care Services which got €8.9 million from the State. Tusla has…

Farmers, farm organisations, Irish rural groups and the Rural Independent Group have been calling for an extension to the hedge cutting season. Today is normally the last day of February, but with the leap year, there is an extra day tomorrow. As the Minister knows, last summer was the wettest summer on record. From July onwards, hedges were cut in some cases and cannot be removed from land where they are. Land is swimming because of the rain through the autumn, winter and now in the early spring. I appeal to the M…

You will not extend the date.

I wish to raise a point of order under Standing Order 54 relating to the adequacy of replies. I wish to raise my concerns about the continued inadequate replies to parliamentary questions from the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. I have already emailed my concerns about this to the Ceann Comhairle's office. A number of questions put to the Minister have not been adequately answered. I have sought the specific information from the Minister via parliamentary questions to have detail…

Go raibh maith agat.

When the Minister gave her speech here today, she said that she wanted RTÉ to be "independent and accountable". We all know it is neither independent nor accountable. It is not fully the Minister's fault, as successive Governments have neglected to deal with RTÉ because it suited them. More and more in the past while, and especially during Covid, RTÉ became just a total mouthpiece for the Government narrative. It has not changed. This is why the Minister and her Government colleagues will not take them on, will not…

What about "The Riordans"?

They are not woke now.

Then show us.

The Government does not show it.

Farmers, farming and fishing families and everybody in rural communities are devastated this afternoon by the vote that took place in the European Parliament. I salute the two MEPs who are awake to what is going on and voted against it. A total of 20% of our land and seas will be taken out of production by 2030. Then we have the lovely word "ecosystems", which all have to be restored by 2050. Could the Minister tell me what an ecosystem is? Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Greens are lobbying and canvassing every day…