The Taoiseach has visited Clonmel Garda station in the past. It is a Dickensian station. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien, opened the lovely new plaza, which involved considerable investment, on Monday. There is a site there for the Garda station. Planning permission has been granted and the plans have been approved. For some strange reason, and this is downright unacceptable, that project is being bundled with Clonakilty Garda station and the new children's court. The new chi…

It should be of concern to them.

It should never have happened.

The new leader.

The new leader.

I am glad to contribute to the debate, while I am disappointed at the way it has transpired. I will certainly support the amendment moved by an Teachta Pringle. We have welcomed approximately 70,000 to 75,000 Ukrainian refugees and daoine ar fud na tíre have opened their arms, houses and communities, in the sense of a meitheal, to support our colleagues from Ukraine who are fleeing a most heinous and desperate war. I remember bringing the Ukrainian ambassador, at my invitation, to Cahir to meet some of the Ukrainia…

An bhfuil aon Teachta eile ag iarraidh teacht isteach? All sásta.

The amendment has been discussed. It was grouped with amendment No. 34. The Deputy may have two minutes.

Amendment No. 56 is in the next grouping. Deputy Cairns may make a brief contribution on amendment No. 35 if she wishes.

Yes, as they are grouped. Each amendment has to be put sequentially.

Amendments Nos. 39, 43, 44, 48, 49 and 56 are related and may be discussed together by agreement.

While we welcome the reports announced today in many cases, we need more time for debate. We are also concerned about excise duties, which had been reduced, on diesel, petrol, home heating oil and gasoline. They will be phased out gradually by October, as I understand from what I saw in the proposal. This is unheard of at a time when there are record profits out of the litre of petrol, diesel, agri-diesel, home heating oil, and across the board. The Government is trying to implement a green agenda by forcing exorbi…

The Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan, makes good soundings when it comes to a bypass or relief road for Tipperary town. This is on the route, as the Taoiseach knows, from Foynes in Limerick to Rosslare. While we got €2 million this year to progress that from Cahir to Pallasgreen, that is only at the design stage and going to planning. We need a ring road for Tipperary town. The traffic every day is choking the town. It is killing the businesses. It is so bad for people's health as well, given the fumes being bel…

That is right.

I commend Deputy Ó Broin and Sinn Féin on bringing forward this motion. I spent nearly five years on the housing committee and Deputy Danny Healy-Rae is right. If the reports, paper, visits and experts brought in had all laid a block each, or maybe two, we would have had lots of houses built. There is, however, an inertia here. First, the Government abandoned building houses after the economic crash. Then we gave them all off to the big schemes and the vulture funds. On the other hand, there is the fake oil crisis …

I too support this motion. I see the Government is accepting it but that is all it will do with it. It will spin it then after that. Why will they not look after the people? From ordinary people, working people and families in their homes to community centres, schools, small butchers and hairdressers, everybody is being crippled with energy costs. I, like the second-last speaker, am convinced, given the Government’s inertia to act and the massive profits it made last year on fuel, which were more than any other yea…

One of the overhangs from Covid is the cashless society. Organisations refusing to take cash from people are becoming more prevalent. I am shocked and appalled by the GAA and have been writing to the association, for nearly 12 months, asking it about the situation. Elderly people, who played for and gave their lives to the GAA, worked in clubs and did everything in support of the association, cannot get into matches if they have not prebooked a ticket. They can buy a programme inside the grounds with cash. The same…

I accept that.

The organisation of the Civil Defence falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defence. It is managed by 35 local authority Civil Defence officers and has approximately 3,500 volunteers. From the bottom of my heart, I want to salute the work they have done over the decades. Eddie Cooney, who is not well at the moment, was the officer in charge in south Tipperary for decades. He has now retired and is laid low. I wish him well. Dolores Fahey is now in that office. I was going to bring something on the subje…

I want to support Deputy Cullinane's amendment as well. It is so important. Patient advocacy groups try so hard and they are there to help patients. The vast majority of patients get top-class treatment but sometimes people fall through the cracks in some hospitals and sometimes some of the nursing homes are not up to standard either. You will hear different reasons and excuses for it but these are so important for elderly people who have worked so hard in this State, built up the State and raised families. Some of…