I welcome the opportunity to again raise this important issue and to request that the Minister for Education and Youth provide additional funding for significant improvement and refurbishment works in schools. What is happening in my county of Kerry is simply not acceptable in 2026. We have a systemic problem of underinvestment and as I outlined about two weeks ago in this Chamber, it is very obvious in Scoil Iognáid Rís in Daingean Uí Chúis-Dingle. Conditions there are "outdated and dangerous", yet the school is t…

I thank the Minister of State for the response but I have to say it does not match the reality being experienced by many schools across County Kerry. This evening, I have raised consistent and repeated concerns from multiple school communities and I would like to return briefly to a few of them. Scoil Iognáid Rís, Dingle, has a building that is fundamentally unfit for purpose. This is not a minor works issue; it is a full redevelopment issue. In the case of Scoil Réalt na Mara, the funding model is clearly broken i…

I raise this issue at a time of growing uncertainty for Ireland's tourism sector. In counties like Kerry, the uncertainty is very real. What is the Minister's Department's current assessment of the likely impact of these aviation challenges on overseas visitor numbers in 2026? Specifically, what contingency planning is under way to protect regions like Kerry? What actions are being taken to safeguard air access, support regional tourism and ensure counties like mine are not left exposed?

Tourism in Kerry is the lifeblood of our local economy. From Dingle to Cahersiveen, from Killarney to Ballyheigue, from Kenmare to Ballybunion, from Glenbeigh to Listowel, from Valentia Island to Tralee and right across the county, thousands of jobs and small businesses depend directly on a strong and stable flow of overseas visitors. That stability is under threat. We are seeing the early impacts of global aviation disruption, driven by the conflict involving Iran and rising jet fuel costs. Airlines are already sc…

I appreciate the Minister's response but I want to press the point about regional impact. This cannot be approached in a one-size-fits-all way. Kerry and the wider south west are particularly vulnerable to any reduction in air capacity. If flights are cut or become more expensive, visitors do not just delay; they often choose alternative destinations entirely. While there is a suggestion Ireland could benefit as a safe destination or from increased domestic tourism, we need to be realistic. Domestic tourism will no…

What is happening in schools across County Kerry is simply not acceptable in 2026. I wish to be clear from the outset that we do not have a minor works problem; we have a systemic underinvestment problem. Nowhere is that clearer than in Scoil Iognáid Rís in Daingean Uí Chúis. The school is located in what is considered to be one of the most affluent towns in the country, yet the conditions in the main boy's national school are, in the words of the principal, "archaic". We are talking about children tripping on brok…

I again raise the CAMHS scandal in Kerry. Will the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, provide updates on the north Kerry look-back review and the compensation scheme? I thank the Minister of State for visiting Kerry recently and meeting with individuals and their families. She has always made herself available to the families. I was in Leinster House on a number of occasions over the years when the Minister of State met with them and listened to their concerns. I want to ensure that all of these children, many of wh…

A new permanent oncology and haematology unit at University Hospital Kerry is vital to the people of Kerry. Cancer patient numbers in Kerry are continuing to grow, with many needing to travel from all over Kerry to a hospital, such as Cork University Hospital, the Bon Secours, the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital, the Mercy Hospital in Cork, and with many others travelling to Limerick, Dublin and elsewhere for intensive treatments. The travelling involved is an extra burden on all those patients, and a …

There is no doubt that the rising cost of energy is placing enormous pressure on households right across County Kerry and, indeed, the entire country. For many families, it is a weekly decision between buying food, heating the home, filling the car or meeting other essential costs. In a rural county like Kerry, where people rely heavily on their cars and on home heating oil, these increases are being felt particularly sharply. It is a very genuine frustration people are feeling and while there may be differences in…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the vital role of our post office network, particularly in counties like Kerry where our post offices are the very heartbeat of our towns and villages. I sincerely thank the Government for its continued commitment to this network, in particular the approval of €75 million over the next five years. That investment sends a clear and strong signal that this Government recognises the social and economic importance of post offices in both rural and urban Ireland. In Kerry, from larg…

The post office network is a national asset. With the right vision and continued support, it can remain at the centre of community life for generations to come.

In the west Kerry Gaeltacht, Gaeltacht Chorca Dhuibhne, we have the linguistic town of Dingle - An Daingean, Ceann Trá, Dún Chaoin, An Fheothanach agus Baile an Fheirtéaraigh. In Gaeltacht Uíbh Ráthaigh, we have the service town of Cahersiveen, Baile an Sceilg, An Dromaid, An Ghleann agus An Caladh. These are the two main Gaeltacht areas in County Kerry. There is a strong need to increase the number of Gaelic speakers in these regions. The two regions are suffering from depopulation. There is a need to incentivise …

A new stand-alone oncology unit for University Hospital Kerry is vital for all cancer patients and their families in Kerry. I impress upon the Taoiseach and the Minister for Health the urgent requirement to have a stand-alone oncology-haematology unit on the grounds of UHK to provide Kerry patients with the dignity, privacy and comfort they deserve during one of the most challenging periods of their lives. The Comfort for Chemo Kerry committee, a wonderful organisation, has already raised over €1.5 million in funds…

At the outset, I acknowledge the tremendous work the Minister of State is putting into this area at a very difficult time. He has visited every single fishing community at this stage. He is working night and day on this, meeting all the people involved in the industry, visiting fishing communities, meeting fishermen and fisherwomen, and owners of processing plants which export our fish and shellfish all over the globe. This is an extremely difficult time. The Minister of State has inherited a problem. The industry …

I am raising the matter of funding for a host of locations across County Kerry, including Rossbeigh, Cromane Lower, Killorglin, Whitestrand, Cahersiveen, Waterville, Ballinskelligs and the major flood relief schemes there for Tralee and Kenmare.

We need coastal protection works, flood relief schemes and marram grass initiatives, among other initiatives. We need to expedite funding for these schemes. From my experience, and I have been shouting about coastal erosion and flooding for almost 40 years now, this situation is not given the urgency it deserves. We seem to wait until the damage is done after big storms where there has been major flooding and homes have been destroyed. I am dealing with families living in fear when the tides are high, especially wh…

I thank the Minister of State. I acknowledge that he visited Kerry and Rossbeigh, where I live, and saw for himself the situation there. There will be a public meeting at 6.30 p.m. this evening in the Towers Hotel. The Minister of State also visited Cromane where homes have been destroyed in the past. I have been in houses when there was 3 ft of saltwater in them. In 2015, I was a member of a deputation that came here to discuss the cliff road in Rossbeigh, where 16 houses had been cut off. We were told by the then…

At the outset, I acknowledge the tremendous work that the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, has carried out over many years now. Absolutely no one knows more about the CAMHS scandal, as it is now known, in Kerry than the Minister of State. I acknowledge that at all times when meetings were requested, etc., she agreed to attend. As a councillor many years ago now, I was invited up by the south Kerry CAMHS families. I was the first in Kerry to be asked to come up to try to help in what was a horrendous ordeal for man…

I thank the Minister of State.

I acknowledge the work that has been done here. I call for the outstanding cases to be expedited and dealt with as soon as possible. I recall the first and second time I was up here and one of the representatives of the recent hunger strikers. I acknowledge the fact that at the time, the HSE issued an apology but I reiterate a call I have made many times, which is that they deserve a public apology from the Taoiseach. I have spoken with the Taoiseach recently on this matter and the Minister of State might engage wi…