In recent days, I see Bertie Ahern had a secret meeting with Simon Harris. It is little wonder that he taught him about leaks and spins. Leaks usually come out of Fianna Fáil but they are now starting to come out of Fine Gael, with the leaks we had in recent weeks relating to the budget. It is like a bucket with no ass in it. At one time, when the budget took place nobody knew until budget day exactly what was going to happen. Everybody knew what was going to happen prior to this one. There was one thing we did not…

We are talking about the inheritance tax here. I welcome the move we have made, but I do not think we have gone far enough. It is not that I believe we should be throwing confetti up in the air in the budget and have everybody grabbing it. However, people paid for these properties. Most likely it is a farm or whatever. They are paying back the bank for this property. They are paying the property tax. They are paying for the repairs and the day-to-day running. Down on top of this, when they hand it over after all th…

The means test for the carer's allowance is a significant barrier for many carers who need financial support. Currently, there are 299,128 carers in Ireland but only 96,826 receive the carer's allowance. This means a large number of carers are missing out on essential financial support. Abolishing this test will ensure that all carers receive the assistance they deserve regardless of their financial situation. This change would not only provide much-needed financial relief but also recognise the invaluable service …

There is a major wastewater crisis in west Cork which is nothing short of a scandal. In Shannonvale near Clonakilty raw sewage is bursting out of the tanks into a now closed-off play park and seeping down to the waterway that feeds Clonakilty's mains water. This has been going on for 29 years. Dunmanway wastewater treatment plant has awaited upgrading for the past seven years. That led to a serious discharge of sewage into the Bandon river a couple of months ago. The failure of this Government to provide funds for …

I am communicating with them but I am not getting through. The purpose of this Bill is to ensure that digital health records are used safely and effectively to improve healthcare in Ireland. This is an extremely important issue. Maybe we have let it slip in the past number of years. We have not kept up to speed with what was going on around the world. Something that has been making headlines and raising eyebrows is the cost of Ireland's new children's hospital or, as some like to call it, the billion-euro playgroun…

This Bill aims to improve company rules set out in the Companies Act 2014 by enhancing corporate governance, ensuring companies follow regulations, streamlining daily operations and managing insolvency cases. It promises better management, increased transparency and stronger oversight. However, it may face challenges in its implementation and arising from additional costs for companies. Companies can be made up of all types of ingredients. A company can be a local community or voluntary organisation. Many such orga…

The main point of the changes being made in this criminal justice Bill is to address how young people who commit serious crimes like murder are sentenced. Specifically, it deals with the situations where someone commits a crime as a child but is sentenced after they reach the age of 18. We are speaking about the sentencing of young people. I was talking to a mother the other day on the phone. Her biggest fear, and the fear of all mothers with young daughters at the moment, is making sure when their young daughters …

I wish to express my sympathies to the family of Aoife Johnston and the families of many others who died in terrible circumstances. I support the motion. Those in our group have continuously highlighted serious concerns about the chronic overcrowding at UHL for several years, especially my colleague from Limerick Deputy O'Donoghue. The Minister for Health's neglect of this emergency has left many patients without necessary care, and some have died. Day after day, we witness delays in care for numerous elective pati…

That individual is doing his best to make sure that these people have a home and that it is the same home they always had. We have a crisis here that needs to be looked at on a deeper level. It has not been looked at. It has been neglected and is causing major concern in my area.

The debacle caused by the National Ambulance Service over the past weekend has to be seriously investigated. The NAS caused fury in counties Cork and Kerry when it announced further reduction of services covering these areas. This effectively was leaving no ambulance cover for the Skibbereen area on Mondays, no service in Castletownbere on Tuesdays, no day service in Clonakilty and Bantry on Thursdays and no service in Bantry every second Tuesday night. Losses of day services were also announced for Mallow on Monda…

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. He said this should never have happened. This is happening on a weekly basis in Cork county and, from what I hear, it is happening on a weekly basis nationally. The Taoiseach needs to step in immediately. Members of the public in Cork county and city, and nationally, deserve nothing less than a seven-day ambulance service that they can access in no more than an hour, when required. There is a crisis in the ambulance service nationally. After last weekend's chaotic decision, it v…

I pay tribute to Apple, which has an incredible workforce of 6,000 - mainly in Cork. This is a big issue today. We praise the company for what it has done for the people. There are many ways this money could be spent. It is a bit like the Bible. We are spreading lots with our clothes. We should look at investment in nursing homes instead of closing them. We should reverse the decision to cut cataract surgery reimbursement for patients travelling to Northern Ireland and reduce the VAT rate for businesses. Cafes are …

It is envisaged the new Mental Health Bill will replace, reform and overhaul the Mental Health Act 2001. The Bill contains over 140 sections and introduces, for the first time, a robust system of registration, regulation and inspection of all mental health services, including community CAMHS. Will this happen, however? Every week, I hold clinics all over west Cork. I know from families, parents, brothers, sisters and friends the devastation that mental health issues can cause. I have seen it at first hand. In one p…

I fully support Sinn Féin's motion. Childcare is essential for society, aiding children's development and enabling parents to work. Ireland faces a childcare crisis, however, with high costs, limited availability and inadequate support for professionals. This crisis demands urgent reform. Affordable, accessible and reliable childcare is crucial for families and the economy. It allows parents to work, boosts economic growth and ensures children receive the care they need. Despite its importance, childcare in Ireland…

We have been pleading with the Department for a long time for an answer for the students who are requesting a bus from Bantry to Schull Community College. Thirty-one children need this bus service. Will the Minister announce today that this bus service will be made available, giving relief to parents and children from the Bantry area?

I thank the Minister for her reply but I did not get a reply. The question I asked was will there be a bus service provided for 31 children from Bantry to Schull Community College. The Minister has bamboozled me there with figures but I did not get a reply to the question I asked. I do not know how much time there is but I would really appreciate it if she would concentrate on that when she answers me the next time. We are in here every day of the week speaking about climate action. Surely the first step is to put …

There are many other areas about school transport I could remind the Minister of. We have requested a larger bus or two mini buses for students in Larchfield going to Clonakilty. There are also issues in Rath National School and Laragh National School. There are lots of issues out there in relation to transport for children going to school. There are other issues such as Clogagh National School which is looking for construction of a classroom. Those are issues on which I could concentrate. However, there are 31 chi…

The reimbursement for cataract surgery under the Northern Ireland planned healthcare scheme has been drastically reduced. The original figure of €1,950 has been mercilessly slashed to a mere €863. This is not just an abuse of power; it is a blatant disregard for our elderly citizens who depend on these funds for essential cataract surgery. The Government's decision is nothing short of outrageous. Hospitals in southern Ireland are already stretched to their limits and are incapable of providing timely surgeries. Thi…

Student accommodation is a difficult situation for people in my constituency in Cork who are trying to go to college, or people anywhere. Many people come to my office to see if we can source accommodation for them. It is desperate after spending so many years going through college that they cannot find accommodation. Some people are couch surfing and sleeping in cars. It is a terrible situation for young people to end up in after all their years of education and their parents paying towards their education. They w…

The EPA does not care. Nobody cares. It is all brushed under the carpet: say nothing, just block off the play area, nobody runs around there and no children are allowed to because there is sewage all over the ground. It is going into the aquifer. No one is accountable. The senior Minister comes down and then goes back up to Dublin. He will not sit down with Irish Water - or Uisce Éireann or whatever they want to call it - to resolve the matter. The organisation in question has changed their its four or five times t…