The Social Democrats' proposals would see the current vacant properties tax increase by more than 33 times to 10% of the property valuation. If implemented, this would mean that the owner of the average vacant home, using the average home price of €320,000, would pay a vacant home tax of €32,000 per year, up from the current €945 per year. This proposal is just plain bonkers and is destined to fail. A vacant property tax falls into the category of something that sounds good, that will play well politically but that…

The O'Donovan family in Clonakilty has been in business for seven generations. Tom and Dena O'Donovan have been in business for 44 years running a viable seventh-generation town-centre hotel with 21 bedrooms and two apartments, employing 70 people in the heart of Clonakilty. In 2007, they took out a business loan with AIB under a 30-year repayment plan. Several months later, Ireland had a bank meltdown and AIB hit the O'Donovans with changes to their repayment plan, reducing it from 30 years to 12 years. There were…

Similar to the Tánaiste, with whom I raised this question, the Minister's office was notified three weeks ago about this issue directly from the O'Donovan family. That is fair enough; the Minister is busy, and I respect that. I would appreciate if he might have a look at it, however. Exactly 20 days ago in this Chamber during Leaders' Questions, I asked the Tánaiste the same question I have asked the Minister today. I asked him as Tánaiste and as leader of Fianna Fáil to meet the O'Donovans in Clonakilty. Even thou…

The Courts Bill 2023, if passed, will increase the maximum number of judges in the District Court, Circuit Court, High Court and Court of Appeal. This increase in judicial resources may lead to the faster and more efficient processing of court cases. It may also help to reduce the backlog of cases in the courts and improve access to justice. Overall, the Bill seeks to enhance the functioning of the Irish courts system by providing adequate resources in the form of an increased number of judges. This may lead to imp…

The Social Democrats' proposals would see the current vacant properties tax increase by more than 33 times to 10% of the property valuation. If implemented, this would mean that the owner of the average vacant home, using the average home price of €320,000, would pay a vacant home tax of €32,000 per year, up from the current €945 per year. This proposal is just plain bonkers and is destined to fail. A vacant property tax falls into the category of something that sounds good, that will play well politically but that…

The Deputy said that this is the way the world is going and people would like to keep up with the trend if that was humanly possible, but we are talking about electric vehicles and electric charging points. In rural Ireland they are difficult to come by. If you left Gortduff, Goleen, Ardgroom or Sheep's Head this morning and made your way to Dublin, you would like to think there would be as many charging points in the rural areas as you see around Dublin and its surrounds. That is not the case. I accept that will c…

As I said earlier, I have no issue with EVs but I have a problem that in my constituency there are few charging points and I do not think this will work. Deputies have been looking at the pros and cons of this. Does the Minister realise that EVs lose 2% of their range each year they are on the road? A battery does 130,000 km to 200,000 km so I will be in deep trouble because I have a relatively new car that probably has over 200,000 km. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae said he has done some 700,000 km.

How much is a battery?

A taxi operator contacted me and other Deputies recently. He had bought a second-hand EV, but the battery went in it. It is costing him thousands of euro to replace it. While we hear about all the positives, most of the people of Cork South-West do not have the €40,000 or €50,000 to purchase the EVs in the first place. If they have it, they do not have the charging points unless we move into Clonakilty or Skibbereen. There are rural peninsulas and areas that I represent and I stand for them today. This needs to be …

We have a very serious housing problem and there is no point in me mincing my words here. It is a scandalous situation in which we find ourselves. Year after year, since I came into the Dáil, we have spent a huge amount of time talking about housing. I often say that if we had a house or two built every time we spoke about housing in here, we would not have a crisis but, unfortunately, we do. At weekend clinics in my constituency, I have five or six people coming to me with issues related to planning permission. I …

The O'Donovan family in Clonakilty has been in business for seven generations. Tom and Dena O'Donovan have been in business for 44 years running a viable town centre hotel with 21 bedrooms and two apartments, employing 70 people in the heart of Clonakilty. In 2007, they took out a business loan with AIB under a 30-year repayment plan. Several months later, Ireland had a bank meltdown and AIB hit the O'Donovans with changes to their repayment plan, reducing it from 30 years to 12 years. There were no negotiations wh…

I thank the Tánaiste for his offer to meet the family. That would be greatly appreciated and taken up. He received correspondence to his office. The family told me they sent full documentation and correspondence to the Tánaiste three weeks ago. Perhaps the Tánaiste did not have time to look at it. I respect that. That happens to every one of us. I would appreciate it if the Tánaiste did look at it. To date, he has not responded. The family have been at the very heart of Clonakilty all their lives. They have done no…

The family have contacted me.

Fianna Fáil's Deputy in west Cork knows about it so I presumed he was here.

I am going to the Tánaiste now.

The sheep sector may as well be shouting into the abyss as aid requests are ignored. That is the problem here. There is a resilient and determined momentum towards growth within the Irish sheep sector but this cannot be translated into a sustainable or viable economic model for the future in the absence of direct, targeted supports. I met with Mr. Dermot Kelleher, chairman of the ICSA, over the weekend and I met with IFA members on Monday in my house on this issue, or rather, this crisis. To date, despite the afore…

I am glad to get the opportunity to speak on this motion today. I am not going to concentrate too much on housing, as I have spoken enough about it over recent weeks and years. Nobody is listening to what I say about planning permission and rural communities. In my constituency the council continuously refuses people who are trying to get a start in life. There are ruins in the middle of towns that are not going anywhere only staying in ruins. Look at the health system in this country. We must look at other areas w…

Earlier this month, it emerged that 58 school building projects are being delayed because of funding pressures. The delays are likely to affect tens of thousands of students who, in many cases, have been in temporary accommodation or prefabs for years. The development comes amid pressure on post-primary level, in particular, due to a population bulge and the need to find school places for Ukrainian students. The multidenominational body, Educate Together, has stated that the Department of Education has told it that…

We completely oppose this motion at every level as it represents something akin to a deal from a gangster movie. It is completely outrageous that the Cabinet approved the purchase of 4.1 million carbon credits from Slovakia at a cost of €2.9 million in some sort of hypocritical way to help meet the 2020 emission targets. The fallacy of this deal is exposed by the fact that Slovakia was allowed to increase its emissions by 13% by 2020 compared with 2005 levels while Ireland had to reduce its emissions within specifi…

What are we doing?