There was more than one.

How does the Minister of State know that if he is going out of government?

Who says we are if the Minister of State is gone out of government?

If the Minister of State is gone anything can be taken out of it.

You can change anything you want. It does not have to be green policy everywhere.

The Minister of State is not God.

We heard that about the habitats directive.

How many people were employed by the Department at the end of 2022 and at the end of 2023 and what are the present numbers? Is it true that there is an embargo on recruiting people into his Department until others retire? Will the Minister make a statement on the matter?

That is less.

I thank the Minister for his reply. As he may be aware, new conditions are coming in from Europe every year. The export of slurry is an example. Obviously, such new conditions require resources, as do the various schemes that the Minister introduces. What I am hearing from inside the Department is that people are being told that, if they are short staffed, then they will not get new staff until someone in the Department retires. This might not officially count as an embargo, but it is an embargo. I wish to address …

For the Minister's information, there is fierce confusion among small abattoirs about the so-called new legislation that is under discussion. Councils are basically washing their hands of abattoirs and say that, since they do not have the resources, they will not go near them. One council has actually refused to help. The Minister is well aware of that situation. I have submitted a formal request that the head person in the Department’s veterinary section meet us, and I hope that request will be granted, but I ask …

Two minutes, one and one.

I thank the Minister of State for coming to Roscommon to see it. He stated that he would have an update in two weeks and that is what we are waiting for. We appreciate people coming looking at it and if I had a euro for everyone who came, it would nearly do the job, but I would rather that we get the solution. The solution is what is needed. I believe that the solution is there with the Attorney General's office, that they can do it, but whatever pushing they need, they need to be pushed because they need to unders…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply, but this falls under the habitats directive. While we might not like the side of it that is looked at, it seems to put the turlough and the SAC before people. However, under the legislation and under the habitats directive there is emergency legislation to put a solution in place where a site of community of importance or an SAC is being damaged to basically move water, or whatever the problem is, in any part of the country until a long-term solution is found. Those are …

Some 150 children attend Mullingar regional hospital for diabetes treatment. It covers counties Offaly, Longford, Westmeath and surrounding areas. The weekly clinic and nurse on-call service are now gone. That is critical. I have spoken to parents with babies aged from two or three months to six months old. These are children who are not talking yet and cannot tell their parents how they are. Chaos is ensuing. This is a dangerous situation. I ask the Taoiseach to go to the Minister for Health today to get this reso…

There is no clinic today.

This will be a bit different and not the usual spat at Leaders' Questions. I thank Deputies Naughten and Kerrane. We are here as Roscommon-Galway TDs, joined together and above all we are here united with the people of Lough Funshinagh in County Roscommon. The Tánaiste will be aware of the situation with Lough Funshinagh in County Roscommon, where the water is getting higher and higher. Some people when they go to bed at night listen out to hear if the pumps are running. These include 92-year-olds and 87-year-olds.…

Yes, I know all this.

It will take you to sign it.

Friends of no one.