Could the Minister look at this because it is ferociously important to help the situation?

The Taoiseach has spoken about building 300,000 houses over the next few years and I wish him luck in that. The facts are at the moment that 85% of the towns of Ireland do not have capacity to provide extra water for new housing. We know the budget that Irish Water is working with. Its ten-year plan is to bring the network up to specification under EU regulations and is based on approximately 30,000 houses per year. We know that, in Dublin, Ringsend's sewerage is over capacity. What happens when it is over capacity…

The facts are that of the €10 billion that is proposed, €5 billion is to comply with EU legislation. It is to bring plants that are not compliant at the moment into compliance. Another €3 billion of it is for the Shannon project. What the Government is saying, then, is that the Government has €2 billion over five years to produce an additional 30,000 houses every year. To be quite frank about it, whoever did those figures - and I know it was not the Taoiseach - does not have a bull's clue of what is going on in thi…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion. We need to learn many lessons from Storm Éowyn. We can blame and give out, but we need to be prepared for the next one and do a post mortem on what needs to be improved. In fairness, the Minister, Deputy Calleary, has been helpful whenever I have gone to him. I would say his Department has no closing date in its letters. You need flexibility for all people because they came through a terrible time. Telling someone to apply online when there is no Internet connectio…

First, I want to wish the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, well as I did not formally do it. For a number of years, I have lobbied about veterinary colleges and I welcome the announcement where Letterkenny and Mountbellew was going to be one of them and Carlow-Kilkenny and Waterford was going to be the other. My understanding was this was going to kick off in September 2025. I have heard it could be September 2026. Can the Minister clarify what is going to happen with that and why it has been dela…

There are probably 200 youngsters out of the country at the moment because UCD is not fit to take the numbers who are looking for this. I understand that there is a lot of setting up to it, but the problem is, as the Minister knows in his position, that a delay of three or four months does not work in veterinary or in college because if it is not ready for September 2025, it will not start until September 2026. I know the Minister is only new in his portfolio. The Cathaoirleach Gníomhach is from this area. He repre…

I thank the Minister for his reply. I will follow the matter up with him as the months go by.

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this matter. On security, there are many headwinds blowing at present in respect of the Mercosur deal. Irish farmers would be unduly affected by this deal and I urge the Government to oppose it. On tariffs, while it will be Europe that will decide the number and type of products that will attract tariffs, we must remember that the 60% of, for example, distillers' grain that comes to Europe comes to Ireland. Speaking to grain importers, if this comes in, along with a tariff on m…

I welcome the debate and support the motion. When we hear the Department of Finance talking about it costing a certain amount if we were to get rid of the means test, if these carers decided to look at putting their loved ones into a nursing home, it would cost the State €1,100 every week. Those are the facts of it. They are actually saving the State about €800 to €900 every week. I have been in the House for ten or 11 debates on carers and everyone agrees but the problem is that nothing is changing. Where a youngs…

To correct the record, we went in to meet the Taoiseach and Tánaiste and put a policy document in front of them. When we talked about trying to save the agricultural sector from a carbon tax, others decided to sign up to it. We talked about freezing it and perhaps putting it on aeroplane travel. People can decide whether to go on holidays but cannot decide whether to go to work 30 or 40 miles from where they live. Others decided they would let people suffer in that way. That was the reason we were not brought into …

They signed up for the jobs.

I wish both the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Kevin Boxer Moran, the best of luck in their new portfolios. The first thing is that I think everyone is in agreement with Croí Cónaithe. It is a good thing and is getting more houses done. I think the cabin at the back of the house is a good thing. I would like if it was 200 sq. ft bigger, the same size as the modular homes, but if anything is good let us say that it is good if it all helps in the housing sector. Let us look at the facts, however, in socia…

I wish the Minister well in her new portfolio. She will be well aware that over the last few weeks the people of the west, the north west and the midlands have suffered fair torture with the storm. In the context of legislation relating to the Department of the environment at the moment, many contractors went to help the likes of the ESB and the councils to get trees off roads and all of that type of work. Those contractors need to do work for farmers and the hedge-cutting season is closing at the end of this month…

I know that.

First, I wish both Ministers well. I thank them for their engagement so far. It is only fair that they get the time to settle in. There are a lot of storms on the horizon for them and to judge them on over the next few years. I brought this first thing to their attention previously and I ask both the Ministers of State, Deputies Healy-Rae and Grealish, to get involved as well. A lot of sheds have been lost during the storm. Will the Department look at that? We are able to do replacement slats so surely we should be…

I wish the three Ministers well in their new portfolios. I welcome this morning's announcement on modular homes and log cabins but there is one thing I cannot fathom. I hear it is 40 sq. m. The modular homes being built at the moment are 600 sq. ft, which is 60 sq. m. I do not know why it is 20 sq. m less but I still welcome it because it is going to help people. Let us give praise when praise is due. The planning situation needs to be tackled. An emergency should be called because objections are holding up many pl…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this matter. It is nearly three weeks since this bomb hit the west, the midlands and the north west. It is good to see people coming back but, my God, three weeks is a long time. Eamon Ryan's dream of air-to-water heat pumps turned into a nightmare for most people. They were perished in their houses. Thank God a lot of people had a chimney. We should go back and make sure that people are allowed chimneys in all counties because what some people endured was catastrophic. I comme…

I thank the Minister.

First, I wish the Tánaiste well in his new position. Two weeks ago tonight, the people of the west, the north west and the midlands faced one of the toughest nights of their lives with the after-effects of this storm. They are still being felt and will be felt into the future. On Saturday morning, the clean-up operation began, where local communities and contractors got together to clear roads. I compliment them and the farming community. I also compliment the ESB crews who are out day and night. The guys on the gr…

Will the Government give councils and local communities funding to make sure they can do a huge clean-up after this? There is a lot of debris.