I wish Michelle O'Neill, the First Minister, the deputy First Minister and all the other politicians well. With the devolved government returning to Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Members of the legislative assembly are now tasked with addressing a backlog of public sector challenges. This comes after a period since February 2022 when the Northern Ireland Civil Service had to shoulder the burden of running the country without ministerial direction. During this period with no Executive, senior officials continued…

I want to say, in relation to the lovely people, not just in County Kerry, who sadly lost their lives, whether they were pedestrians, cyclists or people in motor cars, that in a debate like this we have to recognise those families who have been torn asunder because of losing their loved ones on the roads in whatever way that happened. We are really thinking of those people when we are having this debate. Whatever our angle might be on this debate, and on what is being proposed, we are thinking of those people at th…

I did not interrupt you, sir, and I would like for you to keep your mouth shut and have manners as well, maybe.

I would not dare interrupt you because I was brought up with a thing called manners. It is disgraceful that the Minister is not here tonight and that it is not important enough for his agenda to be here tonight. I am totally opposed to what is being proposed and I am being backed up by Transport Infrastructure Ireland which conducted an independent survey on the implications of reducing speed. The Government is hiding this fact. TII is saying that it will increase deaths on our roads and will cost €3.8 billion to r…

The first thing that jumps out of this motion is the suggestion that the licence payer should stop paying and we should invest Exchequer funding in a platform-neutral media fund. Money does not grow on trees and, at the end of the day, it is all taxpayers’ money, so what Sinn Féin is doing is asking the people to stop paying and then the Exchequer will pay. The Exchequer has no money unless we put the money into it in the first instance, so we would need more clarity about where the money is actually to come from. …

One of the main aims of the Bill is to encourage the contribution of research and innovation to the economic, social, cultural and environmental development and sustainability of Ireland and to strengthen the engagement of the research and innovation system with the Government, public bodies, enterprise, non-governmental organisations and cultural institutions. We all welcome that. I want to speak about County Kerry. I warmly welcome the investment made in the past and present in our university in Tralee. Having th…

Today is incredibly important for the Government in the context of finally taking a stand and taking action against the horrific genocide occurring in Palestine. As I said during the debate last night, the Irish people have marched on this week after week, including more than 100,000 people in Dublin the week before last, which made it one of the largest demonstrations in many years. To be fair, the Irish public are far ahead of the Government in the way they are reacting to what is happening in Palestine and what …

Businesses in great towns like Killarney and Killorglin are suffering a great deal at present as a result of the increase in the minimum wage and high energy costs. Why anyone would think that this is a good time to re-rate buildings, I will never understand. The rates on some premises have doubled. The input costs are so enormous that business owners are literally closing their doors. Many of these businesses are in prime locations on Main Street, College Street and New Street in Killarney. Cafes and restaurants i…

I support the Social Democrats original motion and thank the party for bringing it before us. I also thank the groups in Killarney and Tralee and throughout Kerry who have rightly expressed their outrage at what is happening. This motion paints a harrowing picture of the war in Gaza, highlighting the dire humanitarian crisis and the urgent need for peace. It underscores the devastating impact of the conflict on the Palestinian population, including the loss of life, displacement, and the collapse of essential servi…

I welcome this debate and thank Sinn Féin for bringing it forward but I also want to highlight one issue. Sinn Féin has made 11 points in the motion being debated tonight but I would like it if it had 12. The thing I would like to see Sinn Féin highlighting is its own contribution to the housing crisis. I will give an example. Between objecting to zoning and objecting to planning applications, it has objected to 5,121 units of housing in 18 votes in Dublin City Council alone. Its representatives have made objection…

Thank you.

I am not in favour of this and will explain why. The agricultural sector, a cornerstone of Ireland's economy, is heavily dependent on fossil fuels for machinery, transportation, production and processes. A rapid transition could disrupt this sector, leading to economic instability and potential job losses. I am delighted Deputy Ring is in the Chair because I wish to relay a story through him to the Minister of State and the House. Over the last few days, the people over at COP have been talking about protecting our…

I thank the Deputies who brought forward the Bill, but I will have a few more things to say about that in a moment. I wish to declare an interest in this subject. For many decades, I have been providing accommodation for all sectors of society. According to the Central Statistics Office, the average house price was €315,000 in May 2023, 14.8% higher than in 2020 and 125.8% higher than in 2013. That is a staggering increase in the cost of housing. The biggest problem in this whole issue is the availability of housin…

Before I say anything in this debate, I want to declare that, for many decades, I have been providing housing to Irish people, including students, workers and young families, and recently to some Ukrainian families who have come to Ireland under the emergency rules. We are delighted to present this motion to the Dáil, recognising the vital importance of discussing a matter that is a constant topic of debate in every kitchen, workplace and coffee shop across the nation. The current challenges in the immigration and …

He cannot help it. He is a horrible person and he cannot help but being horrible.

An absolutely horrible man.

He is a horrible little man and he cannot contain himself.

He is a horrible man.

No.

That is a withdrawal there. Horrible little man.