As the Deputy is aware, we are not directly dependent on a supply of gas from Russia. We get approximately 25% to 30% of our domestic needs from the Corrib. The balance comes in through interconnectors from the UK and Norway. We acknowledge the important role that gas is going to play into the future as both a transition fuel and a backup fuel. Any decision about future policy and about particular facilities should best be made in the context of the energy security review which the Minister, Deputy Ryan, is current…

With regard to Deputy Pringle's question, my understanding is that work is ongoing with regard to the review of cardiac services, which is being led by Professor Philip Nolan. The timeline was impacted by Covid-19 but it is expected to be completed shortly. I thank Deputy Conway-Walsh for raising the issue of these very important schemes. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is examining that issue and has engaged with stakeholders. She will come back to the Deputy further in relation to that issue. Deputy Richmond rais…

We in government accept that many people and businesses are under pressure. We represent ordinary people too. We are elected by ordinary people and we meet them every day in our day-to-day lives as well. The reality is that the inflation that is being experienced is at a 40-year high and is primarily driven by international factors. I think Deputy McDonald also accepts that. It is exceptional in nature. That is why we have brought in a series of exceptional measures outside of the normal budgetary cycle because we …

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. There is nobody bragging and there is no need to drag down the tone of the political debate on what is a very important issue which affects ordinary people and businesses all over the country. I can legitimately make the point about following Deputy McDonald's advice and spending €3.5 billion more in the budget last year on expenditure and spending more every time we made an intervention earlier this year when she said it only scratched the surface. Anyone looking at the Deputy's …

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of Benefacts. It is important to put on the public record that Benefacts was not a public service body so it was not in the public sector family. While the State provided funding for the organisation for a number of years, it was not running the organisation. It was an external third-party body, which delivered a good service during its lifetime and there is no question whatsoever about that. As the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, I had a clear recommendation fro…

I did not come to the debate with a fixed view. I received a clear recommendation based on an assessment of value for money and the business case. The recommendation made to me as Minister was that we could no longer stand over spending public money on a service that was matched by other public bodies. We reached out to other public bodies, some of which the Deputy has mentioned, including the Department of Rural and Community Development, to see whether they had a requirement for the information being provided by …

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. He has articulated the real-world experience of many people at this point in time. Not everyone but, certainly, a share of the population is very much feeling the effects of what is a 40-year high level of inflation. The Deputy has acknowledged, to be fair, that the Government has made a range of interventions in different areas to address cost of living. We have had some universal measures, including the electricity credit, the reduction in transport costs and, most recent…

We have sought to help to date. We will do more and we will help people who most need it, in particular. We are working on finalising the summer economic statement, and the preparations for the budget are now under way. We are looking at all of the options that are open to Government with a view to making a real impact. It is our assessment that the autumn, coming into the winter, is when people will need help most. We know there are people who need help now. We are criticised every time we highlight that there is …

The Deputy makes a valid point that rising fuel prices have an impact across the board. They affect private citizens in households, of course, but also private enterprise such as contractors, farmers and the delivery of public works contracts. We have made a number of interventions as a Government and we have already spoken about the reduction in excise, which comes at significant cost. Initially it was €320 million until the end of August and it was extended to budget day so the total cost now is well over €400 mi…

The Deputy started his contribution by correctly saying these are not normal times, and I agree with him on that. In normal times a Government would not come out in March and say it would reduce excise by 20 cent and 15 cent. It was an exceptional intervention because of the costs that people face. It happened to coincide with a time when wholesale prices were rising and people felt they did not see any benefit but if the Government had not made the intervention, the prices on forecourts would be 20 cent and 15 cen…

The Deputy will not hear anybody on this side of the House defending any level of homelessness and certainly not the level we are currently experiencing in our country. As a Government, we are responding with the largest investment ever in the history of the State and we will deliver approximately 10,500 public and social homes this year, of which 9,000 will be new builds. As the Deputy knows, we are rolling out for the first time cost-rental homes as well and it is great to see that happening. We will have new aff…

I thank the Deputy. Any example of a landlord asking prospective tenants to become involved in a bidding war and say how much they are willing to pay to outbid each other is completely unacceptable. It is not something the Government believes should be happening in the market. We are in a situation where, increasingly, small landlords with one, two or three properties are leaving the market. We have to examine the reason they are leaving the market when rents are so high. There are some reasons for that and the Gov…

I am, of course, very familiar with Bandon and this particular project. It seems like there have been works ongoing in Bandon for a long time with the drainage works and flood relief works. Everyone is anxious to see further progress on the relief road. What I can say is that there is a budget of €30 billion for the Department of Transport in respect of the national development plan out to 2030. There will be significant funding opportunities to advance a whole range of projects. I will make an inquiry in respect o…

Emergency accommodation will be found for people who are in such dire need. I ask the Deputy to please provide the details of that case and the other cases to the Minister, Deputy Darragh O’Brien, who will take up the issue with the local authority and indeed the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive. Emergency accommodation will be found.

It is important that we have policy certainty in this area. We want to see the supply of new homes continue to increase. We had about 20,000 units built in each of the last two years. It will be probably around 25,000 this year. We need the figure to grow further. I am not going to add to any speculation as to what the Government may or may not do by way of further interventions in the market. Clearly all matters relating to taxation are considered in the context of the budget.

I assume the Deputy is referring to the early years sector in particular. The Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O’Gorman, is engaging directly with that sector. As a Government, we made a step change in investment in the last budget, which will kick in in the autumn. I want to make sure that funding is used effectively for the purpose for which it is intended, which is to improve affordability for parents and to make sure there is a good career pathway for the workers in the…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue which is so important for many people. I just want to reassure him that the HSE continues to engage in commercial discussions with Vertex. The Minister for Health advises that the matter is being expedited at speed and is receiving all necessary attention. Those discussions are commercial in nature, but the need to bring them hopefully to a successful conclusion is accepted and recognised by Government. I thank the Deputy for raising this.

I can confirm that the Government approved the drafting of a family court Bill along the lines of the general scheme in September 2020 which has been published and the drafting of the Bill is ongoing. It is quite an intensive amount of work ongoing in respect of that with a view to publishing it as soon as possible. The family court Bill will make provision for the establishment of a family court as divisions within the existing court structures, that is, providing for a family high court, a circuit family court an…

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. As I said earlier, the Department of Transport has a funding commitment of €30 billion out to 2030 in the national development plan, NDP. We have a provision within the programme for Government for a 2:1 ratio in terms of new investment in favour of public transport infrastructure-----

-----relative to new road infrastructure. That still provides very significant funding for investment in new road infrastructure, including upgrades of existing primary and secondary national roads. I will look into the issue the Deputy raised and ask the Minister to respond to him.