The Government policy on LNG is as set out in the programme for Government. An energy security review is under way, with which the Deputy will be familiar. She will no doubt have heard the Taoiseach earlier today emphasising the importance of the transition to renewable energy sources and the importance of us doing that in an accelerated fashion. That is where this country and the Government are going in regard to energy policy because that is where the future is. We want to reduce our dependence of fossil fuel qui…

The Deputy is right to identify the area of offshore renewable as one of great potential. That is why the Government passed legislation in respect of, and is setting up, the new maritime area regulatory body, which will early next year assume the full suite of statutory functions, in essence to make sure we have a system that is fit for purpose in licensing and regulating this sector. I will ask the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to revert to the Deputy in detail in regard to the Atlantic …

I move the following Revised Estimates: Vote 27—International Co-operation (Revised Estimate) That a sum not exceeding €603,902,000 be granted to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of December, 2022, for certain Official Development Assistance, including certain grants, and for contributions to certain International Organisations involved in Development Assistance and for salaries and expenses in connection therewith. Vote 28—Foreign Affairs (Revised Estima…

The €165 billion national development plan to 2030, published last year, sets out the Government’s overarching investment framework and broad direction for investment priorities for this decade. The NDP also sets out the actions that are being taken to strengthen delivery, maximise value for money and ensure to the greatest extent possible that projects are delivered on time, on budget and with the benefits targeted at the outset. As Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, I am responsible for setting the overa…

We have made changes for new tenders and new contracts, allowing for indexation of the tender price prior to the awarding of the contract. New contracts provide for mutual cost recovery to allow for recovery by the contractor of inflation above a certain percentage. I acknowledge that the level of inflation being experienced in construction is placing real pressure on contractors conducting live contracts because of the fixed-price nature. I have asked my officials in the Office of Government Procurement and the na…

We have a capital carry-forward this year of over €800 million. That gives us some extra resources to ensure the delivery of the NDP this year. I have acknowledged that if the current level of inflation in construction persists for a long period, it will impact on the number of projects in the NDP that are delivered. We have seen some signs in respect of individual tender competitions of limited interest in the private sector. I think that is because of the significant risk they have to carry regarding fixed-price …

We made a commitment in the programme for Government to reform and consolidate the ethics in public office legislation. As the Deputy’s question mentions, and as a first step in meeting this commitment, I asked my Department to undertake a review of ethics legislation in advance of bringing proposals for legislative reform to Government. Following Government agreement, this review got under way in September 2021. Formal stakeholder engagement commenced last November. A public consultation exercise, based on a detai…

I assure Deputy Farrell of my personal commitment to addressing this issue. I do not believe it is acceptable that when we have spent hundreds of millions of euro of taxpayers' money on tribunals of inquiry and they make recommendations, the Oireachtas and Government do not act on those recommendations. This is why when I came into my current role I set up this review to fulfil the programme for Government commitment. There is a need to consolidate, reform and modernise the legislative framework in respect of ethic…

I am not familiar with the exact detail of the An Bord Pleanála issue under review, so I am not going to comment on that. The Public Sector Standards Bill, which was brought forward in 2015, was last discussed on Committee Stage in April 2017, which was five years ago. It is in need of modernising and reform. The review we are undertaking is the best way to approach that. It is a comprehensive review. Ultimately, it is about ensuring we have openness and transparency in public life and the way in which we as electe…

I thank Deputy Healy-Rae for raising this issue. The reduced new entrant pay scales for civil and public servants introduced in 2011 were abolished in 2013 under the Haddington Road agreement, where it was agreed to merge the new pay scales and existing scales, typically by adding the lower two points of the new scale to the existing scale. As such, there are no separate reduced pay scales for civil and public servants. Under the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018 to 2020, it was agreed to examine the remainin…

This is an issue with which I am well familiar. I have discussed it directly with many individual teachers over the last decade or so. All the progress that has been made has been made through collective negotiation and co-operation between trade union officials and officials in my Department and the Department of Education. As I said, the current Building Momentum agreement specifically provides for skipping point 12 of the pay scale for new entrant teachers. The agreement states it will "resolve in full the remai…

I accept the importance of fully addressing this issue. I believe that building on the work that was completed in 2018, the new Building Momentum agreement provides for this incremental jump. It provides an additional increase of €1,700 per teacher. All those who are above point 12 also received an additional incremental jump to the next point on the pay scale. As I said, the skipping of point 12 on the salary scale for teachers is in addition to measures previously introduced in 2018, which provided for skipping p…

As Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, I have responsibility under the Public Service Management Acts for recruitment to the Civil Service. I have no responsibility for recruitment in various other branches of the wider public service, however, which are assigned to the relevant Minister. The Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 sets out that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage is responsible for all matters relating to recruitment to local authorities. The G…

The Deputy is absolutely right to highlight the level of priority this Government affords to the issue of active travel. We have committed €1.8 billion towards its development over the five-year period to 2026. On the specific issue of getting the correct mix of skills and experience to deliver these programmes, it is primarily a matter for the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Section 160(1)( a ) of the Local Government Act 2001 states: "The appropriate Minister may declare qualifications of suc…

I agree we need multidisciplinary teams to deliver the full set of active travel projects, given the set of skills that is needed is certainly wider than that confined to the engineering profession. Nevertheless, there is adequate flexibility within the current statutory framework for the local government sector to recruit people with different qualifications, skills and experience. Currently, more than 30,000 people are employed in the local government sector. I reiterate that if I or my officials can be of any as…

The Government is aware of the challenges many households are facing due to increases in the cost of living, in particular those on lower incomes. The recent rise in inflation is a problem faced by almost every advanced economy in the world. We saw a fall in prices in 2020 as a result of the pandemic but, as the global economy recovers, we are faced with new challenges including rising energy prices and supply issues, which have been exacerbated by the terrible war in Ukraine. In this context, the Government has in…

I fully accept that anyone in the business of providing a transport or haulage service is under great pressure at the moment because of the importance of fuel costs for them, which is why the Government brought forward the scheme the Deputy mentioned. The scheme, which applies to licensed hauliers, was introduced by the Minister for Transport, so I will undertake to raise with him and the Minister of State at his Department, Deputy Naughton, the specific issue the Deputy raised. The scheme, as currently constructed…

I will discuss the matter with the Minister. I would imagine the reason the scheme has been constructed for licensed hauliers only relates to the existence of a defined list of them and also because they are regulated. We will need to examine the issue in some greater detail. I understand the point the Deputy makes, whereby people who are involved in the business of transporting livestock are certainly not immune to any extent from rising fuel prices and are carrying the burden of that in the same way as licensed h…

Budget 2022 included a number of measures to support citizens faced with increased costs of living. The Government is acutely aware, however, of the challenges still facing many households, in particular relating to energy bills and especially for those on lower incomes. In response to previous questions, I set out a number of measures the Government has brought forward. In February, there was a package of more than €500 million, which continues to be implemented, including the energy credit of €200 inclusive of VA…

We had a very significant social welfare package in the previous budget, totalling well in excess of €500 million. As the Deputy will know, this involved increases in core weekly rates and improvements in the living alone allowance, the carer's allowance, parent's benefit, the working family payment, the back-to-school clothing and footwear allowance, the qualified child increase, and a number of other programmes administered by the Department of Social Protection including, for example, a pilot programme of hot sc…