Fundamentally, it will be within the spirit of the UN Charter, but we do not want countries like Russia in particular vetoing or having the ultimate decision on whether Ireland should send its military on a peacekeeping mission. It is very simple.

Given the behaviour of Russia over a decade, and in particular in the past three years, it is incomprehensible that we would allow Russia to have a veto.

That is the view. Other aspects of the existing legislation need to change. The figure of 12 should be brought up to 50. There are other missions like the drug narcotics international group, of which we are a member. We cannot send a ship to track down narcotics because of the existing legislation.

The climate action plan will be published in the next number of weeks. The Government is absolutely committed to addressing the issues presented by climate change. We have made significant progress over the past four years. I have referenced the massive population increase in Ireland since 1990, more than 1.5 million people. The economy has grown very strongly since then. The number of cars has increased by 1 million. In other words, despite all of the increased activity which ordinarily gives rise to higher emissi…

The Government is very committed to doing that and the big story will be our success and the pace at which we can deliver offshore renewables and solar power, which will be the big game changers.

The Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler, met SOSAD before Christmas. My understanding is that there has been ongoing engagement between SOSAD and the HSE mental health services. That will continue. Engagement is continuing with the HSE in Louth-Meath and SOSAD on the steps required to complete a funding application. It is doing very good work. As I said, the Minister met the organisation to outline the steps that need to be taken for any potential funding application under the section 39 process. As the Deputy kn…

I certainly welcome CBS Charleville to Dáil Éireann. I hope they have a fruitful, enjoyable and enlightening day. I wish Maddie a very happy birthday. I presume it is because of her birthday that everyone is here to enjoy themselves. In respect of the defective blocks scheme, the State was anxious to recover some revenue, given the extraordinary outlay involved in the defective concrete blocks scheme. The industry bears some responsibility for what transpired - not everyone in the industry but certain players in th…

I thank Deputy Lahart for bringing home the reality of our bus services for consumers and users. We are endeavouring to encourage people to use our buses but this is a truly shocking story. I will bring this to the attention of the Minister. We have recently heard quite a number of cases like this.

I thank the Deputy for raising an important issue regarding school transport. I will certainly talk to the Minister regarding the specific case and bus route the Deputy raised. There are changes under way in respect of the school transport scheme. I do not have the exact timelines but I will talk to the Minister and revert back to the Deputy on this.

I will talk to the Minister in respect of the issue the Deputy has raised and I will ask him to revert back to her with the up-to-date position.

Aontaím leis an Teachta. Is féidir linn cabhair agus tacaíocht a thabhairt d'Fhoras na Gaeilge. Tuigim go bhfuil brú airgeadais ar Fhoras na Gaeilge agus fógra tugtha ag an mbord le déanaí go mbeidh air maoiniú a ghearradh ó chuid dá scéimeanna mar bheart éigeandála, agus is cúis díomá é sin don Rialtas. Tá ceist airgeadais Fhoras na Gaeilge pléite ag roinnt cruinnithe le tamall anuas. Bhí cruinniú ag oifigigh Roinn na Gaeltachta ar an 10 Feabhra leis an Roinn Pobal ó Thuaidh, le Foras na Gaeilge agus le Gníomhaire…

I thank Deputy Boland for raising this matter. The Government is fully committed to delivering high quality, affordable and accessible childcare for all families. It is interesting to point out that investment in early learning and care in school-age childcare has quadrupled in the past decade, increasing from €260 million in 2015 to €1.37 billion in 2025. The number of enrolments has increased year on year from 2021 right up to 2023 and 2024. In 2025, the Government will allocate approximately €1.37 billion for ea…

I will get back to the Deputy with a more specific answer but I surmise that the legislation will be complex. We will see whether we can accelerate the timeline for it. We are a generous people but I concur with the Minister for Justice that the majority who apply for protection are economic migrants. The work permits system has proved to be very effective in terms of targeting and in creating a lot of opportunities for people from the European Union and beyond to work in Ireland. There are huge challenges across t…

My understanding is that the numbers have grown exponentially. For this school year, the numbers have again increased very significantly in terms of SNAs generally. There are close to 23,500 special needs assistants in our school system right now. These are enormous numbers. The increases have been quite dramatic over the past number of years. I will check in respect of the specifics of the school the Deputy raised.

Four Government Deputies have spoken out of 11 speakers.

If people want, we can provide more. We can provide four if that could be facilitated. I appreciate Deputy Gannon's generosity in wanting to share time with Government Deputies. That is kind of in line with Government thinking. On Deputy O'Flynn's question, we need to review the regulatory framework governing energy prices, particularly in terms of the user base. It will not be easy but the Government is committed to establishing a group to review the legislative framework. Energy prices are high in Ireland relativ…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 7, inclusive, together. Ireland's well-being framework is a Government initiative to measure progress and policy impact in Ireland in a more holistic way. The framework consists of 11 dimensions that reflect different aspects of well-being. It is supported by a dashboard hosted by the Central Statistics Office and composed of 35 indicators that bring together economic, social and environmental statistics in an integrated way. Each year, an Understanding Life in Ireland report i…

Sorry?

Deputy Cian O'Callaghan raised the issue of the CIÉ pensioners. I take on board the Deputy's point that the actuaries are saying it would not impact on the scheme itself if the pensions continued to match salary increases. I will talk to the Minister with a view to getting an assessment of it. I am conscious of the issue. I want to see other ways to make progress on this issue. I will come back to the Deputy. I am not familiar with the specific issue raised by Deputy Paul Murphy. I do not understand why the local a…

Did he apply for retention?