The European Union is not sending weapons.

The European Union as an entity.

They are sovereign, independent countries. The European Union is not sending weapons to Israel. For the sake of the public, we need clarity in the debate. The Middle East is complex enough. I think everyone in this House is consistent and unified in wanting this war to end.

France, for example, will have strong interests in trying to protect Lebanon. It does not support the bombardment and has been trying, with the US, to get an agreement between Hezbollah, the Israeli military and the Israeli Government, to no avail, over the last 12 months. When the Hamas attack on Gaza happened, Hezbollah, in solidarity with Hamas, started firing rockets into Israel. A total of 90,000 people left the north of Israel. About 90,000 Lebanese people have had to leave southern Lebanon. Those cities are …

On 19 July 2024, the International Court of Justice delivered an advisory opinion on the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. The Deputy will recall that the Attorney General, on behalf of the Government, made a submission to the court in respect of this. In its advisory opinion, the court concluded that Israel's continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory is unlawful, and that Israel is under an obligation…

Bill or no Bill, that would unfortunately not stop Israel from what it is doing. What it is doing in the West Bank is reprehensible. I take issue with this latest sort of propaganda that it is just words and not action. I do not accept that and will not accept it. I will consistently rebut that argument because Ireland has taken action and will continue to take action on all levels. The Bill itself seeks to restrict the import and sale of goods and the provision of services originating from settlements in relevant …

I take issue with what the Deputy said in respect of his reference to the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. The Deputy said we "can dispute". The Minister has said categorically that no such phone call took place. It is not a question. It is important for the record of the House that we put that on record. The Minister spoke to me regarding it. We have to be fair to everybody and not continue to propagandise. It is not a ruse. The legal opinion is there from previous Attorneys General in respect of an EU competency issue a…

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Sometimes the Deputy does not like what I have to say and he interrupts. The bottom line is that is action. That is my point. As soon as the opinion was issued, Ireland went back in and cosponsored a resolution to give effect to it and call on states to implement it. That is action.

It is not just words.

Two and a half years on from Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine continues to face immense challenges. With the Taoiseach, I recently announced a €36 million package of support for Ukraine and its immediate neighbours, which builds on the extensive political, humanitarian, military and economic support provided since February 2022. It will provide much-needed humanitarian support and development assistance to people suffering the impact of this unjust war. Our approach has been to provide support bilaterally and …

I thank the Deputy for what he said. The figure we have is $486 billion over the next decade. That figure rises every day. I mentioned the nature of modern warfare. It is entirely destructive. Rulers are now targeting civilian and energy infrastructure, houses, schools, hospitals and so forth. Ireland has engaged in discussions on short-term recovery efforts in preparation for a successful longer term reconstruction effort. We were represented by the Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs at the 202…

I thank Deputy O'Sullivan and the other Deputies for raising the question. There is concern in the Ukrainian Government that we are losing sight of the war on Ukraine. It is not getting the same attention and focus within the House. What has happened to the children in Ukraine is abominable. It is very hard to comprehend how human beings can essentially deport 20,000 children having taken them from their homes, their localities, their villages. It is reprehensible. We announced that we would join the German-led All…

Is oth liom a rá gur uafásach ar fad an méid a dúirt an Teachta Dála. Tá sé ag iarraidh comparáid nó juxtaposition a dhéanamh idir an méid atá déanta i gcúrsaí oideachais agus an infheistíocht i gcúrsaí sláinte. Tá infheistíocht an-mhór déanta i gcúrsaí sláinte i rith na mblianta, go háirithe i sláinte leanaí, idir sláinte choirp agus sláinte aigne. The Deputy's attempts to juxtapose a once-off €9 million expenditure on mobile phones with the broader and serious issue of mental health for children is despicable and…

When it comes to the mental health of a child, I am very reluctant to discuss an individual child's situation in regard to mental health publicly. That is a position I have, generally speaking. I do not think it is in the best interests of the child. Parents and others may disagree, but that is my view. These issues evolve. We need to help every child in difficulty. There are issues and I am not saying there are not, but to try to create the impression the €9 million is the be-all and end-all of provision for menta…

That is not true.

Before proceeding further, I ask colleagues to join me in offering a warm céad míle fáilte to members of the Committee for Health of the Northern Ireland Assembly. They have joined us in the Distinguished Visitors Gallery, led by their chair, Ms Liz Kimmins. They include Danny Donnelly, MLA; Linda Dillon, MLA; and Órlaithí Flynn, MLA, and are here to meet with their Oireachtas counterparts and discuss important health issues and cross-Border co-operation on these matters. We wish them success in their efforts. They…

I thank the Deputy sincerely for raising the issue and for her comments. I do not have an update on the report I received as I arrived in the Chamber of firing on UNIFIL positions. I expect to get a comprehensive report on that, which I will share with people generally. It illustrates the high-risk and dangerous environment peacekeepers now operate within and the need for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel. That has to happen immediately. Israel is not listening, even to its allies, in t…

I can assure the Deputy that we will be supportive of anything that will assist in pushing back against the occupation of Palestinian territory and what is happening at the moment with the significant land grab in the north of the West Bank. With regard to the ICJ opinion, I already took action, instructing my Department and the military leadership not to procure from Israel any defensive equipment, drones or whatever. I had read somewhere, much to my surprise, that this was about to happen. I would regard any enga…

First of all I must point out to the Deputy that there are 28,000 more people working in our health service than there were at the beginning of 2020. That is a 23% increase. This includes some 9,375 nurses and midwives, 4,000 health and social care professionals and 3,330 additional doctors and dentists. At the moment, we are looking at 129,750 - approximately 130,000 -people now working within the HSE. This is excluding disability services, which have moved over to the Department of children. The budget is in and …