Regarding the joint North-South rail strategy between the then Northern Ireland Executive and the Government in respect of the all-island rail strategy, I understand the Minister is working towards publishing that notwithstanding the fact that the Executive has not been restored. I would like to consult with the Minister before giving the Deputy a definitive confirmation as to whether it will be published this month. I am very conscious of the Deputy's commitment to the western rail corridor and have communicated t…

On the question from Deputy Michael Collins, I have always said that the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier is a stain on Irish society, as is the fact that there has not been a resolution of the case. Our thoughts are with the du Plantier family, particularly in view of the trauma they continue to go through as a result of the unresolved nature of this case. However, the Government cannot intervene with An Garda Síochána with regard to the cold case review that is under way. It would be inappropriate for the Gove…

I believe in connecting sewers as much as we can. Irish Water is doing that across the board but there are limitations in terms of what can be done in any one year.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an deis labhairt ar an ábhar seo. Is ábhar an-tábhachtach é agus tá sé tábhachtach go mbeadh seans againn labhairt faoi go háirithe chun a chinntiú gur féidir próiseas síochána a chur ar fáil agus a thabhairt ar ais. I welcome the opportunity to update the House on the situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory and to view recent developments in a wider context. Allow me to turn first to the situation in Jenin. In the early hours of Monday, 3 July, the Israeli security forces lau…

There is no problem, like.

I beg the indulgence of the Ceann Comhairle and Deputy to say that last evening we heard the very sad news of the passing of a former Minister and Deputy, Brendan Daly from Cooraclare in County Clare. He was an extraordinarily committed public servant who served in multiple Departments as Minister for social welfare, defence, marine, fisheries and forestry. He worked in the Department of An Taoiseach and the Departments of labour, foreign affairs and finance. He was an active and valued member of our party and a co…

I thank the Deputy for raising the situation in Palestine, the unacceptable attacks on Jenin and the escalation by the Israeli Government, which I condemn, of violent incursions into the West Bank generally. The last two years have seen a significant escalation in such incursions and violence, which has led to a dramatic increase in the loss of life, particularly the loss of civilian life in the West Bank. We have articulated our strongest concern and condemn the incursion into Jenin. It is part of a very worrying …

The programme for Government states that the Government will honour its commitment to recognising a state of Palestine as part of a lasting settlement of the conflict, or, in advance of that, when we believe doing so will progress efforts to reach a two-state solution or to protect the integrity of the Palestinian territory. We could go solo and do it next week or next year, but what impact would that have? That is a serious question which we must ask. There is a strong argument that having a stronger, collective v…

I share the Deputy's expressions of sympathy with the families of Andrew O'Donnell and Max Wall and the entire St. Michael's College community. It is every parent's nightmare that something like this would happen. It is deeply saddening and shocking. In time, I hope, the great memories they shared with their sons and families will give them some consolation in the very traumatic and difficult time ahead. I thank our consular staff in the Department of Foreign Affairs, who worked with the families. I am conscious of…

I am conscious that I am before Dáil Éireann. I was hopeful I would be in a position to communicate my intentions to the Women of Honour group today. I am minded to recommend to the Government a public tribunal of inquiry. It is a matter of trying to tease through the mechanisms by which we would try to protect certain people who might wish to come forward but not be in the public glare. I think the argument has been made that if we go for a commission of inquiry, that will be very much secret - at least, that is t…

It would be behind closed doors, and people feel that the whole disciplinary process historically has been behind closed doors, hence the lack of transparency. I am jumping ahead because I have not got to the Government yet, but that is my view and I was going to communicate that today to Women of Honour and then have further discussions with them. There is only one genuine motivation here. I know, having been involved in various inquiries in the past, how time slips. If we lose two or three more months before we c…

Which strategy?

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue in the context of planning and its obvious relationship to housing. As the Deputy will know, 30,000 houses were completed last year, in 2022. That is a 45% increase on 2021. Our target for this year, the end of 2023, was 29,000. We hope to hit that, if not exceed it. In the year to April 2023 some 50,000 homes were purchased by households. Of those, 17,000 were purchased by first-time buyers. There is therefore a growing number of first-time buyers in a position to buy hous…

I appreciate the Deputy's points, although I hope the Croí Cónaithe funds - the towns fund, in particular, now provides a grant of up to €50,000 for the refurbishment of vacant properties, and that has been increased recently - will help with vacancy in towns and villages. If the property is derelict, you can get a grant of up to €70,000. There are the help-to-buy and first home schemes, which are enabling people to purchase houses. I gave the figures for those earlier. The State is the biggest actor but I take the…

The Deputy loves the phrase "common sense", as do his colleagues.

It is as if we are all devoid of it but those in the Opposition. I know what the Deputy is saying and I take it on board.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue because tending to the early developmental needs of our children is perhaps the most important thing we can do in terms of the development of our society and country. I am a great believer in resourcing early childhood education and childcare. Our brains learn more between zero and three than we do for the rest of our lives. I said that to a more senior Cabinet Minister some years ago and he asked, "What hope does that give me?" but it is an important point.

It is an important point because traditionally and historically we did not see it that way, and primary school started at four years old and so on. Children learn vicariously and they learn in different ways but structured childcare and development can be powerful for children. The Government has invested strongly in early learning and childcare. The budget in 2015 was €260 million and it is now €1.025 billion in 2023. That has reached the 2028 investment target five years ahead of time. We need to do more and we w…

The rate of closures was down this year. It was the lowest this year compared with previous years. This is a fact that we need to take on board. The other side of this equation is parents paying very high fees. Part of the core funding model is to have management of fees in return for an allocation of additional funding. The results have been fairly significant for many parents in terms of the reduction of the fees and the bills they received in December last year. There has been an appreciable improvement in terms…

We need balance and perspective in all debates. Thousands of people had free school transport, which Deputy Clarke described as a shambles. For thousands of people who received free school transport it was not a shambles. I believe 115,000 received free school transport as a result of the Minister's interim initiative in the context of the crisis we were going through. It was innovative in the context of climate change. That is where we should be heading. The review is ongoing. As Deputy Clarke said, phase 2 was co…