The motion tonight.

I have read the motion.

I have read out the words in terms of the carbon tax increase and in terms of excise on fuel, which is carbon tax in another form. It is carbon tax but Sinn Féin has tried to hide that fact by using the term “excise" on home heating, which is actually carbon tax. They had it both ways. Their motion is full of duplicity but it is essentially about getting rid of the carbon tax. Just to make the point, there is no ban on the use of turf in rural Ireland and there will be no ban for the remainder of the year.

In this country, we are sometimes very critical of ourselves and that can be a good thing. I was struck by a recent survey that illustrated that it has worked very well in Ireland during Covid-19, even without any legislative framework, and we should acknowledge that. The experience for people who benefited from remote working is that they had higher satisfaction levels, quality of life and so on. On the legislation, the Tánaiste has engaged with employers and unions in respect of this. Obviously, both have differe…

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue with me. Access to sexual and health education is an important right for students. I do not want to single out any particular school and I do not have the full details in regard to it. From the Government’s perspective, we are updating relationships and sexuality education and the social, personal and health education, SPHE, curriculum for primary, junior cycle and senior cycle. They are being developed by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment. A revised junior …

As the Deputy knows, we had the rent pressure zones on existing tenancies, which are effective according to the ESRI, which has done a lot of research on the application of the rent pressure zones in keeping rents down.

The RTB relates to new tenancies. Supply is the key. What is very important is that we really get supply up, which we are doing now, with 35,000 houses from March 2021 to March this year on all streams – social, private and cost rental. That is the key to this and we are going to continue to work on getting that supply up. I would really appreciate the Deputy’s co-operation in making sure that if developments come along, we do not oppose them all of the time, that people do not oppose them and that we allow develop…

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. He is correct in saying that we experienced a higher decline in transplant rates compared with many European countries, due in part to the reallocation of staff and resources from the donation and transplantation system to intensive care units to aid the Covid-19 response. An additional €2.25 million has now been provided for organ donation and transplant services since 2020. That includes funding for a total of 30 whole-time equivalent staff and included in…

The Deputy has raised a very important point. I will revert to the Minister for Justice on it. My understanding is there is an examination of the wards of court system on the way. The Deputy has raised a legitimate point and I will come back to him on that.

It is a prospecting licence and therefore it is not extraction at this stage. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, has to operate within the legal framework. I would like to examine the situation more deeply before making any kind of commitment in terms of banning anything in that regard and to hear the background to this and people's concerns.

As the Deputy knows, the ongoing consistent position over the years has been income based with different categories - over-70 and below-70 - and there has been particular provision for those with a terminal illness. One concern in terms of taking a one-disease approach is the question of what about other chronic diseases. A number of Deputies have articulated on behalf of cancer patients. The Minister for Health will examine that prior to the next budget but there is then an issue in terms of parity with other chro…

The Republic of Ireland had the highest life expectancy in the European Union 27 in 2020. We will see what impact the pandemic had. Sometimes we should reflect on that when we consistently attack the health service and so on and everything to do with health in this country. It was the highest in the EU. It is astonishing progress and an astonishing achievement.

In terms of the elective hospital, I am particularly committed to that. A hospital was announced seven or eight years ago. I have put the pressure on. The Joint Committee on Health and the Government are determined to get this elective hospital done as quickly as we possibly can. A site has been announced by the way.

The funding has increased significantly in terms of house adaptation grants.

The funding has increased. The key constraint in the future will not be funding but the inflation we are currently experiencing, the constraints on materials and building materials and their high cost because of the war in Ukraine and the inflation that happened as we emerged from Covid-19.

The Minister for Finance will consider all of these matters. When we make concessions in this regard we want them to be time-bound. We cannot keep doing the same thing forever. I assure the Deputy that across the full spectrum of sport in Cork, from ladies football and camogie to Gaelic football and hurling, Cork people are no strangers to Croke Park.

That is a matter for the local authority. That is why we have a city council.

Dáil Éireann, genuinely, cannot pronounce on school wardens. We have provided funding. We have provided €360 million to local authorities for walking and cycling etc. Surely the local authority will find the funding to deal with this issue, which is a matter for it in the first instance.

I actively travel down to the beach, generally speaking. The walk and swim are part of the one solid continuum, if the Deputy understands what I mean. It is much better for you. Regarding littering, some good initiatives have been undertaken voluntarily as well. I see volunteer groups around the country that gather litter on beaches. Human behaviour is the key to this issue, but we will look at the funding issue as well. I take the Deputy’s point about parking and connecting that aspect with active travel so that i…

I will engage with the Minister of State and the HSE in respect of this. An additional €65 million was provided in 2022 for disability services, so we must now get delivery on that. Recruitment continues to be a challenge across the service, in particular in respect of therapists. This is an issue we must work with the HSE to examine further and to get speedier recruitment processes and people into posts.