Yes, the Deputy asks at what price, because it is always more of the same from Sinn Féin which is going to oppose it anyway.

The party has opposed more than 6,000 houses that families could have done with over the past number of years.

What struck me this morning was-----

-----regarding O'Devaney Gardens-----

-----that the latest iteration of that project was in 2015. It actually goes all the way back to 2008 and successive city councils and an inability to vote for it-----

-----and an inability to support the Oscar Traynor Road project.

There is a housing crisis there, and we need to get houses built.

The attitude of Deputy Ó Broin and his colleagues is to go on and on and to vote against that model and vote against the next model.

Turning to the cost of living-----

-----this is a key issue. We acknowledge and know that. We have taken steps in the budget, with the tax package and with the legislation today that will facilitate some degree of reduction. We will do more as well, however.

We will engage with the social partners on ways of trying to protect people-----

-----to help people-----

-----and trying to cushion them over the next 12 months with a view to weathering this significant increase in prices occasioned by a global situation, as the Deputy well knows, particularly by the behaviour and approach of Russia in restricting gas supplies to the West.

On the VAT issue, if we reduced VAT temporarily for a couple of months, ultimately we would create higher electricity prices because Ireland would lose its special derogation from the European Union and the rate of VAT on energy products in the new year would rise from 13.5% at present to the standard rate of 23%. I have explained that to the House on a number of occasions but the Opposition keeps coming back suggesting things that cannot happen or that, if they did happen, would be damaging to the country. Let us …

I am talking to Deputy Kelly. Deputy Carthy is not a leader yet. He should let me talk to Deputy Kelly. We have to engage with the social partners as well and work our way through this, and take further measures, if required, at the appropriate time to deal with what is happening and what is likely to happen for the remainder of 2022. However, we must do so in a way that does not just add fuel to the inflationary cycle, which is in no one's interest and would only result in putting people through more hardship. Ini…

I am not clear about what the Deputy did on rent because rent kept increasing after he left office. I think we are ultimately dealing with a supply issue in housing. Chasing after an inflationary cycle has never worked. It is not a sustainable way of doing it.

Yes, we do need to protect workers, but we have to do that working with the social partners in an intelligent way. The Government will be up for that in terms of how to do that, but it has to be done in a manner that protects disposable incomes and enables people to be in a position to access the necessities of life in terms of food, shelter, fuel and all the basics. That is why in the health area this year in the budget we increased eligibility for GP care from 6 years of age to 7. That means a lot to families. Th…

I accept it has been a very stressful time for the students who are due to sit the leaving certificate this year, during the Covid-19 pandemic. This Government has been in office for one year and a half, not three years. We had to deal with the leaving certificate last year. Already there are differences between what we did last year and what we are doing now, or could do now. For example, I remember that last year Deputy Murphy was robustly against historic profiling as a basis for standardisation of students' res…

The billionaires will always get access to third level education.

The harder task is to make sure we create from the early years on the opportunities for people to progress in early education to primary and second level education so they have the capacity to progress to third level. That is where I would put the extra investment - into early childhood education and childcare, where the full development of the child can be realised much earlier and the potential of the child can be developed much earlier, irrespective of background or circumstances. It is not all about going to co…