No, the US, to be frank, came out supporting it while it had export bans. Work that out. It had export bans at the time.

We are not.

No, we are not.

The European Union is the only continent that is giving-----

No, that is just slogans again.

My apologies.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 16 to 24, inclusive, together. I attended the 36th summit meeting of the British-Irish Council hosted by the First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, in Cardiff on 18 and 19 November. The council explored approaches to the acquisition of indigenous, minority and lesser used languages in early years settings. I welcomed the opportunity to provide an update to council members through Irish, as a means of showcasing the rich linguistic diversity across the administrations of the Britis…

Deputy McDonald raised the issue of an Irish language Act which we understand will be introduced in Westminster. I do not know if it will be done before the recess but certainly it will be done early in the new year. It is a pity it was not done in the Assembly, as agreed last year. The package of language and identity legislation agreed under New Decade, New Approach was detailed, balanced and should be implemented. When I was in Enniskillen recently at the remembrance ceremony I met the Minister of State for Nort…

We need to encourage people to join the police force. I do not think it is happening to the same extent as it did before. I was involved in the devolution of justice at the time, when I was Minister for Foreign Affairs. It was hard negotiated and worked for. The Patten reforms were transformational. We should work to ensure we can build on them. If we keep using language that to me is a bit pejorative or denigrates everybody, we will never do it and we will never get there.

There was a fair bit of momentum there for quite some time but then people started resiling from encouraging people to join the PSNI. We need to get the balance right across communities so they are represented in the composition and so on.

It is essential and I do not want to see it deteriorating. Deputy Haughey raised the issue of what transpired at the British-Irish Council. He made a very good point on Brexit. The First Minister of Wales was very clear on the negative impact of Brexit on Wales, in particular the decline in the volume of goods going through Welsh ports. The Welsh are very worried about the long-term impact on their ports, the consequent impact on local economies and the pattern of trade that is developing in the form of direct link…

I dtús báire, ní aontaím leis an Teachta. Is léir gur pacáiste den scoth atá ann faoi láthair. Is léir gur dhein an tAire, an Teachta Darragh O’Brien, an-chuid oibre chun scéim i bhfad níos fearr agus níos fairsinge a chur i bhfeidhm. I mo thuairim tá dul chun cinn an-mhór le feiscint agus is fiú é sin a admháil. I ndeireadh a ráitis dhein an Teachta iarracht é sin a admháil. Is é go bunúsach atá i gceist ag an Teachta ná go bhfuil fonn air an feachtas a choimeád ar siúl. Is é sin an bun rud i dtaobh a pháirtí. The…

Hear me out. I did not interrupt. It is indicative and we said it would be updated. The Minister said that yesterday and Deputy Doherty ignored that today.

The SCSI calculator will be updated only next April and annually thereafter. We have said that consistently. Additionally, we have got rid of the upfront cost; the 10% contribution is gone and there is certification for remedial work. If that does not work, the Government will give the people the option of a second response. There have been huge advances and Deputy Doherty should acknowledge them, and not in the very begrudging way he did towards the end of his contribution. He invented figures for the average cost…

The data does not exist.

We are not asking families to come with €45,000 or €60,000. We have an upfront grant of €20,000 to cover rent and storage. We have got rid of upfront costs and the 10% contribution. We are bringing in the Housing Agency to play a central role in all of this. Our fundamental objective is to facilitate families to get their homes rebuilt. We will do that and spare them the cost of having to do it. The Minister will work with SCSI on indicative costs and we have built that into the overall cost of the scheme with rega…

It is feigned outrage from the Deputy, all designed around the campaign. That is what he is at. I can see through him.

I have this to say to the residents and homeowners. We are working on this. We have worked on it for the past year, as has the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien.

Deputy Mac Lochlainn is shouting and roaring at me now. He endorsed the last scheme and said it was fine. We will ensure-----

-----that we get houses started now. I want no more delays. I want no more endless campaigning for the sake of the campaigning and exploiting it for political or electoral interests.