We absolutely do. There is no acquiescence. This Government has been in office for nine months. It made it clear in the programme for Government that it would introduce legislation to strengthen this area, particularly regarding accountability for senior executives in the financial area. That will happen and heads of a Bill are being prepared in that regard. The Deputy's party cosies up to high finance as well. There is only one party here at this stage that travels the world cosying up to high finance and big cons…

We had not been in power for ten years. We came into office with other parties in this Government about nine months ago. Those are the facts.

The bottom line is that the Deputy cosies up to high finance, in the United States and elsewhere, when it suits her. She sells and tells a different story there. It is likewise in terms of accountability in respect of issues pertaining to financial matters in the North and so forth.

She tells a different story. She does not deal with it or account for it. She can be absolutely sure that nobody in the Government in any shape or form-----

Everyone in the Government condemns what has happened here. We are absolutely determined-----

-----that the proper regulators deal with it in as effective and strong a manner as possible.

I thank the Deputy for raising an important and worthy issue. I too acknowledge the extraordinary work done by front-line workers, in particular, in the battle against the pandemic. That was vividly illustrated in a recent RTÉ programme through the stories and journeys that both patients and front-line healthcare workers went through in the latest wave of the pandemic, which was a severe wave that impacted very significantly on health, the severity of illness and mortality. We are very mindful of that, and the Gove…

We should also acknowledge that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has secured with the social partners a public service agreement in the past few weeks that further reflects our acknowledgement of those working in the public service and the commitments that have been made. Very significant resources have been made available to the health service by the Government in the budget. Up to 16,000 additional staff are now targeted for recruitment over the pre-pandemic levels to embed reforms in our health ser…

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Since the Government was formed, the programme for Government contains a very clear commitment for the introduction of this fair deal legislation, particularly insofar as it impacts on family farms and small businesses. The Government is disposed to bringing in this legislation. It is on the legislative priority list for drafting. The drafting is being finalised and I have been informed that it will be possible to bring it to the Dáil before the summer recess. I …

I accept the basic principle the Deputy articulates on the need to bring in this legislation and especially how the ongoing situation has a negative impact on family farms. Farming is under pressure because of Brexit and Covid, as is the general economy. The Government has introduced unprecedented interventions in the economy to support incomes and to support business across the board. Considerable work has been done on this detailed legislation. I will revert back to the Deputy on the timelines for its introductio…

As a lifelong member of the credit union movement, I am strongly supportive of any measures we can put in place to support credit unions and the role they play in communities across the country. The credit union movement has made a distinctive and outstanding contribution to Irish society and has enabled many working families to progress in life because of the service that credit unions have provided. I understand the basic thrust of what the Deputy is saying with regard to the perception of credit unions vis-à-vis…

First, it is a valid point to make and to pose the question whether we have the balance right in respect of the relationship between the credit union movement and the regulator and the range of services that credit unions are permitted and not permitted to provide. It is a fair point and one that requires continued focus and reflection, and some action taken on it also. I accept that point and the Government will engage on it. Second, in terms of the post offices, the Deputy may not have picked up on the final poin…

Does Deputy O'Callaghan want time for this or-----

My understanding is that the Business Committee organised the schedule for today and tomorrow, and I do not propose to deviate from that. Deputy O'Callaghan has probably read that the Dublin Region Homeless Executive has confirmed that all the issues identified in the inspections - and this is in the context of the recent release by the DRHE of inspection reports - were followed up and resolved "swiftly and comprehensively". There is no issue with having further engagement on this issue at a time that perhaps the B…

I am certainly not in favour of the removal of speech and language therapy services from schools for the deaf on the Navan Road, in Cork or anywhere else. I suspect this is part of the progressing disability strategy, which is nearly ten years old now and which had a different approach to providing speech and language services to children with special needs. My view is that we should move in the opposite direction and provide in-house and in-school multidisciplinary services for children with special needs. In educ…

We have pursued alternative supplies. We got some additional supply. I have spoken to Pfizer and we have made it clear that anything we could do here to support or aid vaccine manufacturing capacity would be done. Pfizer, however, is satisfied that its planned configuration and capacity in Belgium and latterly in Germany in terms of BioNTech and in the United States are sufficient for it to meet its contractual needs. To be fair to Pfizer and BioNTech, they have met all their contractual commitments. There has been…

I can deal with that later.

The first major point I will make is that public health advice is what dictates and determines the approach within hospitals, and clinical guidance has been uppermost in influencing decisions. We have made representations to the HSE. We have made the point that many Deputies have articulated recently in respect of this issue. We understand the trauma involved for mothers and partners in respect of the experience of giving birth, particularly in very difficult circumstances, when the outcome may not be as anticipate…

The legislation is very necessary because it will continue, as the Deputy says, enhanced protections for many tenants and has proven to be effective. That protection needs to be extended, and I will engage with the Minister in respect of his capacity to deal with issues Deputy Boyd Barrett has articulated, bearing in mind what is and is not legally possible. We want to get these protections extended, and it is necessary to get this legislation through because it is good legislation and has proven to be effective in…

First, I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I know the Deputy and his county colleagues were extremely disappointed in 2017, when no primary school in Tipperary town attained DEIS status, which on the face of it is difficult to comprehend at one level. The concerns have been made clear in this Chamber regarding the necessity for this provision, given significant levels of social disadvantage and deprivation. I want to acknowledge those concerns and to say that work is under way within the Department. I spoke t…