I will be sharing time with Deputy O'Connor. We will take six and a half minutes each. We are repeating our combination of last night. The Minister and I have been following Brexit at a level far beyond anything I ever could have dreamed of for quite some time. It is not an understatement to say that the past fortnight has been the worst period of this process, even including the period prior to the referendum. The tabling of the United Kingdom Internal Market Bill 2019-21 and the specific amendments thereto that r…

Let me finish. Deputy Conway-Walsh may have been talking specifically about the current British Government. I accept that but we have to remember that not every single person in the UK necessarily holds the same opinions as Boris Johnson or Dominic Cummings. We need that relationship and we need to work for it, regardless of the form Brexit takes, in order to ensure a warm and close relationship with everyone in the United Kingdom, whether in Scotland, England or Wales. I welcome the new British ambassador to Irela…

I am speaking slightly sooner than I expected. I am sharing time with Deputy O'Connor. If he arrives in the next few minutes, I will make way. We have three and a half minutes each, if that is okay.

I welcome this legislation. I listened with great intensity to the remarks made yesterday by the Minister regarding this Bill and the importance of Ireland bringing this legislation into being in the context of the transposition of the EU's fifth anti-money laundering directive. It is a shame that there were delays in transposing the fourth directive, but we can remedy that. The importance of this legislation defines where the State stands in the context of tackling organised crime and international terrorism. Unfo…

I sincerely commend Deputy Ward on this motion. There is a lot of agreement on its provisions across the House but not total agreement, which is why I will be supporting the Government amendment. We can all agree that the scourge of fireworks has come earlier and to a greater extent this year than ever before. This is clearly linked to the cancellation of many festivals, bonfires, parades and other celebrations throughout the island. I take issue with Deputy Bríd Smith, who is no longer in the Chamber, for trying t…

The programme for Government contains a commitment to an electric vehicle strategy to ensure that infrastructure stays ahead of demand. This is badly needed to ensure that all of those who have the means to purchase an electric vehicle are not constrained by a lack of charging facilities. I ask the Minister for an update on the status of this strategy and what it will cover.

I welcome the Minister's comments. There is much that can be gleaned from them but there are a number of challenges that require urgent address. While EVs are becoming increasingly affordable, the geographic spread of the infrastructure needs to be addressed. Currently, there are 152 charging points in Dublin but only four in Leitrim and eight in Cavan. When we look at the speed the Minister mentioned, there are 742 charging points but only 80 of those are fast charging points. One key aspect that is being raised f…

I want to take the Minister up on the challenge of engaging with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. We rightly look to local authorities but we must also consider the community example. One of the great successes in recent years has involved communities. An example, which may seem trivial by comparison with some initiatives associated with the Department, concerns the way local communities have been able to come together to provide defibrillators across towns and villages, not just in rural areas. I refer, in p…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this issue and I am delighted that the Minister is here to debate it. I know he is extremely aware of this road and its fabled history, not just from his nine years representing this constituency with distinction, but crossing it many times. I remember following him across this road some time ago when he was previously in government and attending the launch of a particularly impressive Coillte exhibition in the Dublin Mountains over which he presided. I am delighted to say …

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply. I will not pretend that I am not a little disappointed with the lack of progress. As the Minister well knows, people in this area have been waiting more than 25 years for improvements to a road that is not fit for purpose. In the time since the need for an upgrade was identified, 7,000 new homes have been built in the area and there has been a significant increase in traffic. The population has grown to such an extent that since I was first elected to office in 2009…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for taking this Topical Issue matter and holding it over from before the summer recess. I sincerely congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, on his deserved appointment. I wish him well and hope he has a fruitful time in the Department. As the Minister of State will be aware, hate crime legislation was promised in the first 12 months of this Government. It is needed to hold people to account for their actions, and more important, their words. It is prohibited to incite ha…

I thank the Minister of State for his full reply and I welcome his remarks, especially on the work that has been done, not just by the Minister, Deputy McEntee, but also by the former Minister, Deputy Flanagan. However, I would like to push for a more firm timeline. It is ambitious to say that proposals will hopefully be published by the end of the year or in early 2021. We have a commitment that it needs to be done within 12 months but work on this issue has been ongoing for so long that perhaps we can expect fast…

I will speak very briefly and then hand over to my colleague. I welcome the Bill. I believe this is the first Bill the Minister has brought to the House since returning to the defence portfolio. It is an extremely welcome appointment and I wish him well. Given the two briefs he now holds as a Cabinet Minister, he is a glutton for punishment but this is certainly something that is well-suited to his skill set and vast knowledge of the area. I want to talk about the specifics of the Bill. The first point I wish to sp…

I welcome the opportunity to address this vital and important Bill. I congratulate Deputy James Browne on his appointment as Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality. There is no doubt that the restrictions of the past few months have required great sacrifice that ultimately resulted in the saving of thousands of lives. The Bill before us provides An Garda Síochána with additional enforcement powers to ensure that bars and restaurants adhere to the guidelines. It is a necessary tool to have in ou…

I absolutely agree with every single point Deputy Howlin made and I welcome the Minister's commitments and comments heretofore on this extremely worrying situation. Like the Minister, I agree that it is far more effective when EU countries work together. As we have heard in debates on other elements of these questions today, Ireland is a European and global leader, so perhaps when it comes to this issue we need to lead within the European Union. Quite simply, how do we know that a person extradited from Ireland to …

I welcome the Minister's comments. I am one of 904 signatories, parliamentarians from 43 different countries, to a letter drafted by the former Governor of Hong Kong, Lord Patten, laying out our very serious concerns about the new security law in Hong Kong. That is a great starting point for this Government to look at what needs to be done. As the Minister knows, Ireland has a very particular relationship with Hong Kong. We all have friends who have lived there, many who were born there, others who have done busine…

I wish the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, all the best in his new brief and congratulate him on his appointment to the role. I am sure he will continue the excellent work done previously by his constituency colleague, Deputy McEntee. The Minister of State and I have discussed matters pertaining to Europe and, indeed, Brexit, many times in recent years in the media and various other forums. As he well knows and has seen in recent months, Ireland holds a great deal of influence around the world, particularly in the…

I thank the Minister of State for his reply and am heartened by the enthusiasm he and I share for this process. It is a very difficult process that lies ahead of everyone, not just the Minister of State. It behoves everyone in this House and throughout society to see more Irish people working within the EU. One of my biggest criticisms of the European project - I do occasionally criticise it - is its inability to sell itself. The European Commission is brilliant at informing people as to how they can criticise the …

I am sharing time with Deputy O'Dowd. I thank the Minister for his many interventions this afternoon and congratulate him on his deserved reappointment. I also congratulate the Ministers of State, Deputies Thomas Byrne and Brophy. I particularly congratulate the Minister on his reappointment, albeit with a gap, to the defence portfolio. It is appropriate that, following the major success of securing a seat on the United Nations Security Council, these two Departments will come under the control of one Minister, par…

I am sharing time with Deputies Carroll MacNeill and O'Dowd. I join others in congratulating the Minister on her very well-deserved appointment and promotion and the Minister of State, Deputy McConalogue, on his appointment, as well as paying tribute to their predecessors, Deputies Flanagan and Stanton, respectively, for putting in a highly impressive period in their respective portfolios. There is quite a bit in the Estimates we can discuss but I would like to address one specific area. I refer to Vote 20 and the …