I am grateful to Deputy O'Reilly for raising this important issue. While I am taking it on behalf of the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, it is one I have a personal interest in. We spent many a day on this topic in the previous Dáil. As the Deputy will know, the programme for government sets out a strong enterprise and fiscal framework prioritising economic and employment growth, with a target of creating 300,000 extra jobs by 2030. I am pleased to report that Ireland's labour market continues to …

That is after five years of low numbers.

Where we are in agreement is that the trend is the concern. Youth unemployment being ahead of general unemployment is something we can accept happens but the rate at the moment is a worry. I share that with the Deputy and it is important we clarify that. That is why the Government continues to monitor labour market conditions and the youth unemployment rate and several of our recent initiatives will be central to supporting the broader economy, not least our ambitious investment plans and the action plan on competi…

I thank both Deputies for raising this important Topical Issue. I welcome the opportunity to outline the position on this important matter on behalf of the Minister. This Government takes the safety of vulnerable individuals in our society extremely seriously and recognises the effect of Storm Éowyn and the impact it had on power, water and telecommunications services for those individuals. The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht is responsible for the seniors alert scheme, which provide…

The review of Storm Éowyn, published in October of last year, by the Department of housing recognised the particular challenges of providing humanitarian support to vulnerable people during emergencies, acknowledging the complex and multisectoral nature of developing effective response measures and the complexities of defining, reporting and sharing information in relation to vulnerable people. However, it did more than just acknowledge it. Some of the recommendations of the review include exploring outreach struct…

I am very grateful to Deputy Ellis for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Social Protection. The objective of the school meals programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. In the last budget, the hot school meals programme was extended to all remaining primary schools. This means tha…

I thank the Deputy once again for raising this matter and for allowing an opportunity to discuss the school meals programme and, in particular, the breakfast and snack clubs. I assure him that the Ministers for Education and Youth and Social Protection are both very much aware of the importance of children being able to receive a breakfast meal before they start their school day. The breakfast or snack club is a targeted support to those most in need. The Department of Social Protection continues to expand the scho…

The Deputy is speaking from the Opposition. He knows how this works.

The Deputy can make his remarks but he does not have to-----

The Deputy knows-----

I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes the vote of the European Union (EU) member states on 9th January, which accepted by a qualified majority the EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement; and recognises that: — every effort was undertaken by the Government to work with like-minded EU member states who shared concerns with the Mercosur agreement to stand up for Irish farmers and defend our interests in opposing the Mercosur Trade Agreement; and — Government Ministe…

I extend my gratitude to the Senator for raising these pertinent issues and, in particular, bringing light to the cases of James, Méabh and their families. As the Senator will know, the relevant Ministers are currently in the Dáil answering oral parliamentary questions, which is why I am here. The Government fully recognises the importance of early intervention for children with disabilities in Ireland, including those living in Cavan. In early 2023, the specialist disability function transferred from the Departmen…

It is important to recognise that, while those two specific cases were very clearly brought to this Chamber, I know they are representative of a much wider cohort, not just in Cavan, but around the country. The Senator is right to ask what the workforce plan is and what the solution is to make sure that those children do not just get assessed in time but get that one-on-one contact with the therapists they need. Budget 2026 has provided €20 million for the delivery of some 6,000 clinical assessments to the targeted…

I am grateful to Senator Costello for raising this important issue and offering me an opportunity to respond on behalf of the Minister, who, as per Senator Tully, finds herself in the Dáil answering oral questions. As a heads-up to Senator Scahill, the next Minister due in will also be in the Dáil in about ten minutes' time. I am sorry to say I have been entrusted with responding on behalf of both of them. Day services, as the Senator laid out, are part of a suite of support services that enable people with special…

I thank the Senator again for raising this issue and for her clear questions. Before I get into the detail, and thankfully I have some of those numbers to hand, I will state that the ambition of this Government is to bring about a real step change in services for people with a disability in Ireland. It is committed to the expansion and reform of the disability service in order to maximise people's independence and help to support them. This is reflected in the significant investment made in specialist disability se…

I extend my gratitude and many seasonal happy returns for Christmas to Senator Scahill, his family and everyone in the Chamber this morning, in particular the amazing officials in the Houses of the Oireachtas who, when we think it is great to have an amazing late night emergency debate, are the ones who ultimately have to respond very quickly. Every five years, CRU approves the spending plans of EirGrid and ESB Networks, which are the companies charged with designing, operating, building and maintaining the electri…

I thank the Senator for raising this issue. There were outages in my constituency on Tuesday night, which affected residents in Kilternan, Stepaside and Carrickmines. People wondered what would happen afterwards and what recourse they had, in particular in respect of standing charges which are under price review 6. A lot needs to happen to our infrastructure in this country, in particular energy infrastructure. The Senator is correct. The review on tree lines and everything else is key. I have no doubt that, in the…

We have plenty of TDs.

I am grateful for the opportunity to close this debate. I thank Deputies for their contributions and consideration of the Arbitration (Amendment) Bill. I look forward to the opportunity to respond in this period to some of the issues raised. Crucially, I remind Deputies of the ultimate reason the Government is introducing this legislation, that is, to put Ireland, as a country that so greatly benefits from international trade, in a position where it is able to fully ratify the EU trade and investment agreements tha…

I greatly appreciate the opportunity to interject in the debate at this stage. I am extremely grateful to the proposer and seconder for tabling this timely debate. I responded to a similar debate in Dáil Éireann a fortnight ago. Commitment to the unification of the island of Ireland is a founding principle for all parties of this Government. This Government holds that aspiration to a united Ireland in common with the Opposition. That is why we are not today opposing this motion, notwithstanding some of the politica…