On behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, I thank Deputy Michael Healy-Rae for raising this important issue and providing me with the opportunity to address the matter. The programme for Government supports the uptake of Uisce Éireann's small towns and villages growth programme 2020-2024. The programme provides water and wastewater growth capacity in smaller settlements that would otherwise not be provided for in Uisce Éireann’s capital investment plan. I understa…

I wish to thank the Deputy again for his comments. I appreciate his interest in wastewater in parts of rural Ireland without public water services. I have listened carefully to what the Deputy has said and I assure him that it will be kept in mind in the context of the evolving new funding measures. While the Minister has responsibility in ensuring the overall funding for Uisce Éireann in respect of public water services and for the provision of funding under the rural water programme, including for the new measure…

On behalf of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O’Brien, I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 units per year over the next decade. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes, 36,000 affordable purchase homes and 18,000 cost-rental homes. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4 billion per annum through an overall combination of €12 billion in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5 bi…

Housing for All is a clear priority for Government and we are committed to delivering on the targets across all pathways of the plan. The delivery of social and affordable homes is central to the plan and is expected to comprise approximately half of housing delivery over the next decade. The provision of individual local authority targets and the development of housing delivery action plans, addressing delivery over the next five years, has introduced a more strategic approach to housing delivery. Local authoritie…

On behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, I thank Deputy Connolly for providing an opportunity to update the House regarding the recent Court of Appeal ruling on the policy directive introducing a ban on trawling inside the six-nautical mile limit and the events leading up to this ruling. As the House may be aware, in December 2018, following a public consultation process in which over 900 submissions were received, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine announced that vessels over 18 m would be exc…

I am not in a position to give the Deputy a time span here and now. I have given her the chronology of events, of which she is well aware. Indeed, she has told me that she followed the case and has read the judgments. Suffice it to say that I can make the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, well aware of the concerns the Deputy has articulated in the House this evening. I have nothing further to add to what I have already stated in that the Minister is consulting legal advisers on the implications of the judgment and the…

On behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, I thank Deputy Murnane O'Connor for raising this issue as it gives me an opportunity to outline the current position regarding special education provision. At the outset, I will stress that enabling students with additional needs to receive an education appropriate to their needs is an ongoing priority for this Government. My colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion, will continue to work to ensure that all children …

I had intended to make the point that each school can take account of the learning needs of children, as evidenced by performance in schools but also supported, where relevant, by information that is provided regarding the nature of a condition a pupil may have. A process is available where schools can seek a review of their special education teaching allocation by the NCSE, including the utilisation of their allocations. Detailed information on the NCSE review process is published on the NCSE website. The SNA sche…

Nearly all of them.

On behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. The HSE provides specialist disability services, including day services and rehabilitative training, to people with disabilities who require them. While day service funding does not include transport, some transport supports are provided by the HSE or funded agencies on a discretionary basis and a variety of transport solutions are pursued in different CHO areas. These include travel training to enable public …

I will flag the specific case that the Deputy has raised with my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Harris, and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to make them aware of it and to highlight not only the reply that I have given him, but also what the Deputy has raised, that being, the inconsistent approach around the country. I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I understand the pressures that families are under and the challenges that transport can pose for …

I wish to address the misleading and inaccurate contents of a recent article relating to a planning application for my family home which I made as a private citizen 23 years ago. I am happy to clarify the position to the Dáil today. In 2001, while a private citizen, I engaged a local architect and planning agent to submit a planning application for me on land my family owned in Patrickswell. I had acquired a house near Limerick city with my wife in 1999, two years earlier. I wished to move closer to my parents who …

I thank Deputy Buckley for raising this matter which is a very important for our Department. Apprentices are primarily employees and all of the 66 available apprenticeships are undertaken under a contract of employment. For the majority of apprenticeships, the rate of pay is agreed between the apprentice and the employer, with the employer paying the apprentice during both on-the-job and off-the-job training elements of the apprenticeship. For the 25 craft apprenticeship programmes, the minimum rates of pay applyin…

I again thank Deputy Buckley for giving me an opportunity to set out my Department's view. In summary, while apprentices are excluded from the provisions of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000, as the Deputy mentioned, it is nonetheless important that they are supported financially for the duration of their training. The Deputy made that point very clearly and I am aware of it. Recognising the importance of meeting Government apprenticeship registration objectives, as set out in the action plan for apprenticeship, a…

I thank Senator McGahon for raising the matter as it provides me with the opportunity to clarify the current position in relation to De La Salle College, Dundalk, County Louth, on behalf of Minister for Education, Deputy Foley. De La Salle College is an all-boys school under the patronage of the Le Chéile Schools Trust. The enrolment at the school in September 2022 was 704 pupils. With regard to meeting the current and future accommodation needs of De La Salle College, the school was approved funding under the Depa…

I thank the Senator for giving the opportunity to outline to the House the position in relation to De La Salle College in Dundalk. The refurbishment of science laboratories as proposed by De La Salle College is appropriate to the Department of Education's summer works scheme. The summer works scheme is the funding mechanism for dealing with the more significant improvement works that are usually carried out during school holiday periods to minimise disruption to the operation of schools. The summer works scheme ope…

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Health. I thank Senator O'Reilly for raising this issue. Cystic fibrosis is a devastating disease for patients and their families. With Ireland having one of highest per capita rates of cystic fibrosis in the world, many of us will have been affected by the sadness it can cause for families. Access to effective treatments offers hope to those suffering from this disease, and the Minister aims to make this possible for every patient who needs it. Kaftrio has been…

We fully appreciate the severity of cystic fibrosis and acknowledge the fears and frustrations of the families affected by this situation. The HSE has statutory responsibility for medicine pricing and reimbursement decisions as given to it in the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. This requires that the HSE ensures that medicines are reimbursed in a cost-effective manner. The HSE is making every effort to fulfil its responsibility. Following extensive efforts by the HSE's corporate pharmaceutica…

I am here on behalf of the Minister for Health. I thank Senators Seery Kearney and Ahearn for raising this matter and appreciate that it will be a concern for many women in Ireland. Hyperemesis gravidarum is a severe form of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy that affects some women and that must be diagnosed and treated appropriately. The Government is keen to ensure that anyone experiencing this condition receives the support they need. As part of budget 2023, the Minister for Health announced €32.2 million in …

On behalf of the Minister for Health, I thank the Senators for raising this important matter today. Progressing women's health is a priority for this Government. A strong commitment to promoting women's health was made in the programme for Government. We are fully committed to the development and improvement of women's health services and to working with women and girls to improve their health across the whole lifecycle. The funding of €32.2 million for the women's health budget in 2023 will help continue making pr…