I thank the Senator. I do not propose to accept these amendments. Section 41(1) imposes an obligation on operators to establish procedures for dealing with complaints in settling disputes. Section 42(1) requires operators to have a code of practice in place. Should it be necessary for further detail to be put on these obligations to further elaborate on the requirement that they be accessible, ComReg has been given power in both instances to specify requirements for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the secti…

Yes, subject to consultation.

These amendments are to reflect the new ministerial title and change it to the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan and Reform.

I thank the Senators and my officials for their help on this Bill.

It needs to return there.

I thank the Deputy for raising this Topical Issue. I have been asked to point out that the matter, although important in the area of fisheries, is not the responsibility of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is lead on the International Labour Organization, ILO, and the Department of Transport would be central on the specific issue of ratification of that particular ILO convention given that Department's lead responsibility for maritime safety, mann…

No.

I thank the Deputy. He made a clear distinction between the plight of fishermen who are working on Irish-registered ships and those who are working on foreign-registered ships within Irish waters. While progress has been made on those on Irish-registered ships, and the Deputy has acknowledged that, we have not yet implemented the Work in Fishing Convention but it is the intention of the State to bring this into force through primary legislation - the merchant shipping (international conventions) Bill. I acknowledge…

Is it Deputy Stanley's matter?

I am.

The Minister for Education has asked me to answer this question on her behalf. This provides me with the opportunity to clarify the position in relation to the Department of Education's plans for upgrading school buildings, including St. Fergal's College, Rathdowney, County Laois. The Deputy may be aware that St. Fergal's College is a multidenominational, co-educational, post-primary school in the town of Rathdowney. In 2022, the school had an enrolment of 334 pupils. I am pleased to inform the Deputy that the Depa…

I hear the Deputy loud and clear. He wants St. Fergal's College, Rathdowney, to be provided with a PE hall in the interests of equity and he wants me to take that message back to the Minister, Deputy Foley. I will do that. The current situation is that the existing additional schools accommodation scheme does not include provision for PE halls and yet the national development plan is a more than €100 billion capital scheme. In future iterations of the plan, or future schemes developed for the Department of Educatio…

I am pleased to address the House on the Oil Emergency Contingency and Transfer of Renewable Transport Fuels Functions Bill 2023. I thank Senators for the opportunity to present this Bill. The main purpose of the Bill is to strengthen the statutory provisions available to Government to respond to a severe or prolonged oil emergency in the context of ensuring adequate supplies for the emergency and critical services. Progress continues to be made in increasing the use of renewable fuels and electrification within tr…

I will address a number of the points that have been made by Senators. Three Senators raised the general concept that we are talking about here with regard to security of supply and the fact that the right long-term way to achieve this is by reducing our dependence on oil. Senator Reilly mentioned that in the context of having further offshore wind near Galway. Senator Horkan made a similar point. I thank Senator Reilly for pointing out that we are moving to a broader definition of vulnerable customers and away fro…

It is very good that we clarify that. I thank Senator Horkan for raising the question. We need to be very clear that the threshold for what constitutes an emergency is not changing from the working definition, which has been in place for more than 50 years. Second, we need to be clear this is a matter for Government decision rather than one to be decided on by the Minister on his own. Senator McGahon talked about the need to insulate people from the cost-of-living crisis. It is great that he used the word, "insulat…

The Communications Regulation and Digital Hub Development Agency (Amendment) Bill 2022 is ambitious and broad-ranging legislation that will make a number of key changes to a range of areas, including the regulation of electronic communications, protection of electronic communications consumers, security of communications networks and changes to postal services and to the Digital Hub Development Agency. The first and primary purpose of the Bill is to update the regulatory framework for communications in the State. T…

I will keep going then. In respect of the amendments relating to high-risk vendors, these amendments will set out how a risk assessment will be conducted, aligned with the principles of the EU toolbox for 5G security. Recognising the functions exercised by certain Departments and agencies in respect of national security, the risk assessment will be conducted in consultation with relevant stakeholders across government. These amendments will also set out how high-risk vendors will be identified, and will provide for…

I thank Senators for their contributions, which were, as ever, interesting and insightful. Senator Garvey welcomed the delivery of a universal service obligation. As she said, there is one for landline telephones. This is now an evolution of this whereby everybody in the country will be entitled to a broadband connection at a minimum speed for an affordable price. It will be more complex to regulate this because we have more than one telecoms operator, unlike in the old days, where there was just one company. Senat…

The other 19 countries that have legislated for this have had to use terminology of one kind or another. For example, Austria and Cyprus use the phrase “high-risk supplier”; in Czech Republic, it is “evaluation of trustworthiness”; in Estonia, it is “high-risk”; the Dutch went for “untrusted suppliers”; and the Slovenians went for “high-risk vendors”. They are variations on a theme. I am willing to consider amending the legislation. I was not planning to amend the legislation but I am willing to consider amending i…

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine has recognised the value and importance of the inshore fishing sector and has pledged his ongoing commitment to supporting it during his frequent engagement with sector representatives. He has ensured support for the National Inshore Fisheries Forum in the developing and implementing of its own industry-led strategy to raise the profile of the inshore sector, to facilitate its engagement in policy initiatives and to enhance their understanding of management and plan…