I urge those who are so concerned about their work and conditions to engage in the processes available in the State for the resolution of these matters and in the wage discussions now under way.

We are seeing many indications now from central banks all over the world that they are going ahead with interest rate changes and also withdrawing the major emergency funding plans they had in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is not for me to speculate, and it would not be appropriate for me to do so, on what the ECB will do. I must recognise its independence. Mortgage holders in recent months have been making decisions anyway. We have seen the majority of new mortgages taken out by people agreed at fixed rat…

We absolutely appreciate the value of home care and the difference it makes to those families who need this support at difficult times when they are vulnerable. The Department of Health has allocated a large additional budget to provide more home help hours. As the Deputy may be aware, the challenge we are facing is in recruiting the staff needed to provide this care. I will have to follow up on the specific matter the Deputy raised concerning her city and constituency to be able to give her the answer that is dese…

I know how important the summer camps are at a time when schools are closed and families need some additional support to get through a summer that can sometimes feel very long. I am sure the matter is being progressed if the Deputy has already raised it with the Taoiseach, but I will also follow up on it with the Minister for Health.

The Government will do all it can to support the development of Shannon Airport. It is a critical airport for aviation and for supporting the local economies to which the Deputy referred. The Government has not made a final decision on how funding from the Brexit adjustment reserve fund could be used against airports like that, but I will keep in mind what he has said. I am aware of the end point that is coming up regarding the Heathrow landing slots. I was involved in negotiating the agreement many years ago. We w…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. We are now at a very early stage in putting together budget 2023. The programme for Government is very clear. We want to put in place an environment that ensures that as wages go up, those who are working so hard for those wages, in particular at a time when the cost of living is going up, also see higher wages feed through into an improvement in their take-home pay. That is a point on which the Government has agreed and that I am making in regard to the role of personal t…

That is a decision made by the National Transport Authority rather than by the Department of Transport or the Minister, Deputy Ryan. I am sure the Deputy has raised his concerns with and given his views directly to the NTA. I am sure that if this is a matter that is important to him, Deputy Higgins is also engaged with and following up on the matter. I will ensure the National Transport Authority is aware of the concerns the Deputy has, but decisions regarding individual routes are not ones made by the Department o…

This is a very important issue and was the subject of a retail banking forum convened in Tullamore a few weeks ago by me and the Department of Finance. I and my officials have engaged directly with the banks that are here and those that are leaving to make it clear this massive moment of change in the Irish banking system has to advance in the most orderly way possible. It is going to be a challenge. Critically, in recent weeks the Central Bank has met all of the banks to emphasise to them the need for a resource t…

The Government could not be any clearer in its response to the actions that have been taken unilaterally by the British Government. We believe it is a clear breach of faith with regard to the protocol that was negotiated over many years. We believe the action and harm it could cause to our country and to the economy and stability of Northern Ireland is immense. I join in what the Taoiseach said yesterday in calling on the British Government and Ministers involved in this to reconsider their actions. We will continu…

As the Deputy will appreciate, given the sensitivity of the matter and the really important healthcare decisions that are made when a new drug is made available, it is not a decision the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, himself or even, I believe, the Department of Health makes. There is an outside body that advises them on the purchases of new drugs that should be made, to whom they should be available and how. Healthcare is a guiding principle when those decisions are made. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, is a…

The Minister, Deputy Foley, is aware of this issue. She is aware of the importance of class sizes and the role they play in delivering the kind of education our young girls and boys need. I am sure she will listen very carefully and try to respond to the issue the Deputy raises.

The Minister, Deputy Donnelly, is very much aware of the pressure patients and staff in University Hospital Limerick are facing. If those beds are delivered as quickly as possible, it will help with the pressures Deputy Quinlivan has raised. The Department of Health is looking at what additional measures can be put in place to deal with the real challenges there at present with hospital conditions and waiting lists. I am sure the Minister would have given the Deputy a comprehensive answer to the question when he ra…

We absolutely appreciate the huge challenges many are facing with the rising cost of living. Deputy Griffin will know the measures we have put in place to reduce excise are among the biggest excise reductions governments across Europe have put in place. My focus at the moment is on how we can support again and intervene again when we prepare and deliver the budget. I believe the budget is the right point at which we can put in place further measures. Of course, I will take on board the views Deputy Griffin has put …

We cannot stop a bank leaving if it decides to leave. The Central Bank cannot do so and the Government cannot do so, and the Deputy knows that. Looking at the supervisory measures that are in place, a central bank cannot stop a bank if it decides it is going to close a branch, and I think Deputy McNamara is aware of that. Am I happy with the supervisory efforts of the Central Bank in recent years? Yes, I am. Proof of that is that, despite the many challenges we faced during the pandemic, this time around our banks …

The Government is well aware of the importance of energy supply for any economy, particularly a small open economy like our own, and is taking measures to ensure that in the time ahead we can preserve continuity of energy supply even at a time when we know that prices are changing. I am aware of the very specific issue being raised by the Deputy and, indeed, Deputy Griffin has also raised this issue with me on a number of occasions. The Government has a clear view on the role that LNG can play in the future and I k…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. For some time, he has been raising issues in relation to the withdrawal of Ulster Bank from the Irish banking sector. There is already a huge amount of engagement under way with regard to the important issue the Deputy has raised. In recent days, the Central Bank has met with the banks that are involved in exiting our market, as well as the banks that will be expected to provide new accounts for new customers. They are emphasising the importance of this being done in an or…

The amendments refer to the Government decision with regard to the 9% VAT rate. The House will be well aware of the challenge that sector has faced during a prolonged period of the implementation of public health measures, due to which restaurants and hotels had to be closed for so long. I am also conscious that we are now in a position where, at the end of this month, the employment wage subsidy scheme, EWSS, that has provided large and much-needed support to the hospitality sector will no longer be available. The…

I thank the Deputy for the points raised. I differ with him about the description he used for the support for the hospitality sector. He described it as a form of corporate welfare. Nobody is no more aware than I am of how much support went to that sector, though I know the Deputy is aware of it too. He is right that it is the largest beneficiary of the employment wage subsidy scheme. It also benefited from the Covid restrictions support scheme. It received those funds and support because it is a huge employer in o…

The purpose of this amendment is to give effect to the Government's decision on 10 May to extend the 9% VAT rate that currently applies to the tourism and hospitality sectors for a further six months. This rate will, therefore, remain in place for these sectors until 28 February 2023 at an estimated cost up to that point of €250 million. The extension will cover the same goods and services as the original measure, which is to say, restaurant supplies, tourist accommodation, cinemas, theatres, museums, historic hous…

It is a significant period as we approach the conclusion of the employment wage subsidy scheme. I remember very clearly the discussions that we had in 2020 with some of the officials from the Department of Finance who are present today. We got into very challenging discussions regarding what would be in and what would be out of the scheme. I remember the discussions we were having regarding sports clubs and voluntary organisations in buildings that might have a bar in them. We made the decision to have the criteria…