I indicated and the Ceann Comhairle indicated that I would be called.

The comments were made in the Chamber.

The good name of a Member was taken in this Chamber.

The Leas-Cheann Comhairle is here to protect Members. I feel very unprotected given what has happened in the Chamber.

I have no option but to leave the Chamber. I am really disappointed because it is a very significant matter. Perhaps it was made in the heat of the debate but it was wrong and it was wrong to do it in that way. No other personal comments were made by any other Member of the Chamber and it was wrong to do so.

I appreciate that.

I like Deputy Bacik's phrase that this goes beyond housing, because too much of the debate on vacancy and dereliction focuses on our immediate need in terms of supply. I heard Deputy Gould suggest that we could tackle the entire housing crisis if we tackled dereliction alone. Of course we know that is not true. We need significant numbers of new builds and we need new supply. That is not to say we do not need to tackle dereliction but, like everything in the housing crisis, it will not be solved by one measure or a…

I thank the Minister of State for allocating to me the remaining part of his time. It is unfortunate that in a debate that will last an hour, there are 50 minutes for opposition statements and seven and a half minutes for the 82 Members on the Government side. If we are talking about electoral reform, perhaps the Business Committee might start with those disproportionate arrangements. Both the Chairman of the relevant committee and I are anxious to put on record the extensive pre-legislative scrutiny process that t…

When a debate of this nature occurs in the House it is due to a failure of a State service to deliver the service people expect. Whether that is medical cards, access to services for people with disabilities or older people, or, in this case, passports, the issue is an important one. It is sometimes thought that access to a passport or travel is a frivolity or luxury and other issues are treated more seriously. We should not judge the reasons people want a passport. People are entitled to apply for a State service …

The summation by Deputy Jim O'Callaghan is a good chronology of what happened during the Brexit process. We must look back at what has happened in the peace process in order to understand where we are. I was particularly pleased, as the co-convenor of the Irish-US parliamentary friendship group, to welcome, along with Senator Malcolm Byrne, the Cathaoirleach and the Ceann Comhairle, US Congressman Richie Neal and his delegation this week because it allows us to reflect on the peace process. The peace process is bui…

I wish to ask the Chief Whip to expedite the progress of the Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022, particularly the provisions regarding illegal dumping. I welcome to the Gallery representatives from Finglas Tidy Towns who are fresh from their victory at the Irish Pride of Place awards, like many communities across the country. This is far from a parochial issue. Dublin City Council spends more than €1 million every year. I look forward to the Government supp…

The Opposition was surprised at the timing of the Taoiseach’s visit to two countries on the edge of the Russian Federation at a time when it has invaded another one of its neighbours. I am not at all surprised and the timing was correct. Today's vote in the Finnish Parliament to join NATO, by 188 votes to eight, is a sudden move but it is understandable from a Finnish perspective. While Ireland may not be on the border of Russia in terms of military activity, we are on the borders when it comes to cyber activity an…

Last week Dublin City Council, the HSE and the ETB launched a plan for public homes on public land with infrastructure to match. It will include a primary care centre and an increase in all-weather sporting facilities along with 100 homes. These facilities along with the new family resource centre in the area will be crucial to support the community in Finglas. Will the Taoiseach ensure that the primary care centre will be included in the capital plan for next year? Will he come to Finglas and visit the new family …

I raised the issue of the Finglas primary care centre.

On the issues of public service, policing and justice, the Taoiseach's Department has for some time operated the north inner city intervention to support that community. The programme for Government makes it clear that we will roll out a similar type of intervention in similar communities around the country. The community of Ballymun has engaged with the Taoiseach and with his predecessor on the drafting of a report identifying clear requests. We wait patiently, not just for engagement to which the Taoiseach is com…

I thank the Minister again for being here for these statements, as he was a number of weeks ago when time was made available to discuss this issue of the national maternity hospital. On that occasion I said I did not believe any Member of this House wanted the national maternity hospital run by a religious order and that is still the case. Not only is it the case but, following the publication of the documents, it is clear the Government’s strategy has been to ensure all legal protections are put in place to make s…

Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening complication of infection that can impact anybody. In fact, nearly seven people a day die with sepsis. The Taoiseach will know of the death in my constituency of 15-year-old Seán Hughes from sepsis. His parents have done tremendous work in raising awareness of sepsis and got a commitment from the Minister for Health in the previous Government that similar work would be done by the HSE. Unfortunately and mainly due to Covid-19, only €50,000 has been spent in the past three ye…

I am sharing time with Deputy Alan Farrell. I am very pleased to be here to mark 50 years of Ireland's membership of the European Union. It will be for others today to balance whether that was a broadly positive or negative move in their view. In my view it has been overwhelmingly positive. It unlocked the potential of a State that was emerging from oppression under an empire and happened under a generation who had fought for that freedom. They were so far-seeing in their open approach to nationalism that they want…

Yesterday this Chamber was addressed by the President of a democracy that is under the threat of extinction. His address was attended by far more people than there are in the Chamber now. Deputy Higgins is right that this is a bit of a nerdy issue but it is also the bones and very core of our democracy. I commend the Minister on bringing forward the Bill. The committee found that while the Bill is quite comprehensive, there are many areas we would love to continue to improve to make our democracy stronger. The ques…

This weekend we had another person murdered in my constituency in what has been reported as being a gangland assassination. This follows weeks in which other people have been murdered following the discharge of an illegal firearm. We have had homes that have been petrol-bombed or suffered arson attacks. We have had a kidnapping. We have had social media platforms being used by rival gangs to issue threats. We had one family home where people were intimidated so it could be turned into a headquarters for a drug cart…