Cuirim fáilte roimh an mBille seo agus beidh Aontú ag tabhairt tacaíochta dó. I very much welcome this Bill. It makes sense that according to the courts a victim of sexual violence should be able to get the protection order automatically upon the conclusion of the court proceedings. It is appropriate we are having this debate on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. I wish to reference the annual report produced by Women's Aid earlier this year. Its contents have stayed with me since …

I draw the Minister's attention to a number of vacant homes in Ringfort housing estate in Rathmolyon, County Meath. The families concerned did everything right. They paid their deposits, spending tens of thousands of euro, but the builder has refused them their homes. They have been put under massive stress, with some of them putting off starting a family and some having to move back into their parents' home. After all of that, five years later, they are being refused their homes. What can the Minister do to enable…

I accept the question I am asking the Minister is tangential to the one on the questions paper. I urge him to go off script for the next couple of minutes to address it. We have a situation where houses that were built are vacant. At the heart of this particular problem is that there are two separate companies with the same owners and directors. One company has bought the debt of another company, giving it secured creditor status. This means many other creditors will receive nothing, including these families, and t…

I appreciate that and I am not going to comment on the insolvency process happening at present, other than to say the State is now on the hook for €700,000 because Revenue is one of those creditors. There are tools the State can use to protect its own interests in this, such as the office of corporate enforcement, which can take a High Court challenge to a liquidator that has been selected. Revenue itself can do the same. It is really unfortunate we have a situation that could well be replicated over and over again…

I attended the launch of the Religious Freedom in the World report this morning. It is shocking reading. It estimates that two thirds of the world's population live in countries where practising their faith can cost them their livelihoods, their freedom and their lives. The report states that all faiths are under pressure in different parts of the world. I welcome that the war in Sudan was raised in the Dáil this week. It is a catastrophic event leading to the brutal murder of so many innocent civilians. Nigeria is…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an rún seo inniu. Gabhaim buíochas leis an nGrúpa Teicniúil um Neamhspleáigh agus Páirtithe as an rún seo a chur os comhair na Dála. The disaster unfolding in Gaza and Palestine is absolutely horrific. It is a significant stain on the international community that it has been allowed to proceed in the manner it has. The images we have seen over the past number of years of an enormously powerful, well-armed Israel Defense Forces absolutely crushing a very poor, unarmed state right beside it are in…

Yesterday, families from Rathmolyon, County Meath, gathered in a Dublin hotel to attend a liquidation meeting. These families spent tens of thousands of euros on deposits for homes five years ago. In the intervening period, many have put off having a family while they were waiting, some were forced to move back into their parents' houses and others have spent €50,000 on rent. Two companies with the same owners and directors have used company law to allow the developer to become a secured creditor, putting himself a…

Can the Taoiseach talk to Revenue as well? It has a role here.

Keeping the lights and on and water in the taps is surely one of the basic responsibilities of any administration but we live in a country where that is simply not happening. For a country where it seldom stops raining, it hardly goes a week before there is a water or hosepipe ban in this country. In my county of Meath, things are out of control currently. As we speak, a burst mains causing major disruption in Navan. There are multiple outages every week in the system in Enfield. People in Trim can hardly turn the …

BBC Northern Ireland runs a podcast called "Borderline". The podcast is part of the significant debate on Irish unity that is happening across the country. One of the themes of that podcast is the fact that the Irish Government is not participating in that discussion. Many voices have stated there is a serious reluctance from the Government to even discuss the issue of Irish unity. The debate has moved on. People North and South are now talking about what planning and preparation is necessary for the referendum to …

This morning the BBC mentioned that the Irish Government is the only place where this planning and preparation could happen.

When will the Taoiseach step up to the plate?

The Government is the best place to do it.

I want to raise the issue of the Mercosur deal. It is a significant threat to the livelihoods of farming families across this country. The Mercosur deal was designed by industrialists in the rest of the EU seeking to improve their export opportunities to South America. It looks like Irish agriculture has been sacrificed on the altar of Mercosur. It beggars belief that, at a time of serious conversation around climate change, beef that has been raised on South American land where trees have been felled and ecosystem…

In her opening remarks, the Minister said her door was open to TDs to bring specific cases to her attention. I have engaged with her Department on, for example, the case of Mikey, who was so long on the waiting list that he aged out. The Department shut the door on me and said it was not its place to intervene with clinicians regarding the care of children. That is one problem. Second, if we are honest, the Minister has for several months been stonewalling those asking questions on this issue. It has been 14 months…

On a personal level, I wish Paschal Donohoe very well. Paschal Donohoe has always been a personable, friendly and amiable character in here. In the handful of times where I saw that approach change, it was clear that he was under serious pressure for serious reasons as well. There is no doubt that the particular roles Paschal has held have been tough jobs that have taken a lot of his time and effort. I wish him luck with this. There is probably nobody happier in the House at the moment than Simon Harris. When he he…

It is important to remember this in terms of a critique: Paschal has always a communicated an air of fiscal responsibility and rectitude but the truth is radically different. There is absolutely no doubt that while in position, this Government became synonymous with waste and rip-off politics. From the national children's hospital to the bike shed, the Government has incinerated taxpayers' money on an industrial scale. In terms of the spending of taxpayers' money, it was a free for all. There were dozens of project…

His record in health includes the explosion of costs of the national children's hospital, the shocking collapse of CHI and the CervicalCheck scandal as well. In justice, he saw Garda numbers and morale fall to the floor. In his brief time - six months - in justice, he actually saw the immigration crisis go from bad to worse. The number of deportation orders overturned during his time increased massively.

For the Minister who could not count Covids, he is now in charge of the Department of Finance. Instead of accountability, we see promotion under this Government. In fairness to the Tánaiste, he was only in justice for six months. Incredibly, Helen McEntee was in that Department for far longer. We now have the Minister who, after the Dublin riots, walked while flanked by gardaí and said this city is safe.

She is now in charge of the safety of the skies, the seas and everything below it.