I move amendment No. 1: In Schedule 2, inserted by paragraph (l), by the substitution of the following for the row dated 1 May 2023: " .". I have tabled five amendments. Is é an chéad leasú atá ann ná leasú ó thaobh an mhéid cánach atá á gearradh ar ola agus, go háirithe, ar ola faoi choinne an tí a théamh. Is é ceann de na laigí is mó atá ag an Rialtas seo anois le tamall maith anois ó bhí an ghéarchéim maireachtála linn, le suas le bliain anois, ná gur fágadh daoine a úsáideann ola lena gcuid tithe a théamh gan t…

On a point of order, our party requested all parties be allocated time. That was not agreed by Government and it set the order, unfortunately, for the time and the way it is conducted. Accordingly, we only have nine minutes and 23 seconds left.

We asked that everybody have-----

How long is the Taoiseach there now?

Tá oibrithe agus teaghlaigh ar fud an Stáit seo ag streachailt leis an ngéarchéim costas maireachtála agus tá daoine ag fulaingt. Feicimid ón staidéar a rinne Barnardos go n-úsáideann duine as gach deich dtuismitheoir banc bia chun bia a chur ar an bhord dá chuid páistí. Aréir, vótáil an Rialtas in éadan moltaí chun cuidiú leis na daoine seo, is iad sin, na daoine atá thíos léi agus leo siúd a bhfuil na costais morgáiste ag dul in airde acu. Caithfidh an Rialtas gníomhú. Before the current cost-of-living crisis, th…

Not at all.

Prices are still rising. As the Tánaiste, his Cabinet colleagues and backbenchers slap themselves on the back in relation to what they have done, I urge them to listen to the words of Barnardos, not Sinn Féin, which is telling us what is happening out there in real life. Barnardos is saying that of those surveyed, one in ten visited food banks, one in five did not have enough food at some point last year and nearly one in three skipped meals so that their children could eat. The pressure on food banks and charities…

The queues are getting longer.

Is the Tánaiste going to answer my question?

He is not answering it. What about the people going to the food banks?

There are people queuing for food on the streets of this State.

Yesterday's report by the National Economic and Social Council shows that under Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, homeownership has gone in one direction, that is, down. The level of homeownership here is now in the bottom one third of the EU. Why is that the case? It is because of the policies that the Tánaiste's party has pursued, which have pushed up house prices. The Central Statistics Office yesterday reported that house prices rose by 8% in the past year. In the Border region they went up by 12% and in the west they…

Does that not say how bad things have got in terms of home ownership-----

-----when your own are even turning on you?

Does the Tánaiste accept that his Government's policies are pushing up house prices?

These policies are pushing up houses prices.

Even the Davy Group is saying that these policies are pushing up house prices.

Even the Tánaiste's own are turning on him. He cannot deny the facts.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach Gníomhach. Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil freisin leis na Social Democrats agus leis an Teachta Whitmore as an rún seo a chur os comhair na Dála maidin inniu. This motion is timely. The cost-of-living crisis bears down on workers and families, and we all understand that. The recent spike in inflation has largely been driven by the steep rise in energy prices fuelled by Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine. This has resulted in households facing energy bills the likes of w…

I move: That Dáil Éireann: acknowledges that: — the cost-of-living crisis continues to put workers and families under significant financial pressure and there is a growing urgency to ensure supports are adequate, available, and accessible; and — emergency action must be taken to give workers and families a much-needed break from the cost-of-living crisis; notes with concern that: — almost 595,000 people (11.6 per cent) in the State live on an income below the poverty line, with difficulties in making ends meet now …