I agree with the Minister on the need to look long-term in the projections. When looking so far ahead, there are huge variances but we need to look beyond one year. I recall that in his first speech as leader of Fine Gael, the Minister promised that a five-year tax strategy would be published by the end of last year. I cannot find that anywhere. Is it on the Fine Gael website, the Department of Finance website or the Department of the Taoiseach website? Will the Minister outline where that five-year tax strategy is…

That is not a tax strategy.

Since taking office, what engagement has the Minister had with his Cabinet colleagues and the Central Bank to ensure all victims of the defective blocks scandal are treated as equal citizens and can access financial products and services on the same basis as everyone else? I ask this because the State's response to this crisis continues to be characterised by unfairness. If you live in Donegal, where I acknowledge the Minister has visited, you will know that families have been failed by the Government in such an un…

The banking and insurance focus group is doing tremendous work. In fairness to BPFI, it has really engaged with it and included other organisations such as Insurance Ireland, valuers and so on. The Department of housing has refused to engage with them, which is ridiculous, to tell the truth. They should be part of the working group, as should other Departments. These are very serious people who are working through issues like the mortgageability of houses. Houses remediated through the existing scheme are not mortg…

BPFI has been engaging for nearly two years now and it has done a huge amount. These are very serious people. The Minister mentioned the childcare facilities that I have raised with him. There are three childcare facilities that are community run. The Minister has been talking about State-run childcare facilities and all the rest but the three community childcare facilities in question – in Letterkenny, Raphoe and Ardara – are in buildings that are falling down. The one in Raphoe is already gone because the childre…

Tá an Rialtas tar éis cliseadh arís is arís eile ar phobail chósta agus ar thionscadail iascaireachta na hÉireann. Léiríonn an géilleadh seo go bhfuil ganntanas iomlán suime ag Fianna Fáil agus Fine Gael maidir le saolta agus slí beatha na n-iascairí. Níor sheas siad suas dóibh riamh agus níl siad ag seasamh suas dóibh anois. Beagnach dhá bhliain ó shín, d’ardaigh mé cás Mhuireann Kavanagh díreach leis an Taoiseach sa Seomra seo. Ní raibh cás riamh chomh soiléir idir cad atá ceart agus mícheart. Is girseach óg í Mu…

Sinn Féin is not opposing this legislation. I know the Minister is stepping in for Deputy Troy. I want to express my condolences to Deputy Troy and his family on the passing of his father. Our thoughts are with him at this difficult time. I want to say two things in relation to this legislation. We facilitated the quick passage of this legislation. We support the Credit Review Office. We have signposted many of our constituents to go to the office. I have tabled amendments to have a wider discussion in relation to …

Tá fearg mhór ann go mbeidh ar dhaoine leochaileacha íoc as pacáistí táibléad blister mar gheall ar chinneadh an Rialtais. Beidh tionchar ar leith aige seo ar dhaoine atá ag dul siar i mblianta agus ar dhaoine atá ag maireachtáil le néaltrú agus galar Alzheimer a bhraitheann ar na pacáistí seo. Tá a fhios againn nach bhfuil sé seo ceart. Caithfidh an Rialtas gníomhú chun a chinntiú go leanfaidh na daoine seo a bheith ábalta a gcuid pacáistí táibléad blister a fháil saor in aisce. The Taoiseach's Government's decisi…

I asked the Taoiseach the question and he did not answer it. I asked him the question, with respect, of whether he believes people with dementia and Alzheimer's who were receiving the blister packs free of charge should be charged for them from 1 January. No matter what way the Taoiseach presents it, these packs were being funded. For right or wrong, they were being funded. Of course there are issues. The issue is that the man who was talking to me this morning and his wife who is suffering with dementia will have …

It was a Government decision that restricted the way in which pharmacies were claiming, and it has resulted in this. Will the Taoiseach please answer the question? Will he reverse the decision? Should people with dementia and Alzheimer's, who were getting it free, have to pay for it in January?

You put up the cost.

The Taoiseach has just ten seconds left. What is he going to do?

The Government has just agreed a deal but it left out blister packs.

In recent weeks, the Taoiseach himself said that energy companies were gouging customers, yet despite using that word and acknowledging that people are being ripped off, the Government has still failed to do anything meaningful to stop it. We know that wholesale electricity costs have collapsed but Irish households still pay among the highest bills in Europe. The ESRI has confirmed what we already knew - electricity prices doubled between 2018 and 2024. It says that there is no clear explanation for what suppliers …

No, an inquiry.

A full CRU inquiry was the question. Why does the Taoiseach keep dodging questions?

The amendments we are dealing with in this legislation - the amendments tabled by the Sinn Féin Deputies - go to the very core of the issue. If accepted by the Minister, they would probably satisfy the vast majority of people in my constituency regarding the challenges they have. Of course, there are other issues, including those related to the administration of the scheme and the criteria, but a core issue is the 100% redress, as we lay out in amendment No. 5 and as campaigned for in my constituency and elsewhere …

I move amendment No. 8: In page 5, between lines 26 and 27, to insert the following: “Report on supportive measures for rental property activation in areas impacted by defective concrete blocks 2. The Minister shall, within 3 months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on supportive tax measures for rental property activation in areas impacted by defective concrete blocks.”. This is an amendment I tabled to the Finance Bill. I also tabled a detailed amendment which was dealt with…

This is infuriating. The Finance Bill went through in the past ten days. I put this to the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance, and, in fairness, he said that what I was saying had merit. The ARP scheme for Ukrainians that I mentioned was designed and is administered by the Department of justice. The latter went to the Department of Finance looking for the income that is paid for those properties to be tax exempt. The Department of Finance accepted that and legislated for it. However, the scheme starts with the Depar…

I can read the Minister of State what the Tánaiste said when we discussed this issue previously. He stated: I am genuinely grappling constructively with the point the Deputy made on the idea of the ARP. It is not an unfair point. That scheme is administered by the Department of justice. My Department carries out the tax treatment element of the scheme. It is open to other Departments to consider schemes in relation to this area. I will engage constructively with those line Departments in relation to that. There is …