We have to look at ways of leveraging private investment as well as public investment. I know this is close to the heart of the Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth. There are two areas with opportunities for fresh thinking. One is carbon farming, where we pay farmers for the sort of thing we need to do, such as rewetting and reducing livestock herding on some of these drained organic soils. It offers a significant opportunity but the incentives are not in place. There are other examples. The second matter is the…

Tairgim: Go n-ainmneoidh Dáil Éireann an Teachta Leo Varadkar chun a cheaptha ag an Uachtarán mar Thaoiseach. I move: That Dáil Éireann nominates Deputy Leo Varadkar for appointment by the President to be Taoiseach. It was Samuel Johnson who said, "The Irish are a fair people; they never speak well of one another." On most measures, this House would be particularly fair-minded. However, I think I detected a slight quiver in that fair-mindedness today, with genuine warmth for the job the Taoiseach has done. As we pa…

Last week, the Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, showed that spending in Ireland is generating 75% more emissions than the conventional measure. I want to ask the Minister about his green procurement strategy. The only data I have seen are a couple of years old and show that Ireland is well behind other European countries. I would be interested to know whether the Minister can move to implement green principles in 100% of procurement, as has been done in Holland. There are huge opportunities to cut down…

How far are we from achieving consistency in the delivery of home care packages? CHO 7 is highlighted in the question, but I would also like to hear what progress is being made in developing the statutory home care system, which I understand is being piloted? I believe this would achieve the sort of consistency we have not been able to deliver to date.

I commend the Minister of State on her efforts. I am interested to know how close she is to getting some sort of consistency across the country. The intent of the statutory home care scheme being piloted is to achieve consistency in standards and access. Are we in a position to plan for the delivery of that statutory scheme? That would give staff more confidence in the long-term prospects of a career in this sector. Will the Minister of State update us on whether we can move to that type of design? That would deliv…

I need not remind the Minister of State of what the Minister said recently when answering questions about Beaumont hospital. The big problem is that we have a very expensive resource but delayed discharges because we do not have this service. I remind the Minister of State, although I do not think she needs reminding, that this is key to the efficient working of the entire health service.

I know €450 million has been set aside for next year to address waiting lists. What can this deliver in terms of the number of procedures? In respect of interventions delayed during Covid being prioritised, how will that work?

I know the NTPF has tended to prioritise certain high-volume procedures. Will the resources be concentrated on those or can we expect the NTPF to extend the procedure list? How is it proposed by Dr. Colm Henry or others to identify the delayed interventions that occurred during Covid and have no doubt resulted in a need to reassess the priority of different patients on the list? Will there be a process to ensure that with this money, we get to the patients with the greatest priority?

This week, we were reminded at COP15 that material use is now heading towards three times what nature can replenish in a year. I welcome yesterday’s publication of the Tánaiste’s enterprise White Paper, which stated that the transition to carbon neutrality and environmental soundness will be a central plank and that you do not see it as a threat to our competitiveness but rather as an opportunity. I would like to ask the Tánaiste if we have the policy tools to deliver this transition. Offshore wind is quoted as a o…

I thank Deputy Duffy for introducing this motion. This is a debate I welcome because it forces us to think about design in our lives. Much of the problem we have in emissions is around design. It is commonly stated, and I have no reason to doubt it, that 80% of the environmental damage that is done by products is factored in at the design stage. We have to rethink design in many of the basic activities of our lives if we are going to change that. While this debate is about embodied carbon in the construction sector…

Like other speakers, I congratulate the Minister, Deputy Ryan, on his achievement. Multilateral discussion and negotiation is vital for progress in this area because otherwise we have beggar-your-neighbour policies, and that would bring us all down together. Mobilising countries to make these commitments is a difficult task because we even hear the free-rider argument being advanced here in Ireland, along the lines that we are only tiny and we should not be making an effort. What is encouraging is the USA and Brazi…

I welcome the 25% increase in the capital budget for defence and the greater ambition the Government has committed to for the Army, Naval Service and other dimensions. What progress has been made on this transformation agenda which, as set out in the commission's report, extends to the digital environment, gender, human resources, culture, command and restructuring? I would particularly like to hear what progress has been made on the 34 early actions that were to be delivered within six months.

I welcome the appointment of Ms Julie Sinnamon and the addressing of pay anomalies. I wish to also ask about a few other specifics. Key positions are needed to drive the transformation: head of transformation; head of HR; head of digital; and head of gender. Have those been advertised? They are crucial to starting a real transformational change. Other changes are needed to the working time legislation as well as bringing in external capacity for change within the management structures, and progress on Army and Defe…

I welcome the decisions on those two posts. The report made clear that it is about changing culture, changing the command structures and restructuring the Defence Forces. They are major shifts. I ask the Minister not to forget about the appointments relating to digital transformation and gender transformation. They are equally important posts for the long-term transformation.

The Government now has a legal obligation to cut peak-hour electricity demand by 5% over the winter and a voluntary obligation to cut both gas and electricity demand by 10%. What policy tools has it identified to deliver this? As well as protecting people from higher prices, it is very important that we help them to reduce their usage so we become more resilient. I suggest that the revenue from windfall tax be put to facilitating this. Smart meters, shallow retrofits, sharing platforms and solar can all be part of …

I speak on forestry with some trepidation because I once spoke in the Chamber many years ago about fisheries. A then prominent Fine Gael Member said that I would not know a mackerel from a herring. I am likely to transgress and, with Deputy Fitzmaurice here, I am sure he will tell me how wrong I am.

He will show great restraint. For good reason, we have set ourselves transformative targets. We aim to reach net zero emissions by 2050 and we hope to have 18% of our land in forestry by the same time. We are seriously struggling to develop policy tools to deliver on these targets, though. I commend the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, on achieving a much higher planting premium, but we are 75% off target. We are not using timber in buildings. The Scots use three times as much timber in buildings as we do. As a …

It is great to see the Ceann Comhairle back and that his alertness has not diminished in any way. I agree with Deputy McGuinness and commend the Minister on her acute understanding of different families in different anomalous situations and her capacity to respond in that regard. It is a feature of the Bill. Maybe her experience in credit unions has stood to her. I commend her on the consistent progress she is making in tackling poverty. The latest data from the Central Statistics Office, CSO, show that the number …

I welcome the Tánaiste's decision to merge the flexible working and the remote working Bills. I also welcome, in particular, the removal of criminal offences for employers to have a policy, even if they never required having one, the removal of excessive grounds for employers to refuse remote working, the introduction of a code of practice and a worker's right to complain. It shows the value of the pre-legislative scrutiny system. I am seeking assurance that there be no unnecessary delay in implementing this legisl…

I will limit myself to one request, which is that we expand Science Week to become Science and Design Week and that we take that approach in the future. I have always believed that design has been a driver of change that we have neglected in Ireland. When I was listening to the Minister in my office I noted he said that we must seek to ensure that science understands the problems of politics and I agree with him. I fear that in the debate about climate, a gulf has emerged between science and politics. It is correct…