The first question we must ask is what is causing the increase in rents in this country. The answer is problems with supply and demand. Covid had a massive impact on supply and demand but we also have a huge issue with the cost of the materials to build houses, which is causing a problem. Rents are going up in Limerick. Ordinary people who were paying €800 a month are now being charged €1,200 and rising. The Limerick Twenty Thirty group was set up to help ease the housing crisis and is currently progressing 250 app…

I ask the Minister of State to check the record of the Dáil where he will see that more than six months ago I asked why we had not applied for more funding and for our fair share from Europe. We just heard that €750 billion was available. Ireland is receiving €915 million and other countries are receiving triple this amount even though they are of a similar size. The Irish application did not prioritise broadband, infrastructure or housing, even though we have a housing crisis. I have been in business and self-empl…

I was six years on a council. All I see is the failure of people to speak up for Ireland. The Government should seek our fair share in Europe and get a response. The figures show that Croatia, which has a smaller population than that of Ireland, is getting €6.3 billion, while we are getting €915 million. We need to get people from a business background to do deals on behalf of the Government because it is not capable of fighting for Ireland or putting forward a business model in Europe on behalf of the country.

The pension age was a key issue in the general election in February 2020. Voters across the State expressed their opposition to the pension age increase throughout the election campaign. The Government told them that things like that would not happen. While in power from 2007 to 2011, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party decided to increase the pension age to 67 by 2021 and to 68 by 2028. Fine Gael and the Labour Party implemented that while in government in 2011. In 2020, those same parties went out and said they were …

It is more than a year since I was elected before which I was on the county council for six years. This was brought to the House today by the Labour Party. While Deputy Kelly was in government and was the Minister with responsibility for housing, he had a track record like the LDA - he did not build a bloody house. This is what we are coming down to. The records are there to show Labour's double standards. Here today, its Members are saying, "Let us look at this", but while they were in government, they did nothing…

This is what we have to look at today. The record shows it and history shows it. If the media can do anything, they should go back on the history of all of these parties and show their double standards.

I have been in construction all my life and everything I do has to be certified. Quarries supplied materials to these people that was certified. There is an amount of quarries that have pyrite in them that are owned by massive international companies that own 30 or 40 quarries in this country and they are responsible for pyrite and mica in this country. Pyrite is in Clare. It is in Limerick. At present, I have cases in Limerick with pyrite and they are only being investigated now. People should not have to pay one …

Given that more than 50% of the population have received their first vaccine, I would like to think that we are now in a post-pandemic place and looking forward to what lies ahead for us. I have concerns, however, that I will highlight. I am sure the Tánaiste will agree that it is currently very difficult to get staff in construction, haulage, hospitality and in many other industries. Surely the apprentice scheme needs to be escalated and a system put in place. Industries such as haulage have huge concerns around g…

The first thing the Government did wrong was the felling licences, the second was the carbon tax and the third was voting against the amendment tabled by the Rural Independent Group on the 2040 plan, which would have delayed the process of houses. Now people are panicking and this is putting more pressure on supply and demand. I thank the Tánaiste for his thoughts but I do not want empty promises. As with everything else, the Tánaiste always says he will get back to us but it does not happen. On the truth of the ma…

What about the felling licences and roofs of houses?

Carbon tax, inflation, oil products.

In 2006, the HSE published A Vision for Change for immediate implementation. Unfortunately, most of it was never implemented. The more recent Sharing the Vision policy reads very well. The key priorities that emerged were to prioritise mental health in Ireland as a major issue in society, the importance of primary prevention and positive mental health, a requirement to focus on social inclusion and recovery, the expansion of mental health services to address the spectrum of conditions and needs and the development …

There is somewhere close to 40,000 people in the Traveller community, making it a significant indigenous ethnic group. Since 1996, its population has grown by 185%. The trajectory is upwards, certainly more so than for the general population, although there have been highs and lows in growth. In Limerick, for instance, the Traveller population has increased by 250% over the past 20 years. The majority of Travellers live in rental accommodation, including private and local authority housing stock, with 12% living in…

The Maritime Jurisdiction Bill 2021 was published on 4 May 2021 to provide an opportunity to raise fishery matters and to seek clarification on Rockall, as that will be an issue for fishermen and fisherwomen, who are united on this matter. No prior public consultation took place. There was no pre-legislative scrutiny. No regulatory impact analysis accompanied this Bill. The housing Bill came before the House a number of weeks ago and there was uproar because there was no pre-legislative scrutiny. The Government is …

Again, I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing this Topical Issue matter. If somebody, God forbid, falls overboard in the seas off Ireland, a helicopter can be deployed and can be there within ten or 15 minutes. Four fishermen were in dread of their lives from a foreign vessel trying to ram them in Irish waters. The Taoiseach ignored a call and emails from Deputy Collins. I saw the paperwork and the telephone files, which the Taoiseach said on public record, on the floor of this House, he did not get. I saw them. …

I thank Deputy Connolly and her colleagues for tabling the motion. I congratulate the Acting Chairman on the birth of another grandchild, which is fantastic for him and his family. There are 19 maternity hospitals in Ireland, with approximately 150 babies born every day. It is estimated that 25,000 babies were born during Covid, with between ten and 12 born in the maternity hospital in Limerick. The scientifically recommended ratio is one midwife for every 29.5 births but the ratio in Ireland at present is one for …

What is the national recovery and resilience plan? The EU has promised a recovery and resilience fund of €750 billion with the aim of helping member states to deal with the costs arising from the Covid-19 pandemic and to boost the European economic recovery. Cash is to be paid in the form of grants. The tick boxes for these funds relate to research and innovation, fair climate and digital transitions, recovery and resilience, fighting climate change, biodiversity protection and modernising traditional policies. Why…

I agree with all the previous speakers. I, too, will not vote with the Government on this grouping of amendments. If the Minister looks up at the convention centre stage, he will see the Irish flag. More than 100 years ago, people in Ireland fought for their freedom. The number of emails, phone calls and letters we have received about this issue is unbelievable. As my colleagues said, if there are exceptional circumstances, this can be revisited. I was driving through Dublin last night and I passed a canal where pe…

I will finish with that. Common sense must prevail.

It is with pride that the Rural Independent Group brings this Private Members' motion forward on behalf of the beef sector. The beef industry supports more than 70,000 beef farmers and 10,000 jobs across processing, distribution and transport. The industry is worth approximately €2.5 billion annually and the vast majority of the income remains in the rural economy. The price of feed for animals has risen by 25%, with recent increases in EU import duty on beet pulp and molasses. One of the schemes put in place to he…