I seem to be the mudguard today. I seem to be in here just for that. Everyone, and particularly the Minister, will be glad I did not have the full ten minutes. In fairness, I will not reiterate everything Deputy Kenny has said, although I may reiterate one or two of his points. We all welcome this legislation as necessary, particularly as the reality of the world is that people think others get on better with connections. That may not always be the case but with the Judiciary we must ensure not only that there is a…

The shared island unit dialogue certainly needs to be expanded to deal with the constitutional issue but the unit needs to attempt to deal with cross-Border issues. A particular issue at the minute is hybrid remote working. The example I give is people living in the North and working in the South who were remote working, many of whom have been told they now need to be at work five days a week. There is obviously a tax registration onus for employers. This is something we definitely need to deal with. Tech companies…

I want to ask about the Minister of State's engagement with the hauliers. The rising cost of fuel is impacting hugely on all of us but we are talking about businesses that are on the brink. I would like to have a statement in regard to what has been done for them but, beyond that, what are the plans to ensure we keep an absolutely necessary cohort in the economy up and running?

We all accept there are factors beyond the control of the Government. We came out of the Covid pandemic and we had the issues of Brexit, which impacted on the supply chain and are impacting us all greatly, and this was then followed by a huge global crisis, in particular a European crisis, with the war in Ukraine. With regard to those factors the Government has control over, are we looking at an extension of the €100 payment? I know many hauliers have spoken about the fact they do not believe the diesel rebate sche…

The Minister of State said it herself. It is about ensuring we can move the essential goods we require because we need to keep the show on the road. I will go back to the point that it is the future plans. Are we looking at extending the €100 payment and what other factors are we looking at? Are we going to properly look at the diesel rebate scheme and update it? On the wider question of VAT, is there any room for manoeuvre? Beyond that, if the Minister of State has time to deal with this, are we any further on in …

President Zelenskyy spoke about Russian war crimes and many other issues, including hunger being used as a weapon. We all accept we need to hurt the Russian war machine and its finances. There has been much conversation about the IFSC and section 110 companies. The Ukrainian ambassador, H.E. Ms Larysa Gerasko, spoke to the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs about a list of Irish companies that were still trading with Russia. I get that some of that has changed but I do not think they have received an answer …

It was a list of Irish companies that are still trading with Russia. It was given to the Department of Foreign Affairs and they have not been given an answer back. Sanctions are moving to coal, oil and gas. Where is the EU on block-buys? We need the mitigations.

Block-buys for fuel and energy. We need alternative sources but the EU is talking about block-buys. We need leverage as regards VAT. Then there are the humanitarian efforts we need to make. We have a housing crisis. Both the EU and ourselves need to be imaginative in relation to producing a result. That is about four questions.

If we could just chase the answer on the list.

All right. That is fine.

I will continue with some of the questions I brought up previously. Maybe there will be an opportunity, when the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan, takes questions later, that we might get some answers. President Zelenskyy stated clearly what Ukraine is facing, including Russian war crimes. We have all seen the images out of Bucha. We welcomed Anastasiia, the little girl who was in the Chamber, and heard how her father is at this time fighting for his homeland. That is what the Ukrainians are dealing with. We hav…

I will finish on the point that Irish unity is coming. We might even have Scottish independence before that and it is vital the EU build those into its plans.

I appreciate the Minister of State might not have all the details to hand, but can we get an update for the Ukrainian ambassador, H.E. Ms Larysa Gerasko, on the list of companies that were, supposedly, still dealing with Russia, which she provided to the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs? I understand some of the companies have discontinued their business with Russia and this issue has probably evolved over the past fortnight.

I thank the Minister of State. In his concluding remarks, he might give some information on the interactions and conversations regarding VAT and the toolbox that will apply if we end up considering taxes on windfall payments. Beyond that, what wider conversation took place at the European Council meeting regarding the hybrid or cybersecurity aspect of defence, which has become a major issue here as well?

I add my voice to what Deputy O'Rourke has said. We support these carbon budgets but have serious worries about delivery. We have had the IPCC report. At this point, people just need to look at weather reports over a number of months to know the reality of what we are dealing with in relation to climate change. Recently, Councillor Antóin Watters and I met Louth County Council on the necessary projects of catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM. One worries about the delivery of these projects and the…

I would like to ask the Minister about the status of the roll-out of remote working hubs. Obviously, there are various types of funding and funding streams with regard to these. We can all see the logic behind them in areas that have not had the roll-out of broadband we would like to see where they give people a facility to work in their area. We have obviously seen where it can help us reduce the amount of commuting in built-up places like Dundalk and all that is happening. Could we hear about where the roll-out i…

I imagine there will be a considerable degree of agreement on the issue of remote working hubs. Remote working is a game changer. While it will suit certain people to work from home and everyone is now talking about hybrid working, which might be the best of both worlds, I would also use that phrase in regard to remote working hubs. An example is Creative Spark Downtown in Clanbrassil Street, Dundalk, where the benefits of a workplace can be seen without necessarily the need to undergo long commutes, as might be th…

In fairness, County Louth has a number of these hubs and is already seeing successes, as the Minister pointed out in respect of the Mill centre, Drogheda, and beyond. Creative Spark has its primary building as well as this new, secondary building, but a considerable number of other businesses are examining the idea too. Sites are available and can be utilised for this, and many companies will no doubt avail of it. Due diligence needs to be done to ensure the level of funding is appropriate. In respect of aspects of…

We are all in agreement that there needs to be a move away from our linear economy. Functional obsolescence is a feature of some goods. While previously computer hard drives and other parts would have been replaced, this no longer happens. When it comes to laptops, I do not know what type of skill set a person would need to be able to open one up. Mobile phone batteries become obsolete after about six months' use. I am probably operating a false economy in that I carry a fully charged power pack with me just to kee…

At least the Acting Chairman has explained to those ten people who might be watching Oireachtas TV why I am out of breath.