I am taking this question on behalf of Deputy McDonald. The Taoiseach will accept that it has been a difficult time for supporters of Dundalk Football Club. I wish the new consortium led by John Temple, which has taken over the club, well. We are at the beginning of a process. Dundalk FC could have gone to the wall, which would have impacted on the integrity of the entire league. There needs to be engagement with the FAI and the League of Ireland to make sure this does not happen again.

According to the Housing Commission report, we need at least 300,000 new homes in the next five years, which is an average of 60,000 per year. Has the Taoiseach or the Minister for housing met the Housing Commission or do they have plans to meet it? Have they sought a briefing from the commission or its officials on its report? Does the Taoiseach accept the report's two key recommendations? The report was brought out by the Government. The Taoiseach's commentary and even the national planning framework refer to 50,…

I welcome the fact that an affordable purchase scheme will be carried out, but the criteria regarding affordable housing need to be looked at. A price of €305,000 for a house in Dundalk is not affordable.

I raise the issue of the Drogheda department of psychiatry in Crosslanes. Planning permission has been granted for a ten-bed extension. The significant issue in Louth-Meath is historically poor bed provision. We are operating at around 12.9 beds per 100,000, whereas in the rest of the State it is more like 15 or 16 beds per 100,000. We need a timeline for that. The Mental Health Commission has said that a number of times when it has checked, it has found an insufficient number of staff from a safety point of view, …

Mobile devices across Lebanon, whether pagers or two-way radios, exploded indiscriminately, killing 12, including two children, and injuring thousands. Obviously, this was a clear attempt by Israel to escalate the situation and further destabilise the region, and an attempt to distract from the genocide it is committing in Gaza. In February of this year, the then Taoiseach, Deputy Varadkar, with the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, wrote to Ursula von der Leyen concerning human rights abuses occurring in brea…

Sinn Féin remains absolutely committed to delivering a public model of childcare, but we cannot wait on the perfect - things have to get better. While I accept there have been changes, parents and children need us to ensure we deal with the issues of affordability, accessibility and availability. Those are vital. Our plan is straightforward, namely, €345 million to deliver €10-per-day childcare for parents. That is real affordability. We would allocate €53.8 million to provide an initial pay increase of €1.50 per h…

It is generally at this time that I thank everybody and apologise for all those times I have been a nuisance to everybody inside and outside the Chamber. However, I really want to thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle-----

It is not the first time I have said it. As I said, I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, the Ceann Comhairle and all the staff on the entire campus. None of us would get a whole pile done if it were not for all of them. We are obviously in support of this. It was a proposal from the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine and it is supported by the farm organisations. It makes absolute sense that we have an agricultural appeals review panel, that we make sure it is sufficiently independent and trusted and…

Guím ádh mór ar achan duine agus chífidh mé iad tar éis an samhraidh. Is dócha go mbeimid i lár an catha faoin am sin, ach anois táimid ag déileáil leis an mBille seo. Táimid sásta go bhfuil an Bille seo ag teacht os comhair an Tí. Tá sé ag tarlúint de bharr an bhrú ón phobal, ó Shinn Féin agus ó pholaiteoirí eile, agus is maith sin. Tá cuid mhór fadhbanna againn i dtaobh an Bhille seo maidir leis an daonlathas agus maidir le cúrsaí tithíochta. Rinne an coiste Gaeilge cuid mhór grinnscrúdú réamhreachtach ar an mBil…

Anois, tá deich bomaite ag an Teachta Croinin.

This is vital legislation. We must ensure we have absolute due diligence and a streamlined process in regard to vetting. I am saying more than I usually would while in the Chair. I received a telephone call just before the debate started concerning a new facility in County Louth to deal with vulnerable children. The caller is dealing with a particular issue and asked me whether I knew anybody in the Garda National Vetting Bureau. It goes to show the importance of this issue.

I commend the Social Democrats on bringing this motion forward. Obviously there needs to be understanding and the delivery of a zero-tolerance policy when we talk about domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. I commend Natasha O'Brien, who has done huge work to highlight what was absolutely necessary. She pointed out some of the issues regarding how victims or survivors are dealt with by the system in general and the fact there is a need to examine sentencing guidelines and make sure we deal with that. In the p…

I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Education Act 1998 and certain regulations made under that Act for the purpose of allowing a certain timeframe to be specified in respect of students with special educational needs when an application is made for admission to a school and to provide for related matters. Deputy Sorca Clarke and I are introducing this Bill. We see it as a commonsense solution in relation to a problem on which I dealt with the Minister many times. We all kn…

I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."

The so-called legacy Bill of the previous British Government is callous, cruel and irredeemable in its entirety. The intention of the British Government was clear, that inquests and investigations would go unfinished and families would remain without truth or justice, which they deserve. We all understand why the British Government did this. That particular British Government was not willing to accept anything relating to its role in the dirty war in Ireland. I am certain the Taoiseach will join me in welcoming the…

Overnight Israel bombed a school at Khan Younis, killing 25 people. This follows on from a prior Israeli strike against a school over the weekend that killed 16 people. The terrible total is now at four schools bombed in the past four days. A medical journal, The Lancet , said last week that even if the conflict were to end immediately, there would continue to be many indirect deaths in the coming months and years from causes such as reproductive, communicable and non-communicable disease. Over the last eight month…

Go raibh maith agat. I ask the Taoiseach to support the idea behind my education amendment Bill. This is the proposal that parents of kids with special needs would be able to apply to schools, primary and secondary, two years beforehand. This would allow the school, the parents and everybody to do everything that needs to be done and the Department and whoever else to play their parts. The joint committee on autism met the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, earlier. We must look at the best means we can to provide…

David Teather.

The roll-out of assistive technologies is an important point that needs to be looked at. It obviously can facilitate-----

As I said earlier, over the last eight months, Israel has lain absolute waste to Gaza. The official figure for civilian deaths is 37,396, which is a travesty, a tragedy, an absolute disgrace and a shame on the world. However, The Lancet has stated that the real figure could be 186,000 people. I assume that 70% of that figure could be women and children. That is what Israel has done. A number somewhere between those two figures have been killed. It is absolutely abominable. There is no defending it in any way, shape…