Has the Minister further information on the timeline and when we will see this move occurring? That is obviously accepting that as things happen there needs to be a huge amount of planning work done. There has to be interaction with those communities where some of these are to be located. Suitability has to be at a premium. Beyond that, will the Minister say where we are as regards improving the efficiency of the system and faster processing of those from safe countries or from where we have a significant number of…

Not for the first time, I will ask the Minister for an update on the action being taken in his Department following on from the recent report completed by Teagasc and submitted to the Department about the impact on farmers following damage to their farmland as a result of recent flooding on the Cooley Peninsula around Hallowe'en 2023. Obviously, there was a significant amount of damage and a huge impact on farmers. In fairness, I welcomed the fact that the report and interaction have happened, but it is the timelin…

A number of elected representatives in the area met the farmers. One of the fears I brought to the Minister's attention was that there is a huge amount of damage done regarding fodder and fertiliser, and damage done to land. Farmers needed to carry out mitigation measures during the flooding and afterwards to allow them to relieve livestock. Some of the farmers' fear was that they had already put a serious amount of money into this. They wanted to make sure this would be covered under the scheme, combined with any …

I welcome that this is happening and obviously a huge amount of work has gone into it. I accept that the Minister is probably not going to give an exact timeline. It would be over the next couple of weeks, but I would appreciate as much information as he can provide regarding that. I welcome the fact that there will be direct interaction with the farmers. Will it cover retrospective works that farmers were forced to carry out before this period? There would be an absolute necessity. I also welcome the fact - it is …

What interaction has there been between the Minister's Department and other Departments about the schemes under way and in the pipeline for renewable electricity production? Anyone who has attended any IFA meetings will know this is a key issue. At times they gripe about some of the schemes that are available for the use of wind turbines or solar panels. The one positive is the fact that many people are looking at these as possible solutions into the future and it is something we need to support.

We all accept the huge body of work that needs to be done and acknowledge what has been done on decarbonisation and diversification. It is a matter of making sure we work alongside the agricultural stakeholders from the point of view of putting in place schemes that suit them. What engagement has the Minister and the Minister, Deputy Ryan, had with the various stakeholders and farming organisations regarding the provision of the most fit-for-purpose schemes possible, for solar, anaerobic digestion or wind turbines?…

I agree with the Minister that farmers are always innovative. It is a matter of providing them with the supports and incentives in relation to this. Electricity and energy production benefits wider society and the farmers. We all talk about ensuring the sustainability of the family farm and we need to make sure the family farm is as sustainable as possible. I want to ask about widening these schemes and even beyond. If we are talking about a strategy in relation to anaerobic digestion, how will we go about doing it…

I believe the Minister of State and Deputy Doherty have dealt with a fair amount of the technicalities of this. Deputy Doherty has put questions in front of the Minister of State. I hope he will reply on the publication of reports and that general idea of transparency, which we obviously all welcome. Beyond that, as much as we all welcome this legislation, there is the question regarding the fact there are infringement proceedings by the European Commission, and we would welcome a general outline of the timeline an…

The position relating to this matter has been laid out well by a number of speakers, including Deputy Kerrane. Deputy Conway-Walsh put it particularly well when she said that we are all in support of the restoration of nature and that we all accept the fact of the biodiversity crisis. The particular issue that we had, which relates to the motion we are dealing with today, was the fact it can only exist if there is a plan and funding. Outside of that, we just have targets and impositions. Many have spoken of where f…

The island of Ireland is faced with an ecological crisis and potential catastrophe in Lough Neagh and its surrounding waterways. This was particularly evident when the green algae bloom on the lough was especially pronounced during the summer months last year. It is clear that the entire ecosystem of Lough Neagh faces a serious ecological crisis. This is a crisis and challenge for the entire island and it deserves a response on an all-Ireland basis. Long-term implications for biodiversity, public health and the sus…

This House has heard previously that Israel behaves as it does because history has taught it that it can act with absolute impunity. For more than 76 years, it has displaced, occupied, annexed, imprisoned and murdered men, women and children, individually and by the dozens, hundreds, thousands and now tens of thousands. It is welcome that Ireland formally recognised the State of Palestine earlier this month alongside other states. I understand in advance of that, on a phone call with the Israeli President, the Taoi…

We all welcome the Narrow Water bridge project. We need to ensure it is built on time and on budget. I know Antóin Watters and Fiona Mhic Conchoille would also be very supportive of that. We have to prepare in every way to lessen the impact of the Border. We have to prepare for the eventual stage of there being no Border, which would deal with an awful lot of issues. I was at an event with Dundalk Chamber of Commerce earlier. It was a breakfast briefing session on tax implications for cross-Border workers and emplo…

Unfortunately, we are back here discussing the subject of school-based provision. I will be very clear. Our Turlough has used both school-based provision and summer provision - previously called July provision - which we found excellent. He has also been lucky enough at times for us to have been able to get to tutors. This has been especially useful for him in dealing with particular issues and subjects where he definitely needed some extra work done. In saying that, as I have many times before, I commend the great…

-----and the huge amount of work that still needs to be done.

I wish to ask about the current waiting times at the appeals office and if additional resources will be allocated to it. The Minister gave a general answer in respect of the times involved. We dealt with the issue of hubs previously. Some of the teething problems seem to have been sorted out but we seem to have a backlog. The sooner this can be dealt with, the better.

We would all welcome any streamlining of systems, whether the IT systems or the process generally. My office still encounters issues. We are dealing with a particular carer's benefit appeal that has been hanging around since February. Average timescales are sometimes made up of some cases that are all right and other cases that are very difficult. Some cases take too long to resolve. It is a matter of dealing with that. I will send on one or two of these issues to the Minister. In fairness, the response time from t…

I am very supportive of modernising the appeals process, particularly any system involved. The sooner, the better, the quicker and the faster. We would all agree with this. I have no difficulty in passing on the information to the Minister. I was not going to say this but I thank the Minister with regard to the issue we dealt with previously. People are very supportive of it. What we need to get into particularly is ensuring the systems are good enough and that people can get what they are entitled to. Not for the …

I would be willing to allow a bit of flexibility if the Minister was okay with it and wanted to give a timeline on Question No. 16.

Le do thoil, Deputy.

I have maintained that independence.