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

I am yet again raising the issue of the consultant contract. If the Minister is serious about tackling the inordinate waiting lists in hospitals and getting our health service to function properly, we must recruit consultants. It is now five months since the independent chair had to withdraw from her role in the talks. What are the plans? Why has she not been replaced? What is the timescale to which the Minister is now working?

I must remind the Minister that he said at the IHCA conference several months ago that he wanted the contract finalised within weeks. He said in reply to a number of parliamentary questions over the past six months that his timeframe was a number of weeks. There has been considerable slippage and one must question if the Minister is serious about this. There is a point I wish to make. The Minister is negotiating with people who are already in posts and are operating under different arrangements entirely. When I rai…

Unfortunately, I do not get a great sense of urgency from the Minister. What we know about the new consultant contract sounds attractive and would be attractive to all of those many doctors who have left these shores. What they are looking for, first and foremost, is a proper work-life balance. They are looking for respect in their job, which, unfortunately, they have not had during their training period. They are looking for part-time work, especially for women. They are looking for that kind of flexibility. Most …

I thank People Before Profit-Solidarity for bringing forward the motion. It is very timely and important. It deals with a group of people who are absolutely critical to our health service. They work behind the scenes in a very quiet way. In many ways they have been too quiet in recent years. They have now reached breaking point. It is important to note at the start that since the inclusion of the motion on the Dáil schedule, strike action for today was averted with the intervention of the Labour Court. That is a ve…

I move: That leave be granted to withdraw the Planning and Development (Strategic Housing Developments) (Amendment) Bill 2021.

Affordability for the buyer and the State is the fundamental issue in our housing market, but one would not think it looking at the Government's housing policies. We are repeatedly told that supply is the answer. While this is undoubtedly part of the solution, it is not a silver bullet, as the Government would have us believe, because so much of it is the wrong sort of supply, namely, unaffordable small rental units. Housing is too expensive. That is the crux of this issue. Just ask anyone looking to rent or buy. T…

We have to ask what was the point of the past two weeks. After nearly a decade of negotiations, the legal documents were finally published just two weeks ago. The Taoiseach stated that he wanted the documents to be scrutinised and indicated that he was open to changes being made. It is quite clear that this was a charade. We did not know how much of a sham this whole process was until we heard from Mr. Menton yesterday at the committee. Mr. Menton made it absolutely clear, in reply to a question I asked, that it ha…

Because you are saying so.

The chairman of the board had a different view.

The Government promised a definition.

How are they legal guarantees? Where are the legal guarantees?

Clinically appropriate.

Conditioned by the term "clinically appropriate".

There are no legal guarantees.

Because you say so.

It is not. Earlier today-----

Earlier today the Minister said we will own the building and the land for the next 300 years in the same way that anyone who buys an apartment owns their apartment. This is just patent nonsense. The real value of the new asset centres on the licence. Has the Taoiseach read the licence? The freehold ownership of the hospital site plus the 299-year lease plus the 299-year licence adds up to an extraordinarily valuable asset. The HSE cannot unreasonably withhold its consent to the mortgaging of the land underneath the…

Yes.

We still have not been able to-----