I thank Deputy Canney for raising the matter and for his kind words for the Minister, Deputy Ryan, which I am sure he will appreciate. I acknowledge that the Deputy has been pursuing the issue of the western rail corridor and the all-island rail review for some time and we discussed it recently when I became Taoiseach. My colleague, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, is due to bring a memorandum to the Government on the all-island rail review in coming weeks and the detail of any implementation groups and structures and ti…

I thank the Deputy for his words of tribute to the Minister, Deputy Ryan. I think many could learn from his courteous and civil approach to politics -----

-----in this House and indeed outside this House as well.

There are many lessons that could be learned from him in that regard. I thank the Deputy for his words about Cara Darmody. I met her as a Minister, not as the Taoiseach. She highlighted a number of things to me then and some of those, I believe, we have made progress on. I look forward to meeting her again on Thursday.

The first thing I will do is familiarise myself with that task force report. I appreciate that a lot of work has been done since then but I will familiarise myself with that. We do need to come at this from all angles. There is, of course, a criminal justice element to this. A lot of good legislation has been passed through these Houses on that. The establishment of the agency is important but so is the education and cultural aspect. I have significant concerns, for instance, about how young men in particular are s…

I thank Deputy Ó Laoghaire. I will. I am aware of that recommendation from the commission and the importance of the issue that the Deputy highlighted. I will certainly ask the Minister for housing to respond to the Deputy formally in respect of it, but I will also see what we can do in the forthcoming budget.

I am sorry. I was not talking over the Deputy. Rather, I was talking to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, on this important issue to get the most up-to-date information. The short answer is “Yes”. It is our intention, and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler’s intention, to implement that recommendation in the programme for Government. This week, I will meet Family Carers Ireland and Care Alliance Ireland to hear what more they believe we can do in terms of progressing it.

I will meet them. I will not be able to meet them tomorrow, so I do not want to mislead them, but if the Deputy wants to contact my office, I am happy to arrange to meet them with him and other Oireachtas colleagues from Cavan-Monaghan. I am aware of the issues that the Deputy and other Deputies have raised in the House. Perhaps I will ask the relevant Ministers to attend as well. We want to make more progress in this regard. We now have a Cabinet committee on disability, which I am chairing. I would be very happy …

I thank Deputy Stanton very much for raising this important issue. The Government remains very supportive of free trade and free trade agreements. Obviously, the Government needs to reflect on the court’s ruling. I will ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Peter Burke, to revert to the Deputy directly in terms of timelines, as I am not across that matter.

I instinctively agree with the Deputy. I know this causes a lot of issues in many constituencies and counties, including my own, where there is someone who is willing and able to drive the bus but is told that, because of an arbitrary age on his or her birth certificate, he or she cannot drive the bus. It is offensive to those individuals and is problematic for our constituents who are trying to get their children to school. In fairness to the Minister, Deputy Foley, she has done a major overhaul of school transpor…

My thanks to Deputy Shanahan for raising the issues in respect of University Hospital Waterford. My understanding is that 96 additional beds have been announced in the past three years for the hospital, and rightly so. They are needed in Waterford and the wider south east. Specifically regarding the stroke issue the Deputy raised, I will raise it with the Minister for Health. I will also ask him to raise it with Professor Rónán Collins, who has done brilliant work as the clinical lead for our national stroke care p…

As is perhaps fitting from a Green Party Deputy, that was the most accurate tribute I have heard to the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan. He is a good politician and an even better man. That is certainly my experience. I am conscious that today is a difficult and challenging day for the Green Party – it always is when there are moments of transition – and I wish the Deputy and his Green Party colleagues the very best. We look forward to continuing to work together on the implementation of the programme for Government an…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 6, inclusive, together. The Cabinet committee on EU and international affairs oversees the implementation of programme for Government commitments and considers policy matters relating to the European Union and international issues. The committee generally meets in advance of meetings of the European Council to discuss the agenda for these meetings. In addition, it considers current EU and international matters, including the ongoing situation in the Middle East and the conflict…

I am not sure the Tánaiste would. Under our coalition agreement, the Tánaiste will bring a name to Cabinet for consideration. What Deputy Haughey said about the importance of timeliness is a statement of fact in this regard, and I and the Tánaiste share that view. I should say that the process is as the Deputy said. The European Council last night took stock of the European elections at an informal meeting. With respect to Deputy Ó Murchú, it was never a meeting that had a legal basis to make a decision. That will …

-----how she is being wrongly presented by people on this. President von der Leyen is committed to peace and wants to see an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East. She is also someone who has been a good friend to Ireland on Brexit, and someone who is responsible for saving many lives through the roll-out of the Covid vaccine programme. In response to Deputy Murphy, I am happy to immediately engage with him on the specific case he raised. I should not get too much involved in a back-and-forth with the universities…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 8 together. This Government established the child poverty and well-being programme in the Department of the Taoiseach to make sure we prioritise children, and particularly vulnerable children, and to make sure they get a real chance to realise their potential. From Poverty to Potential: A Programme Plan for Child Well-being 2023-2025 was published last year. It is the initial programme plan for the child poverty and well-being programme office in my Department. The programme p…

I thank the Deputies for raising these issues. On child homelessness, we have a real need to do more. The point Deputy Boyd Barrett made about three-bedroom and four-bedroom houses is interesting because - and this is the challenge with a housing crisis in general - I often meet people in my constituency who are always looking for a one-bedroom house. If we are being honest and truthful, this is what happens when there is a deficit of social housing when we are playing catch-up, although last year we saw the larges…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 to 14, inclusive, together. Individual commitments in the programme for Government are advanced through the co-ordinating mechanisms of the Cabinet committee structure. There are ten Cabinet committees established by the Government to reflect the full range of policy areas set out in the programme for Government. Cabinet committees meet regularly to accomplish their work. The strategy statements of all Departments reflect the national priorities outlined in the programme for Gover…

I am not aware of that situation but is a very serious matter to raise. Let me ask for a report from the relevant Department. Dublin Zoo is independently run but receives funding from the State. I take animal welfare extraordinarily seriously. I was utterly horrified by the revelations in the "Prime Time Investigates" programme last week. I want to receive a full and comprehensive report on the actions that will now be taken on this matter at an Irish and an EU level. Deputy Boyd Barrett and I do not often agree on…

I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the exercise by the State of the option or discretion under Protocol No. 21 on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, to accept the following measures: (a) Directive (EU) 2024/1346 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 May 2024 laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protect…