I certainly know the importance of the nursing home. As Deputy Kelly said, I was involved in it in a previous role in a Government of which Deputy Kelly was a member. I know the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, also knows the importance of it because we want to provide more nursing home facilities across the country. There is the issue of UHL, which, again, Deputy Kelly knows very well and feels very strongly about. I did say exactly what the Deputy said - that sounds like the transcript - that I believed there sh…

Before Saturday.

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, is also raising it with me. I know the issue is very important and that Deputy Shanahan raised it in good faith. I will engage directly with the Ministers involved and come back to Deputy Shanahan.

I thank Deputy Troy for raising this matter. I cannot imagine what that family is going through with their little four-year-old girl, having to watch her in a very difficult state on many occasions and wanting to do everything right by her. I will certainly talk to the Minister for Health and the HSE about this. Sometimes different avenues can be explored if only a small number of children are involved. I will engage with the HSE and come back to the Deputy if he gives me the details.

I move: That, notwithstanding anything in the Order of the Dáil of 29th March, 2023, setting out the rota in which Questions to members of the Government are to be asked, Questions for oral answer, following those set down to the Minister for Social Protection shall be set down to Ministers in the following temporary sequence: Minister for Health Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth Minister for Justice whereupon the sequence established by…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 16, inclusive, together. The Cabinet committee on children, education and disability oversees programme for Government commitments relating to children, education and disability. It receives detailed reports on identified policy areas such as child poverty and well-being, local area disadvantage and the reform of disability services. In addition to the meetings of the full Cabinet and its committees, I meet Ministers on an individual basis to focus on different issues. Disabili…

I thank the Deputies for raising these issues. I might go in reverse order and start with Deputy Conway-Walsh. I am happy to take that up. I have not seen the letter. If the Deputy wants to provide it, I will be happy to take a look at it. My general experience with the domiciliary care allowance is, as the Deputy said, that the structure of the scheme is worded in such a way as not to be prescriptive to a specific disability but rather to the issue of substantial needs above and beyond other children of that age. …

Can I beg the Ceann Comhairle's indulgence for 20 seconds? I will be very quick. On Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan's issue in respect of childcare, capital investment and the north side enterprise, the Minister is bringing forward that capital funding, as the Deputy said. I take the point he makes around the time sensitivity in north Cork. I will come back to him directly on that. Similarly, in the context of Deputy Wynne's query on Shannon, I can point to progress that is being made on capacity nationwide, but I know t…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 17 to 28, inclusive, together. The child poverty and well-being programme office was established in the Department of the Taoiseach in 2023 in order to make sure we prioritise children, particularly vulnerable children, and to make sure they get a real chance to realise their own 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 the…

Yes.

To Deputy Tully, regarding the point she made about the working family payment and the one-parent family and the challenges she outlined that present when the youngest child reaches the age of seven, these are matters we consider in the context of the budget. We have taken several measures to help remove poverty traps and cliff edges. We have also tried to take a number of measures, including cost-of-living measures, specifically targeted at families most in need, including double payments, lump-sum payments, etc. …

I propose to take Questions Nos. 29 to 38, inclusive, together. On 10 April I spoke by phone to the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. We each acknowledged the depth and the breadth of the British-Irish relationship and the value we attach to it. We discussed the positive leadership which the First Minister and deputy First Minister have shown since their appointment in February. We also discussed Ukraine and the urgency of the situation in Gaza. I look forward to meeting with Prime Minister Sunak at the European…

I thank the Deputies very much. I acknowledge Deputy Brendan Smith's leadership of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly but also his leadership more broadly on North-South issues over a sustained period. I was delighted to attend the BIPA meeting. I was even more delighted that it was held in my constituency. The Deputy could not have known I was going to be Taoiseach at that time, so it worked out very well for everybody. It was great to be there and see the deep bonds of friendship. As all of us in this House…

You can go first.

In the spirit of collaboration.

It is a particular honour to contribute as Taoiseach to this year's Dáil statements marking Europe Day. It is a timely opportunity to reflect on our EU membership and on the European Union's role in the world. Ireland's EU membership over more than five decades has brought many benefits. It offers freedom for our citizens to live, work or study throughout Europe. It provides access for our businesses and farmers to the Single Market. It has extended higher social, environmental and consumer standards for our citize…

I thank the Deputy for raising important issues relating to our health service. She has touched on a number of topics and made a point about recruitment that I want to respond to as well. She began by referencing University Hospital Limerick. I, too, welcome the decision by the Minister for Health and the HSE chief executive yesterday to send a specific support team to Limerick to help to deal with the current pressures that are being experienced in that hospital and the mid-west region more generally. This team wi…

The Deputy will be at the opening.

Am I to take from that that the Deputy does not believe there should be any cap on recruitment in the health service at all?

You can hire whatever you want whenever you want. Is that this week's Sinn Féin health policy? If it is, can the Garda Commissioner hire whoever he wants? Can the Minister for Education? I am just wondering where this ends.