It is pertinent to the payment.

I wish to raise with the Taoiseach the very serious and concerning case of a personal trainer who operated a rehabilitation and fitness centre in Mullingar. This man has been convicted and sentenced for sexually assaulting a woman he was treating for chronic pain and covertly recording 18 hours of footage of another 35 women in various states of undress. However, on release from prison, because of gaps in legislation and regulation, and despite being on the sex offenders register, this man will be able to resume th…

-----where he perpetrated these crimes. That is not acceptable. Will the Government move quickly to amend the legislation and any regulations necessary to ensure that CORU takes-----

-----a risk-based assessment as the basis for the regulation of professions and closes this loophole?

Is 40,000 houses the line the Minister is sticking to?

I will address the part of the programme for Government that references zero tolerance of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. We all know the devastating effect on victims when their personal counselling notes are used in court as evidence in rape and sexual assault cases. This has been outlined repeatedly by the Rape Crisis Network and other advocacy services. Last summer, the then Minister for Justice indicated that she was hopeful that preparatory work relating to banning this practice would be completed…

Almost two years ago, I stood in this House and said that housing was the real test for this Government and that it had failed and failed spectacularly, undermining our health and education systems and businesses while pushing another generation to emigrate. The only thing that has changed in the interim is that it has managed to get worse under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. The Sinn Féin plan, A Home of Your Own, will put home ownership back into the reach of ordinary working people, providing for a growing stock of …

It beggars belief that at a time when schools and school leaders are pleading for additional resources but are still reliant on voluntary contributions from parents, this Government chooses to allocate €9 million to phone pouches. It is despicable that the Government then attempts to hide behind the cloak of mental health to justify its decision, particularly when we look at its track record in failing to deliver for mental health. When the Government took office in 2020, there were just over 2,000 children waiting…

Hear, hear.

From speaking with principals and school leaders, to say they are disappointed would be one of the greatest understatements. It is a sentiment also expressed by representative groups and parents. I note that the Minister, Deputy Foley, has left the Chamber. That Minister was told, heard and ignored what was being outlined in detail by school leaders. A few months ago, principals from across the country again came to Leinster House to detail the extraordinary pressure schools are under. Seven out of 10 primary schoo…

Regardless of which sector or group comes into Leinster House, when they come back six years later to say that not only does the problem remain, it has actually got worse, any Minister worth their salt would sit up and pay attention to what these people are saying because that is exactly what happened last week. It does not need to be like this. This is the real irritation and the crux of the issue. The Government is quick to tell us that it is going to run a surplus of €8 billion. Clearly, what is missing here is …

I move: That Dáil Éireann: recognises that: — every child has the right to education; — this time of the year is characterised by stress and panic for many parents as they fight to secure an appropriate school place for their child next September; — the battle to secure an appropriate school place is too often followed by further battles to secure the supports and accommodations required by their child in the context of a real fear of reduced timetables or potential exclusion from school; and — the summer months ca…

Every child has the right to an education. That right needs to be universally applied regardless of any child's additional need for support. I will go back to the Minister of State's opening contribution to this debate. She said there was a 386% increase in the number of special classes and went on to say that "While the capitation rate in mainstream schools was raised to €45 in 2023, the €30 rate per week for 2024 is in line with the rate for the inclusion programme" and that the "rate for special schools remains …

Will the Minister provide an update on whether she will provide the appropriate space for students attending Fermoy Educate Together National School as per her Department’s building manual?

That response is almost verbatim the response that was given to my colleague Deputy Pat Buckley last week when he raised this under Topical Issues. It is verbatim the response from the Minister’s private secretary to the school, but here is the thing - the school is not asking to go above its 104 cap. It is not asking for a greenfield site or a new school. It is simply asking for the correct space for the children who are in the school at the moment. I understand that enrolment is due to rise to 96 this year which …

There is clearly demand for the school and there is clearly an unmet demand if the school is not able to continue to grow or even to meet the basic needs of the children who are there. I understand that Fermoy Educate Together National School has been given the go-ahead to open an autism class and that it has four children in the school at the moment who need access to that class but are simply not going to get it because of the lack of space that is there. This is not an isolated incident. The Minister’s office go…

How many children with special educational needs are currently without school places?

I thank the Minister of State. I note that she did not answer the question on the number of children with special educational needs who are without a school place. At the moment, we are seeing people such as Sarah Dooley, a lady about whom I have spoken before in this House. She applied to 20 schools before her twins were offered places. These are twins with very high needs. They now face an hour-and-a-half round trip to the school at which they have managed to secure a place. She is glad they have a place, but she…

The parents I speak to are well used to having to battle the State and having to fight for every service their child has ever received. By the time they get to a SENO, they have already tried everything that is going to be recommended by that SENO. I agree with the Minister of State about regionalisation. My constituency in the midlands was in the same area as Donegal, and Lord help the SENO who was trying to cover that area of ground. It is not just us, the parents or the schools who say this. The Ombudsman for Ch…

I ask the Minister to provide an alternative for teachers who completed their teaching qualifications in England to complete their induction period in Ireland, as was done under the Covid-19 amendment regulation.