I will leave the rock analogies or allusions to Deputy McNamara but as he will appreciate, I do not have the detail he seeks. I am very happy to take the issue up with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and will ask him to revert to the Deputy directly on the question he has raised.

It is something we have to keep under constant review for the very reasons the Deputy has outlined. We have substantially reduced the cost of healthcare right across the board. Approximately 1.6 million people now have GP or GMS cards. For the first time ever, over half of our population is entitled to free GP care. However, as the Deputy rightly points out, notwithstanding increases in the over-70 medial card thresholds in 2021, we have not moved the other thresholds in some time and increases in income are inevit…

The short answer is "Yes". The Deputy will be aware that a painstakingly slow process must be gone through for hospitals. We are in the middle of that process for the national maternity hospital and are dealing with it to some extent for the elective hospitals. To try to deal with this, we have got agreement from the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform to reduce the number of stage gates, which is helpful and we are doing various things in parallel on the electives, including looking at simila…

I went to school right on the Irish Sea in Greystones and high radioactive levels from Sellafield were being recorded when I was a teenager. It is a matter that is close to my heart. I will raise it with the Tánaiste and ask him to engage with the UK on it in light of the report cited by Deputy Ó Snodaigh.

I thank the Deputy for his question. This is a matter that we need to focus on in the context of the all-island situation and the diaspora as well. At the moment we are focusing on several constitutional amendments at it is. One is on care and replaces very outdated language in our Constitution and the other is related to the programme for Government commitment on housing. The Minister for housing, Deputy O'Brien, is considering reports on that at present. On the issue of votes for the diaspora and for all citizens…

I acknowledge Deputy McAuliffe's ongoing advocacy, work and engagement with me and the Department on getting this primary care centre built. It is a priority to which I and the Government are fully committed. We need to see the planning happen in the coming weeks. The latest report we have is that the deadline for submission is this quarter so there are only a few weeks left. The Deputy can rest assured that this will feature in the capital plan as well. It is absolutely mission critical for Deputy McAuliffe's cons…

I join the Deputy in commending the vital work the task force does. As the Deputy will be aware, there is increased investment in drug and alcohol programmes and support services. We need to go a lot further but we are increasing the services year on year. If the Deputy does not mind, I will revert to him regarding that particular post. My hope, especially as regards a replacement post where somebody has resigned, is that we will be able to revert to normal business in due course on that. Certainly, it is not the i…

I fully accept that.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. Undoubtedly, it will be a source of concern for farmers throughout the country. I will relay in detail his question to the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath, and ask him to engage with Revenue on exactly this issue.

With regard to the exact numbers for Galway, I will ask the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, to revert to the Deputy. I acknowledge, as the Government most certainly acknowledges, the pressures on those looking to buy their first home and those looking to rent, be it in Galway, in my constituency of Wicklow and many other places. However, the solution to this, as we all know, ultimately is more private, social and affordable homes. The Minister's plan is working. Of course, we would all like to see more and more o…

I will ask the Minister to revert specifically to the Deputy on figures for Galway.

These projects are so important for local communities. Everyone wants to see the next stage progressed, which in this case is the proceeding to tender. I will certainly raise this directly with the Minister, Deputy Foley, and ask her to revert to the Deputy on it.

I have a long, detailed answer for the Deputy, which I will ask to be forwarded to him. The very short answer in the time we have is that payments will commence on 18 December, with two thirds of all the ACRES general participants in the final stages of being processed for payment before the end of the year. There is more detail, which I will ask to be sent to the Deputy.

I acknowledge Deputy Moynihan's ongoing advocacy for having these centres opened in Cork. With regard to the Millstreet and Kanturk community nursing units and Mallow General Hospital, I will ask the Department to revert to the Deputy with a detailed response on when we will have them up and running.

I thank the Acting Chairperson and the Senators. I give notice of a number of amendments I intend to bring forward on Report Stage. They are intended to align this Bill with changes relating to the legal framework of capacity and consent following the commencement of provisions in the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Act 2022. I will be introducing an amendment to include a definition of "capacity" in this Bill. The definition of "capacity" included in the 2022 Act provides for a functional assessmen…

I thank the Senators for tabling the amendment, which is a prohibition on the advertisement of nicotine inhaling products in the cinema. It is designed to remove the exemption for films that are directed at persons over 18 years of age. The prohibition was modelled on a similar provision in the Public Health (Alcohol) Act, which contains an exemption for films classified for persons over 18. At this time the evidence does not suggest that nicotine inhaling products are more harmful to health than alcohol, although …

I thank Senators for the points they made. With regard to product placement, I am watching a particular series at the moment where there is very obvious product placement going on. In that case, it is alcohol. I take the Senator's point but I will have to revert to him on the specific point he raises. In response to Senator Boyhan's question, what I am saying is that we have a second Bill coming and there is a consultation open. I do not want to pre-empt where it goes, but what I can say is that the reason we are m…

I thank the Senators. Broadly, we are all on the same page in what we are trying to achieve. On the point concerning advertising, I am keeping an open mind on this. It is not something I want to commit to here because I do want to be seen to be directing where this public consultation process goes. It is important for us to say that the advertising of vapes or e-cigarettes is already prohibited on television and radio, online and in printed publications, except in trade publications. There is already a very broad p…

I thank the Senator for tabling these amendments. While I cannot accept them, I support the Senator's intention here in respect of reducing the prevalence of smoking. I looked into this matter in some detail and it was the subject of discussion, I believe, on Second Stage here and certainly during previous Stages in the Dáil and the health committee. Senator Boyhan is not alone in what he is proposing in these amendments. If my understanding of his intention is wrong, he can correct me. My understanding is that it …

Hear, hear.