I welcome the strong recognition for modern methods of construction in the new housing plan. That is critically important. The construction sector is very much up for embracing MMC and the additional measures in the plan to incentivise the construction industry to take up those measures are critically important. The Cathaoirleach Gníomhach will know a development in his constituency, Longview in Ballyvolane, where the developers are very much embracing both on-site and off-site modern methods of construction and re…

I strongly believe the construction sector is onboard for modern methods of construction. It recognises the advantages, cost savings and that it can deliver with greater efficiency, which is critically important. It is also important the Government is leading in this way in the provision in the plan for 25% of social and affordable units to be delivered through MMC. That message is very important. Indeed, other measures such as build to innovate by the Department of enterprise is also very important to help promote…

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade will appreciate the great work done by the Passport Office. I wish to raise a specific issue with him in regard to that office. When a family has travel plans made, has a date booked and is waiting on a new passport for a child, great stress can be brought on that family when that passport application is returned. Very often this is close to the issuing date because the Passport Office has failed to secure verification of the Garda witness. As the Tánaiste may…

I know the Tánaiste values the importance of front-line policing. It is very welcome that An Garda Síochána conducted two recruitment campaigns this year and that the budget for 2026 set aside funding for the recruitment of 1,000 gardaí. Cork city has been under-resourced for many years, due to disproportionately low allocations. Our Garda units serving on the ground are stretched beyond what they can achieve in terms of work. Our Garda stations are inaccessible - they are simply not open. Will the Tánaiste please …

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. He mentioned the importance of investing in the future. Critical to that is investment in our city centres. Will he give an update on the task force for Cork city? The programme for Government states that the model applied to the Dublin city task force will also be applied to Cork and will happen shortly. I hope this task force will deal with such strategic issues as improved transportation connectivity to Cork city, addressing issues around dereliction, vacancy and under-utilis…

I thank the Minister of State for facilitating this debate. Obviously, I roundly welcome the Housing Finance Agency (Amendment) Bill 2025. It sets out to do something very simple which is to increase the statutory borrowing limit for the Housing Finance Agency, which is critically important, from €12 billion to €13.5 billion. Last year, in 2024, that limit was increased from €10 billion to €12 billion. This reflects the scale of lending that is taking place by the Housing Finance Agency but also the various initiat…

To follow on from what the Minister of State said, this is a significant budget that involves expenditure of almost €117 billion and an additional package of €9.4 billion. Those are significant figures. It is about securing our future. Investment in key infrastructure is central to the budget, particularly infrastructure that will enable a continued supply of housing to be activated and progressed. That is critical. Also, we are securing our future by continuing to invest in two long-term funds, namely the Future I…

I thank the Ministers for being here this evening. I raise the issue of the need for a better protocol to be put in place in relation to the offence of spiking. To explain what I am referring to, we are all aware that, when people are out enjoying themselves on social occasions, there are incidents of their drinks being spiked. Essentially, drugs are put into their drinks without their consent or knowledge. This is an extremely serious offence. In some cases, it can lead to much more serious offences such as sexual…

I thank the Minister of State for the response. I acknowledge that the Government is committed to taking a zero-tolerance approach in relation to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. Of course, I also acknowledge the zero-tolerance strategy and its recent launch, and also the additional funding provided. It is welcome that the programme for Government specifically includes a commitment to introduce stronger laws to combat the spiking of drinks. However, as has been reported, there is currently no specific cr…

I very much welcome the establishment of the housing activation office. This idea came from the work of the Housing Commission. The Minister took it on board and brought forward his own proposals in relation to it, and that is very welcome. As he says, working under the one roof and having the various forms of expertise from the local authority sector, the utilities sector, the Department officials themselves and the infrastructure sector, such as transport and so on, is critical. I also welcome the fact that, in t…

I thank the Minister for his update on the work of the office. I want to get a sense of the work plan over the coming months of the office and the level of activity that will be undertaken in trying to unblock some of these barriers. I ask the Minister to clarify when he feels that the head person of that office will be in place to lead it and the very important work it undertakes.

I thank the Minister of State for facilitating this debate. In this House, there often are very different opinions on matters discussed. The one thing we can all agree on is the positive benefits of sport, which are vast. I always make the point that sport is a great character-building hobby for young people and individuals. It helps them tremendously through their self-development and teaches them many good-quality life skills in terms of the importance of hard work, discipline, commitment and giving something you…

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I raise the rent a room relief scheme. It is a good scheme, but I wish to discuss its income threshold of €14,000 in particular. We are in an acute accommodation crisis and this scheme could play a greater role in better utilising existing properties and empty rooms. Single person accommodation is extremely difficult to secure and student accommodation is also difficult to secure. The exemption limit of €14,000 was put in place in 2017. Since then, rents have doubled. The average …

There has been a lot of criticism today of the school transport scheme but it has to be acknowledged that in recent times the scale of the scheme has ramped up significantly. Over 180,000 children are transported through the school transport scheme every day. It is a huge number. The programme for Government sets out far more ambition in terms of an additional 100,000. That is very welcome. We all know the obvious benefits, including the social and environmental benefits and so on, of having an effective school tra…

At the outset, if I may, I will mark the passing of Councillor Patrick Gerard Murphy from Cork. I served with Councillor Murphy for 17 years on Cork County Council. He was a great friend and colleague. His untimely passing is dreadfully sad for his family, friends and community. I wanted to add my voice to condolences here, and I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I thank the Taoiseach for his update on the housing subcommittee and the housing plan. Downsizing options for people are a critical issue and come up quite a lot…

I thank the Minister for taking this question. What safeguards are in place to ensure our large infrastructural projects come in on time and on budget? As we are about to embark on an ambitious national development plan review involving significant capital funding, it is timely that we set out the safeguards in place to reassure the public that we are managing the situation as effectively as possible.

I recognise significant work has been done in this area. We are about to embark on the national development plan. The current plan involves €165 billion and there will be additionality on that, which is very welcome. We will be spending significant money on water infrastructure, energy, transport, health, housing and more. It is important we rebuild public trust in our management of large-scale capital projects. Unfortunately, we have seen too many examples - the national children's hospital, the Dublin Port tunnel…

I accept the Minister's point on balancing the process. We cannot become too risk averse. I fully understand that. Delivery of large-scale infrastructural projects is critical but we have seen examples of large-scale projects that were 100% over budget. It is critical we do not repeat that. I sit on the Committee of Public Accounts and listened to the national children's hospital development board speak of the number of claims lodged, the lengthy dispute process involved and the uncertainty as to when many of these…

An Post was in the news this week, and thankfully it has clarified that its financial position is better than previously reported. The real issue here is the closure of post offices throughout the country. Since 2015, 34 post offices have closed in Cork county and 257 post offices have closed nationwide. As we know, a post office provides much more than just a service. It is a core part of community life in many towns and villages throughout the country. It provides a social outlet for many of our citizens, which i…

In advance of the new housing plan in the coming month or so, I stress again the importance of increasing our affordable housing targets. There must be a rebalancing towards affordable housing in the plan's targets. I have made the point previously to the Taoiseach that there is a growing cohort of individuals and couples who need support but are not receiving any. Their incomes are above the social housing threshold but are well below what they need in terms of providing accommodation, whether by purchase or renta…