I thank the Deputy for raising the issue and appreciate his concerns regarding this process. The water framework directive establishes the general objective that water bodies be restored to at least good ecological status by 2027. It also makes provision that a more realistic objective for water bodies that have been heavily modified may be set. This applies where restoration would not be technically feasible or would be disproportionately costly, among other considerations. Under the water framework directive, the…

The Deputy says it is in breach of the citizens' assembly, but it is in compliance with EU law and guidance. This is not an exemption. It is defined in the EU guidance as an alternative target that is designed to get the best possible environmental outcome while continuing to provide societal benefits. This is a cyclical process. Water bodies currently proposed for designation are unable to meet the good ecological status objective at this time. As further information arises, alternative solutions could become avai…

I thank the Labour Party and Deputies Nash and Bacik for bringing forward this Bill. Before I was ever a politician, competition law was my thing when I qualified as a solicitor so I am very interested in it and generally support what the Deputies are trying to do. The Government is not opposing this. The purpose of the Bill is to confer additional powers on the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission to help in identifying and countering unfair pricing that amounts to abuse of dominance. It is important to …

I think they are totally separate functions but we are all responsible for that. We may have proposed it, and it may have happened then after 2011. I cannot quite remember but consumer protection law is one thing. Competition law, of course, is related to it but they are very different roles. I would love to hear more on the competition law side, to be honest. The mandate of the CCPC has been extended, to be fair. It has more powers, and the 2022 Act was groundbreaking. Breaches of competition law can now be enforc…

As much as anybody, I appreciate the need for really strong competition law, policy and legislation. The Deputy brought me back to my college days when he spoke about defining the market because that was one of the big questions we got in the exam every year. It is also one of the big challenges the competition authority has.

No, she was on the criminal law side, although it is criminal law - it is as simple as that - because you can be jailed or fined and the EU has very significant powers as well for bigger businesses. We all want to see, because if prices go up, and I know tariffs were mentioned being used as an excuse and all of that and some of these are issues, but the reality is, as Deputy Donnelly said, that prices go up but we never see them come down, except in certain products. When it is an input into a product, it is always…

-----of abuse of market dominance. We support this Bill in the sense of letting it pass to the next Stage and wish it success for the future.

I thank everybody for contributing today. All of their contributions have been genuinely heartfelt and reflect the established opinion in Ireland for quite some time, which is the opinion of the Irish Government, too. It is a year ago to the day that the Government took a very important decision to recognise the State of Palestine. The decision was taken in the spirit of peace, in the spirit of keeping hope alive and in the spirit of believing - we have always believed this and were the first county to propose it -…

He said it was a war crime.

No, no.

That is exactly what the Israeli Government accuses us of.

I thank everyone for their contributions. I will be clear from the outset, the attacks by Israel, which have all been detailed in this debate, are a further erosion of the principles of international humanitarian law that Israel is bound to comply with. People have been clear, as I am, in our condemnation of Hamas for its terror attack, for keeping people in captivity today and for the death and destruction it has brought to Palestinians and Israelis alike. Those hostages who Hamas is holding need to be released. W…

Yes, I think the word came through during this debate. I only heard about it when I came into the Chamber. As I say, we have taken leadership on the EU-Israel Association Agreement. The Taoiseach was very strong again in calling for that agreement to be suspended while the review takes place. The EU must use all the levers at its disposal with the urgency that the situation demands. We in Ireland will use all the tools at our disposal to respond to this dreadful conflict and work towards achieving the aims. We have…

Is there a time set?

I thank Senator Conway for raising this issue. The Minister, Deputy Harris, cannot be here but I am very happy to be here. I am also very happy to hear a good explanation of the need for defence policy because many of the Senator's colleagues on the Opposition benches often openly question the need to spend anything more on defence than we are spending now. The Senator has set out correctly why we have a defence policy. It is to protect the island and everything about it and connected to it. The Government is takin…

The co-operation will continue. We are a militarily neutral country. We are not joining NATO but we talk to it and we want our military to be able to operate to NATO standards and to have equipment worthy of a modern army. Tá sé an-tábhachtach go ndéanfaimid é sin agus go bhfuilimid ar an eolas go bhfuil bagairtí amuigh ansin ag teacht ó thíortha ar nós na Rúise agus áiteanna eile. Tá na bagairtí seo ag tarlú gach uile lá ar fud na Mór-Roinne agus ar fud na farraige in aice leis an Mór-Roinn. What the Senator said …

I am glad that Europe is still as popular as ever. I am sure the Members who are due to arrive will arrive very soon. I suppose, given the order of the Dáil, I must go ahead. I am glad to join the Ceann Comhairle and the people of Ireland to mark Europe Day 2025. This year, we mark not only Europe Day, but also a remarkable milestone in our shared history, that is, the 75th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration. Seventy-five years ago, on 9 May 1950, Robert Schuman proposed a visionary new form of political co-ope…

Yes, I smiled when Deputy Ó Laoghaire said that. It does not mean anything.

No, the Deputy should go ahead.

I will continue to speak if Deputy Ó Laoghaire wants. I will tell him all about Sinn Féin's European policy.