There is an accessibility officer in the council. I have no doubt that the person in question takes their job seriously, but realistically, they are not making the changes that need to be made. I know from talking to people within the council that this person wears a number of different hats, and that is not what is needed. We need someone with lived experience and the right connections. We need a full-time position of disability officer. I proposed this in a motion to Cork City Council a number of years ago. I am …

Does the access officer have one job or multiple jobs?

That is no good.

Every local authority should have a disability officer.

What about Bessborough?

We welcome the news of the progression of citizens' assemblies and particularly the view that these can be held concurrently. It is extremely disappointing that the Minister of State has once again pushed back the citizens' assembly on drugs until next year. Ireland currently holds its place as the third highest in the EU for drug-related deaths. Over the past 25 years, there has been a staggering 225% rise in the number of drug deaths. The mid-term review of the national drugs strategy was published in November 20…

Fuel prices have risen by one third in the past year, with heating oil up by more than 50%. Every week, we hear of another rise in the price of electricity, fuel and food, and rents. The fact is the Government is completely out of touch with the lived experience of all these people. The experts on the ground, such as Barnardos, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Social Justice Ireland and others, have warned about the impact the increase in the cost of living is having on ordinary people. Two weeks ago, the Taoise…

I have a very straightforward question for the Minister or for the Government. Why is the north side of Cork city being neglected when it comes to funding for road infrastructure and projects? Last year, under sustainable transport funding, 31 projects were announced for the south side of the city at a cost of almost €16 million but only 12 projects were announced for the north side at a cost of less than €6 million. Then, three weeks ago, the Minister announced the active travel fund, under which 29 projects, amou…

It is not in the figures.

I welcome the Bill. I acknowledge that we would not be here today were it not for the Trojan work of my party colleagues, Deputies Mairéad Farrell and Buckley. They brought forward the original Bill. There are some flaws in the Government Bill which have been pointed out. I ask the Minister to consider the changes put forward. For too long, people who have been brave enough to speak up in this State have been ignored or let down. In my constituency I am helping a woman who has spoken out about her experience of dom…

The Taoiseach, who is a Cork man like myself, has repeatedly tried to play down the damage that is being done by international investment funds in this State by claiming it is only a Dublin issue. It is not only a Dublin issue. My constituents and those of the Taoiseach in Cork are having their hopes and dreams of owning their own homes dashed by these funds coming in and buying up properties. Central Statistics Office, CSO, figures released in October show that one in five homes in Cork city are being purchased by…

I am asking the Minister for an update on the proposed new elective hospital for Cork and, in particular, whether a site has been chosen. Government Deputies are claiming a site has been chosen. I do not know about it and, more importantly, the constituents of Cork do not know about it. Will the Minister update us?

I still did not get an answer. Has a site been chosen? That is the question people in Cork want to know. Before the most recent local elections, there was an announcement there would be an announcement where the site would be. There were announcements before the by-election and the most recent general election. That was two years ago and we still do not have a definite site. For the people I represent in Cork North-Central, I am looking for that hospital to be located on the north side of the city. A report in Octo…

The Minister said the site has been identified but he is not announcing it at the moment. He also made a point the State is not good at building hospitals. The Government is very good at closing them on the northside of Cork city, however. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael closed the North Infirmary hospital and the orthopaedic hospital. We have sites like Sarsfieldscourt in Glanmire, the orthopaedic hospital in Gurranabraher and Our Lady’s Hospital in Shanakiel. There are numerous sites that are owned by the HSE which cou…

I would like to let the Minister know there are operating theatres in the orthopaedic hospital that, if refurbished, would help to take the load off the backlog in elective surgeries. Orthopaedic surgeons have come to me-----

I just want to let the Minister know.

Does he know there are theatres ready to be used?

I welcome the Bill. It is important that we tackle tender rigging, which is a scam and drives up prices. Unfortunately, the Government does not seem to have the same inclination to end bid rigging in the private housing market. Ordinary working families and individuals are trying to buy homes every day but they are being outbid by cuckoo funds. One in five homes in Cork city is being bought by non-owner occupiers, many of which are global companies that are using the housing crisis to profit. The average rental pri…

Last May, the Debenhams workers bravely ended their 406-day dispute when they accepted the Government's offer of a €3 million training fund. They were only on the picket line because this Government and previous Governments failed to implement the Duffy-Cahill report, yet here we are, 258 days later, and the Debenhams workers are still waiting for that training fund. This cannot be yet another promise broken by Fine Gael, which has never managed to put workers first. There is a need to work with the workers, iron o…

I welcome the news that both the Taoiseach and Tánaiste finally acknowledged last night that this €100 credit does not go far enough to help people who are trapped in the cost-of-living crisis. When this proposal first came up, we in Sinn Féin explained that it would not be enough. It has taken too long for the Government to realise this. It goes to show how out of touch the Government is with ordinary people and the cost-of-living crisis that ordinary families must live through every week. The crisis affects every…