Why did the Taoiseach lie earlier on, then?

I will withdraw it. Why did the Taoiseach say the exact opposite earlier on?

It is interesting that another president of Europe is present today, although President Metsola represents the European Parliament. The most recent president we were blessed with was the President of the Commission where, arguably, all the power lies, the members of which are all unelected bureaucrats. Not to be undone, and to give the impression that the EU is a democratic organisation, a democratically elected member of the parliament is present today. The purpose of today's visit is to commemorate the 50th anniv…

At the end of September, the Minister of State in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Peter Burke, replied to a parliamentary question I submitted on the commencement of the defective blocks Act. His response stated, "The aim and intention is to have the regulations and guidelines finalised before the end of the year with the scheme opening for applications as soon as possible thereafter, which I expect will only be a matter of weeks later." The Tánaiste will remember that his Governmen…

It is interesting that another president of Europe is present today, although President Metsola represents the European Parliament. The most recent president we were blessed with was the President of the Commission where, arguably, all the power lies, the members of which are all unelected bureaucrats. Not to be undone, and to give the impression that the EU is a democratic organisation, a democratically elected member of the parliament is present today. The purpose of today's visit is to commemorate the 50th anniv…

I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the debate. The Government is not opposing the motion. It has become a trend over the past while that the Government has not opposed motions but it means it is not going to do anything with them. It would be, therefore, be more honest if the Government opposed the motion and voted it down because in reality it is not going to do anything. The Minister of State's words do not provide any enlightenment as to whether it is going to do anything about this development e…

Over the weekend, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, announced funding for Killybegs Harbour Centre. On the face of it, this is very welcome funding and is very badly needed. He announced €8.75 million in funding for that centre. However, in July last year, he announced €9.2 million - inflation saved a little there - and the year before that he announced €10.5 million. In 2019, an announcement of €5 million was made and in 2017 funding of €6.2 million was announced. What is the a…

Will there be investment?

I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to statements on the European Council meeting. I was particularly concerned about this meeting’s focus on strengthening security and defence. The European Council’s conclusions support that the EU is "taking more responsibility for the EU's own security [and in the field of defence] pursuing a strategic course of action ... and increasing the EU's capacity to act autonomously". The Council, during its meeting, also called for a commitment to invest in the capabilities…

Over the past number of years, in dealing with mica-affected homeowners, both the Minister for Finance, as he was then, now Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, and the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, continuously said that they were going to talk to the banks about their treatment of the affected homeowners to get their support for them in the difficulties that they are in. Many mica-affected homeowners are being put under severe pressure by banks…

There are only two of us due to speak now so Deputy Fitzmaurice will take whatever time remains after I have spoken. Climate change is destroying our planet in a very real and devastating way. While we all contribute to it, not all of us will feel the effects in the same way. In fact, it has been shown that those who contribute most will be affected least. How can we say we live in a fair and equal society when this is the case? How can we allow some of our citizens to suffer more than others? In the case of Irelan…

I would like to use my time to make a statement rather than ask questions, as has been outlined as a possibility, because it would be futile to ask questions at this stage. What this is all about is the Minister's inaction in relation to his SIPO declaration and the issues over the non-disclosure of postering carried out by a supporter using his business staff and vehicles. I note the Irish Independent has reported: The work was carried out over four days/nights over the course of the campaign; three days/nights up…

The current situation in our hospitals is devastating and completely unacceptable. Our health service is at breaking point and it is clear that total collapse is not far away. The overcrowding crisis is catastrophic and will continue to get worse if drastic measures are not taken as soon as possible. Yesterday, Letterkenny University Hospital in my constituency was the second-worst affected hospital in the country with 54 patients waiting on trolleys. I cannot imagine how stressful the situation is for those 54 peo…

I extend my sympathy to the family of Private Seán Rooney on his tragic death in Lebanon this morning, at such a young age of 23. Young men of that age are charged with representing Ireland in the Army on such missions. His colleagues would all be very proud of the work they are doing in Lebanon, which is very important. It is sad that it has come to this ultimate sacrifice from somebody so young. I send our best wishes to his colleagues, including Private Kearney, who was injured. I wish him the best. I extend our…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak on this issue. There is no doubt that the social housing income level threshold is far too low. I have been raising this issue for some time now. Thankfully, the Minister has agreed to do something about it, although it is not enough. It is clear that the Minister has also recognised this issue at this late stage. He agreed earlier in the year to increase the social housing eligibility threshold by €5,000 in counties Carlow, Clare, Laois, Westmeath and Galway…

I thank the Acting Chair for the opportunity to speak on this motion today, which calls for the renationalisation of the energy system. I completely support this motion. I thank Solidarity-People Before Profit for bringing forward such an important and much-needed motion. We all have constituents who are struggling to make ends meet and hearing their stories is truly heartbreaking. There is no doubt that the privatisation and marketisation of the energy system has failed them. They continue to watch their monthly b…

Our energy system did not cause that.

We can hand over our energy resources-----

I echo the point made by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties that it is staggering that 13 items of legislation are being rushed through the Houses before Christmas, six of which will have normal parliamentary processes truncated through merging of Stages. There is no regard for proper parliamentary process and it is extremely disrespectful to the democracy we supposedly live in. Planning legislation is complex and we must be allowed sufficient time to scrutinise such legislation thoroughly. There is a significan…

Soaring rents, outrageous house prices, crumbling County Donegal homes, large-scale housing defects countrywide, a severe shortage of housing supply, 166,000 vacant properties and homeless figures reaching all-time highs for four consecutive months. The Minister, Deputy O’Brien, is not a Minister for housing. He is a Minister for landlords, developers, vulture funds and homelessness. This Minister has, through his inaction, pitted the most vulnerable in our society against each other. He has driven and enforced an …