Will we sit for five days next week?

It sounds like we will have to.

Last week, we heard of the terrible murder of well-respected international journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh. This was a deliberate and targeted murder by Israeli occupation forces that violated international law. We did not see the opening of borders or the allocation of accommodation for Palestinian people fleeing conflict. We did not see Israel excluded from the Eurovision Song Contest along with Russia, despite its war crimes. We did not see the same media outcry regarding the Israeli occupation forces shocking att…

Does it equal the support for the Israelis?

We have had a lot of questions this week about the national maternity hospital but I want to ask about Letterkenny General Hospital. As the Tánaiste knows, Letterkenny is part of the Saolta group of hospitals. This group has seen waiting lists increase by over 45,000 people in the past seven years. Letterkenny has seen an increase of 19% in that time, maybe not as high as other hospitals in the group but that is because we were starting from a higher base and a longer ongoing problem. More than 2,800 people in Lett…

There is no need for the Tánaiste to provide up-to-date figures on Letterkenny. I gave the up-to-date figures in my opening remarks and they show the seriousness of the situation. Unfortunately, even if the Government's plan works, it will not solve any problems in Letterkenny because what needs to be addressed there is the recruitment and retention of consultants and of ancillary staff to allow those consultants actually to do their jobs. That is the reality. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association, IHCA, has s…

I have been contacted by many constituents in my hometown of Killybegs regarding the decision by the SFPA to use a weighing system which renders the fish unfit for human consumption. It can be hard for people outside the community to understand the significance of this or realise the effect it has had, but this is a community in decline, unfortunately, which is now threatened with the prospect of even further decline. The SFPA’s actions have caused incredible uncertainty among the local people of my town who fear f…

I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this debate. As I have long been calling for review of the national hourly rate for employees, I am glad to see this Bill before the House today. We need to ensure the minimum wage in this country represents a living income, and at the very least the minimum wage should be brought in line with the living wage. We need to ensure adequate income and enable people to afford an acceptable standard of living. The cost-of-living crisis has affected everyone in the countr…

I am glad to make it here in time to contribute to this debate. When a few speakers pulled out, it caused a bit of a flurry. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak. It is interesting that the Government has chosen now to review this Act, which was due to be reviewed in 2014 under the Act itself. It is also interesting that it was in the 2020 programme for Government to review the Act despite it already being in the legislation that it should be reviewed anyway. Has the Government completely neglec…

The Tánaiste visited County Donegal in the past week, where he visited a home destroyed by mica and met the Mica Action Group. It was reported that he was not aware that reconstruction was to be on the existing foundations of houses affected by mica. It is a mind-boggling revelation at this stage that Government Ministers are not up to speed on this issue as they have been making significant decisions that affect people's lives. The Mica Action Group has recently written to Deputies, pleading with them to ensure th…

No, it will not.

The Government promised to publish legislation in January.

A Chathaoirligh, thank you for the opportunity to speak on this very important issue. I strongly support Sinn Féin’s motion and I thank it for bringing forward the issue of affordable housing today. Last week I spoke of the many people in this country who have been unable to secure rent and one would be right to wonder why so many have come to depend so heavily on the rental sector. The main reason that a growing section of people has been forced into renting is that it has been completely locked out of home owners…

I welcome the student council of St. Catherine's Vocational School in Killybegs to the Visitors Gallery. Recently, we have seen fish being landed in Derry for processing in Killybegs. The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, SFPA, has now removed the permission to land there, presumably because it is not a recognised EU port. The Northern Ireland protocol supposedly treats the Six Counties as inside the EU. Does this not apply to fish landings? What is the situation? The fish should be landed in Derry, transported t…

My colleague Deputy Fitzmaurice has outlined, in depth, the very real concerns that exist on this issue, and has further outlined solutions that would go a long way to allay those concerns as they relate to the proposed regulations in the short term. We know he has an indepth understanding of the issue, as he is someone who has toiled at the coalface - no pun intended - or turf face of this line of work for many years. He is giving voice accurately to the thoughts and feelings of many people up and down the country…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this Topical Issue matter to be brought to the House for this very late debate. It is good to be here. I also express my gratitude to the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, for coming to the Chamber and taking the issue. Her dedication to following through consistently on this matter must be astounding many officials in the Department, I am sure. They would probably like to see her being reshuffled to give themselves some respite. That is probably a sad reflection of where…

I thank the Minister of State for her response. I echo her calls for the HSE to publish the Brandon report even at this late stage. Its constant excuses as to why it cannot publish it do not stand up at this stage and do not wash at all. I think everybody knows that. The HSE probably knows it but will never admit it. While this HIQA report is good, HIQA is not in the clear itself. It has been compliant to a large extent with what has gone on in Donegal over the years. I am glad to see it has come out now and is doi…

I am aware the committee of permanent representatives to the EU is meeting today to discuss the adoption of this proposal, which is a sad and sobering reminder that the input and discussions of national parliaments seem to have little or no effect whatsoever on discussions at EU level. The fact that this proposal will be rushed through no matter what concerns are raised by Deputies today is an unfortunate trend that has been occurring at EU level in the past few years and is something we need to seriously consider …

I thank Sinn Féin for the opportunity to speak on this motion today, or maybe it is more accurate to thank the party for the opportunity to shout into the void once again because that is truly what it feels like trying to have a discussion on this topic with this Government and, to be honest, with all previous Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments, which have, unfortunately, allowed rents to soar exponentially over the past decade. However, we are truly at a crisis now and I cannot stress enough the urgency of the …

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on this important Bill. There is no doubt that this Bill is long awaited. Establishing an electoral commission has been on the policy agenda since 2007. I support its establishment and I know there has been broad support for its establishment. However, despite this, legislation must not be rushed through the House and we must allow for thorough and adequate scrutiny of this Bill. I recognise the urgency of addressing the issues that are addressed in this Bill but we have t…