I echo the sentiments of others on domestic violence. It is very topical and was highlighted by the lockdown. This issue needs to be looked at very seriously. There is also a need for increased expenditure to ensure there are more places for people and shelters for people who require them. I am thinking particularly of people in my own county of Donegal where the only shelter is in Letterkenny. For such a large county, this is a very restricted position. The focus needs to be on this issue as well. I know the Minis…

I will raise a number of points. Everybody is supporting this legislation and it is vital to ensure microenterprises can continue to work, or to put in place the resources for them to continue to work in the current climate. However, we need to consider why we have arrived at this position. Due to the length of time it has taken to form a Government, legislation could not be passed during that period. While it may be unusual that the coronavirus and the general election clashed together to make this happen, as a bo…

I will share time with Deputy Catherine Connolly. I congratulate the Minister and Minister of State on their appointments and wish them well in their jobs. I would love to be able to say in five years’ time, if the Government lasts that long, that we are well on the way to solving the housing problem. Unfortunately, I believe this issue will not be solved in that time and we will be discussing motions similar to this one when that time comes. Deputy Mattie McGrath stated, when discussing the committee on housing, t…

I have a number of questions and I ask the Tánaiste to answer them. If there is time I will come back in again. Everybody is speaking about businesses and the supports they need. It is true that businesses need support. It is interesting that when things were going well businesses were telling us that the State did not need to do anything for them and that the State should have no involvement in business, but when businesses get into trouble the first thing they look for is the State to bail them out and make sure …

As far as the Government is concerned, it is reasonable that employers should be making these demands. These are employers who have already reduced their workforce and now they are reducing the income of the remaining workers. These workers spend money in the local community and support businesses throughout the towns and villages we are speaking about. Reducing their incomes will make them unable to support other businesses. I do not believe that any business should be reducing its wages at this stage - it is too …

This is the real Independent group. I will not support Deputy Micheál Martin for Taoiseach because we know what kind of Government we will get from the proposal. It is a Government of the establishment and a Government committed to the establishment. In the programme for Government, there are 127 reviews, 68 examinations and 44 considerations of policy, but little else. It lacks actions, vision and the change that citizens voted for. Based on the programme, people will be worse off at the end of the Government's te…

We will have five minutes each. This motion comes around every year, as we are well aware. I have probably spoken on it every year I have been a Member. In most years it is a formality, in that the Government puts it forward, we all get up and say our bit and the Government votes it through. That goes against the purpose of the motion being tabled here. It is supposedly so the Government can have a review of legislation and have it democratically accounted for and proper consideration given to what is required. Thi…

I am supposed to be sharing time but the other Deputies may have been caught by the times moving. Things are happening in Europe. Things seem to be slowing down with Covid-19 but things are moving on behind the scenes. One thing which was meant to come up was the conference on the future of Europe. I note Ireland and 11 other countries sought to attend, one would expect it would be an automatic attendee at a future of Europe conference, but it seems that only Germany and France are attending. That says a lot about …

That came up a bit quicker than I expected.

Go on ahead. My colleagues are not here.

I am sharing time with Deputies Harkin and Connolly. Black lives matter and that is a powerful statement. It has made us look at ourselves, which is good. Unfortunately, we have not come up trumps with the message of that statement. I have experienced first-hand the racism of Irish people in my constituency office. They might not see it as racism but there is racism in the statements they make, such as saying that people of colour get better treatment and so on. Unfortunately, that is the sentiment that comes up an…

I will take five minutes and Deputy Harkin will take the remaining time. The Minister may be aware that a fire in Letterkenny on 15 June affected HSE stores of PPE, as well as aids and appliances, such as wheelchairs and so on. Is the Department aware of that fire? What role will it take to ensure that equipment is replaced? Obviously, it will be of vital importance in the ongoing fight against Covid in County Donegal. It is of vital importance that it be replaced and that there will be no interruption to supply in…

We will take five minutes each. I have questions for the Minister of State on the negotiations in respect of two issues, fishing and the Northern Ireland protocol. It is clear how much fishing depends on UK waters and the agreement that is in place. For high-value stocks, such as mackerel and prawns, we depend on access to UK fishing waters, with 60% of some stocks coming from UK waters. The Minister of State is aware of this, so I am not saying anything that is new to her. We saw in the past month that the EU was …

Are the reports that I mentioned wrong in that case?

I am sharing time with Deputies Fitzmaurice and McNamara. The Minister referred to how recent developments have impacted on our greenhouse gas emissions. Sadly, that has nothing to do with Government policy. Rather, we can thank Covid-19 for it. It is probably the only good to come out of the current situation. Is the best we can hope for that that situation will continue? I do not think so. The Minister stated that the Government achieved its targets for 2019 early. However, again, that had nothing to do with Gove…

Yes, Deputy Fitzmaurice-----

Deputy Harkin will also take a minute or two. I will take four or five minutes. The Minister said earlier that we have the capacity to feed a population of 40 million based on sustainable food production but is our production sustainable? I do not believe he has outlined that it is sustainable. There are considerable differences about whether that is the case. The crux of it is, who do we believe? Reading the annual sectoral mitigation statement on agriculture would not leave one any the wiser. It starts by outlini…

Black lives matter, and it is good to hear that spoken about in the House today. There is no doubt but that the type of racism we have seen in America does not apply here, and that is very welcome, but racism is here, as the Taoiseach acknowledged earlier. We have heard racist talk from Deputies in this House but also during election periods, when candidates get elected using the race card against Travellers and black citizens and residents of our State in order to curry favour and gain votes for themselves. Does t…

I thank Deputy McNamara. My question is related to his. The Minister is probably fielding questions from all over the country and about every hospital in the country. Much was made in the early stages of the Covid-19 crisis about the Ireland's call initiative asking healthcare workers to come back and work in the health service. The idea had some merit but there was very little thought put into how it would be carried through. That is the problem. I know of one doctor who registered for the Ireland's call initiativ…

Yes. I wish to ask a number of questions, and perhaps the Minister of State could respond to them before Deputy Harkin comes in with her five minutes. I compliment, as all Members have done, the very important and very welcome role the Defence Forces have played in the Covid-19 crisis. My first question concerns the aircraft. This has been discussed by a couple of Members already. The Minister of State has kind of answered the question but will he explain how the Department uses transport under normal procedures? D…