I thank Sinn Féin for tabling this motion, although I do have some sympathy for Fianna Fáil as it has been left with the disastrous housing strategy of the previous Fine Gael Government. We now have a planning policy primarily based around transport and climate change for rural towns where no public transport infrastructure exists. We have a policy that has little regard for the social consequences for future generations of low-income families and one that has not been reconsidered in light of the massive changes i…

If it is of use to the Ceann Comhairle, I have an opinion of a senior counsel who says the same thing.

It is not a personal attack.

I am being very careful. I have spent a lot of time on this. He is actually misleading people and refused to acknowledge that yesterday when the evidence was presented. He has presented a letter to Wexford County Council contrary to what the Minister sent to Wexford County Council and refuses to acknowledge it. I will continue, a Cheann Comhairle, bearing in mind that we have had an interruption. Subsequent to my speech on the floor of the Dáil on 1 April, I procured the opinion of former Attorney General and senio…

I have three questions for the Minister today. The first relates to persons in category four. We need a clearer outline of how people in this category are to be notified about their vaccination. I am hearing about a lot of complicated scenarios, whereby consultants have told patients it is the responsibility of their GP but the GP has no knowledge and people are getting confused. We do our best and the staff we deal with in the HSE are excellent but I am keen to avert and avoid confusion. Unfortunately, according t…

Will the Government consider taking from the shelf the proposal to build an outer ring road to the M50, which would prevent traffic congestion on the M50 and reduce NOx emissions? Dublin is the only major capital city in Europe that does not have an outer ring road. Instead, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, has decided to install speed cameras and fine people for getting it wrong and being confused about the speeds they should be doing on a motorway. We are slowly making changes, albeit changes to our detrime…

There has been no shortage of shoddy, poorly thought-out legislation passed through this House in the past 14 months. In many cases, it resulted from the lack of debate and scrutiny. It is a big frustration in the context of the way business is being conducted that, often, debate only happens after a bad proposal has been passed. The Government is attempting to do the same thing with this motion. The motto seems to be to rush it through, ignore concerns and curtail debate. Only 55 minutes has been allocated for the…

I support sensible measures to encourage people to lead more environmentally healthy lives but I have major fears about whether this Bill will lead to that. While I believe the Minister and his colleagues in the Green Party are sincere in their motives, I disagree with the approach they want to take. First, this Bill could best be described as motherhood and apple pie. While it sounds wonderful, what will it mean when push comes to shove? We are being asked to pass a vague Bill that will give Governments free rein …

I thank my Labour Party colleagues for tabling the motion. It further endorses the reintroduction of the Autism Spectrum Disorder Bill 2017 which, as my colleague stated, was originally presented to the House by former Senator James Reilly. It was reintroduced yesterday by Deputy Canney, along with me and my colleagues in the Regional Group who co-signed it. I hope the Bill and the motion get cross-party support in order to fast-track the supports of which ASD sufferers and their families are in dire need. The rapi…

Fianna Fáil is the party which, throughout its lifetime, has credited itself for being the provider of homes for generations. The previous Government issued guidelines that prevented housing development outside the M50. The Mahon tribunal found that, in effect, the planning policy adopted by Governments facilitated the practice of payment for zoning. Now, new planning policy is effectively demanding dezoning of large amounts of serviced lands in every rural town and, indeed, within the M50. Should the Government pu…

It should be a concern because the planning policies we have today mean that most of what is expected is not viable. That is why developers are not building. High densities have been pushed on them. There is no viability in the development and, therefore, planning permissions have been granted but buildings will not be built. I am glad to hear the Taoiseach confirm that there are issues with the policy, particularly dezoning serviced sites. It would make absolutely no sense. I hope the Taoiseach can appreciate that…

It is the Government's policy.

It is because Government policy is Stalinist.

Yes, it is.

We have an ideologue as a planning regulator.

It is not-----

The Taoiseach might not be aware that, currently, due to the dysfunctional elements with regard to what happens in different Departments and in the context of legislative licensing requirements, the cable layers of the world are laying cables on our seabed, jeopardising the livelihood of the fishermen that he does not want us to discuss. Those fishermen find themselves in the High Court defending their fishing rights over the rights of the cable layers, who have not been instructed by the Department of Housing, Loc…

In 2016, the Friends of Wexford General Hospital group was told that it would be given funding for an essential MRI scanner for the hospital if the group was able to raise €250,000. The group appealed to the people of Wexford and within 18 months that €250,000 was raised by the people of Wexford. It was by 2018, some 18 months later. Some weeks ago, South East Radio interviewed Paul Reid, chief executive officer of the HSE and he was asked when Wexford General Hospital would see the promised MRI scanner in place. H…

I welcome having time to speak on the CRSS. There is no doubt those eligible will be very glad to hear of an extension. I do not believe those who are ineligible will be very pleased to see nothing is being announced for them today. The eligibility criteria set by the CRSS have been far too narrow and exclude far too many important businesses. It has seen numerous small local indigenous businesses excluded. People have seen their life's work go down the drain because they do not meet the eligibility criteria. I wan…

I thank my Independent colleagues for bringing this motion to the floor of the Dáil and giving us the opportunity to debate it. At the outset, in the context of CAP reform, I would like to discuss convergence. In principle, convergence is a great idea but it should not be used in agriculture. Where it should be tested is in the Civil Service and I would urge the Minister to introduce a pilot scheme in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. For those who might not know how convergence works, I will prov…