As the Minister of State knows, the Ombudsman, Information Commissioner, and Commissioner for Environmental Information, Mr. Peter Tyndall, published his Wasted Lives report in 2021. In it, he made 19 key recommendations. I would be grateful if the Minister of State could provide me with an update on progress in implementing those recommendations.

I thank the Minister of State for the information she provided. The Ombudsman made very extensive recommendations in the report, as she outlined. However, I recently spoke again with Jennifer, who I am sure the Minister of State is aware of through previous representations. Jennifer is from north Clare, is in her mid-40s and has been in a nursing home for the past number of years. That is something that is against her wishes. She does not want to be there. As the Minister of State is aware, her rights under Article…

I was delighted to be invited by the fantastic people in the Clare Leader Forum to address its public rally calling for a centralised personal assistance, PA, service. On the day, we heard many impassioned speeches from members of the Clare Leader Forum, who I acknowledge for speaking up and speaking out on the day. The assembled crowd heard from people with disabilities who have suffered greatly because they cannot get enough access to PA hours due to several factors. These people ultimately have to choose whether…

The programme for Government commits to enforcing the vacant sites levy and keeping the legislation under review. However, enforcement of the levy has been, at best, lukewarm and, at worst, completely ineffective. More than half of councils did not collect a levy in 2021. Since its inception, Clare County Council has collected the staggering number of zero from the levy, which is a complete missed opportunity. Clare County Council have again recommitted to collecting the levy, but it is clear that some local author…

I acknowledge the work done in increasing the discretionary HAP - but that is only in the instances where there is risk of homelessness, or in the case of homelessness - and the extension of the couples rate to single people. This, however, is not enough, especially for those on the lowest incomes. There are 2,831 families on the Clare County Council housing list now, but there are also 1,186 HAP tenancies. I welcome that the council is currently working on adding additional social housing of 290 units across the c…

One in five HAP tenants in Clare is in receipt of the higher discretionary rate of payment. I do not know what it is in other constituencies but I imagine it is similar, if not higher. It is a clear indication there is a need, whether it is wanted or not, to increase and index the payment. I understand there was a concern with setting too high a floor on rents in the private rental market but HAP is now so far away from market rates that it is loading the weight of the housing crisis in the private rental sector on…

I thank People Before Profit-Solidarity for lending me the time to speak on this very important issue. It is arguably the most pressing issue facing my constituents in Clare, tied with the ever-growing housing crisis. I have been on the record of this House many times in support of the reinstatement of the accident and emergency department at Ennis hospital. I would like to take the opportunity to reaffirm my unequivocal support once again for the full reinstatement of the vital accident and emergency department at…

I want to speak in support of Focus Ireland's recommendations for the previous Labour Party Bill to address child homelessness, which received cross-party support in this House, to be reintroduced. Emergency accommodation in Clare, for example, has been at full capacity since at least last June. We have a very limited definition of homelessness. That means our figures do not truly reflect the real situation on the ground. The Government said it will increase funding, which is always welcome, but one cannot always j…

I would be grateful if the Minister updated me on the review of the school transport scheme and made a statement on the matter.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. I thank her for that information. It was encouraging to hear about the consultation that has taken place. I will raise the issue of equality with respect to school transport and make the case for reviewing the geographical eligibility limits. The Minister mentioned the second nearest school but, especially in rural areas, there is a need to go much further and broader than that. I support local schools. The innovation, dedication and student-centred learning I have seen in Clare schoo…

As the Minister will know, Article 42 of the Constitution concerns the right to education and underpins the right of parents to be the primary educators of their children and to make conscientious decisions with respect to the education their children receive. In accordance with Article 42.4, the Department is responsible for facilitating the education of our children in concert with the rights I have mentioned. The Minister may be wondering why I am bringing up the Constitution in an exchange about the school tran…

It was Knockanean National School.

My question relates to IDA Ireland. I would be grateful if the Minister of State could report on the total number of site visits hosted by the IDA to counties Clare, Limerick and Galway in 2022.

This week I spoke with Helen Downes, the CEO of Shannon Chamber. Among other things, we discussed balanced regional development. The Minister of State will be aware of the work of Shannon Chamber. I understand he will be addressing its members later this year in Dromoland, which we are all looking forward to. As he well knows, balanced regional development is a core part of the programme for Government. It has been committed to as a mission and underpinned by the national development plan, the national planning fra…

I note from IDA Ireland's additional job creation figures from 2022 that County Clare is one of just five counties where there has been net negative growth in the year. What is the Minister of State going to have IDA Ireland do about this, to pull its socks up for next year and to ensure we are not in the same position we have been in for the past three years, namely, looking at a minus figure? Following the fantastic research done by the Clare Public Participation Network, it was identified that we have had two em…

As of this morning, the INMO trolley watch recorded 84 people on trolleys in UHL. The consistently high numbers have gone beyond a joke. It has created a huge amount of anger locally. Nurses have stated they are retiring early because of the pressures and stress they face in UHL in order to protect their mental health. UHL is the infamous war zone. The nurses, who are heroes in our time of need, are working with a major deficit in the mid-west region and are clearly adding to the substantial argument for the need f…

I thank the rural Independents for bringing forward this very important motion. I also thank my friends in the Independent Group for affording me the time to speak on it. I have spoken in this House on many occasions about the housing crisis, which has affected my constituents in Clare. It is a crisis that affects not just the nearly 3,000 families on the housing list in Clare but also those who have been saving up to build or buy their first or forever home and get their foot on the property ladder. Availability o…

I thank the Independent Group for allowing me time to join Members from across the House in making a statement on the European Year of Skills, which starts today. I wish everyone in the House, at home and in County Clare a belated happy Europe Day 2023. Being part of a European family has been an essential component in making our workforce highly skilled and sought-after, providing for farmers in rural Ireland who are the backbone of the State and affording opportunities to our children to study and work wherever i…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. This still does not account for the fact that this package has not been increased since 2013. There has been no increase for people even though we are experiencing hyperinflation. This is not lost on the public but I thank the Minister of State. As I said, this proposal from Age Action Ireland for an energy guarantee for older persons is very well put together and I advise him in the strongest possible terms to review it with a view to implementing it. Another group I spoke to a…

I wish to speak on the household benefits package, in particular the energy allowances aspect. As the Minister of State knows, the household benefits package is a set of allowances to help with the cost of living, specifically electricity or gas costs. The package is available to those aged 70 and over and to some aged under 70 in certain circumstances - those on disability allowance or carer's allowance who are living with the person they care for, to name but a few. The package is available to our most vulnerable…