Ivana Bacik
Question:1. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach when the annual report of his Department for 2021 will be published. [35871/22]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Departmental Reports
Paul Murphy
Question:2. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the annual report of his Department for 2021 will be published. [36011/22]
Cian O'Callaghan
Question:3. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Taoiseach when the annual report of his Department for 2021 will be published. [36170/22]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:4. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach his views on his Department’s recently published annual report 2021. [44836/22]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 4, inclusive, together.
My Department's annual report for 2021 was published on gov.ie and laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas last July. The report sets out the work of my Department in 2021 to deliver under the strategic priorities set out in the Department's three-year statement of strategy.
My Department continues to work at the centre to ensure that the policies developed support the Government's commitment to developing Ireland in a sustainable way that supports economic development and social progress. Through the work of the ten Cabinet committees supported by my Department, a range of cross-Government work was advanced during 2021 in line with the strategic priorities set out, for example, management of the whole-of-government response to Covid-19, including the national vaccination programme roll-out. The economic recovery plan, with a progress report on implementation published in June, is helping to drive a jobs-rich recovery and supporting the economy in transitioning towards a decarbonised and digital economy. Among the deliverables progressed is a new national digital strategy, Harnessing Digital - The Digital Ireland Framework, co-ordinated through my Department.
Other work included: the publication of the Housing for All plan, an ambitious and far-reaching plan to address the provision of housing, increase the supply of housing and provide a sustainable housing system into the future; supporting the cross-Government work to manage the ongoing economic and political impacts of Brexit; driving delivery of our commitments on the shared island initiative on a whole-of-government basis through the shared island unit in my Department and the shared island fund; and supporting Ireland's role in Europe and the world, including through my participation in the European Council, Ireland's seat on the UN Security Council and with respect to ongoing developments regarding the implementation of the Northern Ireland protocol.
Other social policy work advanced during 2021 included wider health service reforms, further education and special education needs provision and finalisation of the White Paper on direct provision. Other work included: delivery of an initial well-being framework for Ireland and a supporting information hub, which are being developed to better understand and measure our progress as a country; the completion of the work of the Citizens' Assembly on Gender Equality; the launch of the revised national development plan, setting out the roadmap for investment of €165 billion in new and upgraded infrastructure over the decade ahead; the signing into law of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 and the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021; the establishment of the marine planning framework; the publication of the Climate Action Plan 2021; and three legislative programmes published during 2021 setting out priority legislation across Government.
My Department's priorities for the coming period will include advancing work to protect energy supply and mitigate the impact of the rising cost of energy; a continued focus on the Government's humanitarian response to the situation in Ukraine; economic recovery and investment; driving delivery of Housing for All and measures on climate action; and progressing health and wider social reforms, EU engagement and Northern Ireland, including continuing to advance our shared island agenda.
Furthermore, my Department will continue to be responsive to new and emerging challenges.
We have five questioners. The Taoiseach will have time to respond. We have to keep the questions to about a minute each. I call Deputy Bacik.
I thank the Taoiseach for setting out the detail of the Department’s annual report. I am glad to say that we, in the Oireachtas special Joint Committee on Gender Equality, are on track to complete our work in December and to produce a report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly on Gender Equality. I look forward to engaging with the Taoiseach on that.
In terms of strategic priorities for our economic development and social progress, one glaring issue which requires prioritisation by the Taoiseach and Government is childcare and early years education. The State is currently investing millions into a mostly privately run, for-profit sector, but we are still no closer to the sort of public, universal childcare service for which the Labour Party has long advocated. Our current system is failing parents, professionals, providers and, most importantly, children. Every day, I hear from constituents who cannot access any place in childcare and this is particularly the case for babies who are under 12 months old. One woman who was very distressed contacted me. Her baby is yet to be born, but she anticipates that she will have immense difficulty in finding any crèche place, let alone one that is affordable, particularly until her child reaches 12 months old. We have seen recent reports in The Irish Times citing the average cost per month for childcare in Finland as €150. The cost in Dublin is almost ten times that at €1,100, €1,200 and €1,300 per month per child. We have called for the Government to introduce a radical and creative measure in this budget to cap childcare costs at €200 per month, per child. We believe that sort of investment by the State would cost approximately €270 million per year to do that. We believe that would be a real investment in an equal early years approach to children, to children's rights and to ensuring that parents would have some help and some support in meeting these exorbitant rising costs that they are facing with childcare, which are like a second mortgage for so many.
The annual report speaks about the role of Ireland in the world. I would like to ask the Taoiseach whether the role he envisages is one of allying with and participating in NATO. I ask the Taoiseach whether the Irish Government participated in the fifth meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which took place at the Ramstein US air base in Germany, which also happens to be where the NATO military headquarters are based. After the meeting, the US Secretary of Defense said, “I am extremely proud of the progress on the discussion to intensify our efforts to support Ukraine and strengthen our NATO alliance.” He was speaking there about the 50 countries that attended. To be clear, and we have been clear and consistent throughout, we are absolutely opposed to Putin's imperialist invasion of Ukraine. We are also opposed to the attempt to use that horrific invasion to drive militarisation, to undermine what is left of neutrality here and to try to rebuild the idea of joining NATO. It is clear from that approach by the US Secretary of Defense that that is the aim and that is what is happening here. Did the Irish Government participate?
In recent weeks we have seen queues of hundreds of people, renters, who have been going for viewings. We have had reports of a student being asked for intimate photographs from a landlord. We have had students who cannot find anywhere to live who are sleeping rough. We have had a homeless woman who is sleeping in her car on a beach and having to wash in the sea as she has nowhere else to wash. Our rents are among the highest in Europe. House prices have surpassed the Celtic tiger peak, according to data released by the CSO today. Homelessness has reached record levels. There are more people living in emergency accommodation now than at any other point in the history of the State. Young people who have skills that we desperately need are being forced to emigrate. After failing to come even close to meeting any of the Government’s housing targets last year, the Taoiseach promised that this year would be a year for delivery. Instead, and this is not mentioned in the areas of the report dealing with housing, the capital spend on housing at this year is actually 21% lower than it was at the same time last year. This means that none of the targets on delivering social, affordable or cost-rental homes will be met. I want to ask the Taoiseach why the Government is failing to meet any of the targets that it is setting itself in terms of housing. What is it doing to urgently address this? What emergency action will it take to ensure that people can get the housing that they desperately need?
In the Taoiseach’s capacity as part of the Cabinet Committee on Social Affairs and Equality, I have raised with him on a number of occasions in the last year the issue of Accessible Community Transport Southside Ltd., ACTS, which is a door-to-door, volunteer-run, not-for-profit transport service for people with wheelchairs. It moves hundreds of people who otherwise could not get out of their homes to go to doctor appointments, to get around and to have a social existence and who cannot use the normal public transport system. I warned the Taoiseach that it was going to go out of business for the lack of approximately €250,000. Despite the suggestions that something would be done and that it would be looked at, I was absolutely shocked to receive an email from that service today saying that it is winding up. It is gone. We see these ACTS buses all around the city. People in wheelchairs are already obstructed from having equality of access to life, to services, to their doctors and so on and now their service is gone because of the lack of €250,000 and the refusal of the Government to give them the money to provide this service. It is gone and finished. Next week, people who have doctor appointments will have no transport to take them there. They have asked again and again for specialised transport for people with wheelchairs, with severe mobility problems, with disabilities and so on, to be seen as an integral part of our public transport system and for that to be properly funded but because of a failure to do that, that service is now gone. I ask the Taoiseach what he will do about this because many vulnerable people now have no transport service. It is shocking and it is shameful.
The Taoiseach increased the minimum wage this year by less than 3%, which is in real terms a very serious pay cut for the country's lowest-paid workers. Now he intends to increase it for next year by less than 8%, which is another pay cut in real terms. His annual report talks of building a better society. How can he say that he is doing that when a worker in this country who is on €11.30 an hour cannot live a decent life? This increase would not feed the pigeons. I want to invite the Taoiseach to come down to the Grand Parade this Saturday to observe the Cork cost-of-living demonstration. He will see thousands of people who are anxious about heating their homes this winter, who are discontented about the lack of action from his Government and who are demanding real change - not token change, but real change - in this budget. It might be a useful way for him to spend an hour of his time this Saturday.
I want to raise with the Taoiseach the issue of the third national strategy on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, DSGBV, which was launched before the summer. Of course, the decision by the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, to publish the strategy’s implementation plan was also welcome. It placed an emphasis and on obligation on all relevant Departments, including the Taoiseach’s Department, with regard to that. I understand that the oversight of this legislation and policy rests with the Cabinet committee on social affairs and equality, which is chaired by the Taoiseach. We have previously raised concerns about this particular committee and how it operates and, particularly, about the fact that it meets so infrequently to be able to oversee this strategy. Perhaps the Taoiseach would set out in practice how the committee is working in terms of oversight of the strategy. The strategy also commits to the establishment of a high-level oversight board, chaired by the Secretaries General of the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Justice, with a secretariat from the Department of the Taoiseach. Perhaps the Taoiseach could confirm that both are now up and running and that the Taoiseach’s commitments and obligations in the areas of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence are to be included in the Department’s key priorities in the future.
The Taoiseach has only two and a half minutes to respond, so his answer will be a bit truncated, if he does not mind.
Yes. A whole range of issues were raised there. Deputy Bacik raised the issue of childcare. The difficulty is that if we were to move completely to a State system, it would involve very significant engagement with stakeholders to dramatically and radically transform the area. As I said, we dealt in the last budget with a significant allocation for pay and conditions. Working between employers and employees, an agreement was arrived at in terms of the two employment regulation orders. This was good, but this year we have to increase affordability.
If the Deputy wants to send the details of her proposal to us, I know the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, is working on proposals for the forthcoming budget in respect of childcare. Childcare is very expensive in this country. We have to try consistently to get the cost down in a programmatic way that sustains into the future from a public finance and expenditure point of view. We are increasing expenditure on childcare significantly year on year.
On the question raised by Deputy Murphy, I am not aware of the specific meeting in question, but I would say I do not believe he is correct in his analysis that people are using the war in Ukraine to drive the militarisation of the world or NATO. I think that is a perverse analysis because nobody wanted the war in Ukraine except Putin. The leaders of European countries like Germany and France, including Chancellor Scholz and President Macron, did everything they possibly could to prevent the war and to stop a war. War has consequences. When a leader wages war in an unprovoked and brutal fashion on a neighbouring country simply because he believes the country does not exist and is possessed by some sort of 19th-century imperialist view of the world, then the neighbours of that neighbour have to take note. The Continent has to take note. We cannot have an endless continuance of that policy. That is why people closer to Russia are taking extra measures to protect themselves, unfortunately. It is why Finland and Sweden have applied to join NATO. They see it. I met the Finnish Prime Minister and President. They are balanced and reasonable people who have navigated a relationship with Russia for a long time. Their view is that this brutal invasion of Ukraine has changed everything. All they were told in their childhoods and the ultimate fear came to be realised in the invasion. People in Estonia, Poland and the Baltic states more generally are all very anxious and worried about what has happened. That is the natural response that has occurred. The vast majority of people obviously would have preferred if this had never happened, and that we did not find ourselves in this situation.
Can we get two or three minutes extra? There are only one or two questions-----
Deputy O'Callaghan raised the question of renters. Housing for All is our strategic response to housing. It is the most substantive housing policy. I have seen nothing near it from any Opposition party in terms of substance, breadth or depth. The reality is we will need a range of measures to deal with housing and homelessness. Unfortunately-----
May I interrupt? We will add three or four minutes to the reply, if Members are happy with that. Let us say, four minutes. Thank you, Taoiseach.
The population is rising and is more than 5 million. There are more Irish people coming back than Irish people leaving. The housing issue is not just Irish; it is European. It is an issue everywhere, basically.
My question was about the Government missing its own targets.
The Deputy made his points. I am addressing all the points he made, because I have written down what he said. We need to study the facts. The bottom line is that a number of factors have really conspired against us, Covid being one, but more importantly, the war and the increase in the cost of commodities. However, we are responding to that. The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform reformed the public tender framework so that builders would not be caught for the entirety of the inflationary increase and they could continue with social housing projects. This year we have completed the highest number of social housing projects on record, between approved social housing bodies and local authorities. Likewise, we are making progress on affordable homes and cost rental. There is a suite of measures. The new shared equity scheme is gaining huge traction with young purchasers and the help to buy scheme is impacting people. I mentioned earlier there has been an increase in the number of first-time buyers.
However, there are still huge challenges. We need to build more houses and get houses built. There are many objections to houses. There are people and politicians objecting to housing developments. Leadership needs to start in this House and come from political leaders in these issues. I believe it is the number one crisis over the constant period that will endure unless we continue to facilitate the construction of houses and not always seek to block, block and block. Younger people, in particular, deserve to have access to affordable houses. We need to get up to 35,000 units at least being built annually. We will do everything we possibly can from a Government perspective. Some €4 billion a year has been allocated to housing - way above what was allocated before this Government came into office. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, has been very innovative in his response to this.
Will the Taoiseach address the other couple of questions?
I am coming to them. Deputy Boyd Barrett raised the issue of the transport service in south Dublin. The funding was obviously coming through some agency prior to that, was it not?
It was brought up with the Taoiseach and-----
I know, but what agency are they dealing with?
All agencies.
The Government did not meet as a Government and say they were not getting funding. The Deputy should know that. He made the political point that the Government refused it. We did not.
They asked for the money.
Who did they ask?
They asked the Department.
Normally, in terms of groups in that specific area, funding is provided through a particular agency or whatever. I do not know the full background to the case.
The service is gone now. It is unbelievable.
Well, there must be other reasons and factors we need to tease through.
They have not got the money - the €250,000. That is it.
Deputy Barry raised the issue of the minimum wage, which is a 7.6% increase. Last year's increase was higher than inflation, actually.
Last year's increase was higher than inflation?
That is my understanding, yes.
At 2.9%?
In terms of the year it applied to, yes. This is just narrowly lower. It is an independent commission, not the Government, that decides the minimum wage. We want to move up as quickly as we can to a new living wage. For the first time in the report, a living wage has now been identified, so progress has been made. The Deputy is aware the vast majority on the minimum wage are not the main income earners in families. We have to continue to improve, and we will. We all agree on that - maybe not all. There is an independent commission that examines this issue in great detail and takes all the factors into account, including employment and so on, to facilitate an increase in the minimum wage.
We are going to have to move on.
The practice has been to accept the recommendation of an independent commission. However, in the budget and the cost of living package, we will be taking other measures to help people on the minimum wage to get through the current crisis.
The Grand Parade?
I have an official State event here on Saturday.
We need to move on to Question No. 5, from Deputy Bacik.
Departmental Bodies
Ivana Bacik
Question:5. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the work of the parliamentary liaison unit within his Department. [35872/22]
The parliamentary liaison unit in my Department assists the Government in its relationship with the Oireachtas. It works with the Office of the Government Chief Whip on issues that arise at the Business Committee and the Committee on Dáil Reform and Standing Orders, including Dáil reform proposals and amendments to Standing Orders. The unit supports the Office of the Government Chief Whip in the implementation of the Government’s legislative programme. In addition, the unit assists the office of the leader of the Green Party in work relating to Cabinet, Cabinet committees and oversight of the implementation of the programme for Government. In carrying out these duties, it provides detailed information on upcoming matters in the Dáil and Seanad, highlights any new Oireachtas reform issues, and provides assistance in engaging with the new processes arising from Dáil reform. The unit is staffed by 3.5 whole-time equivalent staff: one principal officer, one administrative officer, 0.5 higher executive officer and one clerical officer.
I thank the Taoiseach for providing the information on the parliamentary liaison unit, which, as we know, provides detailed information on matters upcoming in the Dáil and Seanad and carries out a number of other functions. I want to raise with the Taoiseach a particular issue pertaining to a service which has been providing a similar service to the public, namely, the Citizens Information service, which over some decades now has been providing a very important face-to-face service across our communities but about which we are hearing increasing concerns. We have seen changes to the service, the closure of face-to-face offices, a failure to reopen offices after Covid and a whole-scale movement online of these vital information services. Indeed, over the summer, this issue was raised extensively on "Liveline", as people around the country spoke of their concern about hearing their local services were being closed.
In my constituency, Dublin Bay South, we held a public meeting in Rathmines about the failure to reopen the local office there. Our local Labour Party councillor, Mary Freehill, and I both had extensive engagement with members of the public about their concerns on this issue. We had a big turnout at a town hall meeting we held in Rathmines and we heard from those who had been volunteers with the service and, more importantly, from those who had been using the service, including clients of the service and those who had benefited from the face-to-face access to information that it had provided to them. A whole-scale movement online goes against the ethos of the Citizens Information centres and service. Labour's Frank Cluskey had originally insisted on the establishment of Citizens Information services in order that people would not effectively be dependent on Dáil Deputies' clinics to find out their rights and to be able to engage with Departments and local authorities. Now we have a situation where we are seeing face-to-face and community services being stripped down and closed down. I appeal to the Taoiseach and to the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Humphreys, to ensure there is sufficient resourcing to enable the maintenance and retention of face-to-face community services, such as Citizens Information services of this kind, which have provided such an important bridge to many local communities and individuals in accessing information about their rights and the sort of entitlements they have from the State. Without this sort of face-to-face service, many disadvantaged individuals and households are really affected and feel they have nowhere to turn.
The role of the parliamentary liaison unit is to ensure that dialogue and so on take place on the implementation of the Government’s legislative programme. Part of the agreed Government legislative programme is a referendum to enshrine water in public ownership in the Constitution. This is a matter of considerable public debate. A mass movement defeated water charges and in the aftermath, the Government said there would be no problem about having a referendum and that we would have public ownership of water. It is six years since Deputy Joan Collins first introduced her Bill to enshrine water in public ownership in the Constitution. That is deliberately bogged down in Committee Stage. It has been a few months since the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage said we should not worry and that we would have a referendum this year or early next year. For the water workers, who are due to transfer from councils across the country to Irish Water on 1 January, that is not good enough. From their point of view, they have no guarantee that Irish Water will not be privatised in the future and they are being transferred over to a company that is a semi-State company now but could be privatised in the future, unless there is a referendum. They want a date. When will the referendum on the public ownership of water take place?
Nearly a year has passed since the Government agreed the redress scheme for mother and baby home survivors, many of whom are elderly and getting on in life. I seek a reassurance from the Taoiseach that the legislation to progress this scheme will be published and that the scheme will be opened as a matter of urgency. As we know, many of the unfortunate survivors of these homes are at the gates of the Dáil again today, as they have been many times in the past.
I also want to briefly raise with the Taoiseach the matter of the decision by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman, to renege on his promise of an independent review of the mother and baby home confidential committee testimony. I am not sure whether the Taoiseach was aware of the decision to renege on this commitment to survivors. If so, can he explain why the Minister did not engage directly with the survivors earlier this year on his decision? After a lot of missteps by this Government and those before it in dealing with institutional abuse, it is simply unacceptable for it to be left to journalists to uncover the Minister’s decisions. I understand that it may be hard for the Taoiseach to hear this but survivors have lost trust in the Government on this issue and that is the reality. The Minister, with the support of the Taoiseach, needs to re-engage with survivors as a matter of urgency and ensure the redress scheme is put in place.
I do not know how many schemes there are where it has been suggested that somebody needs to co-ordinate between Departments on the issue of disability. It has also been suggested that the Department of the Taoiseach should take a lead role on this. We should bear in mind that we signed up to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD. I find the Taoiseach's earlier response on what has happened to be shocking. This was a door-to-door transport service for people with powered wheelchairs and three or four buses used to take hundreds of people every day, for years, to medical appointments and to allow them to have a social life because they cannot use the normal public transport system. By the way, this service did not get a cent from the Department of Transport and it has been begging for a year for money to replace its buses and to deal with a financial shortfall. This company should not even have to exist because public transport should be doing its job. It is a not-for-profit involving mostly volunteers and the service is gone. Some of the most vulnerable people have no way to get to doctor's appointments and to get out of the isolation of their homes next week.
There is no time left to reply. I call Deputy Joan Collins.
I appeal to the Taoiseach to do something about this.
I want to briefly come in on a point Deputy Paul Murphy raised on the referendum on the public ownership of water. When will we see that coming through? My Bill, which was backed by the Right2Water campaign, has been buried in Committee Stage for the last number of years and at this stage we are told that a referendum on water will only take place along with a referendum on housing being a human right. Can the Taoiseach tell us when that will happen?
There are a number of issues there and, in fairness to Deputy Martin Kenny, I did not answer his last question-----
I understand that.
-----in the last bout, for which I apologise. There is national implementation board oversight between the Department of Justice and my Department and that is working well. We launched and published the strategy itself just before the summer recess and that will report to the Cabinet subcommittee on social affairs and equality. We have outlined that to the Deputy’s party leader and to the other party leaders when we consulted them prior to the publication of the strategy, so we have to give it time.
It meets so infrequently.
No concerns were really raised at that stage. It was only just before the summer. We will allay any concerns we can and there will be proper oversight of the implementation of the strategy.
On the issues the Deputy raised on the survivors of mother and baby homes, to be fair to the Minister overall, this Government has moved on a range of issues and has got action and delivery. The Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022, for example, was published and the general scheme of the mother and baby institutions payment scheme Bill that the Deputy raised was published on 29 March. My understanding is that it has gone through pre-legislative scrutiny. In any event, the intention is to take it through in this session before Christmas. We will work with the Members of the House to progress that. Then there is the legislation on exhumation, which has been passed and published, so a lot of work has been done right across the board. A memorialisation centre for the inner city is important and a range of massive investment will happen there.
Then there is the issue the Deputy raised-----
The review of the confidential committee testimony.
Again, the Minister is in constant contact with survivor organisations. There are limits to how he can interfere with the commission because of the legal framework governing commissions of investigation and the manner in which they are set up and that has been problematic but he wants to publish in full the testimonies and he will work with survivor organisations to discuss that issue and other issues.
Deputy Bacik raised the issue of-----
Citizens Information offices.
I would share the Deputy's concerns and I have heard reports on a change in the non-opening of Citizens Information centres. They have been one of the great and enduring civic actions of citizen empowerment and participation down through the years and I would be a strong advocate of them. When I was Lord Mayor of Cork, I had the honour of granting the freedom of the city to Maureen Curtis-Black, who was a great early advocate of citizens information. I will come back to the Deputy on that and check out exactly what is happening with that. These are issues that should evolve over time and having an online service should be complementary. We know that not all people are in a position to access online information and sometimes that human interaction matters in allaying concerns that certain people may have.
I thank the Taoiseach. I will continue to engage with him.
Deputy Paul Murphy should acknowledge that significant progress has been made in recent years in cementing the public ownership dimension of Irish Water in terms of the State structure that has been introduced. There is no question about that.
I do not believe there is any reason for workers to be concerned. The fundamental issue around the referendum on water is control of a natural resource, besides the mechanisms by which it is managed. Be it an agency or local authorities, that is a matter for ongoing debate. It is State-owned and the State is the shareholder. It is a precious resource on which we must continue to work. The Minister has committed to a referendum on it. It is a referendum that will deal with the broader issue of ownership of water.
When will it be?
I said he is working on it. We will get a timeline when we are ready for it.
Will it be this year?
Lads, we have had two years of Covid.
So the Taoiseach could not progress a referendum in Covid.
We could not have had a referendum during Covid. We have a lot going on.
We are way over time. I know it is the first day back but please let the Taoiseach complete his response.
Thirty seconds for my question.
We went overboard on the first question to facilitate Deputies but they are milking it now.
There will be no more facilitation.
I can see that.
Iron lady.
On Deputy Boyd Barrett's point, generally speaking, transport for special needs was financed through the Department of Education or the Department of Health. Many NGOs and not-for-profits were financed by the Department of Health in respect of transport facilities. That is the point I was asking him about.
I asked the Departments responsible for health and disability. They refused.
Can the Deputy send me a detailed email on that, outlining the background? He is saying they never got money.
I think they got some money, but not-----
The Deputy should give me the full details and we will follow it up. Give me the full background and we will see where we can identify a potential source of revenue.
The last question was from Deputy Joan Collins and dealt with the referendum as well.
Is there no date?
I do not have the date.
It will be never-never.
We are moving on and there is less time left for the questions now.
I was elected to a local authority in 1985. What was the major issue of the day? Water.
You have still not sorted it out.
It is well sorted. The only issue is it gave campaign fodder for some of you people around the table. We had dealt with it by the mid-1990s, and then there was a by-election somewhere in Dublin and the Labour Party-----
The only issue for me is timing, and we are running late.
European Parliament
Bernard Durkan
Question:6. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Taoiseach the extent to which he had discussions during his recent visit to the European Parliament. [30694/22]
Paul Murphy
Question:7. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit and address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg. [30841/22]
Ivana Bacik
Question:8. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit and address to the European Parliament. [34513/22]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 6 to 8, inclusive, together.
I visited Strasbourg on 7 and 8 June. I began my visit by meeting representatives of the Council of Europe to mark Ireland's six-month presidency of that body and took the opportunity to visit the European Court of Human Rights and meet with Irish staff members in that court.
At the invitation of the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, I had the honour to address the plenary session of Parliament on 8 June. I reflected on the 50 years since Ireland voted to join what is now the European Union. Our membership has been transformative, with an overwhelmingly positive impact across all dimensions of our society. I expressed Ireland's strong support for Ukraine in the face of the immoral war being waged against it by Russia, and for its application for membership of the European Union.
Membership is the most powerful tool we possess to enlarge the sphere of democracy, peace and security in our region, and in my contribution I set out my view that the EU should move more swiftly and decisively on enlargement, especially in the western Balkans. I also took the opportunity to acknowledge the ongoing support and solidarity of our partners in the European Union through the Brexit process.
In concluding my address, I looked to the future, where our guiding principle should be how we can best prepare our Union to continue to meet the needs of its citizens. The European Union is by no means perfect or complete. It is a project that must continue to develop and evolve. Differences will arise between member states, and between the institutions. However, our capacity to work through these issues together makes the EU something to be immensely proud of. We are stronger together, and we achieve most and best when we work together.
While at the Parliament, I had a number of bilateral meetings. I discussed European Union-United Kingdom developments and the protocol with European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič and thanked him for his work in seeking solutions to issues surrounding the protocol. I met Ruslan Stefanchuk, speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, and reaffirmed to him Ireland's strong solidarity with the people of Ukraine. He expressed his appreciation for the generous response of the Irish people. I also met David McAllister, MEP, Chair of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs, and conveyed Ireland's appreciation for the strong support of the European Parliament on Brexit.
Together with President Metsola, I unveiled a bust in the European Parliament to honour the life and career of the late John Hume. It will be a fitting and permanent reminder of John's unwavering commitment to peace on the island of Ireland, and a reflection of his great work achieved in Europe, including as an MEP for 25 years. John had the vision to see the narrative of Ireland's path to peace in the wider narrative of peace in Europe, a peace built on respect for political and cultural diversity cemented with economic interdependence. As we see the return of war to our Continent, it is a vision that must remain an inspiration and guide to us all.
This morning President von der Leyen made a speech to the European Parliament about the energy and cost-of-living crisis affecting people across the Continent. She said the energy companies are making revenues they never accounted for or even dreamt of. She is right about that. The Taoiseach can look up the figures for the big oil and gas corporations at a global level. I compared profits year on year, quarter 2 versus quarter 2, and Shell, Exxon, Chevron and BP have all tripled or quadrupled their profits. In this country, energy companies, while announcing record price increases for people, are also announcing record profits. It is similar with food companies and big corporate landlords.
The answer of the European Commission is a "deep and comprehensive reform of the electricity market". Is the problem not the fact that it is a market? Should we not recognise that electricity and energy supply should be a public utility in public control, not run for profit but for provision of this essential supply for people and to ensure a rapid and just transition to a zero-carbon economy? I think the majority of people agree with that. That is why tens of thousands of people will be on the streets on 24 September.
I agree with the Taoiseach's words on John Hume's vision and with his reflections on the brutal war in Ukraine, from which we are seeing an enormous impact. We have to recall those who come here fleeing other wars. In recent days, I have heard real concerns around a resettlement programme for Syrian refugees fleeing war and Afghan refugees who are here and in many cases seeking family reunification, and the need to speed up the processing of their applications. That is important, alongside the welcome we need to continue to extend to those fleeing the war in Ukraine.
I return to energy and the EU policy thereon. We welcome moves at EU level to introduce a windfall tax on the excessive profits of energy companies. I referred earlier to the Corrib gas field and there is something the Government should do now to address the profits being made there. The revenues from Corrib increased almost fourfold last year, though nothing has happened to increase the cost of production or supply, nor is there any international competition that would boost the price of Corrib-generated gas. That price has increased dramatically solely as a result of factors which should have no direct impact on the Irish market. It makes no sense that Corrib gas should be priced as if it were internationally traded and could power German factories in the Rhineland when it is being used here. I propose the Government invoke existing legislative powers for the duration of the emergency on a temporary basis, to ensure Irish-produced gas is sold to the State on a cost-plus basis, bringing down costs for consumers.
I also raise the issue of energy. We know the emergency meeting of EU energy ministers last week in Brussels was to discuss a cap or some way to control energy prices across Europe. That is welcome and needs to happen. It is accepted the challenges may be long-term in nature. The Taoiseach referred to that today and we all know that. Much of this comes from the brutal war being inflicted on the people of Ukraine and its outcome across Europe.
We all understand that but the most vulnerable people are being hardest hit, particularly in this country. Many families and businesses are under huge pressure. I have been contacted by many retail businesses, including Centra and SuperValu shops, in my constituency and across the country.
The owners run their fridges and try to run their businesses but their costs are going through the roof. Gourmet Parlour, a bakery in Sligo town, was on to me a couple of months ago about the significant increase in the cost of the energy it needs to produce its products. It obviously has ovens and so on along with fridges to store raw materials. All of this has put great pressure on small businesses. As we know, in many parts of the country where there is no foreign direct investment; we rely on small businesses to keep our economy going. Those small businesses are under real pressure and a significant input from the Government is required to put a cap on their energy costs.
Deputy Paul Murphy was first. He spoke about President von der Leyen. I agree with her that excessive profits have been made on the back of the war and the crisis and that there has been a very substantial increase in revenue. By the end of this month, Europe will have made a decision. We are leading on that. We are working with our European partners. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, has been involved. As a country, we have made it very clear that we want a mechanism developed, ideally across Europe, to deal with wind generation companies, which is largely what we have in Ireland. We have one fossil fuel company, which operates on the Corrib gas field. Any excess revenues raised on the back of the crisis should be used to help the governments of member states, including our own, to support households and to protect jobs. That is the agenda. The gas market is European so it makes sense that this is done across Europe. A deeper reform of the market is also required. A key issue is decoupling gas prices from those of energy generated from wind or other sources such as nuclear. It is not simple. There are many complexities with regard to the markets. We are not going to nationalise the entire European Union market. That is not going to happen. We have to deal with reality. We are not going to do that. We are not in a position to do so. Every member state is entitled to its domestic policies within the European Union framework. I am also not necessarily sure it would lead to the kind of efficiencies the Deputy has suggested. Neither system is perfect, whether a completely market-led approach or a hybrid approach involving State involvement regulated by regulators along with other actors and players in the marketplace. We need a strong regulatory framework with strong capacity. That is what we support.
On Deputy Bacik's point regarding the other resettlement programmes, without question, the Ukrainian situation has put great pressure on our system. Some 50,000 have come into the country, of whom approximately 38,000 or 39,000 are housed by the State through premises that have been procured such as hotels while others have been housed through the housing provided voluntarily by people. There has also been growth in the normal asylum seeking process. There are also programmes for those fleeing war, specifically Afghans and Syrians. I will check on these programmes. I have not been alerted that they are under pressure. There are other newer arrivals, not all of whom are fleeing war. This is also putting pressure on the accommodation situation.
I have already referenced the Corrib gas field, which has been of enormous importance in supplying Ireland. We have not had much success with fossil fuel extraction in Ireland. The Kinsale gas field was the original and the Corrib gas field has been a very important contributor. We import most of our gas. We are very dependent on importation. Again, the EU instrument will cover both. We are supporting that.
I believe that same point covers what Deputy Martin Kenny referenced with regard to the emergency meeting in Brussels. There is to be another meeting and the Commission will publish a proposal with a view to reaching a decision at a meeting of energy ministers on 30 September. Apart from that, the Government will have to help alleviate pressures on people and protect jobs in the weeks immediately ahead of us through the budget and associated cost-of-living package using our own resources and surplus.
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