On Tuesday night, retained firefighters walked out of the Gallery in disgust at what the Minister had to say in our debate on the Private Members' motion. They have been engaging in industrial action now for quite a while as a result of the failure to address the core issue of pay attached to the service. This industrial action is now at crisis point. There is an all-out strike planned for Tuesday, which will result in the closure of all retained fire stations across the State. SIPTU this morning stated that there is likely to be mass resignation from the service as a result of this action. The Minister knows this will cause the collapse of the service. Today, firefighters have marched on Leinster House. They are outside and are very angry that the Government will not intervene. An intervention is required now. I ask the Minister to make an improved offer in relation to pay for retained firefighters. I also ask and challenge him to go outside after this business to meet the firefights because they are fed up to the hilt with what the Minister said. Some handed in their pagers to members of the Opposition. I challenge the Minister to wear a pager for the next number of weeks, put up with an €8,600 retainer and not go farther than 2.5 km from his community and see how he can stand over such pay and conditions.
Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation
Here is one of the pagers belonging to the firefighters for the Minister. They asked me to give it to him. There will be a lot more of them next week unless the Minister intervenes.
No. Deputy Brady is completely out of order. Do not carry out a charade in this House.
This is a life and death issue and that Minister is sitting there and ignoring the firefighters of this country.
This is a stunt.
It is a pure stunt.
Please. It is absolutely outrageous behaviour.
From the Minister.
It is outrageous and not to be encouraged.
To get back to the matter at hand, I know many of the men and women in the retained fire service across the country. I commissioned the independent review. I was not asked to do it; I commissioned it, published it and brought it to Cabinet twice. All 13 recommendations were accepted by the Government.
Much progress was made in this regard concerning rostering and minimum staffing levels at stations. There will be 12 staff per station. The Deputy is correct that the issue of pay remains. His assertion today, like that of his colleague Deputy Brady the other evening, was at variance with what his party leader was asking for earlier that day. She had asked for re-engagement at the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC. Deputy Doherty asked, and Deputy Brady, who has engaged in an act of theatre here today, which was obviously choreographed-----
Get away.
It was obviously choreographed.
Will the Minister go out and meet the protesters?
Deputies, please.
I know firefighters right across the country.
Has he met them?
There is a process and I am confident this issue can be resolved. I have immense regard for the men and women of the fire service.
I thank the Deputy.
Will he meet them outside?
Will the Minister meet them outside?
I thank the Minister. The time is up.
Gabh mo leithscéal.
Will the Minister meet them outside?
Wait now, please.
I will tell the Deputy what I will-----
Wait now. Please desist and respect the orders of the House. Please.
The question was asked.
The Deputy has no role in this, good, bad or indifferent.
I came in here-----
You have no role in this, good, bad or indifferent.
The firefighters asked us to bring these questions to the Minister.
I will suspend the House if this racket continues.
I am just asking for an answer.
I will suspend the House if this racket continues.
Right.
I ask the Minister to conclude because he is out of time.
I will conclude. I have been interrupted repeatedly. I want to state that I encourage contact with the unions. There is contact and I encourage the unions to re-engage with the State's process and industrial relations, IR, process.
I thank the Minister.
They are outside the gate.
If I can, I wish to reassure the House that I have given an absolute commitment that the public sector pay talks will begin in July-----
Oh, come on.
-----which is next month.
An all-out strike has been called for Tuesday.
It is too late.
What I will not do, though, is what the Deputy and his party are doing, which is trying to use this matter for their own political gain-----
Get out of here.
Go outside the gates and talk to the firefighters. There is an all-out strike on Tuesday.
We saw what happened here today. The Deputy is shameless and people see through it.
There is an all-out strike on Tuesday. These firefighters are handing in their pagers to the Minister and he will not even talk to them outside the gates.
I call Deputy Bacik.
They are outside the gates.
Go raibh maith agat.
I ask the Minister not to be pointing his fingers. He should go outside the gates and talk to the firefighters.
Ceann Comhairle-----
I ask Deputy Doherty to go outside the gates himself and let us get on with our business.
We did already.
I spoke to them already. Do not worry about it, a Cheann Comhairle.
Oh, I heard the Deputy. I call Deputy Bacik, please.
I have just been outside the gates with the retained firefighters. I ask the Minister what he proposes to do this week to stop what we are going to see happening next Tuesday. SIPTU has indicated that retained firefighters will begin to resign en masse next week if serious and meaningful engagement with the Government does not happen. Leaving theatrics aside, let us talk about the real experiences of retained firefighters. I refer to the abysmal pay and conditions they put up with when they are putting themselves on the line.
One firefighter spoke to me last week. When everybody else was out enjoying the sun, retained firefighters were sitting in fire stations, on duty and on-call, awaiting a call and keeping our communities across the country safe. They deserve our respect and better pay and conditions. On behalf of these firefighters, I ask the Minister what he proposes to do to engage meaningfully with them to stop what is being proposed will happen next week. Deputy Duncan Smith and Senator Mark Wall of the Labour Party have asked that there be an urgent debate in the Dáil on this issue, given the news that came just this morning of the escalation.
I thank the Deputy.
We need to see urgent action-----
Deputy, the time is up.
-----and meaningful engagement from the Government.
I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter and for the manner in which she did so, because this is a serious issue. I reiterate that much progress has been made since January on many issues. This has been recognised by SIPTU. The report on the retained fire service received more than 1,000 submissions, many of them coming from firefighters. The main remaining issue is that of pay and the retained payment, which is too low. I have said this. It is certainly too low. I am committed to doing everything I can to ensure this payment is increased, and increased significantly. There is contact between my Department and union representatives. This is happening. I ask that we use the apparatuses available to the State to resolve disputes, such as the WRC, and, if required, the Labour Court. I say this because this situation is resolvable. Leaving everything else aside, fundamentally, this is about retaining the brave men and women who are in these posts now and attracting more people into the service.
I thank the Minister.
I commissioned that review. I started this process.
Okay. I thank the Minister. The time is up.
We are a way down the road and I believe we can get there.
Please, Minister, the time is up. I call Deputy Whitmore.
I too would like to raise the issue of the retained firefighters. I have also been out talking to them this morning. They are angry and frustrated. Most of all, they are heartbroken. They are heartbroken because they are so committed to their communities and they know the impact this strike will have on the very people they work with, live with and love. I also received an on-call pager. The fact that SIPTU is saying there will be mass resignations next week is something the Minister must listen to seriously. He must engage with the firefighters. I also ask that he go out and talk to them. We must have a commitment to engaging properly with them. He must listen to the stories and to what they have to say.
At this stage, the issue is pay. Fundamentally, however, unless the Minister gets the pay issue correct, then there will be no retention of firefighters. They are leaving the service-----
I thank the Deputy. The time is up.
-----and this will leave our communities vulnerable.
Deputy, please, the time is up. I call the Minister.
I regularly speak to firefighters. I know many of them, right across the country. I have visited many fire stations in many counties. There are two retained fire services in my area of Fingal, in Skerries and in Balbriggan. I know there is a way through this situation. We need it to de-escalate it. What I have said repeatedly is that there has been agreement concerning most of the work done through the retained fire services report. Pay remains the last issue. I cannot ignore the fact that there is a national pay agreement and a process in place in the context of Building Momentum. This process is there. Those talks start next month, in July, on an informal basis. I have committed to our fire service personnel that I will advocate on their behalf very strongly for significant increases in their pay and improvements in their conditions. We have agreed on many of these aspects. I fully understand the position they are in and the argument that they are making. I am committed to resolving this issue and to doing everything we can from a Government perspective to do so.
I thank the Minister. I call Deputy Paul Murphy.
The Government's own cost of disability report indicates that having a disability costs a person between €9,000 and €13,000 extra annually. Ireland ranks as one of the lowest in Europe in terms of the employment gap and the number of people employed in this regard. The rates of people with disabilities at risk of or in poverty are through the roof. The question is whether the Government is going to use budget 2024 to address the costs of being disabled.
Many things need to be done. We need investment in housing and ratification of the optional protocol. Specifically, though, I wish to ask about the disability allowance, the blind pension and the invalidity pension. During Covid-19, the Government recognised that the minimum anyone required to survive-----
I thank the Deputy. The time is up.
-----was €350, with the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP.
Please, Deputy, the time is up.
Will the Government increase these payments to €350 weekly?
As the Deputy knows, we are in the cycle now where we are putting our focus on budget 2024. Many meetings will be held between all the various Ministers. I speak today on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Anne Rabbitte, who has special responsibility for disabilities. She has done Trojan work over the last three years and has significantly increased the budget in this regard.
Turning to the Deputy's question, a €500 lump sum payment to people receiving disability allowance, the blind pension or the invalidity pension has already been forthcoming in response to the cost-of-living crisis. I can guarantee, though, that every Minister, including my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, will do the very best they can in the context of budget 2024 for people living with disabilities.
Go raibh maith agat. I have another budgetary question. Yesterday, there was an excellent discussion here in the Chamber on rural Ireland. The major takeaway for me was that some of the schemes are working well. We have the town and village renewal scheme and the rural regeneration and development fund, RRDF, initiative. The major problem with these schemes is that they are not adequately funded. The principle in this regard is completely sound. The problem is there is just not enough cash in the pot. Every Deputy here will know there are projects all over rural Ireland, in all the regions, that are excellent. They are viable and sound but they need to be funded. Will the Minister engage and intercede with his Cabinet colleagues to make certain more funding will be provided in the next budget to ensure these projects can get off the ground and we can bring life back into rural Ireland?
I thank Deputy Berry. He is correct. The schemes have worked well. We would like to see them expanded further across the country. We have added to them with the Croí Cónaithe vacancy and dereliction grants. We have had nearly 2,000 applications in this regard and these schemes are working well. Urban regeneration and development funding, URDF, is also available in our regional towns and in our cities. It amounts to €2 billion. Additionally, the RRDF is very effective, including the town and village renewal scheme. I assure the Deputy this is something the Government will be examining in the context of the forthcoming budget and the Estimates process for next year's capital spending.
At the outset, I welcome Cara Dermody, her mother, Noelle, her principal teacher, Brid Quinlivan, and her teacher, Andrea Mee from Ardfinnan National School. I compliment Cara on doing her leaving certificate mathematics examinations last Friday and on Monday.
To the Minister, I say that I too was out with the firemen. Will he please give us an outline today of what he is going to do on Tuesday when the mass resignations and all-out strike happen? I will tell the Minister what the problem is.
The Minister spoke about engagement, but the LGMA is not engaging. It states it does not have the money from the Government. It would cost €50 million to sort this out for the firemen. There are gorse, mountain or forest fires in this weather. In any situation, they save us. They are our heroes. Their children are out there with them today, pleading for a resolution. We had a wedding last weekend. They cannot go to weddings because they are on call. Would the Minister like to be on call 24-7 with a pager? He would not. We need to respect them for what they do and not voice platitudes. The problem is that there is a full-time fire service in Dublin and the Government does not care about the rest of the country, like in many other areas. Please support these gallant men and women because they deserve it.
I too would like to welcome Cara and congratulate her on her fantastic achievement. Doing leaving certificate maths at 12 years of age is incredible. She brought one ray of light into the Chamber today. It is great to have her here.
On the fire service, it is not a Dublin versus outside of Dublin issue.
It is.
Ah stop, Mattie. You come in and-----
You have the services-----
Please let the Minister answer.
You-----
Are you serious about this matter or not?
I am.
Do you want to hear what I am going to say? We are engaged. It is a very serious matter. I have already explained to the Deputies who wanted to listen and did not want to engage in stunts here today that we have gone a long way down the road in the retained fire service review, which has been welcomed by SIPTU. The last piece is pay. I am committed to resolving that. Contacts are being made. There is a way out of this, through the apparatus of the State, namely, the WRC. I ask SIPTU and other representatives to re-engage with that process because there is a way forward for resolution.
Tuesday.
Today is Thursday. In between Thursday and next Tuesday are Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. We have time to do this.
Faraor, tá orm an t-ionad lae atá fós dúnta i gcroílár na Gaeltachta sa Cheathrú Rua a ardú arís. Tá sé ardaithe go mion minic agam ach, faraor, níl aon rud athraithe ach amháin go bhfuil na critéir atá leagtha síos ag Feidhmeannacht na Seirbhíse Sláinte i bhfad níos deacra anois. Tá sí ag rá nach bhfuil aon éileamh ann.
Unfortunately, I have to once again talk about the closed day centre in Carraroe. It remains closed, three years on from the onset of Covid. I have almost a library of responses. They change by the week. First of all, the HSE could not open it. Then it needed a new place. Then it said there are new criteria and people had to be able to have their own transport and take their own medication. Then it said there was no demand and the bus was broken. An essential service remains closed three years later.
The Deputy has raised the situation in Connemara several times. I sought an update on it this morning. As the Deputy knows, in my last contribution on this I said that the HSE facilitates the opening of the nursing home. It was in a staffing position to open it one day a week over the past six weeks. Unfortunately, the demand for a service has not been there. The HSE is advertising on local media and in a newspaper to let people know the facility has opened. I will revert to the Deputy as soon as I receive an update.
I raise the issue of community pharmacy pay. Community pharmacies have had a pay freeze for the past 15 years. One in ten community pharmacies, mainly in rural areas, is loss-making. This figure will increase unless investment is made. Administrative burdens associated with the community drugs scheme, the ongoing issue of medicine supply challenges and the underutilisation by the Government of our pharmacies' unique skillset has led to burnout in the profession. Community pharmacies are now the only healthcare sector that has received no restoration of pay since the financial crisis. This needs to change. There is a deadline of 30 June for these talks. I would like the pay of community pharmacies to be realigned.
I thank Deputy Cahill. At the outset, he has given me an opportunity to thank pharmacists for all of the work they do every single day, in particular through Covid. If people did not realise how important our pharmacists and their staff are, they certainly do now. I met the community pharmacy sector in my constituency recently to discuss this issue. I have corresponded with the Department of Health about this and I will raise the matter directly with the Minister for Health on foot of the Deputy's intervention today regarding the community pharmacy sector.
I raise the issue of recruitment and retention in An Garda Síochána. As the Minister knows, since the reopening of Templemore we have been very consistent in increasing the numbers to in and around 14,000. However, there are issues, which I think have been noted in this sphere in the Department of Justice, regarding recruitment and retention. The question as to whether that is due to rostering, the terms and conditions of employment or an economic by-product of being at full employment is something we do not know. Can the Minister outline whether there will be an increased emphasis on recruitment and retention issues, in particular whether the Minister for Justice will address the issue of mandatory retirement? It seems a shame to lose so many hugely experienced members of An Garda Síochána to the mandatory retirement age when they could be redeployed to other areas within the Garda.
I thank Deputy Farrell for raising this issue. He will be familiar with the work we are doing to provide funding for 1,000 new gardaí this year. We are seeing Garda recruits enter Templemore every 11 weeks. However, I agree completely with the Deputy on mandatory retirement. People who could carry on their current or any other post within the sector effectively have to retire. We have also seen issues with regard to civilian personnel who are about to retire, and some of those posts have not been replaced. I have seen that in our district and others the Deputy will know. It is important for us as a Government that we continue to see an increase in Garda numbers and ensure our towns, villages and cities are properly policed. I will raise the matter directly with the Minister for Justice, Deputy Helen McEntee, on the Deputy's behalf.
Nursing Homes Ireland held a briefing here yesterday to outline the very real crisis facing the sector, one that is laid bare in black and white in a report prepared by PwC. In the past three years, 950 beds have been lost, mainly in rural and regional areas. Some 31 voluntary and private nursing homes have closed, a number of which were in Roscommon and Galway. The report makes three recommendations. I ask the Minister of State to consider the recommendations, including funding via the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, for nursing homes. They care for our most vulnerable citizens and it is a great shame to think so many lose their homes and have to move. That is not what they deserve. I ask the Minister of State to read the report that has been prepared and consider its recommendations.
I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. My adviser was present at the briefing yesterday. I was not able to attend due to other meetings outside. This year, the budget for fair deal is €1.5 billion. That is more than my mental health budget. It is more than the amount of money that is provided for the whole South/South West Hospital Group. It is one-twentieth of the entire health budget to support 22,500 people. I have to make sure that the budget lasts from 1 January until 31 December. Any nursing home that is currently renegotiating its deal has seen an uplift of between 6% and 7%. That is a fact. I have also extended the temporary inflation payment scheme, TIPS, a €10 million fund to support nursing homes since 1 July last year to the end of June this year in tackling inflationary costs. There is €5,250 available for per month for nursing homes, but the average drawdown of 81% of nursing homes is €2,800. I will continue to invest in the sector. However, at the same time we have to be cognisant of the fact that I have a budget and have to adhere to it.
I support Deputy Cathal Berry in seeking recognition for Private Billy Kedian. I hope that it can be progressed. The Minister knows what needs to be done. I am glad the Minister is taking questions today because my question is about Uisce Éireann and group water schemes. I need the Minister to act. There are 14 schemes in Mayo that need to be taken over. A minimum of 14 schemes were presented by the county council. The problem is that there is debt outstanding due to leaks. The billing department in Uisce Éireann will not move on this. Meanwhile, volunteers in the community are being forced to continue taking responsibility for matters even though they have resigned.
Which billing department?
Within Uisce Éireann. I am concerned about the lack of accountability of Uisce Éireann and the gap between the volunteers who are forced to take responsibility for providing water for their neighbours even though some of them have resigned, as I told Uisce Éireann they would do. Meanwhile, there is millions for Uisce Éireann.
Will the Minister please sort it out?
I regularly engage with Uisce Éireann on many issues, and if the Deputy submits to me details of some of the examples she has, I will be quite happy to look into it and engage with Uisce Éireann on her behalf.
We read last week that there was a €100 million underspend in the Department of Transport. Both the Taoiseach and Tánaiste confirmed to me a number of weeks ago that any underspend could be used or redirected to progress the N4 upgrade from the Westmeath border down into Longford to serve the north west. All that is needed is €2 million to enable the move to the next stage, so you can understand the frustration that locals feel when they read about the €100 million underspend and €2 million would help progress a much-needed piece of infrastructure.
Also, earlier this week the Ombudsman took to the airwaves and was highly critical of the lack of support for transport for people who have a disability. Again, imagine the frustration felt by people with a disability who need access to transport and they read in the newspapers about €100 million not spent.
I appreciate the Deputy raising this important issue. In the first instance, it is important this Government fulfils its commitments to communities under the national development plan, and that means making tangible progress on a number of roads projects, including the N4 upgrade for the people of Westmeath and Longford. The profile of spending varies through the year but it is important we do not have an underspend when it comes to the roads budget. That is why this is getting careful examination within the Department of Transport and across Government because it is important that we continue to make progress. As the Minister of State who chairs the committee relating to road safety, I am concerned about some of the road safety issues on that road and on other roads that need progress from a capital perspective. I will work with Deputy Troy and with colleagues to try to make progress on that and on other important roads projects during this year.
I want to raise the issue of the shortage of transmission lines workers and the difficulties this leads to in rolling out the critical infrastructure we need to decarbonise as a country. These workers cannot be sourced within the EEA. They need to be included on the critical skills list but the Department has not responded to requests from contractors who are looking to bring in these very much-needed workers. Can urgency be applied to ensure these critical workers are included on the critical skills list to achieve the things I have set out and for this to be done as soon as possible, please?
I am very grateful to the Deputy for raising this matter. I share his desire to see these workers added to the critical skills list as soon as possible. The Department and the Government propose to carry out, in late August or September, a full evaluation of the eligible list, the ineligible list, and crucially the critical skills list for work permits for the first time in two years. It has been done on an ad hoc basis over the past two years, and when that review is done, I will be sure to take Deputy Griffin's points on board and ask him to make a submission. Over the past year more than 40,000 workers came to Ireland from outside the EEA and the EU. There is a huge gap in this particular area when it comes to ensuring we can fill these much-needed vacancies.
The Minister has been asked repeatedly but there is nothing new in what he said today regarding the retained firefighters. They walked out when the Minister said it the other night. He pointed towards the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, the Labour Court, the constraints of Building Momentum, and the informal national pay talks in July. This is an escalating situation. The retained firefighters are going on all-out strike and talking about handing in their pagers. What will the Minister do personally to intervene? Is there a way around those constraints? The issue of pay has to be addressed between now and July. That timeline is simply unacceptable. What will the Minister do and what will he say today that is new on the issue of retained firefighters?
I have outlined very clearly what has been done, what progress has been made, and what issues are outstanding. Absolutely, the issue of pay remains outstanding. I have given a commitment that I intend for that to be dealt with as part of the public sector pay talks, which start next month. I am not trying to score political points but it is a fact that the Deputy's party leader, when she raised the matter earlier this week, talked about parties re-engaging with the WRC and with the State apparatus that is there to resolve these matters. The Deputy's other colleagues have gone further by seeking exceptions. There is a public sector pay deal there so there are constraints. However, I want to be clear that the requests and the asks of the retained fire service men and women are absolutely reasonable as regards pay and I will advocate for that. I ask them, very respectfully, to re-engage with the WRC. This is resolvable and it is resolvable in everyone's interests. Let us not forget that I commissioned the retained fire services report. That gives us a roadmap of 13 recommendations for the sector.
I am sorry; we are way over time. Deputy Ó Cuív is next.
On Tuesday, 13 June, a dental nurse was arrested at her place of work in Derry and questioned by the PSNI. She had no criminal record whatsoever. At 10.30 that morning, the PSNI arrived outside the dental service with two Land Rovers and two police cars and brought her to the Strand Road police station. She answered in full every question that was put to her. No evidence was referred to, nor was an allegation put to her. She was interviewed for 11 minutes in total and released at 2.08 p.m. Eighteen minutes later a press release was issued by the PSNI to the media which said inter alia:
A woman has been arrested in Derry ... today, Tuesday 13 June, as part of a proactive police investigation by the Paramilitary Crime Taskforce ... and Police Service of Northern Ireland's Organised Crime Branch.
The 27-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of Being Concerned in the Supply of a Class B controlled drug, and she remains in custody at this time.
By this time, she was on her way to her own home. Does the Government intend to outline its concerns to the Northern authorities about the release of this false statement by the police?
I obviously cannot comment on an individual case but I will raise the matter.
In April I raised the issue of Tara Mines being under serious pressure in terms of costs. There are obviously a range of issues putting the 2,000 jobs in Meath under pressure and we do not have any control over many of these issues. However, there is one element the Government has significant control over and that is the cost of electricity. Electricity is the second highest cost that Tara Mines has and that it is dealing with. The cost of electricity in Ireland is the highest in the whole of the European Union. It is now double the average per unit price in the European Union. In Sweden, mines with similar cost bases to Tara Mines are functioning. The key difference is they have lower energy costs and they are still functioning. Energy companies have been profiteering in this country for well over a year. The ESB doubled its profits to more than €800 million last year, literally winning the lottery every day in terms of profits. The ideology of the Green Party is to keep electricity prices high so as to reduce consumption.
I thank the Deputy. His time is up.
I urge the Minister. This is really serious. These are 2,000 really important jobs in Meath.
Please, Deputy, your time is up.
Will the Minister do his best to lower energy costs and meet the workers and factory managers to keep Tara Mines open?
It is of course a really serious issue for the workers and their families. That is why the Ministers, Deputies Coveney and McEntee, met the company on Tuesday, 13 June. The Minister of State, Deputy Thomas Byrne, and Senator Shane Cassells visited the mines yesterday and I can inform the Deputy that the Minister, Deputy Coveney, who has come back from a trade mission in France, will meet the management of Tara Mines again.
Actions.
Éist liom nóiméad amháin. The really important thing that has been confirmed is that, according to the company, the closure is temporary. Second, it is not due to the energy prices, and the company has confirmed that.
No, that is not the case.
Please, let the Minister answer.
I do not know whether Deputy Tóibín has gone out to the mines.
I have spoken to the management.
I am aware other colleagues in the Deputy's constituency have been out to Tara Mines and have met people and with management and staff directly and have got the facts of the matter. Our main concern is trying to work for those 650 workers and families to make sure we can help them through this very difficult time-----
The Minister's time is up.
-----and have the mine reopened as quickly as possible. It is a private enterprise though. The Deputy will be aware of zinc prices as well but the Government is doing everything it can to assist.
There are four remaining Deputies and I will take 30-second questions from each of them.
I thank the Ceann Comhairle and thank the Minister. I am delighted with his commitment to resolve the pay for retained firefighters. I met a lot of Carlow firefighters. Urgency is the important thing here.
I have written to all Departments over recent weeks because children are on their phones constantly and so their heads are now being bent. We are seeing an awful lot of poor posture. Even if posture has been a problem for years, there is a way to prevent the problem.
This will cost the State no money. That is good news. It is a matter of awareness and education. I have been contacted by a physiotherapist in Carlow, Anthony 'Star' Geoghegan, who has done a scientific report that can solve this issue. We have to act fast, because this will be a long-term problem if we do not step in.
I have previously raised the issue of the Beaumont Residential Care home in Cork, where there are 50-odd residents who are very worried. Their families are very worried. Care Choice deferred its decision to pull out of the fair deal in light of the fact that, as I had asked, the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, would meet with it. There have been meetings.
There have.
There will be another meeting next week. While the meetings have happened, there is not full satisfaction in relation to the engagement. It is not for us to negotiate rates, etc. I ask the Ministers to urge the NTPF to approach that meeting with an open mind and a willingness to move to resolve this and ease the fears of those at the residence.
At the health committee on Tuesday, the HSE stated that there is an over-reliance on the recruitment of international doctors and nurses. Nearly 40% of doctors and nurses in our health system are from overseas. Without them, our health system would not function. There is an anomaly in our system because undergraduate places for nursing are over-subscribed by 3:1. There needs to be more undergraduate places, particularly for nursing. Obviously, we produce amazing nurses in this country, but most people-----
I thank the Deputy and call Deputy James O'Connor.
I raise the DEIS scheme, which, as the Minister will know, is of huge importance to constituents in my area, particularly in Youghal. We have taken in a very substantial number of Ukrainian refugees, almost 1,000 in the town. There was already significant social need in that area. Is the Government looking at expanding the DEIS scheme further? Youghal very much needs supports for our three local schools that have not received DEIS status - only one got it on appeal - for the students in the local area, our new Ukrainian students and those in the west Waterford side as well.
Deputy O'Connor raised this matter last week and he has been very consistent on it. I have raised that matter with the Minister for Education. I will follow it up and I know the Deputy will do so too. There were some discussions about that at a meeting we had last night also. I will get directly back to the Deputy on that matter and I will keep him informed. The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, will take the other questions.
I thank Deputy Murnane O'Connor very much for her question, which I assume is in relation to the heavy weight of schoolbags for children.
Yes, the bags.
I understand a report has been compiled, but I believe the Deputy should speak to the office of the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, and pass that on. Obviously, it is the Department of Education that will deal with that.
I thank Deputy Ó Laoghaire for his question on Beaumont Residential Care. I also thank him for the manner in which he has raised it on both occasions. It is my understanding that there have been intensive discussions between the NTPF and Beaumont Residential Care. Its contract was extended for one month to enable the negotiations. I know the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, is also in contact with the nursing home. We will now give them the time and space to try to work it out between themselves.
Deputy Gino Kenny's point on undergraduate places is very valid. I know the Minister for Health, Deputy Donnelly, has been working with the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris, to try to secure some additional spaces. I will get him a more comprehensive answer in relation to that.