It was announced yesterday that on New Year's Day, the Government will introduce a road toll increase, the second in six months. The Government started kite-flying about this during the summer. It is madness that the Government would go ahead with this increase. People rely on the roads to get to work, to bring kids to school and to attend medical appointments in different parts of the country. In particular, people from more rural areas do not have an alternative as of yet to private transport or the use of a toll road. At a time where the cost of living is really hurting families and indeed business, this is not a time for such a hike in road tolls. A bit of common sense is required here. Could the Taoiseach ensure that the toll increases set for January do not go ahead?
Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation
The toll increases are linked to inflation. It is part of the contracts that we have with the toll operators and, in some cases, the companies that built the roads. We have done a deferral in the past, paid for by the taxpayer, but that is something that can only be done on a temporary basis. If it is Sinn Féin's position that it is going to breach these contracts if Deputy McDonald becomes Taoiseach, she should say so because that would be a significant matter legally and would probably open the country to very significant compensation claims at the expense of the taxpayer. It is important that at some point that the Deputy clarifies Sinn Féin's policy on this because there are lawyers listening to what she says in a way they did not in the past and her words could really cost this country money.
So is that a "Yes" or a "No"?
I call Deputy Bacik.
Last week, I raised the Labour Party's campaign for paid leave for women who experience pregnancy loss and for employees accessing reproductive healthcare. Today, I want to raise a related matter.
After a strong campaign from the Irish Cancer Society and affected women and their families, the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, committed to bringing legislative proposals to Cabinet before Christmas to support pregnant women who experience serious illness. At present, women in such a situation must use up their maternity leave to cover treatment. It is really welcome that the Minister agreed to act on this, but we still have had no sight of the proposals, and time is running out before the Christmas recess. I have been contacted this week by women who are affected by the current lack of legislation. We do owe it to them to resolve this issue. Could the Taoiseach provide a timeline for a legislative amendment to ensure that women have their full maternity and sick leave entitlements in such situations? Being mindful that we are up against it on time, will this proposal come before Cabinet in advance of the Christmas break? The Irish Cancer Society, in particular, is very anxious about this.
I do not know the timeline but I will check in with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman and come back to the Deputy directly on it.
The Government's Green Paper on disability reform is shameful and will further marginalise disabled people. Although couched in language of care, in reality it will demonise people and blame them for Government failure. Under the proposed plans, people with disabilities will be subjected to a medical assessment and categorised into three tiers based on their ability to work. The plan attempts to rationalise this by highlighting that Ireland has the lowest rate of employment for disabled people in the EU, but at no stage does the document identify the reasons. The lack of State services and supports are the primary reason so many disabled people are cut out of educational opportunities and the workforce. If the Taoiseach wants to do something in regard to disability, why does he not provide disabled people with adequate services and supports, introduce a weekly cost of disability payment that actually reflects the significant costs set out in the Government's own report, and ratify the optional protocol?
The time is up.
There will be a protest outside the Dáil tomorrow. People are calling for this plan to be scrapped. Will the Taoiseach listen to them?
I may be incorrect but I understand this is a social protection matter, which the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is managing at the moment. I think this is only a discussion document or something at that level. It is not actually a proposal at this stage so of course we will listen to people who have views and submissions on it.
Among the things that we have done to encourage more people with disabilities into the workforce are grants for employers to install equipment, subsidies to employ people with disabilities, setting a higher target for public bodies to employ people with disabilities and giving people with disabilities the assurance that they will not lose their travel pass or medical card should they take up a trial of employment.
The Deputy is correct that there are statistics that indicate Ireland has the lowest level of employment of people with disabilities. I would like to drill down into that, quite frankly. I do find it a bit strange that some countries where disabled people can barely get around at all perform better than us, for example in eastern and southern Europe. I think that should be drilled down into a bit further.
The Taoiseach's speech at COP28 was a cop-out. He had a golden opportunity for Ireland to take a lead, like when the Dáil declared a climate emergency and banned new fossil fuel exploration. Instead, he made a vague to meaningless call for a planned reduction in fossil fuels. He told a journalist that he supports carbon capture and storage. Environmental activists and scientists know that carbon capture and storage and all the weasel words at COP28 about unabated fossil fuels are just the latest ploy by big oil and gas to keep spewing out carbon while the planet burns. Will the Taoiseach stand with scientists, environmental activists and the future of humanity and commit Ireland clearly to a complete phase out of all fossil fuels? Will he stand with those who will join protests this Saturday at 12 noon, starting from the Bord Gáis Theatre? Will he announce Ireland's support for the fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty or is he going to continue to stand with those like the COP president and oil company CEO, Sultan al-Jaber?
The position of the Irish Government is that we want initially to phase down fossil fuels and then phase them out. It is a realistic one, which understands that we will still need to use fossil fuels for a period ahead, but not forever, and it does understand that in ten, 20 or 30 years, technologies that may not be viable now may be viable in future and carbon capture and storage may be one of those. Provided that the carbon and greenhouse gases do not go up into the environment, they do not contribute to climate change so if carbon capture and storage proves to work and to be viable in the future, we should not close it off as a possibility. There is a long-standing tradition on the far left of rejecting new technologies and it has been proven wrong time and time again in that regard.
Like what? What is the Taoiseach talking about?
I call Deputy Shanahan of the Regional Group.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle.
The Luddites for a start.
Could we please have order?
They were not hard left.
The Luddites were right.
Exactly.
The Luddites were correct.
The Taoiseach does not know his right from his left.
I rest my case. The Luddites were right. I thank the Deputy.
The Luddites were actually correct. They were workers standing up against an increase in their work practices.
The Taoiseach does not know his right from his left.
Please.
They were in favour of technology, but for the people.
Deputy Shanahan should proceed.
I want to return to a question I asked the Taoiseach back in March. The Government has built up expectations that South East Technological University, SETU, will meet the south-east region's need for a university by adding capacity and new programmes to halt the region's long-standing brain drain. The last three programmes for Government in 2011, 2016 and 2020 specifically prioritised the development of higher education in the south east.
It is more than surprising, therefore, that no new teaching buildings have been commenced in Waterford this millennium, let alone during this Dáil term. When laying out his capital plans for SETU recently, the Minister, Deputy Harris failed to mention the long-promised engineering build PPP. This is most surprising considering the 15 years of intermittent announcements since 2008 concerning this project. The Minister has spent recent months on a veritable Santa Claus tour, doling out hundreds of millions of euro to the national university sector, but no buildings to SETU. Is the higher education PPP bundle 2 that is supposed to deliver the 15-year promised engineering build to Waterford dead in the water. If it is not, when will it be approved?
It is definitely not dead in the water. Negotiations are ongoing and we want to get those projects under way, particularly in SETU, but we want to get a fair price for the taxpayer as well. Sometimes negotiations take time. As we are talking about Waterford matters, I am sure the Deputy will acknowledge that this has been a good week for investment in Waterford. There was a significant announcement regarding funding for Waterford Airport to allow the runway to be extended and direct flights between Waterford and the UK to be restored. There was also the announcement today of an additional €3.3 million for Walsh Park county GAA grounds in Waterford. This represents a total allocation of €7 million. This is a Government that, at least this week, has made two major investment announcements for Waterford and the south east.
The long-promised and long-awaited Garda station for Clonmel is going on and on. We have never had such low numbers in the Clonmel-Carrick on Suir district. It is a shocking situation and morale, like everywhere else, is low in An Garda Síochána who do an excellent job with the numbers they have. We have talked about this with the Minister for Justice, with the Taoiseach, former taoisigh and former Ministers. We have the site and planning and we have been debundled from the Prison Service children's court. All we are waiting for is the funding announcement to get this badly needed project for the town of Clonmel completed. It would also be good for Superintendent Ruane and all the members who work there. They need a modern, fit-for-purpose station, not the Dickensian one they have at the moment. The Taoiseach has seen it. It is in terrible condition and is not fit for animals, never mind for humans to work in. When are we going to see this started?
The project was part of a wider PPP project with Macroom and Hammond Lane family court complex in Dublin. Those projects have since been separated so Macroom and Clonmel are now progressing separate to the court. That progress will continue. Money has been allocated and construction will begin next year.
I welcome that the Cabinet has agreed to hold two referendums on International Women's Day next year, although the detailed wording will have to be scrutinised. When is it intended to hold referendums on the Thirty-fifth Amendment of the Constitution (Water in Public Ownership) (No. 2) Bill 2016 and the right to housing? The water in public ownership legislation has been buried on Committee Stage since March 2018. That is five and a half years we have been waiting for it to move on.
In a letter to me in November 2022, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, stated that he would bring forward definitive proposals to Cabinet in early 2023. We are now two weeks away from the end of the year. In the meantime, I am very concerned of the creeping privatisation of Uisce Éireann as it recently announced the appointment of Mott Macdonald, a management, engineering and development consultancy headquartered in the UK, on a five-year supplier framework for the provision of capital works, project management and office services. Does the Government intend to hold the referendum on water in public ownership before the next general election?
A referendum on water ownership remains Government policy. We do not yet have a date for it. I want to reiterate that there are no proposals from the Government or, I think, any party in the House to privatise Irish Water. The fact that Irish Water has given the contract to a private company is hardly creeping privatisation. Some 100 years ago, the ESB gave a contract to Siemens to build Ardnacrusha. Come off it now.
Government policy on providing accommodation for Ukrainians arriving here and for those seeking international protection is not working. Some would say is not fit for purpose and there are those who would describe it as a shambles and a disgrace. Those who arrive here are not being accommodated. Residents and local communities are not being consulted. Business people involved in providing the accommodation are not being paid and their applications are not being processed in an efficient way. There are no answers forthcoming from the Department. In fact, the Department does not reply to Members of the Oireachtas in an efficient way. Public consultation is represented by a one-page email to local TDs who raise questions on the matter. Deputy McNamara wrote a fine article in one of the national papers recently. I believe we need to have a debate on this. What is the Taoiseach going to do to make the Department more efficient and more responsive to local communities?
I respectfully disagree. In the past two years, 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing war have come to our country. More than 70,000 of them have been accommodated by the State. There are some 14,000 Ukrainian children in our schools and between 15,000 and 16,000 Ukrainians working in our economy and contributing by paying tax and PRSI. I know it has not been a perfect response but when people look back in ten or 20 years on what we have done as a country, they will be proud of what we have done. That is not to say that it is perfect and yes, it can be improved. Part of the improvement will be the creation of community engagement teams to talk to people on the ground. These will be headed by Ms Eibhlin Byrne, a former Fianna Fáil Lord Mayor of Dublin and someone the Deputy knows well. We will also staff up the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. This was a relatively small Department, with very few staff only a few years ago. It is now a pretty massive Department and it is doing a great job.
BusConnects is bringing many positive changes to the city. However, the residents of Chapelizod have expressed their concern to me because six routes that go through the village are becoming one. Other areas such as Bluebell are seeing a similar level of disconnect. I do not know how we will get people out of cars to meet our climate ambition unless we give them a meaningful bus service. Will the Government instruct the NTA to ensure that no community is left behind or cut off? There should only be positive changes. Will the Government instruct the NTA to meet residents to find a way forward so that six bus routes becoming one does not leave Chapelizod cut off?
As the Deputy knows, large aspects of BusConnects are in planning. We expect decisions from An Bord Pleanála quite soon - in the next few weeks and months. The power to direct the NTA, to the extent that it exists, lies with the Minister for Transport. He is in Dubai at the moment but I will let him know that the Deputy raised this so that he can take it into account. As people know, the whole idea around. BusConnects is to have direct routes that are much more frequent. The bus arrives quickly every couple of minutes and people get into town much more quickly. In some cases, that will mean that people might have to walk a bit further, maybe ten minutes instead of seven or 15 minutes instead of three or four. The idea is that because the bus service will be so frequent, people will get on the bus quicker and get to and from town much quicker.
I have frequently raised the issue of the need for the regeneration of housing in the inner city. I think we all agree that the inner city complexes are in a dire state of neglect. While many are earmarked for regeneration in the coming years, there needs to be more urgency. Dublin's public realm also needs to experience regeneration. Recently, I met several business owners and residents from Temple Bar thanks to Mr Stephen Kennedy of Copper and Straw coffee shop on Arran Quay. I recommend that the Taoiseach drop in there for a coffee to see the daily chaos in that area. It is a constant battle for the people in the area doing business. What vision has the Government for public realm improvements and regeneration?
Following the riots and the scenes we saw the week before last in Dublin, my Department met with representatives of Dublin City Council and a number of business representative groups. We have agreed to provide funding to the council to immediately invest, which has already started, in the public realm in the inner city. Dublin City Council is leading on this, but it has multiple partners working with it to try to turn around some of the negative publicity and negative momentum that came from those scenes and to build up to Christmas in a much more positive way.
Obviously, a medium- and longer-term investment is required. The Government has invested and will continue to invest in the north inner city in terms of a rejuvenation programmes, working with communities and businesses.
The south inner city is equally chaotic.
I want to raise the issue of ward 2D in Cork University Hospital, CUH, which is the HSE's largest hospital. Ward 2D is a haematology and burns unit. It has beds, seven of which are for leukaemia patients. That is ten beds to serve the entire region of Cork, Kerry and Waterford, so capacity is the first problem. These are also some of the sickest patients in CUH. Unfortunately, ward 2D has not changed in well over 40 years. The situation is so bad that when new patients are admitted, the care team has to assess the existing patients to see which are least at risk of infection so they can be moved to other areas in the hospital. The consultants and nurses are incredible but they are working in 1970s conditions. This has to change. There is a proposal for a 60-bed cancer building, the Glandore suite, in CUH. My first ask is that this would be included in the 2024 capital programme and that construction would commence as soon as possible.
I am familiar with CUH but not ward 2D. I know some people who have been treated recently for leukaemia between CUH and St. James’s Hospital and they are very complimentary of the quality of healthcare and the competence of the staff there. I appreciate the infrastructure is very much out of date and, sadly, that is the case for many of our hospitals. In regard to the particular capital project that the Deputy mentioned, I will have to speak to the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, about it but we are keen to get as many new capital projects under construction next year as possible.
I again want to raise with the Taoiseach the legislation on lone parents and the treatment of child maintenance for social welfare payments. This is not complex legislation but it is now a year since the child maintenance review group reported. It is very short legislation. Given lone parents and lone-parent families are consistently at the top of the table when it comes to the highest rates of deprivation, the highest risk of poverty and the highest consistent poverty rates, this should have been prioritised. We have a week left in the session but the timelines have come and gone. When will this legislation be introduced and passed for lone-parent families?
I understand it is out for circulation among Departments at the moment. I had hoped, and still hope, that it could be done as part of the Social Welfare Bill before Christmas. If not, there will be a second Bill in the new year.
Seven weeks ago, Storm Babet hit east Cork. The following day, the Taoiseach, the Ministers, Deputies Coveney and Ryan, the Tánaiste and other Ministers came down to offer support but now we need a lot of money. At least €50 million is needed to fix the roads, many of which are still not open and are impassible. There has been a lot of support for businesses and homes, and we are very thankful for that, but the roads need work. Will the Taoiseach talk to the Departments of transport and housing regarding urgent funding to get that work done and also to speed up the flood relief scheme?
I appreciate that the severe weather has caused significant damage to public infrastructure, not just in Cork but in Waterford and other parts of the country. The process is that the relevant councils cost it, the cost gets double-checked by the Department of Transport and the OPW, and a special allocation is then agreed by the Government. It will be a special allocation on top of existing funding. That is what we did for Donegal when it had severe weather and it is what we will do for Cork as well.
Retained firefighters provide fire and first responder emergency services 24-7 to our communities. I thank County Wexford members for their unwavering dedication to their job. Their recent industrial action has successfully led to an agreement on improved conditions, improved rosters and a guaranteed minimum incremental retention income of €18,000, along with an increase in the number of recruits. Will the Taoiseach give a fixed date for when the retained firefighters will be paid their promised incremental retention income? When will the recruitment be completed? Will it be this year?
I do not know. I am glad that we have come to that agreement with the retained firefighters. The Government will act in good faith in terms of implementation. When it comes to timelines, I will have to check with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and ask him to come back to the Deputy directly about that.
Last Thursday, the jury at the inquest into the death of Caitríona Lucas, a Coast Guard volunteer, returned a unanimous verdict of death by misadventure. The jury were told that it was not open to them to return a verdict of unlawful killing. The case contained a number of very disturbing features and the Coast Guard and the Department have a lot of questions to answer. I asked parliamentary questions about evidence that appeared to be missing. They were not answered on the basis that there was an inquest under way, yet the coroner at the conclusion of the inquest noted that that evidence was still missing. The Coast Guard delayed the investigation by the Heath and Safety Authority, HSA, arguing that the volunteers who were putting their lives on the line were not employees and, therefore, the HSA had no remit to investigate. At the conclusion, the family were very critical of successive Ministers for Transport, including Deputies Varadkar and Donohoe, for failure to implement safety recommendations in 2012.
When you are around a while, you begin to recognise a cover-up, and a State cover-up has a particular whiff. This stinks. Will the Taoiseach organise a statutory inquiry into the death of Caitríona Lucas to make sure this never again happens to another volunteer in Ireland?
Obviously, I am familiar with the sad death of Ms Lucas and I remember it very well. I want to extend my condolences to her family and friends, the wider community and the other Coast Guard volunteers. I do not know all the facts of this. Coroners act independently of Government and I am not going to make commitments here on the hoof. I will certainly speak to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, about it and ask him to reply to the Deputy directly.
I believe there is a logjam in the Department of Education and I want to use two examples. Mullaghoran National School has been approved for a special educational needs, SEN, base. It was approved in March 2022 and has progressed to stage 2B but the principal there is at her wit’s end and totally frustrated waiting for that next piece where it can move to tender. She has been trying since very early on this year but has gotten no further. The second example is Bailieborough Community School, which was approved to almost double its footprint. It is bursting at the seams due to the success of the teaching staff there. It badly needs to move from stage 2A to stage 2B but, again, it appears that it has been long-fingered by the Department. Anything that can be done to assist the Minister, Deputy Foley, and to ensure she has the resources in the Department to allow these projects to move on would be deeply appreciated.
The Department of Education has been allocated a very considerable capital budget for next year, mostly for new schools and school extensions. I think it is in the region of €1 billion; it is certainly several hundred million euro. As is often the case, there are many more projects that we need to progress than we currently have funding for. I know the Ministers, Deputy Foley and Donohoe, are aware of the problem and are working on it. I am as keen as Deputy Smyth to see many of these projects under way in the early part of next year.
Earlier this year, the Taoiseach said the survivors of thalidomide and their parents deserved an apology but he stopped short of giving that apology on behalf of the State. As he will be aware, the Australian Prime Minister apologised unreservedly last week. There are approximately 40 survivors of the drug, thalidomide, in Ireland. The Irish Thalidomide Association, ITA, said that 62 years is too long for full redress. Finola Cassidy of the ITA, a spokesperson and survivor, said: “We dare to dream Ireland will follow suit and allow us long overdue closure”. Are they going to get an apology and when are they going to get closure?
I noted what the Australian Government did, and I know the Australian Government has a scheme in place to provide additional compensation to thalidomide survivors in addition to the compensation that they currently receive. This Government would be very happy to match what the Australian Government has done, both in terms of an apology and also in terms of a compensation scheme. Unfortunately, we are not there yet. I would like to do it but we are not there yet. The indication I have is that if we did exactly what Australia did, quite a number of the survivors would not accept it, it would be rejected and they would have legal cases against the State, which is unfortunate.
Not everyone says the same. There are different groups representing different survivors of thalidomide. There are different solicitors and individuals involved. However, I am happy to state the basic principle that we would be happy to match what the Australian Government has done as regards an apology and a scheme but only if it is acceptable to the survivors.
I again raise the question of the so-called vulture funds that are proceeding at a rapid pace to repossess people's homes and businesses in a way not seen before. From their point of view, there is a great urgency to capitalise on the situation given that house prices and property prices are so high, even though the borrowers have kept up regular payments over a number of years. The lenders are now using obscure legislation to sell people's homes and businesses without having to go to court or to take any other measure. Could the Central Bank be asked to intervene or to evaluate the situation?
The Minister, Deputy McGrath, is very much apprised of this situation and is very concerned about it. We have all come across cases of people who have been paying their mortgages and who have a perfect payment record but whose mortgage has been sold to a non-bank lender and who now face very big increases in interest rates they would not have faced had the mortgage not been sold on. It is difficult to know what the solution to this is within existing law and regulations. The mortgage tax relief in the budget will help but it will only help a bit. We are currently exploring possible solutions but they have to be solutions that do not do more harm than good in the round.
We are out of time but I will take a 30-second question from each of the two remaining Deputies.
Pension parity for retired members of An Garda Síochána exists and sees pension increases being paid in line with increases awarded to serving colleagues. Parity will expire with the current agreement at the end of the year. It has been in place since the sixties. Retired gardaí are not directly represented and rely on the Garda staff associations and the Alliance of Retired Public Servants to articulate their concerns at the talks. Will the Taoiseach ensure that pay parity for retired gardaí is maintained within the public sector pay agreement?
I wrote to the Minister for Transport on Wednesday, 8 November, asking for members of the Opposition to be briefed on the detail of the exemptions being granted under the Air Navigation (Carriage of Munitions of War, Weapons and Dangerous Goods) Order. Over two weeks later, having not received even an acknowledgment from the Minister, I put down a parliamentary question to see if it would get him moving on this urgent manner. The question was answered on 22 November but the response did not answer the question, only promising an answer within ten days. That deadline has now passed too. It has now been four weeks and the Minister cannot answer a simple question as to whether he will brief Members on the flow of weapons through our territory. It is apparent that no inspections are being carried out. As we watch Israel raze Gaza to the ground and indiscriminately murder civilians and journalists using US-sponsored weapons, it is pathetic that the Minister cannot see fit to brief Members. Does the Taoiseach believe this is good enough?
On Deputy Conway-Walsh's question on Garda pensions, talks are under way between Government and the public sector unions with a view to achieving a new public sector pay and pensions agreement. I do not want to comment on those talks, for obvious reasons, but they are under way and I will certainly make the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, aware of the particular issue the Deputy has raised.
On Deputy Pringle's question, I will follow up on the matter. It is important that he gets a reply. He is a Member of this House and should get a reply in a timely manner, as should all other Members. I will ask my office to follow up on that. I will again state that there are no flights from Shannon to Israel or the occupied territories and that we are not aware of any weapons passing through Shannon.