Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 20 Mar 2025

Vol. 1064 No. 5

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions

Deputy Pearse Doherty

I welcome the UN special rapporteur to the occupied Palestinian territories, Ms Francesca Albanese, to the Chamber. Some 250 UN staff have been killed in Gaza since October 2023. Ms Albanese's presence in the Dáil is especially important as Israel continues its genocidal war on the men, women and children of Gaza. We wish her well in continuing to speak bravely against this atrocity and standing up for the human rights of Palestinians.

Tá dearmad déanta ag an Rialtas ar leanaí a bhfuil riachtanais speisialta acu agus ar a dtuismitheoirí. Dhá lá roimh an toghchán áitiúil, thaistil an iarAire Stáit, Anne Rabbitte, in éineacht le Charlie McConalogue go Leitir Ceanainn chun €3.6 milliún de dheontaisí d’eagraíochtaí i gContae Dhún na nGall a fhógairt le teiripe a chur ar fáil do pháistí a bhfuil riachtanais speisialta acu. Táimid anois 17 mí ón gcéad fhógairt a rinne an iarAire Stáit, ach níl pingin rua amháin tugtha d’aon cheann de na heagraíochtaí seo. Tá sé anois ráite ag an Roinn liom ní hamháin nach bhfuil airgead ar bith ann, ach nach raibh an t-airgead ann ar chor ar bith. Tá sé seo scannalach.

For too long, children with special needs and their parents have been left behind by this Government. We now have another scandal where money to fund therapies for children, promised by the Government 17 months ago, was never released. The parents of children with special needs must battle the State every single day for vital services that their children need. It is a battle they should not have to fight. My own county of Donegal has become a black spot for supports for children with special needs. For years, parents have been forced to go it alone. They are crying out to the Government to get its act together and ramp up service provision for these children.

In October 2023, they thought their pleas were heard. The then Minister of State, Anne Rabbitte, announced the children's disability service grant, supposedly an emergency stopgap Government fund to urgently provide services and therapies for children with special needs throughout the State. One parent who was delighted with the news was Denise McGahern. Her nine-year-old son, Jack Donaghey, has cerebral palsy and is permanently in a wheelchair. Denise has been fighting for physiotherapy and speech and language therapy that he so desperately needs. This money was to be allocated within weeks of the Minister of State's announcement of the fund being set up. Some 52 organisations across the State were to benefit from it. Months later, though, nothing had happened. In June 2024, two days before the local elections, the then Minister of State, Senator Rabbitte, travelled with Charlie McConalogue to Letterkenny to announce the immediate allocation of €3.6 million in funding to provide essential therapies to four organisations in Donegal. Denise was contacted. She was asked if she and her son Jack would attend the announcement. They were included in the photos with the Minister of State. They listened to Anne Rabbitte when she told the media the money would be "an absolute game-changer" for children in Donegal and the surrounding area. They could finally see a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel.

Seventeen months since the Minister of State's first announcement, that light has vanished. None of this money has been released, not one red cent, not in Donegal or anywhere else in the country. I sought answers on behalf of these families and have now been told by the Department that not only is there no money, but this money was never there at all. This is scandalous. I spoke to Denise yesterday. She is devastated. She feels betrayed. She feels that her son Jack was used by the Government as a prop in a photo opportunity during an election campaign. I imagine that parents of children with special needs all over Ireland feel the same: let down, betrayed again. The Tánaiste was Taoiseach at the time. How on Earth did a Minister of State in his Government travel to Donegal to make an announcement of emergency funding to be released within weeks to desperate families when the money was never cleared and did not exist? How did that happen? What is the Tánaiste going to do to make sure the money is released to the organisations so that families such as Jack's can benefit from it?

The Tánaiste

I thank Deputy Doherty for raising the question on children's disability services. I want to begin where he began by welcoming the special rapporteur from the United Nations for the occupied territories to Ireland and thank her for her work. With a representative of the United Nations in our country, I want to join with all Members of this House and with the Secretary General of the United Nations in expressing our deep sadness and shock to learn of the death of a United Nations Office for Project Services staff member when two UN guesthouses were hit in Israeli air strikes. Five other UN personnel were seriously injured and, of course, hundreds upon hundreds of people, including children, have been killed in brutal airstrikes over the past number of days, an utterly despicable situation.

Let me first agree with the Deputy. This money should be released. The Deputy asked me what I was going to do. I am going to make sure it is released. I am going to make sure it is provided. I have spoken to the Taoiseach about this matter at the Cabinet committee on disability on Monday. I agree with the Deputy that this issue needs to be resolved on behalf of parents, their children and organisations that applied in good faith for the scheme. I must acknowledge that the scheme was an innovative and good idea to try to find another mechanism to provide much-needed funding and, as the Deputy says, a stopgap level of funding, to provide vital services. That fund needs to be provided. I regret that this situation has gone on as long as it has. I thank the Deputy for raising the issue and for raising the views of Denise. I am sure there are many others like Denise who rightly want to know when this is going to be resolved.

My understanding is that the HSE launched a call for what is called the children's disability service grant fund back in October 2023. There was a quite a lot of interest, which is probably no surprise to anyone, such is the level of need. Following the evaluation process, the HSE confirmed that projects with a cost of around €8 million have met the criteria for the fund. This now needs to be provided. It is no fault of the organisations involved. I am sure many of those organisations are having to deal with the disappointment and concern of parents. My view is very simple, in that, if an application met the criteria under the scheme, that application should be funded. We need to resolve this urgently. I thank the Deputy for highlighting the issue and am happy to come back to him directly on this matter.

This is one measure we have taken and the funding needs to be provided. The second stopgap - the Deputy called it that, but it is an appropriate phrase while we try to build up capacity - is the initiative we took last year to try to provide additional funding for assessments of need, many of which will be required by many of the families the Deputy deals with in his own work. I am pleased to say that an initiative we put in place to provide funding for private assessments of need where required saw 2,479 assessments of need commissioned from private providers between June and December of last year at a cost of €8.2 million. We have allocated an additional €10 million for that scheme this year.

Deputy Pearse Doherty

Imagine having a child with special needs, the love you would have for them, the fact you would run through a brick wall for them. Imagine having to fight every single day to get the services they need, to live with the stress and anxiety, the worry of developmental delays and the possible impact on their life and future. Imagine being told by the Government - a Minister of State, no less - that help was on the way. Imagine the incredible relief and melting away of some of the stress you had felt for years. Imagine then having that hope that your child was going to get the service ripped away from you and being told the help was never actually coming at all. That is what the Government did. I asked the Tánaiste a question. This is not just a case of saying we will fix it now. What was done was cruel. This parent feels her child was used as a prop. How could a Minister of State announce funding to organisations when the money did not exist? This has been going on for 17 months. The Tánaiste was Taoiseach for the majority of that and he tells me today when I raise it in the Dáil that he will look into it and make sure the money is released. This has been going on for a year and a half. This is only happening because the HSE is not providing the services.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Your time is up, Deputy.

Deputy Pearse Doherty

I will finish on this point. Jack has not had any physiotherapy or speech and language therapy from the HSE for a year and a half even though the Department made a promise in front of that child that he would get the services.

It is scandalous. Where is the accountability? How did this happen under the Tánaiste's watch? When is this money going to be released to these families from these organisations?

The Tánaiste

I am not rowing with Deputy Doherty today. He seems nearly disappointed that I am saying I am going to resolve the matter. He is right to highlight this issue. He is right to call on us to resolve the issue, and we are going to do that. I am not going to stand up and defend something that cannot be defended. A scheme was announced in good faith, people applied, and the funding now needs to be provided. The HSE has a level of funding that is almost eye-watering, and €8 million is a rounding error. The idea that that €8 million, which could make a fundamental difference to the lives of so many children, including in the Deputy's county, has not yet been provided is extraordinarily frustrating. The Deputy asked. I am not commentating on this. I know what I am going to do. I have told the Deputy very clearly what I am going to do. I have spoken to the Taoiseach. He and I are ad idem on this issue. We will have a Cabinet committee on disability, and we are going to resolve the issue and make sure the money flows because the Deputy has outlined the very serious human impact to young children when that does not happen, and I thank him for doing that.

Deputy Ivana Bacik

Almost every day US President Trump is finding new and yet more damaging ways to express his authoritarian style of politics. His policies have already impacted negatively on global measures to tackle the climate crisis. He has torn up the international rules-based order. He is intent on turning the clock back on federal regulation on healthcare, women's rights and equality measures. It is hard to believe that we are just two months into his presidency. What I want to raise with the Tánaiste today is how we in Ireland respond to US President Trump.

First, on the impact of Trump's proposed tariffs, we are hearing that US pharmaceutical companies based in Ireland are already scenario planning for moving manufacturing to the US. Like all of us in this House, many people I represent are employed directly by US multinationals. I am hearing already from constituents who fear they may lose their jobs and who are worried about the impact upon their families and being able to pay their rent or their mortgage. Amid this uncertainty, as we await the detail of Trump’s plans and, indeed, the EU's response, the Tánaiste must give what clarity he can to those who are living in fear. We know that approximately 7% of workers here are directly employed by US businesses, with many more indirectly employed. US companies pay nearly €7 billion in wages here and, of course, make an enormous contribution to corporation tax receipts, so we could not be more exposed in terms of jobs and our economy from the risk of tariffs.

I raised this with the Tánaiste three weeks ago and he accepted my request to brief Opposition leaders on the potential impact of tariffs. I thanked him then, because as was done in the pandemic and with Brexit, there needs to be a flow of information to the Opposition. We hear that the Department of Finance has undertaken scenario planning on tariffs and that needs to be shared. Protecting our economy, our jobs and the people who work in those jobs requires that we work together. I ask, therefore, that the Tánaiste set a date for that first briefing.

I also want to ask the Tánaiste about other aspects of Trump's policies and how we in Ireland can respond. Undoubtedly, Trump is a very tricky character, and his Vice President Vance and, indeed, crypto vice president Musk are really no better. What we are seeing them engage in on the international stage is a sort of wrecking ball diplomacy, aligning themselves with the bullying regimes of Putin in Russia and Netanyahu in Israel. We must stand up to bullies. We cannot seek to appease them at the expense of our Irish values. There are concerning reports from US lobbyists that they received a commitment from Government to all but shelve the occupied territories Bill. That is of particular concern this week when we see the hideous carnage in Gaza with the resumption of Israel's genocidal bombardment.

I also want to join in welcoming the UN rapporteur, Ms Francesca Albanese. I had the pleasure of listening to her briefing earlier. She spoke so powerfully about how we must stand up to, and exert pressure on, Israel and, in particular, how we must pass the occupied territories Bill in Ireland.

Can we have a briefing for Opposition leaders on the threat of tariffs from Trump? Can we have an assurance from the Tánaiste and his Government that they will stand up to Trump and insist that we assert Irish values and pass the occupied territories Bill?

The Tánaiste

I thank Deputy Bacik for the common-sense suggestion she made regarding a briefing for the Opposition. I apologise but with various international travel and the like over the last while there has been a bit of a lacuna. I suggest that on Monday we have that briefing for Opposition parties either with me or, if my diary does not allow, with senior officials because we need to get that flow of information going. I am very happy to do that and to come into this House to keep it regularly briefed and to put a structure in place to make sure the Deputy has access when doing her job. We are highly likely to face a very significant period of turbulence. We have got to control what we can control in terms of what we can do here in Ireland. We have got to work as part of, and as members of, the European Union where, of course, trade policy is at. As the Deputy rightly said, we have to engage with our foreign direct investment, FDI, base that is present in the country.

With regard to the financial analysis or the macroeconomic analysis that is being carried out, my understanding is that it is likely we will see some research published with regard to it this week. What I would say in advance of that is that even in modelling, we are operating with a lot of what they probably call "known unknowns" in terms of not yet having seen the detail. However, sharing the best information available is a sensible thing to do.

I will come back to trade specifically and to tariffs, but on the occupied territories Bill, about which I have spoken to the Taoiseach, he absolutely reiterated the commitment in the programme for Government with regard to legislating in this area. Whatever others wish to say - I do not mean Deputy Bacik - the Government's commitment remains as outlined in the programme for Government in that regard. On the issue of tariffs and trade, the Deputy is right to suggest that this country has a lot of foreign direct investment and with that brings exposure and challenge. That is true. We are also approaching it from a position of relative strength because regardless of politics, there is a reality that many companies are based in this country not for the weather but because it is a good place to do business. It is a good place to access the European market. Many of them have not just years but decades of experience of doing business in Ireland. Regardless of who is in the White House or what policies are pursued, it is a statement of fact that many American multinationals still want to do business in a market with more than 400 million people. I will certainly hear that in my interactions with them on Friday. I will chair the Government's trade forum, which brings together Government Departments, Ministers and relevant State agencies but crucially sectors of the economy and business representative organisations to have that engagement and flow of information the Deputy rightly highlighted.

I hope we can all speak with a team Ireland voice with regard to this. Europe does not want tariffs. I have heard so much misinformation in the last few days on why Europe will not engage. The position of Europe, of which Ireland is proudly a part, is really clear. We want to sit down and reach an agreement. We want to do business with the United States. We want to buy more stuff from the United States. It seems the tactic and approach of the American Administration is to announce a series of measures first and then engage. We believe that is wrong. The engagement should happen now.

Deputy Ivana Bacik

I welcome the Tánaiste's words on the occupied territories Bill. There is a sense, however, that the Government is rowing back on the Bill and seeking to dilute it in some way. It was published some time ago. Indeed, we supported Senator Black in the Seanad. I co-sponsored it with her when I was a Senator. It has achieved such cross-party support. I commend Senator Black and all those who have been pushing for it to be passed. However, we need to just get on with it and pass it. As Francesca Albanese told us this morning, it is really only a small step, but an important one nonetheless, to mark our enormous concern about what is happening in Gaza and what is happening to the people of Gaza and in the occupied Palestinian territories too. I would really look to push the Tánaiste further and get a timeline for that.

I welcome the Tánaiste's offer of a briefing, and Monday would be very good. It is really important that we get information from Government on the likely scenario planning and the prospect of the damage the tariffs are likely to impose. Finally, I welcome assurances I have received from senior figures in US multinationals here that they are committed to staying, and retaining their workforce, in Ireland. That is really important and should also be put on the record.

The Tánaiste

I, too, welcome that. On the occupied territories Bill, my office was in touch with Senator Black yesterday to arrange for me to meet with her. I will come back to the Deputy once that has happened. In the vein of controlling what is within our control, and we can talk about this more when we have our briefing and engagement, it is imperative that we look at what is within our control and what continues to bring jobs and investment to this country, such as competitiveness, refocusing on costs, improving the stock of strategically important infrastructure and, from a public finance perspective, building up a buffer. We were often, not necessarily by the Deputy but by many others in this House, ridiculed for setting money aside for rainy days. People asked why we did not spend it. There are some in this House who believe that because they have it, they will spend it and even if they do not, they will spend it. Thank God we have now set aside money in terms of funds for economic turbulence should that happen. The Department of Finance will set out its updated assessment of the economic outlook, which will incorporate the latest developments in the global economy. It will also have its spring forecast, which will be published next month. However, this is going to require significant attention and engagement from everybody in this House and I, on behalf of the Government, want to work in a constructive way, right across this Chamber, so that we can do our very best for this country in the time ahead.

Deputy Cian O'Callaghan

Tens of thousands of children with additional needs are being failed by this Government.

Some 14,221 children are overdue an assessment of need. New figures released to me show the scale of the crisis for children trying to access essential therapies. At the end of December, there were more than 41,000 children waiting for an initial assessment for speech, language and occupational therapy. The figures for occupational therapy are particularly stark. Of the more than 22,000 children waiting for their first assessment, nearly half have been waiting for more than a year.

Disability services were an issue that the Tánaiste said he would prioritise when he was Taoiseach. The current Taoiseach has said the same thing. Do these shameful figures reflect an issue that has been prioritised by Government? Is it any wonder that parents are at breaking point? Every day, they endure stress and heartbreak watching their children denied the services they need to reach their full potential. In some cases, children are regressing because they are not getting any supports. Parents are having to scrimp and save trying to pay privately for therapy because the only thing that one is guaranteed in the public system is a place on the waiting list. This level of endemic dysfunction is reflective of a broken and failed system.

More and more parents are being forced into litigation to get an assessment of need for their children. The number of legal actions being taken against the State has skyrocketed. In the past five years alone, the State has spent more than €8 million on cases taken by parents who are fighting for an assessment of need for their children. That €8 million would pay the salaries of 180 occupational therapists or 130 psychologists. Imagine the positive impact that would have on the lives of the tens of thousands of children currently on waiting lists. Instead, it is being spent on cases that families should not be forced to take.

We have been told that, when assessments of need do not adhere to legal timeframes, the litigation strategy of the State is not to contest these cases. Given that 90% of assessments of need are being completed well outside of the legal timeframes, is the Government now effectively saying to families that they need to take legal action to get an assessment of need for their children and vindicate their rights?

The Tánaiste

I thank Deputy O'Callaghan for raising what is one of the most serious issues we face in the public service and in the lives of children with disabilities, namely, access to therapy provision and the process they go through to gain that access. To be clear, the waiting lists for assessment of need are far too long. This is having a significant negative impact on the lives of children and their families. I accept the point the Deputy has made and I believe it is the right one, in that we need to look at the system. I accept that is going to require a more detailed debate in the House. It is clear to me that, if we have a situation where an assessment of need is lasting on average 36 hours and in some cases up to 90 hours before a child gets any therapy, even when the therapist carrying out the assessment does not believe that level of assessment is required - I will be very careful lest people misrepresent what I am saying, as children have a legal entitlement to an assessment of need, which I believe is vital and I will always defend and cherish that right - it is the rigidity under which that right is being interpreted with regard to the number of hours over which it must be carried out that is causing a significant challenge. I have spoken to many parents across Ireland on this issue, and there is absolutely no point in my view in a therapist spending one third of his or her working week on assessments rather than providing the therapy, particularly when that professional - not me as a politician - believes that his or her time could be better used in the provision of therapy. We have got to get a better model.

The Deputy is right, in that I said this was an area of priority. It is an area of priority. I have met Cara Darmody, the incredible young teenager from Tipperary. She put it up to me very forcefully, articulately and compellingly that we had to do much better. She also made a suggestion that, in fairness, colleagues in the Labour Party tabled a motion on regarding the use of using private money in the short term. We have done that and have seen 2,479 more children get assessments as a result. It is not enough, though, if we have a situation where we continue to have a child needing 36 to 90 hours of assessment when the parent and the therapist do not believe that that time is needed.

I have engaged with the Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, on this to see how the current system can be reformed because I believe it is clear to everybody that it is not working. I can ream off figures as to extra investment we have made about extra people we have hired and all of that, but that would miss the point. We need to change the system, which I believe will likely require legislative change, where I would like to work constructively in this House to see if we can get to a point of consensus on that. It is not about the right to assessment, which I will defend. Rather, the rigidity stemming from the 2022 High Court judgment is, in the views of the healthcare providers, the single biggest challenge in terms of the waiting times for children's disability services.

Deputy Cian O'Callaghan

What are parents and families to do now? They are at their wits' end. They are increasingly being told that the only way to get the assessments of need that are needed for their children is to take legal action. The State is not contesting these cases, so the State is effectively putting its hands up and saying it is failing to meet the legal needs of children with additional needs. What is the Tánaiste's advice to parents? Is he telling them that the only thing they can do is to take legal action? Is he advising them to take legal action? What does he say the parents who are not taking legal action and whose children are being left at the back of the queue? The Government has been talking for quite some time about sorting this out but when will it actually sort this out? This situation is getting worse. Parents are being forced into taking legal cases they do not want to take. What is the Tánaiste's advice to parents now and when is the Government going to sort this out?

The Tánaiste

That is a fair question but the Deputy would rightly ask me a different question if I came in here and said the State was going to contest the cases, as that would not be a compassionate or decent approach to take on this issue. The law is clear on the 2022 High Court judgment. I am saying three things the parents. First, we need to reform the system, potentially including the law, and the Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, are looking at that. Two, we need to move beyond parents having education over here and health over there and never do the two meet. We have got to implement the programme for Government commitment to put therapy services back in schools, starting with special schools. That process has begun and we are looking to accelerate it. We will be discussing that in our Cabinet committee on disability on Monday. Third, I say to parents that, in the here and now, the initiative I mentioned whereby we are using private capacity and that saw over 2,470 children getting assessments last year who would not otherwise have got them will have its level of funding increased this year to over €10 million.

Deputy Cian O'Callaghan

So parents should take legal cases to access that. Is that what the Tánaiste is saying?

The Tánaiste

That is not what I am saying.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

I call Deputy Connolly.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

Gabhaim míle buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle. Táim ag díriú isteach, a Thánaiste, ar an gcinedhíothú atá ag tarlú. Agus muidne i mbun cainte, tá cinedhíothú ar mhuintir na Palaistíne ar siúl. Táimid ag fáil na mílte aighneachtaí, gach Teachta Dála anseo, ag cur brú orainne ceannaireacht a thaispeáint agus rud a dhéanamh de réir ár mbriathar. There are many things I would like to engage with the Tánaiste on today but the ongoing genocide is uppermost in my mind, our colleagues' minds and, more importantly, in the thousands of emails that we are getting imploring us to do something in addition to our sweet words.

There is total disregard of international law by Netanyahu, the Israeli Government and its army. This is a body of international law that was developed to ensure that the very slaughter we are witnessing would never happen again, yet we are seeing scenes of horror and destruction in Palestine that were described by the UN rapporteur this morning and by an Irish doctor yesterday. In the past three days, we have seen the ceasefire ended unilaterally by Israel and an invasion by air and land. There are bombs dropping on defenceless civilians. We do not know the figure, but it is ranging up to 1,000 persons, 70% of whom are women and children. Of course, we have been told by the UN rapporteur that that is the ratio since the day Israel started its genocide. This is despite Israel being under a legal obligation by the highest court in the world to dismantle the occupation by the end of this year. We are not seeing that but an escalation in the violence and the genocide and we are openly informed that they are back to finish the job, back to ensure that no Palestinians will be left on Palestinian land. The people who are there are surviving among the dead bodies of their families and their people. There is no water, no energy, no hospitals and they are being starved to death, and we talk. What is Ireland doing? Along with our sweet words, we are actively colluding with genocide and with the slaughter of innocent people.

The Tánaiste

We are not.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

I know it is difficult for the Tánaiste to hear this and I ask him to please not waste his reply, if he could, in telling me how grateful the Palestinian people are to us. I know that he is going to tell me that because I have been told it repeatedly.

Of course they are grateful and of course we should be proud that we recognise Palestine. That is the bare minimum we should be doing faced with a genocide.

Deputy Neale Richmond

We are doing much more.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

What we could do is end the military use of Shannon Airport. At the very least use the legislative powers that are there to stop the transit of arms being reported on a regular basis by The Ditch. During the previous Government, Eamon Ryan told us there would be an inspection regime. I understand that is gone by the way. The leader of the Labour Party has welcomed the occupied territories Bill. I also welcome it, but I do not trust the Government parties. I absolutely do not trust them on the occupied territories Bill.

Deputy Neale Richmond

What is the point?

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

I ask the Deputy to conclude.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

They could stop the trade agreement that Europe has with Israel. They could end the Central Bank issuing war bonds, and the Tánaiste might explain about the American Jewish committee that the Taoiseach met in America about the next steps of agreement. Please clarify that.

The Tánaiste

I am so sick and tired of the Deputy misrepresenting my position and demeaning all that we do as sweet words. I would really love - I am not sure I would actually - if some time she were in Brussels with me at some of these meetings where we are working extraordinarily hard on these issues. She could ask any other member state, or indeed the Israeli Government, if they feel Ireland is not taking action to support the people of Palestine. She asked me not to talk about what we have done in terms of recognition so I will not. I will tell her five things we are doing.

First, we are actively involved in the International Court of Justice case. That used to be the Opposition's demand. We took that decision as one of only a small number of countries to intervene in a case in the international court. At a time when international courts are coming under attack from others, we are proudly standing with the international courts and speaking up for international law. That is something I am proud we are doing. That is an action; that is not sweet words. I presume the Deputy recognises the importance of international courts. That is a practical measure.

The second thing we are doing is providing significant humanitarian aid. My colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, has responsibility for this. Today we have trucks in Jordan with enough aid for 6,000 people in Gaza. Those are practical measures taken by the Deputy's constituents and mine to fund and pay for aid. We need to get that aid into Gaza but it is a practical measure. It is not sweet words; do not be so flippant.

The third thing we are doing is supporting UNRWA. The Deputy should talk to the director general of UNRWA and ask him how supportive this Government has been. Not only have we provided €38 million at a time when others have walked away and walked off the pitch from UNRWA, we have provided €38 million on behalf of the people of this country. I have also announced in my role as Tánaiste a further €20 million in support to keep UNRWA working in Gaza and the Middle East. That is a practical measure and not sweet words, or the flippant point the Deputy made

. The next thing we have done is work with Arab countries. I have met the minister of Jordan, the minister in Egypt and the Palestinian Prime Minister in recent weeks in Munich and Johannesburg. I have met these people and we are supporting the Arab plan for reconstruction. We are saying to people, including the United States, that we see their plan on the displacement of people from Palestine as utterly unacceptable and in breach of international law. We want an alternative plan for Gaza that sees no role for Hamas, a brutal and illegal terrorist organisation. I am sure the Deputy will agree with that. However, it sees the reconstruction of Gaza and a new governance and security arrangement in place. That is the fourth thing.

The fifth practical thing we are doing is engaging to advance the commitment in the programme for Government to legislate on the occupied territories. Those are five practical measures that do not include the recognition of the State of Palestine, and that we are taking to help them. They are not sweet words, but real action. You know what?; diplomacy is tough. It takes real action. In fact, if anyone is talking sweet words, it is only the Deputy.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

I would prefer to stay in silence at the Tánaiste's failure to respond-----

Deputy Neale Richmond

Come on.

The Tánaiste

Sure, the Deputy does not trust me.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Please.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

-----in recognition of the genocide that is taking place in our name.

The Tánaiste

So dismissive.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

The words the Tánaiste is not using are "genocide in our name".

Deputy Neale Richmond

All the Deputy wants is words.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

The Tánaiste has refused to condemn the genocide. He has refused to condemn Trump and the American Government for fully backing genocide. We have called out Russia for its illegal invasion. We have supported the Tánaiste on that, and he has utterly failed to call out what Israel is doing. They are ignoring all international law. They are committing genocide in our name while he talks about silly words-----

The Tánaiste

It is not in our name.

Deputy Neale Richmond

That is shocking.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

-----in our name.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Deputies, please.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

Thank you, Leas-Ceann Comhairle.

The Tánaiste

It is a disgraceful slur. It is not in our name. How dare you.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

Stop using Shannon Airport to carry destructive weapons. Enact the occupied territories Bill immediately. Stop trade with Israel. End the export of dual-use products.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

I ask you to conclude, Deputy Connolly.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

The interruptions by all of the Government Members are a measure of their absolute absence of realisation of what is happening on the ground. It is easier to join in with a Tánaiste who is utterly failing to answer the questions. Can he please go back to the committee that the Taoiseach met when he was in America-----

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Deputy Connolly, I ask you to conclude, please.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

Commitments were given, and it was reported in the paper that agreement was made-----

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Deputy Connolly------

Deputy Catherine Connolly

I was interrupted.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

And I have allowed you over time.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

Thank you for that. I appreciate it. What was agreed and what commitments were made?

The Tánaiste

The Taoiseach is entirely correct to meet representatives of the Jewish community, as do I. Antisemitism is disgusting and despicable. There are hostages who have been taken from the people and families of Israel and they need to be freed. The carry on of Hamas is utterly despicable, parading children's caskets like some sort of sick, twisted act of propaganda. Hamas needs to be condemned and we here in this Government will always engage proudly with the Jewish community at home and abroad but we will also speak the truth. We stand up for international law. We utterly condemn the actions of the Netanyahu government.

Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh

Do something on the settlements.

The Tánaiste

We condemn it. If the Deputy wants to talk about genocide, read our submission to the ICJ.

Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh

Act on Shannon.

The Tánaiste

It must be exhausting to think the Deputy, and she alone, carry responsibility and care for this. We care passionately and we are acting. I am proud of the actions of the Irish Government, and so are many people across the country and so is the government of Palestine.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

We now move to Questions on Policy or Legislation. Will Deputies leaving the Chamber please do so in an orderly fashion? Yesterday we had a stampede to the exit gates. I would prefer if they were to do it quietly and orderly.

Deputy Niall Collins

Are we supposed to fly?

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Deputy Collins wants to know if he is supposed to fly. Try it.