I welcome the Minister of State and thank her for coming in. Before the Minister of State answers Senator McGahon's question, I have to read out the matters submitted.
I have received notice from Senator John McGahon that, on the motion for the Commencement of the House today, he proposes to raise the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Education to make a statement on the provision of additional primary education places for south Dundalk, County Louth.
I have also received notice from Senator Tim Lombard of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to make a statement on the development of a new national strategy for women and girls.
I have also received notice from Senator Lynn Ruane of the following matter:
The need for the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to make it a mandatory requirement for companies to make annual public disclosures of the greenhouse gas emissions arising from their activities in the State.
I have also received notice from Senator Mark Wall of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to launch a nationwide campaign to highlight the damage being caused to the environment by illegal dumping.
I have also received notice from Senator Malcolm Byrne of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht to make a statement on the introduction of a universal basic income for artists.
I have also received notice from Senators Fiona O'Loughlin and Catherine Ardagh of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Health to allocate funding to the HSE for the roll-out of IVF treatment through public hospitals.
I have also received notice from Senator Timmy Dooley of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Education to address the shortage of secondary school places for sixth class students in Ennis, County Clare.
I have also received notice from Senator John Cummins of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Health to make a statement on the timelines for the capital build plans for a multidisciplinary early intervention and respite care centre for children with complex additional needs on the grounds of St. Otteran’s Hospital, County Waterford.
I have also received notice from Senator Jerry Buttimer of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Health to review the role of public health doctors.
I have also received notice from Senator Mary Fitzpatrick of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Education to make a statement on arrangements for the junior and leaving certificate examinations in 2021.
I have also received notice from Senator Gerard Craughwell of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Foreign Affairs to provide an update on the provision of an overseas allowance for Irish citizens who represent Ireland as secondees to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, OSCE, special monitoring mission to Ukraine.
I have also received notice from Senator Emer Currie of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Transport to provide an update on the development of the N3 to N4 link road.
I have also received notice from Senator Annie Hoey of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Higher and Further Education, Research, Innovation and Science to make a statement on the impact of Covid-19 on placement availability for social care students in the 2020-21 academic year.
I have also received notice from Senator Lynn Boylan of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to provide an update on the annual transition statement for 2020.
I have also received notice from Senator Robbie Gallagher of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to make a statement on the implications of the Flemish decree judgment for the national planning framework and county development plans.
I have also received notice from Senator Rónán Mullen of the following matter:
The need for the Minister for Health to make a statement on the Covid-19 vaccination arrangements for elderly retired members of a religious order in the care of a nursing home maintained by that order. Details have been supplied to the Minister.
The matters raised by the Senators are suitable for discussion and I have selected those raised by Senators McGahon, Lombard, Ruane, Wall, Byrne, and O’Loughlin and Ardagh, who will be sharing time, and they will be taken now. The other Senators may give notice on another day of the matters that they wish to raise.