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689. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has undertaken a review of the operation, uptake and effectiveness of the croí cónaithe above the shop scheme; if barriers to participation, including ownership structure requirements and refurbishment costs, have been identified as factors affecting application levels; and if he will make a …

690. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of enquiries, applications, approvals, refusals and completed projects recorded by each local authority under the croí cónaithe above the shop scheme since its establishment; the total value of grants approved and paid in each case, in tabular form. [39308/26]

691. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to state the total cost of the development levy and water connection waiver for each year it has been in operation to date; and the number of homes each year for which the waiver has applied with a breakdown by local authority area. [39320/26]

693. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason there are currently no guidelines for industrial solar complexes; and when these guidelines will be established and implemented [39436/26]

694. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Question No. 346 of 14 May 2026, to provide a brief description each under subhead and programme level outturns. [39474/26]

695. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the current position in relation to the construction of a new project in County Laois (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39507/26]

696. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the newly established invasive species bureau, formed between the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, and the National Biodiversity Data Centre (NBDC), have a role in policy decisions regarding the management of invasive freshwater fish species in Lough Corrib SAC, County Galway; and if he will make…

697. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason Irish freshwater catchments were never designated as 'cyprinid' under Article 2 of Council Directive 78/659/EEC, considering that his legacy department introduced S.I. No. 293/1988 - European Communities (Quality of Salmonid Waters) Regulations, under Council Directive 78/659/EEC, which designated …

698. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the works that will be undertaken this year and planned for 2026 on a restoration project (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39574/26]

699. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of septic tank inspections carried out in each local authority area in 2024 and to date in 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39618/26]

700. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number and percentage of septic tank inspections which failed due to risks to drinking water contamination, groundwater contamination, river pollution, structural defects, maintenance failures and desludging failures respectively, in each of the past five years. [39619/26]

701. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of septic tank advisory notices which remain unresolved for more than six months, one year and two years respectively, by local authority area. [39620/26]

702. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether his Department maintains a national database identifying septic tank failures located near private drinking water wells or public water catchment areas. [39621/26]

703. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of enforcement proceedings initiated by local authorities arising from septic tank inspection failures in each of the past five years. [39622/26]

704. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of prosecutions, fines or legal enforcement actions taken arising from unresolved septic tank inspection failures since 2020. [39623/26]

705. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether any public health risk assessment has been conducted regarding septic tank failures in areas dependent on private wells for drinking water. [39624/26]

706. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total funding allocated and drawn down under septic tank remediation grant schemes in each of the past five years, in tabular form. [39625/26]

707. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether his Department has assessed whether current septic tank remediation grants are sufficient to cover full remediation costs in rural Ireland. [39626/26]

708. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether any review is planned of the National Inspection Plan for Domestic Wastewater Treatment Systems in light of the continued septic tank inspection failure rate exceeding 50%. [39627/26]

709. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing; Local Government and Heritage whether consideration is being given to introducing Irish-specific statutory guidance on toilet provision ratios in public buildings rather than reliance on external British Standards. [39742/26]

710. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing; Local Government and Heritage whether building control authorities are provided with any national enforcement guidance regarding assessment of compliance with sanitary provision standards under Technical Guidance Document G [39744/26]

711. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing; Local Government and Heritage whether any national audit has been conducted into compliance levels for sanitary provision standards in public entertainment venues. [39745/26]

712. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing; Local Government and Heritage whether the Department maintains statistics on complaints relating to inadequate toilet provision in public buildings. [39746/26]

713. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to respond to matters raised in correspondence (details supplied); if his Department will intervene directly in this case; if his Department is aware of such issues in other local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39841/26]

714. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he will introduce staged payments for the derelict properties grant. [39875/26]

I congratulate Deputy Charles Ward on tabling this motion in the House. I am aware of the tremendous work he has done on redress and I want to acknowledge that here today. This motion goes to the heart of trust between the State and the homeowners affected by defective concrete. The defective concrete grant scheme allows foundations to be retained under IS 465:2026 but the research behind the sta…

Gabhaim míle buíochas leis an Teachta Ward. Bíonn sé i gcónaí ag caint faoin ábhar tábhachtach seo. Bím ag éisteacht leis agus cloisim an bród atá aige as Tír Chonaill. I have visited some of them in my own capacity since we last spoke about the issue in this Chamber. Some of the houses in the northern part of my constituency have faced concrete defects and other issues. I welcome the Deputy's mot…

The Select Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage has completed its consideration of the Housing and Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2026 and has made amendments thereto.

When IS 465:2026 was introduced, I welcomed the intent behind it but had reservations about how it might be interpreted by engineers. Reading several reports tells me I was correct. I reference one report where a house was given a group 4 classification, indicating the worst possible level of structural damage, with widespread deterioration and a clear finding of evidence of chemical damage. There…

I will raise an issue in respect of Woodlands, a housing estate in Portlaw, County Waterford. At the moment, water is provided through developer-provided infrastructure. This is costing the residents in this housing estate a lot of money. They obviously want to be connected to the public infrastructure. That will come at a cost. Catherine Burke, a councillor in the area, has been engaging with Iri…

One of the most basic responsibilities of a Government is to keep water in the taps and keep the lights on, yet in County Meath our water infrastructure is that of a developing country. County Meath towns are regularly without water and new housing estates are being delayed as a result of the water infrastructure. I know of one housing estate that has to wait more than a year for Uisce Éireann to …

I propose to take Questions Nos. 21 to 37, inclusive, together. I note the announcement of the resignation of the Uniter Kingdom Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, earlier this week, and acknowledge the very significant role he has played in resetting the Irish-British relationship, as well as relations between the United Kingdom and the European Union, during his time as Prime Minister. Since Prime M…

I am glad to have speaking time in this debate. I was born in 1982, so I spent much of the 1990s in primary school and secondary school, finishing up in 2000. During all those years the schoolyards were, I think, tougher places than they are now. I was a teacher before I became a TD and I think the school I taught in was quite soft and inclusive. However, certainly when I was in school, you shot i…

I welcome the visitors to the Gallery. First of all, it is a real privilege to be a gay man because you are navigating a world that was not built for you. I think most LGBT people have a heightened sense of empathy because you know, for example, that many people around the world do not have the human rights which many of us - including myself, as somebody who is privileged enough to live in Irelan…

I commend the Minister of State on bringing this Bill to these Houses. I want to make one point about the Oireachtas AI committee. Unfortunately, as the Minister of State knows, this was a Bill that did not go to the Oireachtas AI committee; it went to the Department of enterprise committee. This is not within the Minister of State's gift but I do not believe this is the last time in these Houses …

Good man, but paper does not mean that you have got it in front of you. If you have the pen in front of you, that is what makes the difference. A lot of the time I do not come into this House with paperwork because I do not want it to be shown that it was AI-generated. What you are looking at when you look at me is me. What comes out of my mouth is what I researched myself. I have never used AI. …

I welcome the Bill. Regulation in this space is perhaps more important than any other regulatory Bill we will pass in this House this year. Any new technology poses problems, difficulties, challenges and threats and, undoubtedly, that is true of artificial intelligence. It does not mean we cannot regulate to protect ourselves and it does not mean we cannot put measures in place to protect ourselve…

This is serious legislation. The complexity involved in it is there for all to see. By virtue of the Minister's opening address and on any examination of the Bill, we can see just how complex this law has been in bringing it to the floor of the House. Understandably, there has been a lot of frustration among the sector owing to the delays in bringing a Bill like this to the House.

Last week the Minister accused the Labour Party and, by implication, myself of being anti-Dublin Airport and anti-growth. He knows me and the Labour Party better than that. This is a far more complex issue than he purports or presents it to be. I know where I stand on the airport, and my record stands up in terms of representing airport workers at all grades and all levels through the Covid pandem…

Thank you very much. To get back to Dublin Airport, I am delighted the airport is doing well but as regards climate emissions, the climate action Bill was supported by the Deputies on my right. They brought in that Bill. Where are most of the people who are landing here going? They are not staying around Dublin, are they? They are travelling throughout the country. Where are the carbon emissions w…

There are serious spatial development problems in this country. The Minister is long enough around these Houses to recognise that, and he should recognise it. A demographic change that has accelerated in recent years has been one of population moving from the west coast to the east coast. Currently, 40% of the population lives in the greater Dublin area. The GAA did a very good report recently on…

This is the seventh year I have showed up to vote for something which I profoundly disagree with. I believe fully in a trial by jury. Ordinary citizens should be able to sit in judgment. When the State accuses somebody of a serious crime, one of the strongest protections we possess is the right to be judged by our peers. Yet, seven years in a row I have voted for something I disagree with. This ye…

I thank all Deputies across the House for their contributions to the debate. I will not disagree with many of the arguments they made. While some progress has been made recently, it is absolutely fair to say that the current level of access to dental and orthodontic services is not where it needs to be. It needs to be improved. I know this from the various contributions that have been made tonight…

The Deputy and anybody who has served in a local authority will be aware of prescribed bodies that are consulted in terms of what is coming before the local authority. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has consented and confirmed that the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality will now be one of the prescribed bodies to be notified by local authorities of a planning a…

As I previously outlined, there was a clear understanding. The Department is very clear, based on correspondence and the understanding it had received previously from its sister Department, that ECCE-only services were exempt from paying commercial rates under paragraph 10 of Schedule 4 of the Valuation Act 2001. Notwithstanding that, it is not within the gift of the Department to set commercial r…

It is important to confirm again that we need to take this step by step. We are currently engaging with the Department of housing, the Minister for housing and the Attorney General to see if there is any avenue to resolve this matter in the context of current legislation.

The ongoing delay in the delivery of the N8 is emblematic of wider delays in the delivery of bus services. I refer in particular to my constituency. The B spine route has been delayed. A judicial review is ongoing and I understand is that is coming to an end. Large numbers of new houses are being built. The Minister and I were at the opening of new estates over the past number of years. Additional…

The Tánaiste cannot seriously make up his own facts. He has twice said that it is a fact that the majority of tenancies are effectively subject to a no-fault eviction ban. That is not true and I think the Tánaiste knows that. This provision only applies to new tenancies and not existing tenancies. It also only applies to tenancies with large landlords. Please stop making stuff up. I know it is ver…

It is not helpful for the people at home or those in the Gallery for people to shout me down. The reality is that I speak for the Government in his House today and, as its leader, I speak for the Fine Gael Party. We will follow our policy agenda, which is clearly published, while the Deputy will come into this House and continue to oppose and object every positive measure that we bring forward. O…

The Tánaiste said local authorities cannot be trusted or depended on. That is an outrageous statement. It is the centralisation of power in the Custom House that has weakened the ability of councils to build new homes, prioritise children in homelessness and tackle dereliction. The measures the Tánaiste spoke of regarding security of tenure are completely undermined by the market rent reset mechan…