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680. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage for an update on the instruction to the NPWS to consider a suite of options for the control of cherry laurel; when he expects the NPWS to report back with a determination of the most appropriate measures; whether a public consultation will be held on the matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29…

681. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the current status of the fire services Bill; will this Bill move to the next stages. [29688/26]

682. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department is engaging with local authorities with a view to giving rates relief to childcare facilities given these facilitates are now being required to pay commercial rates even though they are providing an essential service to the community, and as a result of this additional cost many of them will not …

683. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to confirm if he has received an application for the interim remediation scheme by an owners' management company of apartments and duplexes (details supplied); if so, the works that are planned and/or the works that have been carried out to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29754/26]

684. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if the new Shannon bye laws will require commercial operators to get a licence to operate a commercial activity on the waterway; and if there will be a fee to obtain this licence. [29762/26]

685. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if Waterways Ireland will review the waiting list for the Grand Canal Dock; and the number of persons that currently have a boat on the waterway and who applied to be on the waiting list in the past five years.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29763/26]

686. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if Waterways Ireland will provide a break down on the amount spent on an annual basis for the past five years with PR and communication companies in preparing for appearing at Joint Oireachtas Committees. [29764/26]

687. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the rationale for linking rent increases in the first two years to CPI for new build, purpose-built student accommodation, with no 2% cap where the development commenced after 10 June 2025, as outlined in the National Student Accommodation Strategy 2026–2035; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2…

688. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the financial support, assistance or grant aid that can be accessed via his Department or at local authority level funded by his Department, that persons can access in order to assist with discoveries of items and or remains of cultural and historic significance (details supplied). [29982/26]

692. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether an assessment has been carried out at national level of the impact of invasive plant species, including those affecting dune and coastal systems, on erosion and coastal protection; whether Dublin Bay and areas such as Dollymount Strand and Bull Island have been included in any such assessment; and if h…

693. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the measures currently in place to monitor, control and manage invasive species in coastal and dune habitats in Dublin Bay, including areas such as Dollymount Strand and Bull Island; the agencies responsible for carrying out this work, including the role of the National Parks and Wildlife Service and local aut…

694. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the level of funding allocated in 2024, 2025 and 2026 for the management and control of invasive species in coastal areas, including Dublin Bay, by year and programme, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30152/26]

695. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the national policies, strategies or programmes in place to address the spread of invasive species in coastal and dune environments; the way these are coordinated with coastal protection and climate adaptation measures; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30153/26]

696. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of families in emergency accommodation for more than 12 months who have exited emergency accommodation since September 2025, by local authority, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30180/26]

697. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether management companies hold responsibility for drainage; where these responsibilities lie; and the relevant section of the relevant Act. [30232/26]

698. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when the Local Authority Regional Homelessness Financial Reports for 2025 will be published on his Department's website; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30242/26]

699. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total number of appeals lodged to date relating specifically to downgraded remediation options under the defective concrete blocks scheme; the number of such appeals in each county, , including a separate identification of Donegal; the number of such appeals submitted in each month since the establishment of…

700. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total number of appeals relating to downgraded remediation options that have been withdrawn to date; the number of such withdrawals in each month; the reason recorded in each case for withdrawal; whether the reason for withdrawal is recorded as a mandatory field in all cases; and if he will make a statement …

701. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of applicants who, having initiated an appeal in respect of a downgraded remediation option, subsequently opted to pursue a technical review instead; whether such cases are included in, excluded from, or separately classified within appeal statistics; the number of such cases currently recorded; the s…

702. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total number of appeals relating to downgraded remediation options determined to date by the appeals panels; the outcome in each case, including the number overturned resulting in an upgrade in remediation option; the number upheld; the number remitted for further inspection or reassessment; the average and …

703. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of appeals relating to downgraded remediation options currently awaiting determination by the appeals panels; the length of time each such appeal has been awaiting decision, categorised, by time bands; if he will confirm that this figure excludes withdrawn appeals and cases where applicants opted for …

707. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide details on all open EU infringement proceedings where the subject of the infringement relates to the functions of his Department; the reason the infringement proceedings were initiated; the procedural stage of the infringement proceedings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30271/26]

708. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the possibility of a local authority purchasing a property (details supplied) under the tenant in situ scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30302/26]

709. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount of funding being allocated under the tenant in situ scheme per local authority for 2026. [30303/26]

711. Deputy Charles Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the rationale for maintaining separate cost calculation methodologies for the defective concrete blocks grant scheme and SEAI energy upgrade grants; whether this separation explicitly excludes energy efficiency upgrades from the DCB scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30310/26]

Early childhood education and care in Dublin Fingal West is no longer a gap in planning. It is a failure of prioritisation. Dublin Fingal West has one of the highest concentrations of private childcare provision in the country, yet one of the lowest of community childcare provision. That imbalance has not happened by accident. It is the result of the State stepping back and leaving provision to th…

This has been a very informative debate. It reflects the nature of how our committee has worked. If we think about our role as legislators, our responsibility is towards the safety of our citizens and those who live here. It is about equipping people to be able to deal with the challenges that we face in our lives and in our workplaces. It is about supporting innovation and creating an environment…

I wish to advise the House of the following matters in respect of which notice has been given under Standing Order 39 and the name of the Member in each case: Deputy Michael Cahill - To discuss the national planning framework and the sustainable rural housing guidelines Deputy Shane Moynihan - Plé a dhéanamh ar stádas DEIS do Ghaelscoil Lir. Deputy Peter Roche - To discuss review of SNA deploym…

I thank the Minister of State for his response. Like my colleagues, I commend the work of Deputy Rice in the lead-up to this motion and in presenting a motion which, as Deputy O'Callaghan said, is not opposed. We still have as many questions as we have answers about the implementation of the motion. The irony, as we all truly know, is that you have to plan two or three weeks in advance if you nee…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House today. I thank the Social Democrats for raising this very important motion. The average GP to patient ratio in south Kildare - the area I represent - is 1: 3,163, the fourth highest in the country. Not a week goes by that I do not get somebody in my office asking for a GP. A lot of this has to do with people who have come from Dublin and other parts of …

Our GP system is at breaking point. Every community in the country feels that. People cannot get appointments. Many cannot afford to see a doctor when they are sick. We need more GP training places, fairer supports for struggling practices and real action to keep doctors in local communities. If we want to fix healthcare, this is where we should start. I will highlight a very serious issue affect…

The dark shadow cast by what was done to children in Ireland's industrial and reformatory schools is a horror with which our country has never fully reconciled. Indeed, it may be impossible to do so. The scale and depth of the abuse, violence, hurt and life-lasting trauma suffered by victims has rippled and reverberated for decades, sometimes as quiet as uncertain as a whisper, sometimes powerful …

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak for the Labour Party in today's important and historic debate. I welcome the Taoiseach’s apology, which marks an important step in Ireland’s recognition of our shameful history as a society and of our appalling treatment of women and children over so many decades. It recognises that far too many of our people were incarcerated in reformatories, industrial…

I, too, welcome Mary, Miriam, Maurice and Mary to the House today, together with your family members and supporters. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to meet you this afternoon. I understand that days like today are particularly difficult for you and your families because hearing an apology can bring back such painful experiences. I also recognise how important this moment is in ackn…

Today is an important moment in facing up to a traumatic time in our history. This State was established with the intention of moving away from the cruel and harsh regime that vulnerable children experienced in workhouses. However, after independence many of these vulnerable children remained in the workhouses, which were renamed as county homes. Others were put into orphanages, industrial schools…

I very much welcome the Government's apology today to the survivors of abuse in residential institutions. This apology builds on the State's apology to all victims of childhood abuse made in May 1999 and also takes into consideration the 2021 apology to survivors and former residents of the mother and baby institutions. This apology comes as we reflect on one of the darkest chapters of our histor…

From 21 September to 10 November 2025, Mary Donovan, Mary Dunlevy Greene, Maurice Patton O'Connell and Miriam Moriarty Owens were forced to go on hunger strike outside this building for 51 days and nights in an attempt for justice. They slept on the streets outside this House in appalling conditions and weather. Their meagre possessions were stolen in what is supposed to be safe Dublin. They did i…

The Select Committee on Transport has completed its consideration of the following Revised Estimate for Public Services for the service of the year ending on 31 December 2026: Vote 31 - Transport. The Select Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development has completed its consideration of the following Revised Estimate for Public Services for the service of the year ending on 31 …

It has been said multiple times before, but I must refer to the anger out there about those who have coined it in the IPAS disaster that this State has stood over. I agree with Deputy Carthy. We would all have preferred to see what would have been a lot cheaper from the point of view of the State’s coffers, that is, the public provision of necessary accommodation. I accept there were issues of Sta…

I move amendment No. 19: In page 26, after line 30, to insert the following: “Cap on daily expenditure for international protection accommodation 14. (1) The Minister shall, by regulations made under this Act, prescribe a maximum amount that may be paid per person per day by the State in respect of accommodation provided to applicants for international protection. (2) Regulations made under su…

I will come to that. The Minister of State should not worry. In respect of the debate, the Government decided the format of this debate. Because it tied us into the EU migration and asylum pact, in respect of which there was a deadline, everything else in terms of the consideration of this Bill has been put to one side. We are now in a situation where this debate is being rushed, guillotined and t…

I accept that the price of rent puts a lot of pressure on people, particularly young people, and that is why we are working very hard to increase supply. There were 36,000 house completions last year. The most effective way to deal with rent prices and moderating them is by means of supply. The Deputy knows that but what is Sinn Féin's response? It is to oppose housing applications and to oppose …

I acknowledge the HSE capital plan that was announced today by the Minister, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, and the Government, particularly the investment across all of our tertiary hospitals, but also in primary care. One particular primary care centre in my constituency, which I campaigned on as a councillor, is the Rathmines primary care centre. It is being co-located on a site where Dublin…

I fully appreciate and endorse the need to ensure all special education policies are child-centred and designed to assist young people thrive in school and help them to reach their full potential. That is why the Government has provided more special education teachers and more SNAs, doubled the number of special classes, opened 16 new special schools in the last five years and massively increased …

I thank Sinn Féin for bringing the motion forward. I welcome the fact there will be statements on this in the Dáil tomorrow. I welcome any parents, SNAs or students who are in the Gallery. The Minister and Minister of State will appreciate this has been a significantly difficult two weeks for SNAs, school communities, parents and children with additional needs. I have met and spoken with a number…

I welcome that the Minister went into reverse gear at the last minute last night in the wake of threats of large protests. Members of this House and councillors, certainly Independent Ireland councillors, have received emails on this issue from various parents all over the country, including those in my own constituency, from Ballincollig to Whitechurch and from north Cork to east Cork to west Cor…

We have heard a lot today from all sides of the House. I know there are Government representatives who respect the role of SNAs and have engaged with them. We have heard a lot about the various things they do. So much of this hinges on the idea of primary care, the limitations there have been and how that has constrained the approach the Department has taken. We know the many ways in which they ar…

A grids package was announced on 10 December. It gives the Government the green light to move away from the first-come, first-served model that gives rise to rampant data centre expansion that has displaced the delivery of housing and transport and led to the hiking up of energy prices for households. The Commission stated, "In areas with long waiting times for grid connection, the first-come, fir…

We discussed this particular estate before. I will go back to something the Deputy mentioned that I did not get to answer - the Minister of State was answering - in relation to the North-South interconnector. There will be no further reviews. We have had four independent reviews. The North-South interconnector needs to proceed as planned and as consented to in the North and in the South. We have g…

I appreciate that. Possible solutions for the housing estate have changed many times. Initially, the heating system was fed by biomass. It was then changed to gas but then the invasion of Ukraine sent gas prices through the roof. It is a deeply inefficient system in places and at times, and while there have been some attempts at improvements, we need a long-term solution. I welcome the fact the S…