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765. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views on the existing requirements for new hires in local authorities to start at the lowest end of the pay scale for any role; his views on whether this may act as a disincentive for candidates to apply for these roles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11672/26]

766. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views on the existing hiring policy within local authorities that requires new hires to start of the bottom of the pay scale for any particular role; his views on whether this acts as a barrier to unfair competition compared to internal hires; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11673/26]

767. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views on whether it is appropriate for objections or submissions in relation to localised public infrastructure to come from individuals or organisations that do not live or work in the area impacted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11674/26]

768. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views of the adequacy of the existing public submission aspect of the planning system; his views on whether it should be more targeted in terms of who any potential change will most impact; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11675/26]

771. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has received any applications or requests to any section of his Department or State body under his aegis, for funding or financial collaboration from private investors with regard to an ice hockey arena in Cherrywood, County Dublin; if so to provide full details including amount of public funds bei…

773. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if consideration would be given to introducing measures to assist people to downsize, in view that many homeowners are unable to maintain larger homes and wish to downsize to smaller property; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11752/26]

774. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to give an update on the establishment of new urban community task force as outlined in Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025-2030; the date of the first meeting of the task force; the proposed membership of the task force; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11753/26]

777. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to revise planning application fees for An Coimisiún Pleanála, and resources for the planning system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11756/26]

778. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to give an update on Action 2.8 of Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025-2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11757/26]

780. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to detail the role of his Department and role of the NSAI in interpreting building regulations and standards; the final arbiter of interpreting regulations and guidance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11760/26]

781. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to reform and expand eligibility for the secure tenancy affordable rent scheme; the timeframe for any proposed change; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11761/26]

782. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of local authority-owned residential properties in County Kilkenny that are currently vacant, by the length of time each property has been vacant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11786/26]

783. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the average length of time taken by Kilkenny County Council to return a vacant local authority dwelling to use; the main factors contributing to delays in doing so; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11787/26]

784. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding the total level of Exchequer funding spent by his Department on funding NGOs, by organisation, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11801/26]

785. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding the total level of Exchequer funding spent on funding NGOs by his Department, in each of the years since 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11819/26]

786. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding the assessments that are carried out to determine the level of Exchequer funding that any NGO receives from his Department on an annual basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11837/26]

787. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding any direct lobbying he has received from any NGO in relation to his annual funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11862/26]

788. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the projects, if any, which he has designated under s.20 of the Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Act 2024; the dates of their designation; and to supply a copy of the designations. [11888/26]

789. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if consideration has been given, in the formulation of the National Planning Statement and its guidance on short term letting (STL), to the position of properties that operate as short term lets but are unlikely to transition to long term residential use, in particular second homes where the owners use the prop…

790. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he is aware that Fingal County Council is encouraging local authority tenants who are on the transfer list to "see alternative private rented accommodation through HAP"; if he believes that this is in line with Government policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11912/26]

791. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the current operation of the Land Acquisition Fund, including its objectives, eligibility criteria, governance arrangements; and the process by which local authorities may apply for and draw down funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11920/26]

792. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of applications which have been made to the Land Acquisition Fund by local authorities in each year since its establishment; the number which have been approved; the average time taken from application to decision; and whether any applications were refused or withdrawn; and if he will make a statement…

794. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the systems in place to agree performance metrics of chief executives of agencies within the aegis of his Department; the way in which these are measured; the person or body that carries out the assessment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11962/26]

795. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the timeline for the transfer of responsibility for the Multi-Unit Development Acts 2011 to his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12017/26]

796. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to improve oversight of the owners' management company sector; to introduce a regulator for the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12018/26]

I thank Deputy Ward for raising this matter. I had the pleasure of meeting the Raphoe Community Playgroup during a relatively recent visit to Donegal. It keeps in touch with me directly, as I know it does with Oireachtas Members from Donegal. I see the Minister of State, Deputy McConalogue, in the Chamber as well. I know it also keeps in contact with the Taoiseach, the Minister for children and th…

I thank Deputy Neville for raising this matter. He is right that it is a major priority for us in government. In the programme for Government we have outlined 21 specific commitments on childcare. My constituency in Wicklow it is not too dissimilar to Deputy Neville's constituency in Kildare in terms of a very fast-growing population of people. They are pleased to see the reduction we have made in…

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the statements on education. Education is the great equaliser: it has the power to break down barriers, lift communities and, most importantly, to give every child the opportunity to reach their full potential. However, for too long, our education system has been held back by chronic underfunding, inequality and a lack of ambition or vision for schools. …

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 George Lawlor - To discuss the urgent need for a school gymnasium at a secondary school in County Wexford (details supplied). Deputy Michael Cahill - To discuss the provision of emergency funding for the N70 Ring of Kerry road. Deputy …

I want to raise with the Minister of State today the issue of the immigrant investor fund and the difficulties faced by a number of charities as a result of delays in funding. I thank him for coming to the House today. All too often, we do not get the responsible Minister in the House. It is very welcome that he is here today to answer questions. A charity in my home constituency of Wicklow, St. …

I again thank Deputy O'Sullivan for his contribution. I appreciate the sincerity with which he has raised this issue. We are committed to responding positively to it. My understanding is that Cork City Council's allocation for second-hand acquisitions in 2025 is €20 million. At the end of April, it had drawn down €6.9 million or 34% of its allocation. The Cork County Council allocation for second-…

I thank the Minister. I also thank Deputies Ó Snodaigh and Byrne for doing so much work on the Bill beforehand. I have come to the House to offer a welcome and support. I have not yet had the opportunity to see the details of the general scheme but, taking the Government at its word, it certainly seems like what the Minister has done in the first number of months in his role is positive in terms …

I thank the Deputies for their contributions. As the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, stated at the beginning of the debate, the assignment of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General as auditor of RTÉ has broad support across the House. It is one of the key recommendations of the expert advisory committee on governance and culture in RTÉ chaired by Professor Niamh Brennan. The programme for G…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachtaí who contributed. I thank the Minister and Minister of State for their responses. While I appreciate everything we received from the Minister and Minister of State this evening, there is a simple thing being lost with regard to the Bill that has been presented. The Bill simply puts RTÉ accounts under the oversight of the Comptroller and Auditor General. There is n…

I have been going back and forth on this with Uisce Éireann since I was a councillor. I appreciate that it checked the system for an update prior to this coming to the floor, but there is still no update available for the residents, and the residents have now moved it on to the CRU also. For background, there are six homes in Ellen’s Court in Rush. Arthur Brett was the first to move in on 19 Sept…

I thank the members of the Independent Technical Group for bringing forward this very important motion. The first motion I brought to this House along with my party regarded young carers, so it is positive to see Members continuing to highlight the issues impacting family carers. During the general election, disability and care were central policy areas. I am glad to see that it continues to be a …

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion. I appreciate that the Minister is supporting it. The means test for carers is mentioned in the programme for Government. I have seen many cases where people's sons or daughters went from the west to Dublin or wherever else and when they came home to mind their parents they were not allowed to get the carer's grant because they had a house in Dubl…

Look at it overall and look at the context. Across the European Union and many western economies, they are having this dilemma in the mismatch of housing demand and supply. In a European Union context, Ireland is probably doing more than most in increasing housing supply.

We are back to the heckling because the Deputies do not like the answers. I believe in public sector investment. We have provided 48,000 social houses alone in the last four years. We have the highest level of social housing provided by any Government in over 20 or 30 years. That is a fact.

We exceeded our targets in Housing for All, with more than 30,000 houses over the last three to four years. That is a fact, but it is not enough. We need private sector investment. Deputy McDonald calls it vulture funds. We need institutional funding in the country to supplement the State-level investment. That is the problem. In the last election, Sinn Féin had proposals that would screw first-ti…

There is not a week that goes by that I am not contacted by a parent seeking access to childcare. On Monday, 1,500 new childcare places were announced nationally, funded under the national development plan's building blocks extension grant scheme. These places, at a cost of €25 million, include 18 much-needed places in Dublin West. This Government is delivering but it needs to keep delivering. Giv…

Today marks day two of the protest by Cara Darmody, aged 14. She is again outside the gates of Leinster House and, for as long as the Taoiseach and his Government are breaking the law and leaving children behind, Cara will protest, as will many others. She is not going away. The Taoiseach met her this morning. From what I hear, he made no commitments and no progress with Cara. The Government is no…

On Monday, we learned that average rents nationally have now surged beyond €2,000 per month, a new all-time high. Renters in different counties are seeing shocking rises. Limerick, for example, has seen yearly increases of more than 20% on rents. The Taoiseach said earlier that housing is all about supply and we, of course, agree. However, he has accused the Opposition of having no new ideas and n…

I also welcome the pupils from Kilrane National School. I hope they will learn something from observing the activities in the House and also from the rich history and heritage that the House has to offer. I agree with Deputy O'Sullivan that the time is now for the suspension of the agreement because Article 2 is not being complied with. All human rights have been abandoned. The weaponisation of a…

It is not often the Government gets things right when it comes to housing, but in the case of the tenant in situ scheme it was working. What does the Government do when something is working in housing? It moves the goalposts. South Dublin County Council has seen a significant cut on the 2024 expenditure on the tenant in situ scheme. The Government has imposed significant new restrictions on tenan…

If the Government is serious and sincere, it will back our Bill and stand with Palestine. If you are really serious, Tánaiste, about recognising and respecting the convictions of the people of Ireland, if you are serious about doing everything as you say within your reach, and if you are serious about ending the clear barbarism that we watch every day in Gaza and indeed in the West Bank, you will …

Night after night on our news channels we see the devastation as bombs rain down on the innocent civilians in Gaza. Aid has only begun to trickle into Gaza after 11 weeks without anything, and we are told today that this is only six aid trucks. It is only a drop in the ocean of what is required and what this state was used to before the bombardment started. As a country that recently commemorated …

This is a very important debate and one that is very close to my heart. I have spent quite a lot of time in the occupied territories in Gaza and in the West Bank. I have eaten iftar with friends in Hanunas. I have sat down with people in Rafah, Gaza City and other cities such as Nablus and Ramallah in the West Bank. This is a centuries old conflict. It is not something we will resolve quickly or a…

I speak not only in condemnation but in deep outrage at what we are witnessing in Gaza. More than 53,000 Palestinians have been killed over the past 19 months, children have been bombed in their homes, hospitals and shelters, starved due to the denial of aid and treated as pawns in a brutal campaign that flies in the face of every principle of international humanitarian law. Entire families have b…

I add my voice to the many voices in this House and the thousands of the voices around the world condemning the Israeli Government on what is legitimately described as a calculated, ethnically-cleansing slaughter of the Palestinian people. Israel is demolishing their homelands and denying them their true birth rights. Before the eyes of the world, Israel is systematically demolishing Gaza zone by …