2025-12-17

Two weeks ago, I asked the Taoiseach two questions. I asked him, first of all, whether the Government would vote against Mercosur when the vote comes to the European Council, and I asked him whether he would work with like-minded member states to form a blocking minority against this ruinous deal. He failed to answer either of those questions. I would now like him to make the Government's position clear because the vote is scheduled to take place in Brussels tomorrow. There is a chance of securing a blocking minority. France, Poland and Hungary have stated they will vote against the deal. Italy wants the vote postponed. I want the Taoiseach to be clear at this juncture because it is now time to be straight with people. Will the Government vote against the Mercosur deal at the European Council meeting - yes or no?

First of all, there is huge uncertainty as to when that vote will be taken. It was meant to be taken last Friday and was not because, as the Deputy said, a number of countries were anxious that it be postponed. The Deputy referenced Italy and France. The Irish position has been that we have been working with like-minded countries in respect of Mercosur, in terms of-----

To block it.

-----first of all making sure there are substantial safeguards, which have happened. The situation has changed since last year. What the Commission has now brought forward is different. That has to be acknowledged. The European Parliament voted for the additional safeguards. We said we would continue to work with like-minded countries on this. We have concerns with this agreement.

To achieve what?

To get the best outcome for Irish farming.

To vote against it.

No, we have 18 Deputies.

I asked the Taoiseach whether he would vote for or against. He has not elucidated a clear response.

I wish the Ceann Comhairle, all her staff and everyone across the House a very happy Christmas. There is a chronic shortage of pathologists to carry out post-mortem examinations in Ireland and pathologists are withdrawing from the post-mortem service as they are not contractually obliged to provide post-mortems. The Minister for justice will be aware of this due to an internal briefing paper. This Christmas in Limerick, unfortunately, we will have no pathology cover between 23 December and 29 December. Anybody who dies in that period where an autopsy is required will not be able to be buried until the autopsy is complete. This will cause unnecessary additional grief and upset for families. It could delay a funeral by up to ten or 12 days. When will the standing committee established in the Department of justice to examine this issue conclude its work? When will a new model for the service be agreed and implemented?

I acknowledge what the Deputy said. There is a challenge here. There is a shortage of pathologists all over Europe. It is a significant challenge. I know the Minister is doing everything possible to try to deal with the situation and the challenges that have arisen from this. He will continue to use every lever that can be used to ensure we can cover and provide the service that is required.

Yesterday, the Taoiseach did not answer my party leader, Holly Cairns, on whether an emergency winter payment for people with disabilities would be provided. Instead, he said the Government wanted to embed permanent changes to payments, but it has not done that either. The Government has instead slashed the income of some of the most vulnerable people in this country by €1,400 before those permanent supports were ready. It has also plunged more disabled people into poverty to face a grim Christmas. They are already the cohort with among the highest deprivation and poverty rates in the country and among the lowest employment rates in the developed world. It is not too late to admit this was wrong and to do something about it, so I will ask again. Will the Government introduce an emergency €400 winter payment for disabled people and commit to introducing a permanent cost-of-disability payment in the new year?

I did answer that question yesterday. There seems to be a standard line from the Deputy's party spokespeople that their first line is, "You never answered the question I asked you." The bottom line, which I have been very clear about, is that the once-off payments we did during the Ukraine-Russia war-----

So, he is ruling it out.

It is not a back and forth, Deputy.

Will the Deputy let me speak, please? It is not fiscally sustainable that we would have €3 billion to €4 billion every year in once-off payments across the board on needy situations. We are concentrating on embedded change in terms of domiciliary care going up by €20 per month, a 20% increase in disability services and the largest ever increase in the threshold governing the carer's allowance. That is real change that will last and sustain.

This will be real change.

On the cost of disability, the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Dara Calleary, is working with organisations to do the due diligence and the hard work of formulating an approach for a cost of disability, which will inform next year's budget. I made all of that clear yesterday.

Children's disability network teams of health and social care professionals provide services to children and young people aged 18 with complex needs. These interdisciplinary teams include professionals like occupational therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, dieticians and social workers. The objectives of the teams are to support a child's development, well-being and participation in family and community life on the basis of an individual family support plan. All of these are necessary and essential. However, the teams based in Clonmel are almost non-existent and the service is almost non-existent. There is no occupational therapist, no psychologist, no physiotherapist and no dietician on the team. These children are obviously being failed by the HSE and the Government. Can the Taoiseach give any indication as to when the vacancies on these teams will be filled and the service provided?

There has been a national recruitment campaign in respect of CDNTs. The vacancies have reduced significantly but there are still vacancies, and I acknowledge that. Parallel with that, we are developing the school therapy service, which will help in time when special schools in particular will have multidisciplinary teams as a result of that initiative. We have provided an additional €20 million this year in terms of people accessing private services and we have also continued to allocate for additional recruitment of therapists to the CDNTs.

Fox overpopulation devastates rural Ireland. Lambs and chickens are torn apart in a horrific fashion leaving farmers traumatised and livelihoods at risk. While the Bill frames hunting as cruel, unchecked fox population often inserts far greater cruelty to the livestock population. Hunting is often the only humane way to flush foxes from an area. If we ban this particular issue, it may push farmers into more difficult ways in terms of poisoning, snarls and so on. We need to protect farmers in rural Ireland, and I believe we should not support the Bill that will force farmers into other ways. There is a significant issue of overpopulation of foxes.

We have had a two-hour debate on the proposed Bill to ban fox hunting this morning. I have clearly outlined that the Government intends to oppose that Bill.

I have a really important question to ask the Taoiseach on behalf of all the parents, carers and children across Ireland, especially my two children at home in Meath, Liam and Hannah. We have had lots of special and important visitors to Ireland throughout 2025 but our most important one will arrive here on 24 December, Christmas Eve. I would like the Taoiseach's personal assurances that our airspace will be clear for Santa, Rudolph and all of his reindeer to allow them to deliver all the well-deserved presents for the boys and girls in County Meath and across Ireland.

I assure the Deputy that I have had consultations with the Minister for Transport, Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Sean Canney, and Santa has complete clearance in Irish airspace on that critical timeline the Deputy has outlined. Liam and Hannah can rest assured that he will arrive on time and with an abundance of toys and so forth for the children of the nation.

Well done, Deputy Dempsey.

The vacant property grant was introduced quite some time ago but changes were made in September 2025 where a charge is now required to be registered by the local authority. As a result, there is now a huge number of people for whom the grant will not be paid before 31 December. In particular, I am talking about property in the Cork City Council area. A mortgage and deed of charge have to be submitted to the council, which has to lodge it for registration and a grant will not be paid out until a dealing number is issued. No process has been put in place to expedite the payment of the grant. We now have people who borrowed money to buy property and to have it renovated and brought into use and they are now not able to borrow any more money. As the grant has not been paid out, builders have not been paid and it is now causing a huge problem in the building industry and for the people who took the risk of buying the properties.

I will talk to the Minister for housing in respect of that. I will also ask the city council if anything can be done about that specific issue.

The Taoiseach is familiar with Cork Educate Together Secondary School. It is a school, which should be in our constituency, but since 2018 it has been based in the building of Griffith College on the north side of the city. In that temporary location, it has no access to PE facilities. Its special education facilities are severely constrained and a lot of their 400 students have to get buses across the city. It has a hard deadline in terms of its current location of September 2027 and it has to be out of there by then. Planning was granted in May 2024 but still the tender has not been released. Will the Taoiseach give us an update as to when the tender will be released because the school is now working against a hard deadline, and it is hard to know what will happen at that stage?

I agree that this permanent school building for Cork Educate Together Secondary School is urgently required. It will be a new 600-pupil post-primary school building and accommodation, including classrooms for children with special educational needs at a greenfield site in Douglas in Cork. The project has planning permission, as the Deputy has said. The Department officials and external project management consultants are currently reviewing the works and site-specific requirements to ensure the tender documents are up to date. Once that is complete, it will then go to tender stage. I will speak to the Minister to make sure we can accelerate that.

The increase in capital funding for school building projects is absolutely vital and is reflected in the NDP. In Galway East and across the country it is also vital that we remember smaller secondary schools that play a crucial role in rural areas. I talk specifically about Coláiste an Chreagáin in Mountbellew. It has over 120 pupils and operates out of a historic structure. It is truly a fantastic place, and I will be visiting it this week. It has an application at the moment for an extension for two extra classrooms. I met with the GRETB, and this is a project it is keen to see progress. I ask that this Government will continue to support smaller secondary schools in rural locations that play a huge role for those hinterlands.

Aontaím leis an Teachta. I agree with the Deputy. I am a former Minister for Education. There are always specific needs in rural Ireland for education, be it primary or second level schools. I am familiar with that college. I will talk to the Minister about it, particularly the additional classrooms. This gives choice. It helps in terms of commuting. Very often, even though there are sometimes limitations with a curriculum, if there is an ETB you can give resources through a variety of mechanisms, and the smaller schools can be a wonderful, successful and effective education and learning environment. I will pursue that with the Minister on the Deputy's behalf.

I heard the Taoiseach speaking earlier about the 180 precious lives lost on Irish roads so far this year. Motorcycle deaths are the highest in more than 20 years. As policymakers and legislators, we have to do more. I am currently working on an action plan and working closely with road victim advocacy groups. Over the next four years during the lifetime of this Government, 500 more lives will be lost. A key priority is the strengthening of our roads policing unit. Back in 2009, that unit stood close to 1,050. We have 1 million extra vehicles on Irish roads and that unit currently stands at 633. I appeal to the Taoiseach to act decisively on this, to engage with the Minister for justice, Deputy O'Callaghan, and the Garda Commissioner to strengthen our roads policing unit.

Without question, we are numbed and shocked at the loss of life on our roads in recent weeks. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those who have tragically passed, as well as with our first responders who do extraordinary work in very difficult and sad circumstances. As I said earlier, the policing response is increasing, particularly with the throughput of gardaí in Templemore, which is at its highest for quite some time. As gardaí come through, there will be more added to that policing unit. However, the broader Garda force has also been tasked with road policing duties. It is a critical issue and the Garda Commissioner and gardaí have a specific programme from 1 December to 5 January, in respect of the Christmas period, on road safety and road policing. It is a critical issue and we will be adding numbers as they come through Templemore.

Fuel poverty is at crisis levels in the State. I see it first-hand in my own constituency in Fingal East, particularly among the elder generations who are having to choose between heating and eating. I met a woman in her 70s from Malahide the other day who has worked her entire life. She spends her days walking around shopping centres to try to get some heat. It is absolutely appalling. She has changed her diet and is living on instant Cup A Soups because she cannot afford to eat. When it comes to the choice on blister packs, she is not going to be able to afford that either. The Taoiseach's Government patted itself on the back for having a surplus of €9 billion and that surplus has come at a terrible cost. People are literally freezing in their homes. The Government has to release the purse strings to give the disabled a once-off payment and give our elderly people the financial assistance they need to heat their homes properly.

The surplus is because of corporation tax and other taxes, not because of any cutback here. We have actually increased the fuel allowance and the number of people entitled to receive the fuel allowance. It is now supporting about 417,000 households and will cost about €400 million, which is money well spent. In addition, the household benefits package for a lot of elderly people comprises, as the Deputy will know, the likes of the gas or electricity allowance, the free TV licence and so on. The retrofit programme has also been particularly impactful in terms of the number of households that have benefited from that. It is increasing significantly every year, which reduces energy costs. I acknowledge that there are challenges and pressures on people but we have focused and targeted our resources on the low-income groups, as opposed to having universal energy credits this time, which would have spread money to those on higher incomes. We wanted to focus on the elderly and those on low incomes.

I wish to raise TB outbreaks in Kerry. We are being ravaged, especially in east Kerry. The issue many farmers are raising with me is an increase to the ceiling cap for compensation, which is limited to €3,000 at present. They fear for their financial future because they will not be able to buy back in cows for that, especially the number of high bred dairy cows and suckler cows that will cost much more to replace. Farmers are asking if something can be done to raise that ceiling. I am sorry the Minister for agriculture, Deputy Heydon, is gone but I know he was here all morning. The other question is there are a number of people now-----

Thank you, Deputy Healy Rae. It is only one question.

-----who come in who have not received their ACRES payment yet. I hope there will not be a repetition of what happened this year.

The spread of TB is a very serious issue. As the Deputy knows, the Minister recently announced a major initiative in respect of the bovine TB action plan addressing bovine TB in Ireland. There were five measures in that plan, underpinned by 30 actions on the specific issue of compensation and the rate increase. This has continued to increase every year. The cost of the TB programme in 2024 totalled €101 million, which was 34% up on 2023, and 2025 will be higher again. That is because of increased disease levels but it is an additional cost on the programme. I will talk to the Minister in respect of the specific issue of the ceiling cap for compensation but the bulk of resources have gone towards managing the disease and trying to resource the management of the disease.

I have been ringing alarm bells for several years in relation to coastal erosion in Portrane. Last week during Storm Bram, some families lost 5 m of garden in just a four-hour period. They simply cannot wait around any longer for the planning process, working groups or task forces. They are at risk of losing their homes and they need help. We are looking at potentially hundreds of families being homeless without a swift response from Government. This Dáil term, I contacted the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, who knows the issue well and Ministers of State, Deputies Dooley and Moran, who in the past has been a good friend to Portrane, but we have seen no action. Any permanent solution is a minimum of three years away. My colleague Councillor Corina Johnson and I are pleading with the Taoiseach to get the relevant Ministers around the table and up to Portrane and to please deliver emergency measures to protect the community.

I thank the Deputy for raising a critical and acute issue. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, visited Portrane yesterday, so he is well aware of this. We will take any measures we can to help and I will talk to the Minister in respect of this. The Minister for Transport, Deputy OBrien, is also very concerned about this and is in consultations with the Minister of State. Coastal erosion is a growing issue and I accept that adaptation needs greater focus. We asked prior to the NDP being developed that more generally adaptation in the country require very prompt and necessary comprehensive treatment into the future, and that includes coastal erosion.

The special leave with pay scheme for healthcare workers with long Covid is going to end in two weeks' time unless the Taoiseach intervenes. This scheme is in place for a small group of healthcare workers - the majority being women - many of whom got badly infected while at work at the height of the Covid pandemic, when the rest of us were at home and long before PPE and vaccines. These workers got very sick with long Covid as a result and many are physically unable to return to work. Today, the health committee I chaired agreed to write to the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, to ask her to extend the scheme for six months to allow the Department of Social Protection to introduce an occupational injury scheme, as other EU countries have done. Will the Taoiseach support the committee's call or will he let these workers face a financial cliff edge on New Year's Eve, with huge consequences for them and their families, including the possibility of losing their homes? They need an intervention today and they need it from the Taoiseach to extend this scheme to give them financial certainty while this issue is resolved once and for all.

I am familiar with the issue and have met with a number of the workers involved on the last occasion. The Labour Court made recommendations, and we extended it until Christmas. At some stage, some resolution of this has to happen on a sustainable basis. I will talk to the Minister for Health and other Ministers to see what is possible.

A Kilkenny family adopted their son at three years of age and he is now 14. In that short time, he has been in nine different placements. He is high dependency and his behaviours are unmanageable. He has been taken back into the care of the State and Tusla have him in a hotel room where the appropriate care is not being given. I ask that some action be taken by Tusla to remedy this situation. I raised another case - the Jones case - previously. There was no action on that and in spite of meeting the chief executive officer of Tusla, I have had absolutely no response. Foster carers and kids are in real difficulty. I understand that there could be 200 waiting for placements and nothing is happening. It just cannot go on. How can a child be put in a hotel? Lastly, I asked that someone would arrange a meeting with Down Syndrome Kilkenny. That has not happened either.

That is two questions, Deputy.

That was only last week.

I did.

I will make two comments. We met with Tusla officials recently at a Cabinet subcommittee. Tusla is dealing with an enormous number of cases at the moment and that continues to grow for a variety of factors. It is not fair to say that nothing is being done. Services are increasing but not at the level to match the increasing need and demand. What is worrying is the complexity of need in children who Tusla engage with. I do not have specifics of the case, so I will talk to Tusla in respect of it. Regarding the meeting with Down Syndrome Kilkenny, I think it was last week that the Deputy asked for that. In fairness, it has been-----

Diary permitting.

-----very busy. We will organise it but my diary is actually full for the next two months-----

That is fine.

-----but I will find time. I said I would and that is it.

I would like to ask about the rationale behind the decision on blister packs that were available through local pharmacies and whether the Taoiseach is aware of the significant impact this is having on patients in counties Cavan and Monaghan and around the country. They are used selectively for patients with dementia or cognitive impairment, intellectual disabilities, significant physical or dexterity impairment, multiple chronic conditions and polypharmacy. Blister packs are not a convenience; they are a vital safety measure that supports medication adherence, independence and reduces the risk of hospitalisations. Evidence consistently shows that the unintentional non-adherence, for example, a person forgetting their dose, etc., worsens the disease, increases hospital admissions, and leads to higher health care costs. Vulnerable groups, particularly older adults, people with dementia and those on multiple medicines are at the highest risk. Community pharmacists are uniquely placed to mitigate this risk. They will support targeted, assessed use, clear eligibility criteria, ongoing review of governance and alignment with patient safety guidelines. Will the Taoiseach outline what consultations took place? I know the decision has been deferred but will he commit to reviewing this decision as a matter of urgency to ensure that vulnerable patients are not put at risk?

The Minister for Health has explained this. No formal decision was taken by Government or by the Minister in respect of blister packs. The Minister has made the point that there have been different practices in different pharmacies across the country. Some did not charge at all. It is my understanding that some charged very minor rates such as €5 or €10. However, others charged using another scheme, which, according to the HSE, was not allowable and should not have been used. The Minister is engaging with the various representative bodies to see what workable solution can be devised. It is not quite as it has been presented and the Minister has clarified that. We are conscious of the need and that some cohorts of patients are in greater need than others.

I want to raise the issue of the neolithic passage tombs at Loughcrew, Oldcastle, County Meath. These have some of the most beautiful examples of neolithic art in Ireland but remain closed to the public. I have dealt with the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, and now the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, on this. We do not seem to be getting anywhere. Fair play to the Minister of State, Deputy Moran; he is babysitting today. Maybe he can get him a full-time job at that. I have written on three occasions to the Minister of State who has responsibility for the OPW urging prompt action to secure the necessary works at Cairn T. After no response, I submitted a parliamentary question seeking accountability and a clear timeline, yet the reply I received concerns what many already feared. Stabilisation works require ministerial consent and even then the reopening hinges on a future date that is not defined. The public will not be able to access the interior of Cairn T in 2026 and the definitive timeline remains up in the air, with the site having been closed to the public since 2018. That is coming up on eight years now. I ask the three Ministers of State who have come and gone since I first raised this to honour their responsibilities, act with urgency and give Cairn T the urgent care it deserves. We owe it to all who stood on the hill of Loughcrew over the past 5,500 years. I ask for nothing less than action and a clear plan to once again open one Meath's biggest and best attractions.

Generally speaking, in terms of archaeological sites and national parks, we have put a lot of investment into Meath in recent years, and we will continue to do so. I note that the Deputy has been engaging with various Ministers and the OPW. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, will engage and will get things done. I am confident that we can deal with the issues the Deputy has outlined. With projects of this kind there are challenges but we hear what he is saying and we will come back to him. I have confidence in the Minister of State's capacity to get things done.

County Clare is the heartland of suckler beef, with 85% of farming in the county being suckler beef-based. I farm myself. We have Hereford, shorthorn and Dexter cattle. It does not sit well with farmers in Clare and other counties in the west that we could enter a Mercosur deal. The type of cattle we raise in the west are pasture-based for seven months or eight months of the year. Then they are housed indoors and fed silage. It a very environmentally friendly way. It goes from field to fork very quickly. The standards are so high, with genomics, Bord Bia and annual TB testing. The standard of beef from the animal, and the care of animal is so high. It does not sit well that we should have to meet these increased standards in terms of reducing our greenhouse gases, yet there could be a possibility of felling rainforest and bringing in an inferior animal from Brazil or other parts of South America as part of Mercosur. What will the Government be doing? We would like some reassurances. Finally, I wish the Ceann Comhairle, the staff and Members of the House a very happy Christmas.

I agree with the Deputy about the quality of Irish beef and the quality of the Irish food production system. It is one of the highest in the world and certainly very high in the European league table. I understand fully and that is why we have concerns with certain issues in terms of the Mercosur countries and their food production systems, although there have been dramatic changes since Lula da Silva returned to power after Bolsonaro, with deforestation being halved. We have agreed to work with like-minded countries. Additional safeguards have been put in place compared to where it was a year ago, and no vote has been taken. It is very uncertain whether any will be taken this year. As we speak, about 200,000 tonnes are imported into Europe under existing arrangements. The change would be 99,000 tonnes of that 200,000 tonnes at a lower tariff entry rate. Meanwhile, Irish exports continue to increase across the board. In beef and dairy in particular, we are at record high levels. We are penetrating new markets as well and we will continue to work on that.