Order of Business

I move: Tuesday's business shall be: - Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026 - Financial Resolutions (without debate; to be moved together and decided by one question and any division claimed to be taken immediately) - Statements on 'Our Rural Future 2026-2031' (not to exceed 2 hours and 25 minutes) Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Hospital Overcrowding, Safe Staffing and Winter Preparedness, selected by Sinn Féin. Wednesday's business shall be: - Statements and Q&A on post European Council meeting of 15th – 16th October 2026, pursuant to Standing Order 133 (not to exceed 1 hour 33.5 mins, followed by 20 mins Q&A and Ministerial response for 5 mins) - Short-Term Letting and Tourism Letting Bill 2026 (Second Stage) (to conclude at the end of the first speaking round; not to exceed 3 hours and 34 minutes) - Dublin Transport Authority (Amendment) Bill 2026 (Report and Final Stages) (to conclude within 1 hour) - Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation Bill 2026 (Report and Final Stages) (to conclude within 1 hour) Wednesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Protected Disclosures Enquiry, selected by Independent Technical Group. Thursday evening business shall be the Second Stage of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2026, sponsored by Deputy Alan Kelly. Proposed Arrangements for this week’s business: In relation to Tuesday’s business, it is proposed that: 1. notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders: (a) the time allocated to Government business shall be extended in accordance with the arrangements for that business and the Dáil may sit later than 10.48 p.m.; and (b) private members’ business shall be taken following Government Business with consequential effect on the commencement times for the items following in the ordinary routine of business; 2. the following arrangements shall apply to the proceedings on the Motions for Financial Resolutions for the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026: (a) the motions shall be moved and decided together by one question which shall be put from the Chair; (b) the proceedings thereon shall be taken without debate; and (c) any division claimed thereon shall be taken immediately; and 3. the Statements on 'Our Rural Future 2026-2031' shall not exceed 2 hours and 25 minutes and the following arrangements shall apply: (a) the statements, not including the Ministerial response, shall be in accordance with the sequence contained in the table immediately below (to be read across); (b) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes; and (c) members may share time. In relation to Wednesday's business, it is proposed that: 1. notwithstanding any in Standing Orders: (a) the time allotted for Government Business shall be extended in accordance with the arrangements for that business and the Dáil may sit later than 9.30 p.m.; (b) the Statements and Q&A on post European Council meeting of 15th-16th October 2026, pursuant to Standing Order 133, shall be taken at the time when the SOS pursuant to Standing Order 25(1) would normally be taken, and on the conclusion of the Minister’s response to the statements, the sitting shall stand suspended for one hour; and (c) the weekly division time may be taken later than 8.45 p.m. with consequential effect on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil; 2. the Statements and Q&A on post European Council meeting of 15th-16th October 2026, pursuant to Standing Order 133, shall not exceed 1 hour and 58.5 minutes, and the order of speaking and allocation of time shall be as follows: (a) the arrangements for the statements, not including the Ministerial response, shall be in accordance with the arrangements contained in the table immediately below (to be read across, not down); (b) following the statements, questions and answers shall be taken for 20 minutes; (c) on the conclusion of the questions and answers, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed five minutes; and (d) members may share time; 3. the proceedings on the Second Stage of the Short-Term Letting and Tourism Letting Bill 2026 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion at the end of the first speaking round and the following arrangements shall apply: (a) the first-round speeches shall be in accordance with the table below (to be read across); (b) on conclusion of the first speaking round or where speeches conclude before the 3 hours and 24 minutes have elapsed and no other member is offering, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a speech in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes; and (c) members may share time; 4. the proceedings on the Report and Final Stages of the Dublin Transport Authority (Amendment) Bill 2026 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 60 minutes by one question which shall be put from the Chair, and which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by the Minister for Transport; and 5. the proceedings on the Report and Final Stages of the Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation Bill 2026 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 60 minutes by one question which shall be put from the Chair, and which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration. In relation to Thursday's business, it is proposed that: 1. notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders: (a) Parliamentary Questions to the Minister for Higher and Further Education, Research, Innovation and Science pursuant to Standing Order 47(1) which were to be taken on Tuesday, 13th October, 2026, shall be taken immediately following the SOS and without any change to the allocation of priority Questions to that Minister and not otherwise affecting the current sequence of Ministers or rota for priority Questions as ordered by the House; and (b) Second Stage of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2026 may be taken earlier than 8.24 p.m. with consequential effect on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil.

Not agreed.

Surprise, surprise.

Today the High Court delivered a damning judgment on the Minister for justice's criminal legal aid reform. "Grossly unfair", the judge said, and "demonstrably illogical". This is damning. We need statements and questions urgently in the Dáil to find out what the Government will do to sort out this chaos and crisis as soon as possible.

"Grossly unfair" and "demonstrably illogical". For four months we have raised the issue of the chaos that exists in our courts because of these attempts at reforms. It is sloppy work on the part of the Minister. We need statements and we need them fast. We need to know how a resolution will be achieved and how the Minister intends to bring this absolute farce of his own creation to an end. We need those statements this week.

In the spirit of how this House can constructively honour the memory of Ciara Mageean, would we be able to schedule, at the earliest possible convenience, detailed statements on how we can reform and extend bowel screening in this country? Bowel Cancer Ireland has very articulately put forward what we can do. I know the Minister for Health has stated that she intends to expand and lower the age, but we should have a debate on that at the earliest possible convenience.

The Government has forced hundreds of thousands of public sector workers, on whom this country relies, in health, education, councils, to take strike action because - the details are now emerging - it is offering them pay that amounts to a pay cut in real terms. It is asking workers to go out and work for less, looking at the percentages the Government is offering. There needs to be an urgent discussion here about why the Government is insisting on asking public sector workers to take a pay cut-----

With the AGRIFISH Council meeting coming up, can we have the Minister in for a debate on the state of the fishing industry before the meeting? Issues like Rockall, Scotland, bluefin tuna and a fuel cost crisis are leaving the industry on the edge. One fisherman sent me his fuel bill for being out five days last week in his trawler. It was €22,851.81. This is not sustainable. The Minister needs to come before the Dáil to lay out his plans for the fishing industry.

I have listened intently to the suggestions. I will take them and consider them, but the Order of Business stands for now.

Not agreed.

I welcome the Taoiseach's intention to bring a memorandum to Government before Christmas on Ireland's constitutional future. There is no doubt that momentum towards unity is growing and that the question of reunification is now a pressing political reality. A united Ireland offers the best future for all of our people and now is a moment for leadership. Preparations for change have to begin now. People across the island must shape the debate and get clear answers on the practical choices ahead. What is the timetable for the Taoiseach's initiative? When precisely does he propose to bring this memorandum to Government and, crucially, what engagement with parties from the Opposition will he have in advance of bringing that memorandum?

The Government has shown very strong leadership on this question for quite some time. One of the more significant achievements to date has been the legacy framework, which tends to get ignored now that we have reached an agreement. I welcome the fact that it has gone through the House of Commons. I hope it can get through to the House of Lords, so that, for the first time in 30 years, we will have an overarching framework for all those who have lost lives and their families to try to get closure. The shared island initiative has been the most consequential initiative since the Good Friday Agreement and the most significant investment in Northern Ireland since the foundation of the State, with over €1 billion allocated already. A new initiative to hear all voices and not see this pathway as one of victory over anybody or a sense of inevitability but, rather, a pathway to enable voices from all traditions to be heard and heard properly is under consideration by the Government. When I have further details, I will come back to the Deputy on it.

In August, the CEO of Cork University Hospital, CUH, raised serious concerns about the impact staff shortages will have on patient safety in the hospital this winter. We are now in winter, and the situation has got worse and not better. These concerns were echoed by the consultant committee, the clinical directors and countless front-line staff, yet they have been dismissed by the Minister for Health. Staff shortages have resulted in over 4,000 people waiting over 24 hours in the accident and emergency unit in the first half of the year, CT scanners operating at 50% capacity, paediatric epilepsy supports being cut, 21 beds being stuck in limbo, a reduction in maternity services and the surgical hub shambles. Staff morale is on the floor as a result. The latest we have heard is that the hospital CEO has been threatened with a performance review for speaking out. It is an attempt to silence dissent. Is it appropriate to threaten hospital CEOs who speak out about patient safety concerns with disciplinary action? Does the Taoiseach accept the concerns expressed to him directly by nine clinical directors in the hospital? Will he commit to an independent assessment of the headcount to ensure there is adequate staff in CUH to deliver vital services in addition to the work being done by HIQA?

Funding to Cork University Hospital increased from about €303 million in 2019 to €600 million in 2025. That is a very significant investment. There has been a huge increase in staff. It has gone from about 3,456 in 2019 to about 4,870 by the end of 2025. It is now at 5,194.

We need an independent assessment.

Sorry, that is a 41% increase. The Deputy said the CEO was threatened. By whom?

Andy Phillips.

I have serious question marks over the veracity of that assertion. People need to be very careful about what is being asserted.

It is in the minutes.

For example, my office was referenced in some newspaper reports, and it was completely false.

Will the Taoiseach at least speak to the Minister about this?

Will the Taoiseach agree to an independent assessment?

I do not have three minutes to-----

In a significant ruling today, the High Court found the new criminal legal aid rules brought in by the Minister for justice, Deputy O'Callaghan, to be "grossly unfair" and "demonstrably illogical". This judgment must be desperately embarrassing for the Minister, and it confirms that what we have described as his Rambo approach to reform has failed. We all agree on the need for reform, but the Minister's approach has caused chaos in the criminal courts over some months now, with impacts on vulnerable witnesses and persons in the system. We can all recall the very distressing case of the female complainant cross-examined in person by a man who allegedly threatened to kill her and made appalling threats of violence, so the impacts on the administration of justice have been very serious. Now that this judgment has been given, and I know the matter is listed for hearing next week, how does the Minister propose to address this? We have all been pressing the issue. The Labour Party has been pressing for meaningful engagement with the Law Society to resolve matters and ensure that there can be no more chaos and impacts on the administration of justice. How does the Government propose to address this?

We will first consider the judgment the High Court delivered today. The court has requested further submissions from both sides in advance of any final orders being made. It should be noted that the aspects of the new scheme which have been the subject of adverse commentary have already been adjusted or are the focus of ongoing discussions with the Law Society. As the Deputy knows, arising out of earlier engagements with the Law Society, the Minister has already changed aspects of the new scheme, including increasing the flat fee from €455 to €520. He also agreed to split the payment of the fee and confirmed that separate and distinct cases appearing for the first time on different days would attract a new legal aid certificate for the same accused person. The Minister is entitled to reform the system, particularly following the review of the Department, which raised very significant issues, in particular that cases with criminal legal aid were taking significantly longer than those without it even though the sentencing outcomes were similar, and that there were more appearances and longer trials due to an appearance-based fee structure. That needs to be reformed.

The 2006 wind turbine guidelines are 20 years out of date. As somebody who believes that wind has to be part of our renewable energy future, I have been asking questions on this now for nearly 16 years. Various Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael and Ministers and taoisigh have said the new guidelines are coming soon. I have received loads of parliamentary question replies on this. Meanwhile, massive wind turbines and wind farms are being built without proper regulations or guidelines. Last November, I brought forward this Wind Turbine Regulation Bill to the Dáil. The Government did not oppose it but said we would have guidelines within three months. I asked the Taoiseach again in March and there was still no movement on it. In that reply, the Taoiseach actually said he understands the issue but let us be honest; when these guidelines emerge, they will probably lead to a reduction in the number of wind farms. Here we are 12 months later and there is still no progress. When will have these wind turbine guidelines?

Is the real reason for the delay for the past 16 years what the Taoiseach said to me here in March-----

-----that they may put restrictions on development? When will we have them?

I note the Deputy's commitment to renewable energy, which we articulated at the beginning of his question when he said he was in favour of wind farms. The Minister for climate has been working on this with the Minister for housing, who is responsible for new national planning statements.

It has been 16 years.

Let me finish. My understanding is that the Minister for climate and the Department have concluded their deliberations on this. It is now with the Minister for housing and he is beginning the formulation of a new national planning statement. Planning statements will now replace guidelines. On the exact timeline for this, I would hope we will have this national planning statement before the end of the year.

It might happen before Christmas.

People with intellectual disabilities are at the very bottom when it comes to services. That includes social housing, where Before We Die, BWD was set up, to transport, where adults with disabilities are left at home because there is no transport service available. Look at the proposed day-care centre for adults with autism in Dunmanway. It was promised and is not being delivered, even though people gave the grounds to the State for free. Respite services in west Cork for adults with intellectual disabilities is at a level of zero. Families are seriously stressed, from Bandon down to the Castletownbere. This led to a peaceful protest two weeks ago in Bantry town. There is real frustration and serious burnout among families whose care, in some cases, is being carried out around the clock. Millions of euro have been collected down through the years from the west Cork people for respite. They were proud to give it but they expected delivery that never happened. Local CoAction management can only do so much with the funds it has. In areas like Bandon, Clonakilty, Bantry, Skibbereen and Castletownbere, will there be a fair and equal rollout of much-needed respite and will the Government match funds collected to deliver? If so, when?

There was substantial funding allocated last year to the section 38s and section 39s in respect of disability, both respite and residential, and also in terms of the financial issues many had. In terms of intellectual disability and housing, the Minister for housing has engaged with the local authorities across the length and breadth of the country and has engaged with the Minister for disability with respect to new quotas, essentially, or ring-fenced housing for people with disabilities. Every year, we are building about 10,000 new social homes. A portion of those will have to be ring-fenced for people with disability, particularly intellectual disabilities. We met with the Before We Die campaign recently. This is a commitment of Government. Working with local authorities, we will ensure that will become a reality on the ground in every local authority area. In terms of transport, as the Deputy knows, the Minister for Transport has announced a new mobility grant scheme where grants will be available for adaptation to cars.

What about respite?

Yesterday, the last remaining judicial review challenging the planning permission for the Galway city ring-road was withdrawn from the High Court. For the first time, a much-heralded and much-needed transport project for Galway city now has full planning permission, which is very welcome. I would like the Taoiseach to take the opportunity to reiterate the Government's commitment to the completion of the project in the shortest possible timeframe. In doing so, I ask that the Taoiseach joins with me in seeking those authorities responsible for implementing the compulsory purchase order with the homeowners involved would do so in an empathetic, expeditious and engaging manner. There is much concern among those homeowners, as the Taoiseach will accept. The last thing that is complementary to the ring-road is that it forms part of the Galway transport strategy of 2016. That is the only transport strategy of the regional cities that has not been reviewed. The NTA has recently commenced the review of the Galway transport strategy but it is unclear when there will be an opportunity for public consultation. It is even unclear when there will an opportunity for local authority engagement on the issue. I ask the Taoiseach to take up that issue.

First, I pay tribute to the good Deputy. I remember earlier this year, he raised the issue of the Galway ring-road and the need for engagement and conciliation in respect of the judicial review. The Deputy identified the possibility of making a breakthrough in respect of it and he said that to the Minister involved. That has come to pass. I welcome the breakthrough on that. The Government is absolutely committed to its completion. This is critical infrastructure for Galway, in particular. There is also the situation concerning homeowners who, for a long time, have essentially not been able to do anything with their homes and who did not have any long-term clarity in respect of this. We are possessed of the need to engage with those homeowners, working with the local authority, to get their issues resolved as quickly as possible. I will see what I can do on the strategic review. A public consultation should be part and parcel of that.

The programme for Government commits to developing a new national cardiovascular health strategy. The previous one expired in 2019. That commitment is particularly timely following the EU's safe hearts plan and the Commission's recent proposal for a Council recommendation on cardiovascular health checks and early detection. With Ireland currently holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, we have an opportunity to show leadership in this area and ensure our national policy reflects developments at European level. Can the Taoiseach indicate when the national cardiovascular health strategy will be published? Will it reflect the EU focus on prevention, screening, early detection, treatment and ongoing care?

I do not have the exact timeline. It will cover all of the above and the issues the Deputy outlined. I remember the first national cardiovascular strategy. I had the honour of implementing it from 2000 to 2004. Brian Cowen had published it in late 1999. It was a game changer for cardiovascular health in this country. I believe in national strategic approaches to the key diseases. At that time, the two big killers were cancer and heart disease in Ireland. That was for lifestyle reasons and a whole host of reasons. We did not even do cardiac rehabilitation after surgery.

The previous one expired in 2019.

We have made huge progress. One of the reasons for the lifespan extension and growth in Ireland has been those strategies. The stroke strategy followed on. There will be a further strategy. I will talk to the Minister about it and we will get it published. They are a good approach so we are for them.

The West Waterford Athletic Club has ambitious plans to develop a new regional athletics facility at St. Augustine's College in Dungarvan. The club has secured a 50-year lease and is working towards an eight-lane, 400 m track, full track and field facilities and a clubhouse with an estimated investment of €4 million. There is currently no athletics facility in west Waterford or east Cork. I know many of the athletes travel to either Waterford city or Clonmel. I know Waterford City and County Council is supportive of this project, as are many athletic clubs. Given that it straddles two counties, it would be fantastic for the people in west Waterford and also east Cork. I ask the Taoiseach to contact the relevant Minister and ensure this is properly looked at in relation to funding. The cost is €4 million. Obviously, the clubs themselves will try to fundraise, which they are doing. Any support they can get from the State would be really welcome.

The Government is extremely supportive of sport. Over the past number of years, and particularly with sports capital grants or the large-scale sports capital grants, we have been responsive to a lot of big submissions. Athletics is a key sport and I think the group involved have been in touch with all of the Waterford Deputies. I knew there was a movement in Midleton for something as well. I do not know whether they are engaged in this particular project or not. The Deputy is saying this project has the premises and land. We will have to look at it in more detail to see whether it is more suitable for large-scale sports capital grants as opposed to the sports capital grants. It probably would not be in the ballpark of what is required. It is a good initiative and we will endeavour to be supportive.

The Irish people ought to have a referendum on the Government's proposals to get rid of the triple lock. The Taoiseach has said in the past he is tired of being reminded of his comments that the triple lock is at the core of our neutrality but I do not think it is any harm to remind people that was his position. The Taoiseach has also acknowledged in the past that concessions in relation to neutrality were essential to the government passing the Lisbon treaty the second time around. Given those commitments were made, relied on and that the Taoiseach has acknowledged they were relied on, this should be put to the people. Talking to people in Cork over the weekend, and people have all sorts of different views on the triple lock, the primary issue they had on such a fundamental change to our foreign policy, neutrality and defence policy was that there ought to be a referendum.

The Deputy is wrong there. He is incredible in his capacity to present a false narrative and almost make it a truism. We have never had a referendum on something that is not part of the Constitution.

There is nothing to prevent it.

We have never had one, so the idea we would have a referendum that neither amends, deletes nor adds to the Constitution is undermining this House.

No, it is not.

It is, because we have parliamentary democracy, which means governments can legislate.

That is for the birds.

When we passed the Nice referendum, we made a constitutional change which prevented Ireland from being part of an EU mutual defence pact. That is in the Constitution. That is what we agreed back at Nice, not anything else.

There is nothing stopping this.

The Deputy is saying we want to be part of a warmongering Europe. We cannot be. There is a constitutional prohibition on that, but the Deputy never says that because he is just interested in false narratives.

Hear, hear.

Third, I was the person who negotiated Lisbon. We amended the European defence Act-----

You relied on that, and you went to the Irish people on the strength of that.

I was principally responsible for that debate. I know what was agreed. There were a hell of a lot of issues there, including getting our Commissioner back, if you remember the posters - or did you oppose that as well?

Including that.

I would say you campaigned against that

The promises you made are the ones you are reneging on.

I apologise, a Cheann Comhairle.

Thank you, a Cheann Comhairle. The Central Statistics Office, CSO, reported today that electricity prices have risen by over 18% since last October. At the same time, the International Energy Agency has warned of gas shortages across Europe due to the war in Iran if that issue is not resolved. We already have hundreds of thousands of people who are struggling to pay their electricity bills at the moment. There are 324,000 people and households in arrears on their electricity bills. That is 14% of the population. There is a crisis in this country when it comes to the cost of living and the cost of energy. The Taoiseach's Government established the national energy task force to look at energy affordability and ascertain what can be done to help people. That was set up in June 2025, and we have seen nothing substantive from it. When will it produce its energy affordability action plan, and how high do gas and electricity prices have to get for the Taoiseach's Government to start treating this with some sense of urgency?

We are treating this with urgency. It is the biggest issue facing the world, never mind Ireland. It is the cause of enormous issues in terms of cost-of-living pressures. We are in difficulty because we depend too much on imported fossil fuels; that is a fundamental challenge for us. All across Europe, there are huge cost-of-living pressures on societies, families and households. In the budget, we were in a position to do more than most across Europe in endeavouring to alleviate the pressures on people through fuel allowance increases and the fuel income support schemes, which we have again extended from August to December 2026 for particular sectors of our economy, such as haulage and food production. There is also the exceptional aid for farmers in terms of fertiliser and energy costs, the deferral of certain aspects of carbon tax increases and the measures we took in the budget in social protection and carbon tax.

I raise the issue of constructive evictions taking place as a result of the Government's new rental laws introduced this year. The Taoiseach told the Dáil that new rental measures would not impact negatively on renters in existing tenancies. He said, "The legislation will not have any impact on the 240,000 people who are currently renting", yet I have been contacted by existing tenants who are being forced out of their homes because of the Government's new rules. I have here an eviction notice served by IRES Real Estate Investment Trust, one of the State's largest vulture fund landlords, which issued to one of its tenants because IRES has refused to allow the tenant to replace a tenant who has left. Large corporate landlords are refusing to allow tenant swap requests, forcing tenants to leave in order to get around the new rental rules so it can charge full market rent to new tenants. I raised this with the Minister for housing five months ago and he failed to act.

The Government's housing policies are resulting in the highest level of evictions. Will the Taoiseach intervene on this?

First, I do not agree with Deputy Hearne. The housing policy is increasing far greater supply than anything the Deputy has proposed would do.

There is the highest number of evictions since the pandemic.

In fact, most of what the Deputy has proposed would actually reduce supply and create more pressure on the marketplace. On any specific issues, the reforms were needed. The Housing Commission recommended the need to reform the existing rental sector. A review was then done on foot of that recommendation, which the Minister moderated in favour of tenants by bringing in greater protections for them. There can be anomalies in any given situation that emerges, but we will examine that specific case the Deputy has raised.

Communities across Celbridge and Maynooth, particularly Crodaun, are experiencing power outages consistently and far more frequently. This is quite frustrating given the issues with water in the past. Those issues have improved but significant numbers of housing units are being built, and while that is extremely welcome, it is leading to interruption when it comes to power supply and what we have seen with water supply. Considering the investment the Government is making in improving the grid, communities are looking for a sustainable and quality service when it comes to power, particularly for those working from home and those who have healthcare issues. I ask that there be increased engagement with the ESB to ensure that these power outages are reduced and that communities can be certain of an improved service.

That is a very serious issue and we do not want that happening to large towns like Celbridge and Maynooth. I will certainly engage with the ESB to see what is happening there and the background to it, as well as what can be done to alleviate the situation.

In August 2024, the autism innovation strategy was published by the Government following the publication of the report of the Joint Committee on Autism, which I chaired. We have a commitment in the programme for Government to legislate for that strategy. One of the recommendations of the strategy related to the autism innovation fund, which was set up to support parents' groups that have been doing so much work to support families throughout the country. To date, €2 million was allocated in 2025 and €2 million was allocated in 2026, but the application process has never opened for parents' groups to apply for funding. I work with a group that has been set up in my local area, Orbit Autism in Longford, in which parents work to support their kids. When can these parents' support groups apply for funding to support the work they do in their communities before the end of this year, so that this money can be spent to benefit the children it was intended to benefit?

I thank Deputy Carrigy for raising this issue, which is a very important one. I am told officials are finalising the most effective approach to administering the funding, including the consideration of an open funding call. However, I will engage on this and make something happens now because the Deputy is saying this has gone on for two years. That is unacceptable, so something will have to be sorted.

The people of Clonmel in Tipperary are fine, hardworking, decent businesspeople, but we have been a scourge of a drug problem, with gangs dealing drugs on the streets. I appeal to the Taoiseach to meet with all five of us Oireachtas Members from south Tipperary regarding Garda numbers. They have never been as low in Clonmel and south Tipperary, in Carrig-an-Suir, Cahir or Cashel - never. We got two new recruits recently and there were three in for transfers. We had a crime task force, which is being stood down because of a lack of numbers. We need this badly. Gardaí are telling me we are in danger of losing the town of Clonmel to these criminal, marauding gangs, who also go out into the surrounding areas marauding and terrorising people. It is an awful situation. I am pleading with the Taoiseach to try to get more gardaí in there and I urge him and the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, to meet with the Oireachtas Members. We do not want a situation like Waterford, but we are on the verge of it.

First, I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. Certainly, the scourge of drugs is a horrible one, particularly in its impact on families, communities and society more generally. We have progressively increased the number of gardaí, which is close to 15,000, and as more and more recruits come out of Templemore, the Garda Commissioner is allocating gardaí the length and breadth of the country. Obviously, it is not everywhere yet. He has not been able to do it in sufficient numbers everywhere but we will have a further number of graduates in the next output from Templemore. We will see what we can do in respect of Clonmel.

Last night Dublin City Council rejected an emergency motion brought forward by my colleague, Independent Councillor Kevin Breen, calling for urgent intervention to protect Trinity Sports and Leisure Centre. We are looking down the barrel of losing another swimming pool in north Dublin. We have already lost the pool at the Northside Shopping Centre in Coolock. We simply cannot afford to lose another one. It is a vital community facility, relied on by local schools, swimming clubs, sporting organisations, families, and hundreds of people throughout my constituency. With the meeting scheduled for late November, I ask the Taoiseach to instruct the Minister of State, Deputy McConalogue, or the Minister, Deputy Browne, to engage directly with Dublin City Council before we see another pool close. We need action in north Dublin. I am constantly talking about sports clubs and facilities. We cannot afford for another pool to close.

I do not know the background to this. Is this a council-owned facility?

It is a council-leased facility.

I do not know the background as to why the council is closing it.

I will speak to the Minister to see what the story is, or what the background to this is. I cannot commit the Minister to action until I know the full import of what is involved. I do not know the reasons behind the city council's decision but I will certainly speak to the Minister for sport in respect of it.