I thank the Deputy for that feedback. I will double-check but it is my understanding that they would well be able to use it. I met with members of the Civil Defence based in Mayo who were already part of that active trial and it is great to see that the community initiatives are also built into it.
For the Deputy's information, the European Commission is proposing to bring in legislation next year that will formulat…
TDs / Emer Higgins
Emer Higgins
Minister of State at the Department of Children, Disability and Equality
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
2
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
93,167
words spoken in the chamber
93,162 as a minister, 5 as a TD
399
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
What they ask about
The subject headings the Oireachtas filed their questions under.
No questions on record.
Who they ask
The departments their questions were addressed to.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Questions asked 2 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 218 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 0 | 5 |
| March 2025 | 0 | 3 |
| April 2025 | 2 | 22 |
| May 2025 | 0 | 5 |
| June 2025 | 0 | 11 |
| July 2025 | 0 | 5 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 0 | 12 |
| October 2025 | 0 | 2 |
| November 2025 | 0 | 4 |
| December 2025 | 0 | 49 |
| January 2026 | 0 | 6 |
| February 2026 | 0 | 14 |
| March 2026 | 0 | 7 |
| April 2026 | 0 | 26 |
| May 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| June 2026 | 0 | 16 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 8 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 0 | 16 |
| October 2026 | 0 | 6 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 156 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Asked about similar topics
Not enough questions on record to compare.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Dublin Mid-West 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform 29 January 2025 to 4 June 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation 5 June 2025 to 18 November 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Children, Disability and Equality 19 November 2025 to now
Absolutely. It was fantastic to meet public health nurses from the HSE who advised that they had clients in rural island communities who were badly impacted by people's inability to communicate directly with emergency services or the ability of emergency services to co-ordinate. That is what this initiative will help to resolve.
Any systems deployed for the emergency services have strict requirements for both bandwi…
Migration, when managed well and planned well, works well. We see that in the people who staff our hospitals and care homes, those working on our building sites and buses, in our restaurants and hotels and across the local services we all depend on, and in entrepreneurs running businesses and employing people in our communities. I am truly grateful for the contributions many of those people make to our society, commu…
I acknowledge that at the centre of this issue is heartache. This is personal for children with scoliosis on waiting lists and their families. It should not be a moment of division or political point scoring. It needs to be a moment of doubling down on our efforts to deliver for them. The tragic death of Harvey Morrison Sherratt touched the lives of people across Ireland. We think of his parents, Gillian and Stephen,…
Every year Government is faced with the challenge of balancing finite resources with infinite ambition to make things better for the people of Ireland. No single budget can deliver that in full but budget 2026 certainly rises to the challenge. I thank everyone involved in putting together this budget, in particular officials in my Department and the Department of Finance who worked around the clock over these past fe…
I am happy to provide a response from my colleague, the Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy Helen McEntee, and to contribute on behalf of the Government to the debate on special education.
As a public representative, I meet many parents of children with additional needs who experience huge challenges in securing appropriate places for their children. They should not have to deal with that level of additional st…
I thank the Deputy for raising this very important matter, not just for his own city but for all of us across Ireland. As Ireland’s second city, Cork occupies a very important position in the economic, social and cultural life of the nation. I would go so far as to say that Ireland’s overall success is closely bound to the success of Cork city.
The Government is very aware of the challenges faced by our urban areas,…
I thank the Deputy for his observations and his support for the desire to work together on the rejuvenation of Cork city to make it a better place to live, work and experience its wonderful culture. The people of Cork have an immense and justifiable pride in their beautiful city but even the proudest Corkonian will admit there are a number of areas where we could do better to enhance the city's vibrancy and vitality,…
I thank the Deputy for raising this matter in the House today. As he is aware, capital acquisitions tax is a tax on inheritances or gifts on an amount over a particular tax-free threshold. It is a beneficiary-orientated tax, which means it is payable by the recipient of the gift or inheritance as opposed to the person providing that gift or inheritance. Capital acquisitions tax, CAT, plays an important role in ensuri…
I thank the Deputy for his constructive engagement on this. I really hope the information that has been provided on the record of the Dáil tonight is of use to his constituents and many other of our constituents, too. Just to clarify and confirm, the Minister for Finance and his Department are satisfied to the constitutionality of the existing CAT legislation. This matter was considered earlier this year by the tax s…
I thank the Deputy very much for raising this issue. The Government places great value on culture and the arts sector. As outlined in the programme for Government, we recognise that they are essential to a well-rounded society, providing opportunities for education, expression and community engagement. Deputy Byrne gave a very interesting statistic, for the want of a better word, when he said that, after the GAA, thi…
One of the key recommendations is to develop an arts capital and equipment programme for investment in local and community arts of a similar scale and structure as its sports capital and equipment programme. As part of that, we will look at the feasibility of a minor capital works scheme under the Arts Council.
I thank Deputy Byrne for raising this important matter. It is timely that we are discussing it a couple of days in advance of Culture Night. I also thank the Deputy for his obvious passion for this subject matter and the active role he plays in the amateur arts world in his community.
Ireland is renowned for producing world-class art, both amateur and professional. That is why it is this Government's ambition that w…
I thank Deputy Gannon for his Topical Issue on this subject. I was born in the Rotunda Hospital and my mother used to work there, so I appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns relating to the expansion of neonatal facilities at the Rotunda Hospital. I do so on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.
As the Deputy said, the Rotunda is one of the busiest maternity hospitals in th…
It is my understanding that at this point no objection has been lodged. I hope the Deputy's passionate plea tonight has an influence on whether it will be lodged.
I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Increasing capacity at the Rotunda Hospital to ensure it can meet the needs of women, infants and families is a priority for the Government. The health needs of women and infants presenting to our servic…
I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. We were all very concerned to learn of the difficulties being experienced by Leprino Foods in Portlaoise. The Minister extends his sympathies to all employees and their families who may be affected by this decision taken by the company, and he knows that this news will be very concerning for all the workers in…
Ireland has seen very positive jobs growth in recent years, and we are now at virtually full employment. However, announcements like this show that we can never become complacent and take any jobs for granted. It shows that there are challenges in certain markets that are beyond the State's control at times. Inflationary pressures, energy costs and the recent increase in US tariffs have created additional challenges …
I thank the Deputies for giving me the opportunity to discuss the Government’s position on Second Stage of this Private Members’ Bill, the Ministers and Secretaries (Attorney General) Bill 2023. At the outset, I remind Deputies, as Deputy Bacik has done, that the Attorney General is a constitutional officer appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Taoiseach under Article 30 of the Constitution. Their r…
I think it is here. Is it not here?
I am so sorry.
Somebody can provide that. In the meantime, do you want to photocopy my one?
I thank the speakers who have contributed. We all agree that the State should act in the public interest, broadly construed, in pursuing litigation and should consider the broader public interest before taking certain procedural steps in litigation. This is the reason the Government approved the adoption of State litigation principles two years ago. They serve as guidelines in the conduct of litigation by the State. …
I move amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after “That” and substitute the following:
“Dail Eireann resolves that the Transparency and Social Value in Public Procurement (Bill 2024) be read a second time this day 24 months, to allow for consideration of the complex legal issues in the Bill and how they interact with the Companies Act 2014 and the EU’s eForms (electronic procurement notices) Implementing Regulation…
I thank Deputies for their engagement on the Bill and in particular Deputy Farrell who worked on it. It has been useful to have the opportunity to discuss public procurement on the floor of the Dáil, important considerations for it and how the Government can ensure better services for the people who come here to live and work and who are born and live here. It is important that we make sure that public procurement is…
I thank all Members in the House for what was a really interesting discussion on this really important issue. Like my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, I am pleased the Government has not opposed this motion. The Dáil’s engagement on diaspora matters is always welcome and it was really positive to have such good engagement today. Every day, we see the value of the sustained investment in our communiti…