These questions were transferred to me. Will the Tánaiste outline the discussions he has had about the possibility of utilising the €1.87 billion in frozen Russian assets, which are the ones in Ireland that we know of, for reparations for the war of aggression against Ukraine?
TDs / John Lahart
John Lahart
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567
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
34,811
words spoken in the chamber
Across 143 contributions. Plus 8 contributions from the chair, not counted
396
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
206
topics asked about
Across 20 departments
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Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Questions asked 567 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 143 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
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| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 1 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 42 | 12 |
| March 2025 | 37 | 17 |
| April 2025 | 42 | 14 |
| May 2025 | 27 | 17 |
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| July 2025 | 37 | 16 |
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| July 2026 | 15 | 8 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 22 | 0 |
| October 2026 | 26 | 6 |
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Plus 84 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
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Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Dublin South-West 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
In my experience as chair of the foreign affairs and trade committee, the Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland came in last week. We received a comprehensive statement. Has the Tánaiste or Taoiseach considered initiating some sort of round table facility with leaders of the Opposition? It strikes me that we get, and rightly so, incredibly exercised about events in Israel, Gaza and Palestine. This does not need to be binar…
Have they ever sought a briefing on it?
On the frozen assets, the Ukrainian ambassador made the point that the lawful of frozen Russian assets must become central to reconstruction. What is the view of the Government on that? That reconstruction would be around the rebuilding of infrastructure, supporting of victims and enabling the return of displaced Ukrainians. An estimate of €300 billion in assets internationally remains frozen globally, including clos…
This question was transferred to me from Deputy O'Meara. It asks for the Tánaiste's response to the recent escalation in the intensity of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
I thank the Minister of State. The Ukrainian ambassador was very appreciative of the non-military assistance the country has been given when she came before the committee last week. The Minister of State referred in his reply to regional destabilisation. I was fortunate and privileged, with the Minister of State's colleague, Deputy Barry Ward, Chair of the EU affairs committee, to be part of an EU election observatio…
It is not contained in my question but I know one of the things we contribute towards is de-mining. I am throwing the issue at the Minister of State in an unanticipated way and will accept a written response on it. It just came to mind. Can the Minister of State inform the House about what that involves and what the money is expended on?
I ask the Tánaiste the way in which Ireland is supporting the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, and if he will make a statement on the matter.
One thing this conflict has in common with what is going on in Gaza is that I cannot think of one single thing that would guarantee intergenerational conflict more than the use, abuse and the taking and maiming of children. It almost guarantees that the memory just simply cannot absolve itself of the horrors of it and that the atrocity will live on. In spite of that, the Ukrainian Government, through its ambassador, …
In the programme for Government, we made a commitment to reduce the cost of childcare for a child to €200 per month under the national childcare scheme. Along with hard-pressed families, I strongly welcomed this. A problem arises when providers pull out of the core funding scheme. In some cases, a provider of multiple facilities pulls one of its facilities out but keep others in for various reasons. As I have seen in…
That is not true.
First, if I may, I want to mention two constituents of mine, Thomas McHugh and Louise Heaney, at least one of whom has been taken by Israel Defense Forces, following the actions of the IDF against the flotilla.
Our minds are very much with them. Their families and a lot of constituents have been in touch with my office this afternoon. I wanted to put their names on the record and say that we will do whatever we can …
6. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation when work will be undertaken to renew the exterior protective finish of Rathfarnham Castle; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39992/25]
I will not take the full time. This question is just in relation to Rathfarnham Castle and to ask the Minister for an update on it. It is a cosmetic-related question on the upgrading of the exterior of the building and the progress on this work.
I thank the Minister of State. He was not in position when I got the last reply, which was this time last year. It repeated exactly what he has said, namely, a weather window would be required to carry out the works and the works would be carried out in 2025, which is this year. The reason I have asked the question is that the weather window has well and truly been with us for the past four or five months. Now, the M…
I appreciate that. I would like an explanation as to why I was told last year it would be done in 2025 with the exact same reason in relation to the seasonality of the work.
It is imperative. The local authority took a decision recently in relation to the land that it controlled, which is in the curtilage of the castle. That was positive news about the development of the outbuildings and the creation of local infras…
We had the weather.
That is okay.
6. Deputy John Lahart asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade for a report on his engagement with other EU member states with regard to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38587/25]
I want to ask the Tánaiste about the special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, which we hope will be able to investigate and prosecute senior government and military leaders responsible for the crime of aggression up to and including heads of state. He might update the House in that regard.
What is interesting from listening to the debates here in the past week is the criticism of the Government about its stance on the Iranian regime from some of the far left voices in the House and a complete ignorance about who supplies an awful lot of these drones to Russia to continuously attack a part of Europe.
I understand the special tribunal I referred to in the question is the first international judicial bod…
As Chair of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, I met the ambassador recently. I am a little concerned that so much time in the House is spent on Gaza, which I understand, particularly as Chair of the committee, is justified, that Ukraine has slipped down the agenda and we need to keep it up. The continued acceleration of attacks by Russia poses a significant threat to the European Union. The Minister m…
I was interested to hear what the Minister of State said, following the conversation we had in the Chamber yesterday. I mentioned the Gates Foundation. He re-emphasised Ireland's commitment to overseas development. That is good news in a world where the cuts in US aid have been described by aid agencies as irreplaceable and having a significant impact. The security piece is important.
I want the European budget to a…
I thank the Minister of State. Our political grouping at EU level, Renew Europe, has some positive ideas. It proposed reinforced provisions to promote democratic resilience, including something that is close to the heart of this Government, which is funding support for independent media, investigative journalism and fact checking. I understand the Estonians are way ahead of the rest of Europe in dealing with disinfor…
What does the Tánaiste consider the best response to the comments by the chair of the United States foreign relations committee that the occupied territories Bill is blatantly antisemitic?