There have been no paramedics hired this year.
TDs / Paul Lawless
Paul Lawless
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
1,995
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
94,569
words spoken in the chamber
Across 496 contributions
391
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
300
topics asked about
Across 19 departments
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.
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 1,995 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 496 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 34 | 1 |
| February 2025 | 27 | 26 |
| March 2025 | 32 | 18 |
| April 2025 | 59 | 23 |
| May 2025 | 104 | 49 |
| June 2025 | 49 | 28 |
| July 2025 | 63 | 30 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 97 | 24 |
| October 2025 | 43 | 26 |
| November 2025 | 136 | 44 |
| December 2025 | 119 | 25 |
| January 2026 | 151 | 28 |
| February 2026 | 141 | 32 |
| March 2026 | 162 | 10 |
| April 2026 | 181 | 34 |
| May 2026 | 214 | 18 |
| June 2026 | 139 | 20 |
| July 2026 | 56 | 15 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| September 2026 | 115 | 21 |
| October 2026 | 73 | 23 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 278 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Asked about similar topics
Worked out by computer from the subject headings of each TD's questions, giving more weight to headings few TDs use. It shows shared subjects, not shared views.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Mayo 29 November 2024 to now
- party Aontú 29 November 2024 to now
Front-line paramedics and EMTs.
Front-line paramedics and EMTs. The numbers are there in the reply to the parliamentary question. I can give them to the Taoiseach.
12. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet Committee on Justice, Migration and Social Affairs will meet next. [25743/25]
The cost of accommodating asylum seekers has ballooned in recent years. It is now ten times the figure in 2019. It cost the State €1.2 billion this year. This is an extortionate cost to the taxpayer. Essentially, the State is paying hotel or accommodation owners a hotel occupancy rate. It has cost the State €4 billion since 2019. The average cost of renting a three-bedroom house is €20,000, yet the average cost of ho…
I welcome these statements. Aontú will be supporting the Opposition's motion later this evening. I met Cara Darmody today. What struck me most was how young she is. As I looked at her chocolate, her buns and her homework, it struck me just how young she is, yet she is forced into this campaign which is three years in the making. I commend Cara. I also commend the thousands of families and parents who like Cara are st…
First Choice Credit Union has announced reduced opening hours at several credit unions across Mayo, namely those in Achill, Balla, Ballyhaunis, Swinford and Kiltimagh. This is the latest onslaught and the latest decline. Ballyhaunis and Kiltimagh, for example, recently lost two of their banks. The credit union is the last banking institution left in these towns. These were once thriving towns and the loss of the bank…
I welcome the Minister and wish him all the best in the years ahead. I also welcome the IFA president, Mr Francie Gorman, who is here.
There are so many issues we could talk about, from GAEC 2 and the major concerns farmers have about it, to the ACRES scheme and the lack of payments, forestry issues, the Mercosur deal, and the TB issue my colleague referenced.
There are major concerns with the EU's direction on CAP…
A pint in a pub is a healthier pint. There is a social dimension and, crucially, there is a referee. Government policy over recent years has hurt rural pubs. An average of 150 pubs close every year. Over the last 20 years, 2,000 pubs have closed. I raise the issue of excise duty and various different taxes. A third of the cost of a pint goes on excise duty. It is the second highest in Europe and it is hammering rural…
Will the Taoiseach engage with the VFI on the excise-----
Will the Taoiseach engage with the VFI?
I will start by wishing the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, and the Minister, Deputy James Lawless, the best of luck for the years ahead.
I am of the view that apprentices have been treated like second-class citizens in comparison with their counterparts in the university system. I spoke to a builder the other day who told me he could hire 20 lads tomorrow morning if he could find them. That is a major issue. We w…
We are going to do the same thing again. That is why the teachers are balloting. I ask the Minister and the Minister of State to engage with the unions in a respectful way that will bring about reform that will be tolerable for teachers and students alike.
I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion. I only have three and a half minutes and there are so many issues. My first point is that there are major delays with An Bord Pleanála. I know people in my constituency who have been years in the planning system. It took them months to get the planning and then more than a year waiting for a decision on an appeal to An Bord Pleanála. I appreciate the Minister has made…
When it comes to IPAS developments, the Government is treating people like mushrooms by keeping them in the dark and feeding them dung. That is what is happening right across this country. It has allowed a vacuum of information to develop whereby it is another day, another rumour. I refer to the Belmont Hotel, St. Mary's Secondary School in Ballina and, most recently, Belmullet. I got a call the other day from a cons…
Is it the case that the works are continuing for another application to be submitted? What are the Government's plans for an IPAS centre in Belmullet? It is totally wrong. The Government's policy at the moment is that people will find out when the scaffolding is erected or when people move in. This is unacceptable. It is no way to treat the people of this country.
What of the circumvention?
I welcome the proposal which has been a positive introduction for many businesses in the hospitality sector. However, like the previous Deputy, I would like to raise issues around local authorities rating outdoor seating. It is very unfair on businesses, particularly in the hospitality sector, which have been hammered in recent years. The increased cost of doing business has resulted in margins tightening and a reduc…
This is a-----
Yes, but he is at Cabinet.
He has an important seat at Cabinet. I understand he is the Minister for Justice but he is at Cabinet and this is a significant issue. It is going to hurt many businesses across Mayo if it is not addressed. I welcome the proposal around the outdoor seating and its extension. It is a common sense, practical solution but placing rates on new facilities or new seating is not acceptable. I ask the Minister to consider wo…
I wish to start by congratulating the new Pope. I believe there is white smoke in the Vatican. I congratulate the new Pope. It is great news.
I read the motion and I listened to the Social Democrats' contributions. To be honest I am quite surprised. They talk about pluralism and choice but it seems that the only choice they want to provide is the choice of those people who agree with them. There are thousands of fam…
I commend the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, Deputy John McGuinness, on his many years of great work and the enormous detail he has revealed in highlighting the very tragic case of Grace. I have no doubt he must be very disappointed in recent weeks at the injustice and the lack of justice that was served in this case.
Child protection is a very important issue for us in Aontú. We have serious problems with and concerns abou…
I wish to raise serious concerns about childcare in my area. There is no doubt that childcare has become like a second mortgage for families. It is crippling many young families. While there are significant issues throughout the country, I will raise an issue in my area of Mayo. Claremorris is a town with fewer than 4,000 people. Such is the lack of childcare places that one childcare provider alone has more than 100…
The legacy Act gives an amnesty to murderers and blocks the families of murdered civilians from achieving justice. It is the son and heir of the cover-up by the British Army and RUC for some of the most heinous crimes in the North. It is unilateral action that actually undermines human law and human justice. It turns Britain into an outlier and indeed a rogue state. It is heaping more pain and suffering on so many fa…