In fairness, the NTA and the airport regularly engage, and resources have been made available. However, I will speak to the Minister in respect of the general area. He is well aware of it. Again, the airport authorities and the NTA have a lot of resources. They have a lot of their own resources, or the airport certainly has. There are times too when these agencies need to get on with it. It is not always at the Minis…
TDs / Micheál Martin
Micheál Martin
Taoiseach
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
0
questions asked
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them
688,766
words spoken in the chamber
686,628 as a minister, 2,138 as a TD
197
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
Members of the Government answer parliamentary questions rather than ask them, so this page lists none of theirs.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 6,546 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Contributions |
|---|---|
| December 2024 | 11 |
| January 2025 | 6 |
| February 2025 | 438 |
| March 2025 | 518 |
| April 2025 | 317 |
| May 2025 | 426 |
| June 2025 | 424 |
| July 2025 | 344 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 146 |
| October 2025 | 375 |
| November 2025 | 291 |
| December 2025 | 281 |
| January 2026 | 326 |
| February 2026 | 529 |
| March 2026 | 229 |
| April 2026 | 385 |
| May 2026 | 474 |
| June 2026 | 425 |
| July 2026 | 181 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 198 |
| October 2026 | 222 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 6,426 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Cork South-Central 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Taoiseach 23 January 2025 to now
There has been a huge investment in the reform of A and E services. We need to focus in on the management of the resources within given hospitals. The Deputy said the person had a stroke.
Any person with a stroke should not be sent home in the first instance. That is a clinical issue. That is what would jump out at me immediately. Having to come back a couple of days later is a worry from a clinical-outcome perspective. I do not know whether the person has made a complaint or whether the Deputy has done so on his behalf. That should happen because then we could track and get answers and responses. Tha…
I do not want to get into specific interventions in terms of mixed tenure or the approach at any given site of the LDA. We have indicated to the LDA that it can do more than social and affordable housing and move into the private-provision area as well to get a broader mix. It is a very good development, with 779 homes. Many big developments are now coming under the aegis of the LDA. It really is the key national int…
I thank the Deputy very much. I pay tribute to her on her initiative on the legislation, which she introduced. I will talk to the Minister, Deputy Harris, and the Minister of State, Deputy Robert Troy, about when they expect the amendments to come forward. I will revert to the Deputy because I believe it is important legislation, particularly for those with cancer and survivors of cancer. This Bill will be of great b…
A new roof probably does not fall under emergency works but probably falls under some project. An entire new roof would be substantial-----
-----but I will talk to the Minister.
I know but the minor works scheme is for lesser works. I am not going to get into that but I think it is a project in itself. I do not know where the project is in terms of the various stages with the Department but I will talk to the Minister for education in respect of it.
I appreciate the Deputy raising the issue. Certain aspects of construction are covered by the schemes but not machinery yet. However, I will ask the various Ministers covering agriculture and transport to have a look at this. Again, we have made progress on a number of fronts. We have to await the detailed development of the schemes in terms of contractors and farmers. The transport scheme is nearing completion. I wi…
I thank the Deputy very much for raising the issue. It is a very interesting survey which will inform policy development in time. There has to be significant consultation. I will talk to the Minister and ask her to perhaps engage with the Deputy on the next steps.
I did not quite get the point the Deputy made about Gaeilge. We will talk later.
Gaelcholáistí.
They are not sheds.
The Deputy is just playing politics by calling them sheds. If they were not for rent, they would be not sheds. It is so hypocritical. If we came in and said planning exemptions for relatives or for sons and daughters for buildings outside, such as residential units in the back garden, would be introduced, they would not be sheds any more according to the Deputy, but the minute we said they would be for rent, they are…
The Deputy is already making up his mind before anything is built. Does he care about supply at all? Does he really care about it? Is housing just a game in here where we keep on shouting names across at each other? I think the planning exemptions are good. They will release planners from all the small stuff that goes on such as attics and Velux windows, which people go on and on about.
I think I might have met with people at the very beginning and I did outline that the initial work had to be done to make sure that current funding was available and that it was aligning with existing plans because the land has been donated voluntarily and freely and a huge amount of voluntary fundraising has taken place. I will ask the HSE what the state of play is now to make sure we get this moving.
What is the name?
I would like to take the opportunity to welcome Shillelagh National School pupils to Dáil Éireann. They are very welcome indeed.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 16, inclusive, together.
Reducing child poverty is a key priority for this Government, as set out in the programme for Government. In September 2025, the Government agreed a new and ambitious child poverty target to reduce the child consistent poverty…
I appreciate all the questions that have been asked. The Deputies have raised some important issues. Deputy Ardagh raised the issue of lone-parent families. It is correct that they can be particularly vulnerable at times to higher levels of deprivation or poverty. Child support payments are a very effective way to give additional supports. The latest budget saw a record increase of €8 for under-12s and €16 for childr…
I know the HSE is funding some equine centres but they may be of a different kind than the one in Clondalkin. I think the one in Clondalkin is more generally directed at youth so the Department of Education and Youth should be dealing with that. I will take that back to the Minister for Education and Youth to see what we can do there.
Deputy Heneghan spoke about the plug-in solar system. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien…
If the Deputy sends me the details, we will pursue that. It is a very distressing case indeed.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 17 to 25, inclusive, together.
Improving the lives of disabled people, advancing their rights and enabling them to reach their full potential, is a core focus and priority of the Government. The Budget 2026: Spotlight on Disability report was published by my Department in December 2025. This is the first budget spotlight report prepared by the disability unit in the Department of the…
Again?
Sorry? It has a sanction?
What is the name of the school?
Deputy John Connolly was the first to ask a question. The schools therapy programme is working well. On the issue of the single point of access, the HSE has embarked on the idea of a one-door approach. The outgoing CEO, Bernard Gloster, was very focused on this. All last year at the Cabinet subcommittee on disability, he gave a very clear undertaking on behalf of the HSE that there would be a single point of access. …