Mary Lou McDonald

The Minister should take the lecture from someone.

That is lamentably out of touch.

Not agreed.

Under Standing Order 35(3), I propose an amendment to the Order of Business. The current nitrates derogation expires in a matter of mere weeks and the Government's handling, or mishandling, of the issue, leaving negotiations with the EU to run down to the wire, means farmers face a possible serious cliff edge in January. I ask that time be allocated in this week's schedule to debate this crucial i…

Nearly 1 million hospital appointments have been cancelled since 2022 under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, and the crisis deepens by the year. This is according to new HSE figures released to Teachta David Cullinane. This is a damning indictment of the Government's failed health policies. Hospitals are understaffed, overcrowded and overstretched because the Government has built in recruitment restrict…

There is huge public shock and anger regarding the reported sexual assault of a ten-year-old girl on the grounds of the Citywest international protection accommodation services, IPAS, centre here in Dublin. A man in his 20s has been charged in connection with the assault. An Garda Síochána is to be commended for its work in making this arrest. Of course, our first concern is for the welfare of thi…

For any parent or anyone caring for a child, one of the worst imaginable nightmares is that the child would go missing or be assaulted, particularly in this way. As the Taoiseach said, it is not surprising at all that this case has caused profound anger and unease. I appreciate that he recognises that there has been a failure of the system in this case. That is a necessary acknowledgement. However…

The second thing is this. There has to be confidence in the system of application for asylum and in our immigration system.

Any question mark around a person-----

-----overstaying in the State when a deportation order has been made is, again, deeply unnerving-----

-----and deeply unhelpful and has to be addressed by the Government.

Yesterday, ripped-off households were hit with a double whammy. First was the news that food price inflation had reached its highest level for nearly two years. On that same day, the big electricity price hike from SSE Airtricity kicked in. This is the second hike in just one year. This is affecting hundreds of thousands of households. How bad do things have to get before the Government stands up …

Stop parroting-----

No, it is not. Fianna Fáil blaming funny money is a bit rich.

9. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on infrastructure will next meet. [53181/25]

I move: That Dáil Éireann: recognises that: — the reunification of Ireland is an objective of Bunreacht na hÉireann; and — there is a growing national discussion around constitutional change with people from diverse backgrounds now exploring the possibility of Irish unity; notes that: — the Good Friday Agreement 1998 provides the democratic and peaceful means to achieve reunification through…

Was that in east Belfast?

Not in east Belfast.

When do we get our referendum?

Yesterday, I raised with the Taoiseach the scandal of big energy companies shamelessly ripping off and gouging households. I outlined how the latest report from the International Energy Agency highlights that Irish energy bills are three times higher than the wholesale cost of energy. The cost of energy has dropped significantly since 2022, but these companies are not passing on savings to hard-pr…

Wholesale prices are down considerably, by over 70%, and that reduction is not being passed on, so bills are rising. Energy companies are profiteering, turning huge profits, and the Government is sitting idly by. Families and workers are struggling hard and the Government sits idly by. It is too lily-livered or perhaps too indifferent to bother to intervene and take this on. I notice the Taoiseac…

The bills are going up.

The Taoiseach does not live in the real world. That is the problem here.

The Taoiseach does not live in the real world.

Oh, I very much live in the real world.