Helen McEntee

Nobody wants to see the National Ambulance Service or paramedics on strike. I commend the fantastic and unbelievable work they do. The Minister for Health has assured me that she, the HSE and the Department are open to further engagement with the National Ambulance Service and want to engage with them through the industrial relations mechanism. That offer, I believe, is there and it is open to the…

I am happy to raise the matter directly with the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and, in particular, the Minister. It is essential, whether through legislative means or financial support that is required, that people have access to dental care. I am happy to raise that directly.

Overall, the Government fully recognises the need to create more connectivity to make sure that people living in rural and not-so-rural areas are able to use public transport and that there is greater investment. A huge focus of the €102 billion investment in our infrastructure plan is for public transport, investing in our roads, railway networks and bus networks to ensure that they are joined up…

There is a very clear commitment in the programme for Government. We have seen a reduction in recent years, in particular under the previous Government. We know the impact it has on students and on teaching, coupled with the significant increase in the number of teachers, including special or additional needs teachers who are supporting our mainstream classes. We know when we walk into a classroom…

I am happy to raise this matter directly. There are a number of things we need to do in response. We need to ensure we have enough qualified people and ensure we have enough courses and training opportunities working with our universities. That is happening already through the Department of the Minister, Deputy Lawless, working with the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. We also need to consider w…

Obviously, if this is a planning matter, it is something for An Coimisiún Pleanála. If it is about any scheme, the need for funding or investment, I can raise it directly with colleagues. Some €40 billion will be provided over the next number of years directly for housing development and water infrastructure. There will also be additional funding to make sure that grid access or any other type of …

Our laws are very clear: it is illegal to create nuclear power in Ireland. Any proposal to change that would have to be done with agreement and debate, not just here in the Houses but more broadly. At the moment, there are no direct plans but given the situation in which we find ourselves on a global scale, we should not rule out discussions about things. However, the law is very clear at the mome…

No.

No.

I move: That Dáil Éireann, pursuant to Article 29.5.2° of Bunreacht na hÉireann, approves the terms of the Convention establishing an International Claims Commission for Ukraine, signed at The Hague on 16th December, 2025, a copy of which was laid before Dáil Éireann on 1st May, 2026. I welcome the opportunity to discuss this motion today. The convention we seek to ratify is about establishing a…

I join colleagues in supporting this motion of confidence in the Government today. We are living through a period of profound global instability. Across the Gulf, we are seeing not only disruption to energy supply and vital shipping routes but we are witnessing the further appalling and unacceptable loss of life, the human cost of which cannot be overlooked. It is essential that we progress and en…

A Leas-Cheann Comhairle, if they do not want to listen to the women of the Dáil-----

I thank the Deputy for raising this question. He is right that this something we have debated and discussed many times, and not just the Bill itself but the ongoing devastating conflict in Gaza in the Middle East. That conflict has now, unfortunately, escalated and widened and is now including many more innocent civilians. Everything that this Government and the previous one have done and everythi…

I agree with the Deputy that what is happening is appalling. I fully agree that what we are seeing is appalling. The ceasefire is not a proper ceasefire. Over 400 people have been killed since then and proper aid is not being let in. I visited the area myself at the beginning of the year and saw that goods that are by no means, or could ever be described as, a threat are not being let in. Enough f…

In terms of the programme for Government commitment, it was relating to goods and we were very clear on that. The Oireachtas committee then asked that we would look at services and it is important that we engage with the committee and its recommendations on any legislation. That was the advice that was asked of the Attorney General and that was the advice that I received soon after coming into the…

I agree with the Deputy that the UN is the best place for all of us to work together and Ireland, as a member and a partner, will always stand up for and advocate for the UN and its structures. We understand how important it has been, not just in this conflict but in many conflicts and, most important, in its resolutions over decades. In relation to the uniting for peace resolution, Ireland will a…

I agree with the Deputy. My biggest concern is that the ongoing conflict in the wider region of the Middle East will take away our focus on our priority, which should be trying to find a way forward for the civilians in Gaza. We are, and I am, absolutely determined to ensure that will not be the case. At every meeting we have had, even where it related specifically to the ongoing conflict in Iran,…

We have not joined the Board of Peace and have been clear in our reason for not doing so. We do not believe that any other structure should be mirroring the work of the UN at all. It is doing work with a particular focus on Gaza. That is why it was established. That was the UN resolution for which we and everybody else voted so that a structure would be put in place to support the redevelopment of…

Ireland has consistently supported strong sanctions in response to Russia's illegal war of aggression in Ukraine, which, as the Deputy said, has been ongoing for more than four years. The sanctions adopted in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine are the most expansive and hard-hitting sanctions in EU history. Over 2,700 individuals and entities are now subject to EU restrictive measures. An unp…

We have supported and will always support further sanctions. The Deputy can be assured we will continue to support any sanctions package that is brought forward. There are considerations that have to be taken into account. In this particular instance, there are very clearly concerns that have been raised by a number of member states in terms of their own energy security. Nonetheless, even with tho…

Apologies; I thought I was clear. We have already supported that. However, there was not unanimity. My understanding is that will not change. We have already supported the progress of sanctions in all instances but there is not unanimity. It is not Ireland's choice at the end of the day. We are one of many member states. We have supported all the packages that have been agreed unanimously over the…

-----but we are focused on the twentieth package. We have a package that we have been working on. We are focused on that and have been pushing for it. While we have not had success at the most recent Council, I hope we will be able to make progress. The sanctions are having an impact and are impacting on Russia's ability to continue this war.

I thank the Deputy for raising this. I know he has raised it on a number of occasions. We all agree there is no doubt that the families and survivors of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings have waited far too long for answers. We all want to get to that point for them. The Government has long-standing requests in place to allow access by an independent, international judicial figure to all original …

I will absolutely speak with the Secretary of State on this. The British Government is in no doubt of the desire, not just of this Government but successive Irish governments, to see the release of relevant documents to help the families of the Dublin and Monaghan bombing victims to get the truth of what happened to their loved ones. I and other Ministers have raised this regularly in our engageme…

I thank the Deputy and he can be assured that I will engage with the Secretary of State on this. We have been very clear in setting out and making sure there was trust in our request and we asked that it would be an independent, international judicial figure who would look over this information and would receive the original documents. To date, we have not received them. The focus had been on Oper…