Richard O'Donoghue

Good.

The Deputies are still talking. Look at this, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

Thank you very much. To get back to Dublin Airport, I am delighted the airport is doing well but as regards climate emissions, the climate action Bill was supported by the Deputies on my right. They brought in that Bill. Where are most of the people who are landing here going? They are not staying around Dublin, are they? They are travelling throughout the country. Where are the carbon emissions w…

Where has the Government gone wrong on dental and orthodontic services? I was here when this was being raised seven years ago. Where has the Government gone wrong? Why has it not learned and why has it not listened? There are 11,000 on waiting lists, most of whom are children. Some 8,000 have been waiting to see a dentist for longer than two years. Where has the Government gone wrong? All my colle…

Before I start my question, I give my sympathies to the Fossett circus family on the burial today of Marion Fossett. Their circus will have been in existence for 138 years this year. They have been going around the country and internationally. They come to Limerick every year and have always had a charity day where people come in for charity. On my own behalf and that of Independent Ireland, I giv…

I appreciate the Taoiseach looking into this matter. The concerns of the people of Foynes is the location. They welcome the system but the location chosen will be prevent the future-proofing of Foynes. Anyone who knows Foynes will know there is hilly ground to the west. On the Limerick side, it is all flat ground. The proposed system will involve pumping it upwards and then letting it flow down wi…

Motion carried.

It is secondary.

I was in Newcastle West last week at the agricultural show, the Newcastle West Show. One thing resonated with me at the show. A young girl of nine years of age from County Kerry came up to me. She was standing in front of me, her mother was behind her and I think her aunt was with her as well. She turned around to her mother and her mother said, "Ask him yourself". She asked if she could have a pi…

Any life that is taken is wrong. I am coming in here as a broker of peace. Ireland should be a broker of peace. People can talk about what is happening in Gaza, which is 100% wrong. Where a life is taken and families are destroyed anywhere in the world is 100% wrong but look at Irish history. There are people in this House who have been involved in the taking of lives. They are sitting in this Hou…

When we look at traditional parties going back through the years and the wars that happened here in Ireland behind closed doors and everything else that happened, it was wrong. I stand for peace. What I would not mind seeing with the match they are talking about is both sides coming out, sitting down in the middle of the field, saying they are not playing because of peace and linking arms togethe…

I did not name any names. The rules of the House are that when you do not mention a name, you can mention what you like.

I move: That Dáil Éireann: notes that: — the sectors in the Irish economy such as farming, fisheries, construction and more generally small businesses and households have in recent years been repeatedly exposed to severe economic shocks arising from major international events outside the control of the State, including the Covid-19 Pandemic, the war in Ukraine, instability and conflict involvin…

The contributions from the Government side and their colleagues show why we are in the position we are in. I spoke to some of those who contributed. They said they would like to see the people in the middle, the working class, looked after in this budget. One person told me he got elected the same day as the Minister of State, which was the same day I got elected. Since I got elected, they are the…

Timmy do-little is at it again, is he?

There was a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health this morning. Members of the hospital group, including Sandra Broderick, and Mr. Mike Ahearne of the HSE are in the Gallery. I acknowledge the work they have been doing within the hospital sector in Limerick. They will be looking forward to the new hospital and the new wing. Is there a timeline for that?. Will it be a design-build project? Pati…

I have already acknowledged the Minister in the context of the work that is being done in Limerick. We went through a very bad spell. The initial hospital of excellence was brought up in 2009. The people involved are no longer in the HSE, but they downsized Nenagh, Ennis and St. John's Hospital. It is great that the Taoiseach has acknowledged that the reverse needs to happen. That was one of the f…

Good man.

The cost of living for people with disabilities has been highlighted across the Chamber. If we start off with disabilities and things we could have done even before we reached this point and which were asked for, Maurice Noonan, who is from Granagh, and his partner were here last year. They are both wheelchair users. They were here in the Chamber. Mr. Noonan told me about simple things that he los…

Independent Ireland was set up for one reason: to give a platform for Independents to work together. What is the difference between Independent Ireland and Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael? We have a vote of conscience. Whether to remove the triple lock is a vote of conscience. It is a vote for the people of Ireland. It should not be up to the Government party leaders. Anything such as removing the tripl…

On the scheme the Government brought out for the agri sector for the fuel, some of the sectors are saying that unless you are under an agricultural contractor you do not qualify for this scheme. We have an awful lot of plant hire people who do agricultural work but they do not qualify for the scheme. We have people who might be registered as being a plant hire company but do agri work, and they do…

We are talking about NAMA and its winding up. It is easy to wind up something when people would not talk to you. I will give a small bit of history, without mentioning names, of a case to do with the likes of NAMA and it not interacting with people in their times of trouble. I am talking about people who were in trouble in 2016, like a lot of other people in the country, and there was a judgment a…

The debate is on biodiversity and nature restoration but there is nothing here about the protection of human life. I am from a farming background and live in rural Ireland. I talk about people trying to get safely to school or the bus network or trucks trying to get to the shops with goods from the farmers, people trying to get to work and people trying to walk the roads. All the roads in Ireland …

How many people are living at home with their parents? That gives the Minister of State the answer, does it not? How many people today, with their families, are living at home with their parents? I know my children and their partners are. They are living with me. I am a building contractor. For them to be able to afford to build their own house is not viable because of inflation. They are saving h…

I am a father and a grandfather and also a public representatives. As a public representative, father and grandfather, I support families and people in all their decisions. I have listened to the debate today. I have listened to the debate outside the Chamber. We have to listen to everyone and all their concerns. The concerns I have come from the people I have listened to. HSE data show that betwe…