This country celebrated 100 years of people who fought for it which created the people who sit in this Chamber. They were supposed to be representing this country and were once known as the worker's party and the farmer's party. In April, we saw the hard-working people of Ireland go out and protest because they could see no future in the hard work they were doing and they could not survive. Tomorrow, our colleagues i…
TDs / Richard O'Donoghue
Richard O'Donoghue
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
73
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
85,911
words spoken in the chamber
Across 385 contributions
252
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
37
topics asked about
Across 14 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 73 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 385 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 2 |
| January 2025 | 0 | 6 |
| February 2025 | 11 | 19 |
| March 2025 | 13 | 11 |
| April 2025 | 3 | 24 |
| May 2025 | 10 | 32 |
| June 2025 | 4 | 9 |
| July 2025 | 3 | 13 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 1 | 19 |
| October 2025 | 4 | 13 |
| November 2025 | 3 | 30 |
| December 2025 | 3 | 48 |
| January 2026 | 1 | 15 |
| February 2026 | 8 | 32 |
| March 2026 | 3 | 0 |
| April 2026 | 1 | 30 |
| May 2026 | 1 | 16 |
| June 2026 | 3 | 32 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 4 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| September 2026 | 0 | 18 |
| October 2026 | 1 | 11 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 157 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 Limerick County 29 November 2024 to now
- party Independent Ireland 29 November 2024 to now
The Government takes €29.70 per sq. ft from people who want to build their own home. That is not all it takes. What else does it do? These are people who are working. They go to work and to afford a home today, people have to be on the high rate of tax. They pay tax to qualify for a mortgage. They then qualify for a mortgage, which these days lasts 30 years, but they not only borrow the price of the house. They also …
It is do-little all the time.
Have respect for the Chair, Mr. Do-Little.
I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
What the Government has done this year is cook the books. If a businessperson had cooked the books, he or she would be in jail today, but the Government can cook the books and tell people what they want and there is no accountability. I still start off with one of the ways the Government has cooked the books, which is for disabilities. The Government said it has given people with disabilities €500 this year, but it f…
I have been listening to speakers saying that only 3% of people will benefit from this. If it was only 1%, and they could help others by helping themselves to something left to them by an uncle or aunt, why would they not help somebody? If Deputy Murphy looked at his own situation, fewer than 1% of the people in this country even know who he is. Why would he not help people outside of himself? For God’s sake, he talk…
If I could help somebody - if I was an uncle or an aunt, or if somebody had looked after me all my life and helped me - I would.
The cost of building has inflated from €120 a square foot to €220 a square foot. It has gone up that much, and the Deputy is worried about inheritance tax going up a small bit when the cost of building has gone up by €80 a square foot in five years. He should listen to himself - this has n…
I am an employer myself. The people we are talking about are all paying the taxes in this country. If people were not investing in this country, no one would be working. Without the people we want to get investment from, we would have no workers to pay the tax. If we want to add up all the taxes, without the investors coming in, there would be nobody working and they would not pay tax. It is a circular economy. For f…
Today, the Government is going to "suspend". All I am hearing is, "We will suspend this until May 2027". Suspending is not going to work for the Government any more because the people of Ireland saw what happened during the last protest. I was in Foynes with the protesters for five days. The people who put the Government Deputies' fathers and mothers in those seats saw the Government turn its back on them. It did not…
Excuse me, Mr. Do-Little. There was tax and insurance on it. He may check the dashboard. He is a sly old thing and tries to do things but, again, people in County Clare know about him. He is seldom seen. When we go back to the system here, he is a very good man. He drives around the country and does everything for everyone else, but nothing for his own.
These are the type of people the Government has inherited. It i…
The reason we are in this situation in this country is that the last Government, of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party, signed up to a climate target in Europe that was unachievable. Where are the Greens today? They are not here. One Deputy is what is left. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, however, signed up to that unrealistic climate target which is putting everybody in this country now in the predicament that we…
I wish to extend my deepest sympathies to Treasa and family on the passing of Seamus Carroll. He was a great friend, with great banter, and his friendship will be dearly missed in this House.
After co-chairing a conference in Dublin Castle during our EU Presidency and after speaking to many colleagues across Europe, I have a question for the Taoiseach. I need him to be very clear in his answer. Is it possible to cap…
I am talking about a cap on the complete taxes.
The Government took it back in increased costs.
You did.
It is not.
When it is taken over a whole year, you did.
No, you are wrong.
And also to put food on the table for the people who go to those schools-----
-----and to let people go to work and pay their taxes for those schools to open.
Will you go away?
I will make it very simple, as I always have, and say that if people of any nationality are migrating to this country are here to work, support their families, integrate, support society and respect Ireland - as we do - then we will respect them and they are welcome. If people are here for the wrong reasons, they should turn on their heels and get out. It is as simple as that.
People in Ireland are the most welcomin…
I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. To simplify it for people, an investigative journalist should be protected. From an investigative point of view, a person may be in a Department, in government or in Revenue. I have two cases before Revenue. They are not for me but for my constituents. To tell the truth, from the couple of cases I have in different parts of Revenue, things are sitting on desks for 12 m…
The Government projects a €9.2 billion surplus for this year and today it is looking for a 15% increase in bus and rail fares. I do not know if I heard this right. This Government projects a €9.2 billion surplus for 2026 and it wants to increase bus and rail fares by 15%. My God. I was in Moate the other night at a meeting attended by over 3,500 people from all walks of life - the transport network, the haulage netwo…