Louise O'Reilly

Half of Dublin is on homeless HAP. I know what it is and the Minister does not need to explain it to me. The fact is that when we factor in housing costs, we see the true picture of poverty in the State. A quarter of children under 16 years of age, 26.7%, are growing up in poverty. Almost a quarter of workers, 22.3%, are living in poverty. These are very real figures. I ask the Minister to give co…

It would be quicker if the Minister just said, "No". Is he considering additional cost-of-living measures given that people are absolutely battered? I have read out the figures to him that show that a quarter of children are living in poverty and nearly a quarter of workers are living in poverty. If the Minister is not prepared to give the measures that will ensure that these people do not live in…

I was not going to say anything but I felt moved to do so. It is interesting to hear a Government backbencher describe how people with disabilities were left devastated and feeling let down by the budget. Of course, the difference between myself and the Minister's backbench colleague is that she voted for budget and I did not. This is the very same budget that devastated and let people down. I hav…

In April last year, two young men died by suicide. I am not going to put their names on the record but they are in the public domain. Both of these young men had been chatting with an AI bot at the time of their deaths. Their families say that a specific version of this artificial intelligence bot designed to be friendlier, more empathetic and encouraging had in fact encourage the deaths by suicid…

I welcome the opportunity to have this discussion with the Minister of State. You will often hear reference made to some person, group or entity being the "canary in the coalmine". I believe that young people, when it comes to unemployment, are that canary in the coalmine. Looking at the trend, the general unemployment rate increased from 4.5% in quarter 3 of 2024 to 5.3% in quarter 3 of 2025. Whe…

The Minister of State said he thinks we would all agree that it is not unusual for youth employment rates to be higher than those of older cohorts. I respectfully disagree with him. Dr. Elish Kelly from the ESRI has described the youth unemployment rate as it currently stands as a worrying trend because when you look at that age profile the chances are that they have lower levels of education and …

What we see as part of the trend within the general unemployment figures is something that should be concerning, and no more than that. I think it bears more examination and that piece of research into those labour market conditions and the factors driving that faster rate of increase would be useful.

I want to start by thanking Deputy Gould and his office for bringing forward this legislation and for all of the work they do and continue to do on this serious issue. When people look in at the proceedings of the Dáil, at least they see that some people are interested in taking action on dereliction. They also see the Government and its complete lack of interest in it. I am struggling a little to…

And it is the same from the Minister. There is rising homelessness, the same as every month. If he was doing his job, we would not have anything to-----

I do not need to remind the Taoiseach about the massive issues people are having with the platform X, formerly known as Twitter. It is an absolute cesspit. More and more people are leaving the platform. In fact, I would be inclined to leave the platform myself were it not for the fact that I am a commuter who regularly uses the northern commuter line. Irish Rail continues to give its updates only …

People should have a choice.

A dedicated WhatsApp channel would work.

On 2 January, I very happily celebrated 19 years without cigarettes. I did not vape; I do not think there were any vapes at that stage. If there were, they were very new. I was lucky and did not use chewing gum. I relied heavily on licorice all sorts, crisps and anything else I could get my hands on. The important thing is that I managed. Regrettably, I smoked my first cigarette - if my mother was…

108. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he intends to implement a socially-just phase out action plan for the replacement of fossil fuels by sustainable energy sources; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [73018/25]

I have a Topical Issue matter later so I am not being the Grinch if I do not say happy Christmas to everyone. It would feel a bit silly to do it twice. I absolutely agree with the Minister who has said many times that gardaí need to be properly equipped and need adequate resources. We need them to be adequately equipped and resourced so they can do the very important work we need them to do. As w…

Before I raise my issue, I wish the Ceann Comhaire and her team, including Jill Gray, and every person who works in the Oireachtas a happy Christmas. We are incredibly well looked after. Sometimes it is a bit lost on us how well served we are. This is a very decent place to work because of the men and women who keep it going. I hope everybody gets a chance to spend a bit of quality time with their…

I suppose the Minister of State's recognition of the scale of the problem is welcome. I know she was not making a massive deal out of it, but going from 1,893 to 1,841 is nothing to be proud of really. She should probably be a bit mortified. That figure of 1,841 children in my area represents families that are just left waiting. They feel very much abandoned. On the establishment of 11 new teams, …

Happy Christmas.

In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, the very least - and I mean the rock-bottom, bare minimum - that anyone could expect from a government of any decency is that it would not make things worse. A total of 21% of households that have one or more members with a disability are materially deprived. Some 20% of those are in poverty. Some 16% of people over 65 are in poverty. The extra €20, €30, €…

There is no allowance for that.

The Complex is a vibrant arts and cultural centre in Dublin's north-west inner city. It is fighting for its life, having received an eviction notice for January. There is, however, a chance to stop this happening but the Government has to play its part. A detailed viability plan to secure the centre's future is on the table. Dublin City Council has agreed to provide some of the money to purchase t…

It is already on board. We need the Minister on board as well.

I thank the Minister.

I thank the Minister of State for being here. This is not meant disrespectfully to him but I regret that the senior Minister is not here. This is a practice that I do not think is brilliant. Again, I thank the Minister of State for being here but it is not good practice for senior Ministers to never be in the House to take their Topical Issues, which frequently is my experience. Some 33% of the p…

The Minister of State certainly can consider himself invited to Balbriggan. I would absolutely love to show him around and to show off. There is nothing we like more than showing off the good things in our constituency. This is a good thing in my constituency and I would like to show it off. The Minister of State mentioned the numbers in his response and I can see those figures on the page in fro…