27. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on infrastructure will next meet. [37506/25]
TDs / Darren O'Rourke
Darren O'Rourke
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1,809
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
93,019
words spoken in the chamber
Across 530 contributions. Plus 27 contributions from the chair, not counted
435
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
270
topics asked about
Across 20 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 1,809 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 530 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 25 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 112 | 30 |
| March 2025 | 96 | 8 |
| April 2025 | 54 | 17 |
| May 2025 | 91 | 38 |
| June 2025 | 121 | 28 |
| July 2025 | 198 | 41 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 76 | 13 |
| October 2025 | 97 | 21 |
| November 2025 | 109 | 24 |
| December 2025 | 71 | 29 |
| January 2026 | 77 | 32 |
| February 2026 | 181 | 52 |
| March 2026 | 100 | 22 |
| April 2026 | 90 | 45 |
| May 2026 | 60 | 31 |
| June 2026 | 129 | 39 |
| July 2026 | 42 | 22 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 27 | 16 |
| October 2026 | 53 | 22 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 407 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 Meath East 29 November 2024 to now
- party Sinn Féin 29 November 2024 to now
The Minister must be completely detached from the reality of the cost-of-living crisis if he thinks it is okay to heap €1,000 on students and families this September. The Barnardos cost-of-living report for 2025 found:
One in five families cut back on or went without heating (18%) and electricity (17%) over the past six months.
More than two in five families going without or cutting down on basic essentials such as…
109. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for an update on the funding cut to apprenticeships in Meath and across the State; his assessment of the practical impact of this cut; the measures he is taking to address this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37297/25]
Is that the case with LMETB or are there specific circumstances in its area? I do not know whether the Minister was going to make a point on that.
The figures I have from the service plan for 2025 show further education and training funding was €87 million and that this was revised on foot of a funding letter down to €73.7 million. That is a cut of in the region of €14 million, by any measure. There are genuine conc…
It is really important that these courses proceed and that people be allowed to work their way through the system because we need a conveyor belt of graduates in all courses.
There was a reference earlier to reflection on how we have ended up in this place. None of the students or apprentices has dropped out of the sky; they have been in the system. Has SOLAS dropped the ball? Did the Minister’s predecessor, Deputy …
Funding for further education and training has been cut by approximately €40 million. In my own area under the Louth and Meath Education and Training Board, the funding cut is in the region of €14 million. That is very significant and will have an impact on apprenticeships and further education courses. They will be delayed, postponed or cancelled. We have also been contacted by adult education teachers who are alrea…
Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this issue for debate. It is an important one and sits within road safety. This was a tragic day on our roads in Donegal and east Meath. I extend my deepest condolences to all those affected. Internationally, in the world of sport, there was a very high-profile death on the roads. Road safety is incredibly important and this is a rea…
I thank the Minister of State for that response. I did not go directly to TII myself. I await a response from it, but this response from the Minister of State is helpful because it sets out the position.
Meath County Council has pointed to a pathway involving a TII-initiated process. That does not look like it is happening. In TII's inspection and its review Carlanstown has not come up. My question then was whether …
It is scandalous that, every year, schools are forced to rely on so-called voluntary contributions from parents to plug funding gaps due to the Government's failure to provide proper investment. Parents already pay €54 million in contributions and now, as the funding crisis in schools escalates, it looks like they will be asked to pay even more. The Catholic Primary School Management Association, CPSMA, says it has n…
It is really important that when we have CSO information, we use it to plan for services in areas. I look at my own county of Meath, which has the lowest number of mental health beds, the lowest number of GPs and the lowest number of gardaí per population; has some of the largest class sizes in the State; and has the lowest number of playgrounds per population. The issue of GPs has been in the news in the past 24 hou…
I welcome the review and the review process. I welcome the publication of the report and the comments of the Minister and Minister of State. I have to say the proof of the pudding will be in the eating and I come to this with something of a jaundiced and critical eye. I accept there is evolution in thinking, in processes and in language but it has fundamentally always been obvious what is needed here. It is a matter …
Last week, Children's Health Ireland confirmed just 105 appointments have been offered so far to the children potentially affected by the scandal of unnecessary hip surgeries. Only 60 people have been seen so far out of a total of 2,259 children who had hip surgery since 2010 at Children's Health Ireland or the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Cappagh. At this rate it will take more than 20 years for every child to be …
92. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Social Protection if he or his officials have had engagement with a company (details supplied) and the examiner located there since announcement of the company entering into examinership; the extent to which the Department can support this process to ensure workers there are supported; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32742/25]
It was a shock for the whole community because we are talking about 217 jobs. Some workers in the area I grew up in and in the wider area have been in that factory for decades. It was known as a really good employer in the area and the impact on both direct and indirect employment is significant. It is an important employer in the area.
In the first instance, this period of examinership is about securing a sustainab…
In the first instance, this is about protecting as many jobs as possible. I have raised with the Minister for enterprise the importance of making every effort to identify an investor and save as many good jobs as possible. This is also about ensuring that those who lose their jobs are supported in every way possible in terms of understanding their rights and entitlements and the supports that are there for them, incl…
In the area of special education, hundreds of children do not have an offer of a school place. They number in excess of 250 and possibly in excess of 260. Many more children have an offer but their offered places will not be ready for 1 September. I have one such example in Corpus Christi National School in Drumcondra in Dublin. This is a major concern. We potentially have hundreds of children without an appropriate …
I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."
I welcome the opportunity to discuss the Healthcare (Transparent Payments) Bill 2022, which I am co-sponsoring with my colleagues Deputies David Cullinane and Seán Crowe. I thank Dr. James Larkin, senior postdoctoral fellow at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, for his research in this area and for his help in preparing the legislation.
The Bill seeks to mak…
I thank all the Deputies on both sides of the House for their contributions on this Second Stage debate. In particular, I thank Deputy Toole, my constituency colleague, with whom I previously discussed this legislation. She has a particular interest.
This is an important intervention we are trying to make from a number of different perspectives. We have touched on a few of them. I point to the marketing budgets of p…
12. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence if he accepts that abolishing the triple lock was not necessary to release humanitarian deployments or secure the evacuation of Irish citizens abroad, as heard at a recent meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Defence and National Security; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30282/25]
79. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence the measures he is taking to ensure the Air Corps remains fully operational at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel; his plans to recruit air traffic controllers and other personnel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30283/25]
85. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Education and Youth to outline, in the context of special education preparedness for September 2025, the number of children with special educational needs but currently without an appropriate school place for September 2025, and the plans to address this; the way in which special needs assistant, SNA, posts will be allocated to these children and all children with spe…
With regard to special education preparedness for September 2025, how many children with special educational needs are currently without an appropriate school place for September 2025? What plans are there to address this? In what way will special needs assistant be allocated to these children and all children with special educational needs in September 2025? Have all schools with new special classes due to open in S…
I will drill down into those headline figures. They are figures which have been iterated for some time. My question was on the number of children with an identified recommendation that has been notified to the NCSE but who do not yet have an appropriate school place for September. Do we have that figure today? The Minister outlined that some schools have not yet opened up their offering and that is an issue in itself…
The Minister will be before the committee and I, as well as all those in opposition, would appreciate detailed, regular updates between now and September on the progress being made. Headline figures tell one story but I hope, as we accommodate more children, we can get the detail on that.
I make the point again on the children in Dublin and the four children in Sligo. I can send on details. There are five children i…
87. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Education and Youth if, in light of the deep concern regarding, among other things, the resourcing of schools, training of teachers and impact of artificial intelligence on the validity and authenticity of additional assessment components, and the related recent vote of rejection by the ASTI union, she will pause her accelerated plan for senior cycle redevelopment and…