Christopher O'Sullivan

That is a point well made. Athy is obviously a growing town. It is an important commuter town, not just for people to work and commute but also for people to study and commute, so it is important that we facilitate that, take cars off the road and provide as much public transport as possible. The investment in the extra carriages, as outlined, on the Drogheda line will free up carriages. Deputy Wa…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I know the LauraLynn foundation is something he has always advocated for and fought for. I agree with him 100%. The merit and support provided by organisations and foundations like the LauraLynn children's hospice represent unbelievable value for money. The service they provide is incredible. I liken it to Cancer Connect or ARC house, which are organisati…

We will get clarity on whether it will be a review or a brand-new policy. The Deputy mentioned some good examples. He has been an advocate for all of the organisations he mentioned. We know he has been championing the highlighting of rare diseases, especially among children, over this term and the previous term. I refer again to Cancer Connect. A number of years ago it received no funding from the…

The Government will oppose this Bill, but I welcome the opportunity to speak about the role of Government measures to support access to affordable housing and assist those aspiring to buy their own home. We continue to deliver the first affordable homes in a generation and are supporting increasing supply in this area. Quarter 1 of 2025 has seen the continued strong performance of the various affo…

I also welcome Deputy Hearne's family to the Public Gallery, although I am not sure if they are still up there. I had a sense that he was a lot more measured in his approach today. He was a lot more tempered. Usually, he does not hold back and gives it both barrels. He is clearly on his best behaviour, although I had better not speak too soon. I appreciate that this is his first time introducing l…

I thank Deputy Ó Laoghaire for raising this issue. I imagine that he experienced frustration during the summer and has probably waiting for an opportunity to highlight this matter in the Dáil. Perhaps he could provide some feedback on whether this malodour was at a heightened level during the summer months. We had a pretty dry June and July, with high temperatures and low rainfall. There probably …

The Minister, Deputy Browne, apologised that he could not make it here to deal with this question personally, but we work collaboratively within the Department anyway. I will absolutely undertake to try to get more detail and a timeline. Regarding the cause of the issue, septicity is the cause of the odour. The untreated sewage at this point remains stagnant en route to the treatment plant, so it …

Before we move on to Leaders' Questions, it has to be noted that I sat next to the Minister, Deputy Burke, during the debate. He offered full respect to each and every one of the Opposition speakers without interrupting once, yet in the single ten-minute slot in which he had to speak, he was interrupted and heckled. That is absolutely ridiculous. This is an ongoing trend and it has to be stopped b…

In addition to the provisions the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, has outlined, the Bill also provides for amendments to the Act 2024 to clarify transitional arrangements as the planning system moves from operating under the 2000 Act to the new Act. The following approval of the revised national planning framework 2025, which will facilitate the delivery of in excess of 50,000 additional new ho…

I am happy to join with the Minister, Deputy Lawless, and the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, to speak to this from a housing perspective because, obviously, that is another cost that is incurred by students. I want to outline what we will do in that regard. I thank all contributors to this evening's debate. The Government is very much aware of the costs that students and families may encounter…

I move: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes: — the ongoing commitment of this Government to honouring the men and women of 1916; — the hugely successful and inclusive Decade of Centenaries programme, and the Government's investment in key capital projects in that regard, including the seminal 1916 Museum and Exhibition at the General Post Office (GPO),…

There are people whose family members participated through different periods of this revolutionary period. Sinn Féin does not own this narrative. We all have an invested role here. To hear things such as "betrayal" and to hear the Government being accused of the "wanton destruction" of this revolutionary period is completely outrageous and untoward. There was no mention of the investment in Kilmai…

There was no mention of-----

-----the €10 million spent on the exhibition that we already have in the GPO. There was no mention of the decade of centenaries. None of that was mentioned. It was completely wiped out for Sinn Féin's narrative. The Government is invested in this. With anything that happens to the GPO, there will be an absolute focus on the cultural importance of the GPO.

There will be a focus on the historic importance of the GPO. There will be a focus on the role this period played in this important part of Ireland's history. The reason the State bought and owns 14-17 Moore Street is to protect it and to commemorate what happened in those houses on Moore Street. To hear descriptions such as "betrayal" and "wanton destruction" is-----

----- completely out of order.

That is why we are strongly opposing-----

That is why we are strongly opposing this motion.

The Deputies have mentioned retail outlets such as McDonald's and Carroll's. First, there is already a retail element to the GPO complex. The Deputies cannot deny that a GPO complex is already there. Sinn Féin is trying to put across this argument, in its Members' own words, that it will be turned into a "giant shopping mall". That is absolutely not the case-----

-----and it is completely unfair to describe it as such.

At the centre of anything that happens to the GPO will be the museum and the cultural and historical aspect of it. I would love if Sinn Féin were to co-operate on this project because we have an opportunity to create something wonderful. Yes, there will be a retail element to it. Yes, there will be-----

-----civic offices. At the centre will be-----

-----the role this beautiful building played in Ireland's history, in the revolutionary period and in 1916. That has to be acknowledged and it has been acknowledged.

It is about the fifth time it has been referred as being like a shopping centre.

That is furthest from the truth of what it is.