Peadar Tóibín

We have heard a lot of nonsense today from the Government about the timing of this debate. This is the Government's motion. We in Aontú promised in August, after the death of Harvey Morrison Sherratt, that we would bring a motion of no confidence at the earliest opportunity. Next week is our earliest opportunity to do that. If the death of a child, the continuous, painful suffering of hundreds of …

This is what we are talking about here.

On the Government.

It is about accountability.

Rip-off Ireland is alive and well. I have seen incredible figures that energy prices in Ireland are three times the wholesale price, which is one of the highest gaps in the world. The gap between the retail price and the cost of producing it is again one of the biggest in the world. Electricity companies are failing to pass on savings they are making, and why would they? The ESB is a semi-State, i…

It is. It is in the remit of this Government and it is absolutely bonkers that that is actually happening.

This Government is literally prevaricating-----

-----while the people of Ireland are freezing.

They are tripling their prices over the wholesale price.

Iberia came out of it.

What pressure?

It is not working, clearly.

They need more than the Taoiseach's understanding, though.

We have been waiting for guidelines for about 20 years.

This time last year, in advance of the general election, the Government injected a sugar rush of once-off measures into the Irish economy, including a double payment for long-term social welfare individuals; €300 for fuel allowance on 4 November; €400 for working family payment on 4 November; €400 for disability invalidity pension and blind pension on 4 November; two double payments for child paym…

A cost to rural Ireland.

Budget 2026 is remarkably flat. It is a budget without vision. It is absent of ideas and innovation. The budget looks like it was written by a senior civil servant just looking to keep the system ticking over. I imagine maybe that is what happened because the Minister, Deputy Chambers, was too busy. He was involved in the omnishambles of the presidential election campaign.

I am not mentioning any candidates in the election at all.

It is important because we had an individual whose job it was to be the director of elections of that campaign and who was also at the time expected to produce a budget. That individual, and the truth be known, went through a serious crisis while trying to introduce a budget. That is a mistake. It is a mistake in relation to making sure that this issue of budgetary development is so important. It …

-----and this year they will retrench on it. One of the major problems with this Government is that it is focusing on the actual cycle itself. Post-election budget hammers the middle-income earners. Instead of the promised tax cuts the Government mentioned, for middle Ireland there is a tax increase today. It is an incredible situation. Instead of the cuts to student fees, there is a fee increase …

The Minister mentioned today----

I will leave it at that. Go raibh maith agat.

20. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the number of persons in receipt of the basic income for the arts payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51546/25]

82. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on the scoliosis waiting list for surgery at CHI hospitals at present; and the steps she is taking to reduce waiting lists. [51548/25]

It is now eight years since the Minister's predecessor, Simon Harris, said that no child would be left waiting for longer than four months for a scoliosis operation. This time last year I asked him how many children had been taken off operation waiting lists without their parents knowing. He stated he would find out. However, as yet, there is no evidence that he has found out and let us know. Does…