I thank Deputy Stanley for bringing forward this Bill and giving us the chance and opportunity tonight to discuss the wind turbine regulations.
There is obviously an urgent need to update these regulations. At present, as has been said numerous times tonight, we are operating off guidelines set in 2006, and things have definitely moved on considerably since then. There have been significant advances in technology an…
TDs / Mark Wall
Mark Wall
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
875
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
89,139
words spoken in the chamber
Across 262 contributions. Plus 59 contributions from the chair, not counted
426
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
199
topics asked about
Across 19 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 875 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 262 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 19 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 56 | 24 |
| March 2025 | 49 | 10 |
| April 2025 | 65 | 6 |
| May 2025 | 70 | 21 |
| June 2025 | 33 | 9 |
| July 2025 | 92 | 13 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 39 | 18 |
| October 2025 | 31 | 9 |
| November 2025 | 32 | 19 |
| December 2025 | 30 | 11 |
| January 2026 | 49 | 14 |
| February 2026 | 63 | 14 |
| March 2026 | 61 | 9 |
| April 2026 | 30 | 9 |
| May 2026 | 31 | 12 |
| June 2026 | 64 | 21 |
| July 2026 | 28 | 10 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 25 | 14 |
| October 2026 | 8 | 19 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 156 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 Kildare South 29 November 2024 to now
- party Labour Party 29 November 2024 to now
Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle agus go raibh maith agaibh go léir.
I tried.
Go raibh maith agat arís, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
I raise the car parks the motorways into Dublin have become, especially the M7 and N7.
I am clear in my support for increased public transport for Kildare South, but we know this extra capacity will take years. Commuters on the M7 and N7 cannot wait that long. Since I first raised this, I have been inundated with messages from commuters across Leinster and north Munster. Thousands of people are spending their lives stuck in daily traffic for up to three hours as they try to get to work. They are leavin…
The Tánaiste said my comment was clever and deliberate but it is the reality. The commuters who are coming to me are asking for remote work and flexible working. There is a public consultation. I believe the closing date is 9 December. We need that discussion and we need new legislation.
However, I am today asking the Tánaiste for a new Operation Freeflow for the M7 and the N7 because that is what is needed for the …
Almost 50,000 people in this country suffer from Crohn's disease or colitis; I am one of them. Will the Government support my Bill for a no-wait statutory card for those people? I am working with a Kildare woman, Maria Crowe, in relation to this. The Tánaiste and other Members will be familiar with the need for a statutory card. Many organisations have a non-statutory card but people are refused the use of toilet fac…
Before I call on Deputy McGuinness, I welcome 25 students from Gaza who are with us in the Public Gallery. They are currently studying in UCD. They are very welcome and I hope they enjoy their day. They are guests of Senator Harmon.
72. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider granting a fuel allowance to those that have had an application refused or revoked due to an adult child or family member moving back home. [62019/25]
This is a case of déjà vu in that we mentioned this yesterday, but I want to ask the Minister of State once again if he will consider granting a fuel allowance to those who have had an application refused or revoked due to another child or family member moving back home.
I am nodding. The Minister mentioned household composition tests and people working, but the problem I have is where a person who returns to a house is not working and is getting a social welfare payment. These are low-income households and these are the people who must be targeted. I mentioned last night that I have come across three or four cases of this in the past two weeks alone. I asked last night whether we ha…
I take the Minister’s reply. I acknowledge the fact that the fuel allowance has been extended to working family payment recipients, because they are in low-income families who need all the help they can get in what are housing and cost-of-living crises. I hope that if I can give the Minister three or four examples of what has been happening over the past two weeks in Kildare South, he will examine the matter again. I…
In our discussions last night on the social welfare Bill, I asked the Minister about increasing the eligibility of the DCA from the age of 16 to 18. I also mentioned difficulties a lot of families were having with this particular application. In his reply today, the Minister mentioned the criteria of "care and attention required by the child compared to another child of the same age". This is so hard for a parent to …
Social Welfare and Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage
I welcome the Minister to the House this evening and I welcome the opportunity to discuss, once again, social protection and the recent budget. In responding to budget 2026 previously in this House, I described it as a punch in the stomach for many working families and unfortunately, I must repeat that here in this debate today. Budget 2026 needed to deliver real and radical policy changes towards a social welfare sy…
80. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will comment on the survey findings by a representative organisation (details supplied) which showed that 80% of childminder services will close; and the actions her Department is taking to address the issue. [61743/25]
Will the Minister comment on the recent survey by Childminding Ireland which showed that 80% of childminding services will close, and will she make a statement to the House on the matter?
I need not put on the record of the House how important childminders are to the childcare sector in this country. It has been the subject of many conversations we have had here. The Minister is right to say there are concerns among childminders right across the country as to what this new regulation will mean for them. Many of them are minding two or three children in their own homes and have done so for many years. …
I would welcome if the Minister could mention that because it has become a serious concern for a lot of childminders, who, as she said, are so important to rural life, where it is often a neighbour who is minding two or three children and who has done so for years. If that falls, rural life is really going to be affected for so many people in my area and, I am sure, the Minister's area.
The Minister mentioned commun…
89. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has addressed the IT issue whereby historical fee data was unavailable on the national childcare scheme website; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61745/25]
It may be a historical question at this stage but I want to ask the Minister if she or the Department have addressed the IT issue whereby historical fee data was unavailable on the national childcare system website.
This is good news. I think I last raised this matter on 29 April 2025 so I think it has taken a slight amount of time to get everything uploaded. It is so important for parents to be able to see what is available for childcare in their areas. We all realise that there is a lack of places, but where there are places, it is important for parents to be able to look at prices.
Previously, the Minister mentioned childcar…
I thank my colleague, Deputy Sherlock, for bringing forward this important motion. I also acknowledge our MEP, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, for his considerable work. He has brought many of us in the Labour Party on a journey in relation to drug education and its effects on society. It is an education we can all be part of and need to be part of. The Minister of State mentioned in her remarks a political dispute on the drugs i…
I wanted to raise with the Minister today the car park the M7 and N7 have become over the recent period. Yes, we all believe in public transport but unfortunately, we all know that will take time. This morning, as I made my way to work, it took me three hours to get here from the town of Athy. I have been inundated with emails today from people from Rathangan, where it is taking two and a half hours, and from people …
80. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht if he will outline the new RAPID programme announced in budget 2026; and when he expects the programme to be operational by. [55400/25]
I thank Sinn Féin for tabling this very important motion on the cost of disability payment. I welcome the fact the Minister is in the Chamber for the debate.
I will begin with an email that was sent by a constituent who has multiple sclerosis, in response to budget 2026. She writes that she cannot work and her husband's wage is above the disability threshold. She has a son in college and another in secondary school.…