Ten out of 12 healthcare centres are not delivering them.
TDs / Mark Ward
Mark Ward
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
635
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
86,854
words spoken in the chamber
Across 347 contributions
429
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
148
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 635 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 347 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 21 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 40 | 10 |
| March 2025 | 26 | 10 |
| April 2025 | 29 | 13 |
| May 2025 | 43 | 13 |
| June 2025 | 38 | 27 |
| July 2025 | 37 | 17 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 28 | 10 |
| October 2025 | 30 | 21 |
| November 2025 | 49 | 20 |
| December 2025 | 5 | 9 |
| January 2026 | 24 | 23 |
| February 2026 | 40 | 28 |
| March 2026 | 40 | 9 |
| April 2026 | 44 | 39 |
| May 2026 | 25 | 38 |
| June 2026 | 46 | 25 |
| July 2026 | 32 | 15 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 25 | 10 |
| October 2026 | 13 | 10 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 142 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 Dublin Mid-West 29 November 2024 to now
- party Sinn Féin 29 November 2024 to now
I begin by congratulating the parents of children with additional needs, the school communities and the special needs assistants themselves. Many of them are here tonight. I have been contacted by parents, principals and SNAs in Clondalkin, Lucan and across Dublin Mid-West over the past couple of weeks in relation to this. I was at an event on Thursday in Collinstown Community College, where people in Clondalkin are …
-----when the responsibility lies with the Government.
The Government needs to take responsibility. In her ten-minute speech, I did not hear an apology to the people in the Gallery - not once, not one apology.
Deputy Kelly can work away and speak now.
I have said before that rushed legislation makes for poor legislation. I was on the justice committee when it was agreed unanimously right across the committee that we would give as much time as possible to debate the EU asylum and migration pact and the legislation we are talking about today. It was agreed on a cross-party basis by members of the Minister's party, of his colleague's party and all the Government part…
Listening to the debate, there seems to be one rule for the Government and another rule for the Opposition, with the Minister pushing his own legislation and not giving the Opposition the chance to undertake the proper scrutiny it needs to. I will give an example of why I am saying this, and the Minister will know where I am coming from. Last month, the Government delayed legislation I had before the House on nitrous…
I will speak first about amendment No. 2. This amendment simply reaffirms that decisions on immigration and international protection remain the sole responsibility of the State. I have said before that Ireland is an independent sovereign state and should not be beholden to Europe on matters we can resolve ourselves. It has been the attitude of successive governments that we want to be the best in class when it comes …
Give it a go.
This amendment seeks to provide a clear definition of "legal counselling". We were asked many questions about legal counselling during the justice committee's hearings on this legislation, such as how it is to be defined, what it means and who will provide it. There will be a lack of clarity if legal counsel is provided by non-legal professionals. Is it to be individual counselling? Is it to be group counselling? Is …
The Minister has said he will bring forward a definition of "legal counselling". This doubles down on the point we were making earlier that this is rushed legislation. We are on Committee Stage and we still do not have a definition in front of us to be able to discuss what "legal counselling" is. Its absence is why these amendments are being put forward today. We would not have to discuss these amendments if there wa…
I reiterate what my colleagues have said about the meeting we had yesterday at the justice committee. The Minister does not have to believe us when we say there is a crisis in legal aid. The Bar Council of Ireland, the Law Society, FLAC, the Legal Aid Board and Women's Aid were all unanimously in agreement with that. They said the system is ready to collapse and is deteriorating in front of their eyes. Legal aid is f…
We are talking about definitions of "last resort" for people going into custody but we would not need to be talking about detentions if we had a rules-based system that worked and would enable people to be processed quickly and fairly. I have some questions about the detention of children in particular. Where are these children going to be held? Will this fall under Tusla or what body is going to be responsible? How …
The Minister of State and I do not share a constituency but we do share the local authority area of South Dublin County Council. It houses the largest number of international protection applicants in the country with 4,200 in total. I have to say that some have settled in better than others but one thing they all have in common is that they are all with private operators who are making vast money from vulnerable peop…
I thank my constituency colleague, Deputy Ó Broin, for the work he has done on this legislation. The Social Housing Passport Bill is a really important piece of legislation. It provides a person with the ability to move from one local authority list to another without losing their time on the housing list. I first raised this issue back in 2019 when I got elected in a by-election. It was in the 2020 programme for Gov…
Neither have you.
Look at the housing crisis that-----
There are 16,000 people living in homelessness-----
Sinn Féin will be supporting the Minister's amendments from the Seanad, which are largely technical, as well as the amendment that explicitly clarifies the defence of live broadcasts. We will, however, be opposing the Bill itself.
While the Bill contains important provisions with regard to strategic lawsuits against public participation, SLAPPs, for example, and Sinn Féin remains willing to engage constructively wit…
39. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education will next meet. [10029/26]
Hear, hear.
I want to start by saying that everybody who was involved in that tragic incident on North Earl Street this lunchtime is in my thoughts and prayers. I thank the first responders. They do not get enough thanks from us in this House for being there and assisting people at this tragic time. I also want to ask people to refrain from sharing images and videos on social media. I know somebody it happened to before and it i…
7. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Taoiseach for an update on the programme for Government. [3646/26]
I listened to the Taoiseach's response on Leaders' Questions to my party leader, Deputy McDonald. He said the Government will introduce regulations for e-scooters. That is also in the programme for Government. Since 2024, e-scooters have been legal on Irish roads, but people do not need a licence to drive one. They do not have to be registered, taxed or insured. As we speak, e-scooters are being driven recklessly and…
94. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science his plans to reduce university fees; if the Government is committed to fully abolishing university fees; when this will be realised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6908/26]