I am always afraid about a new Administration. At times, I am not always sure that they understand the entire history.
TDs / Ruairí Ó Murchú
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
1,135
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
176,932
words spoken in the chamber
Across 897 contributions. Plus 338 contributions from the chair, not counted
413
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
246
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 1,135 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 897 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 10 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 33 | 33 |
| March 2025 | 24 | 23 |
| April 2025 | 29 | 57 |
| May 2025 | 38 | 75 |
| June 2025 | 33 | 69 |
| July 2025 | 205 | 34 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 203 | 23 |
| October 2025 | 31 | 50 |
| November 2025 | 51 | 85 |
| December 2025 | 41 | 68 |
| January 2026 | 68 | 54 |
| February 2026 | 37 | 56 |
| March 2026 | 36 | 45 |
| April 2026 | 48 | 55 |
| May 2026 | 62 | 53 |
| June 2026 | 67 | 31 |
| July 2026 | 58 | 36 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 33 | 22 |
| October 2026 | 28 | 28 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 581 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 Louth 29 November 2024 to now
- party Sinn Féin 29 November 2024 to now
I have commended the Tánaiste before on his roadmap for Irish unity.
I believe we need to keep that work going. I would ask about that and also about how the Tánaiste can put that into action in government because that is necessary and I do not think enough has been done.
8. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on Northern Ireland will next meet. [66854/26]
23. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on EU and international affairs will next meet. [65515/26]
122. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance whether he intends to engage with the British Government on the issue of cross-Border workers, people who live in the North and work in the South, who face numerous tax anomalies. [68200/26]
I thank the Minister of State for being here. It will not be the first time we have had this discussion. It is a very difficult discussion to deal with. We all know that in Ireland we have a history of it being far too easy to get an involuntary admission to mental health services. The problem is that, on some level, the pendulum has swung too far the other way. There can be difficulties at times. I am talking people…
I understand what the Minister of State is saying in relation to the lead-in that is required for the new Mental Health Act. However, even in the short term, is it the case that we need guidelines, whether they are being given to local authorities or GPs at times? We could all have an argument about what is immediate or serious harm and whether someone is going to seriously deteriorate. I would argue on the cases I h…
It is about getting the person to that point.
People have to get them to the psychiatrist.
Many have said it before; we all accept that Government is not responsible for what has happened with the war in Iran. Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are responsible and we are all suffering as a result. However, let us be absolutely clear. There are things the Government can do. It did reduce the cost of petrol and diesel when it was forced to.
We all know an insufficient amount was done in relation to that. H…
-----costs of up to €300 a month. Some of that is fuel. We need help on that as well. Some of that is heating.
We need to get serious. Regarding the cost of disability payment that the Government took away, we need to ensure that is delivered. We have a lot of people under pressure, and the Government could help a lot of them now.
On some level, this is a technical Bill, but because it deals with assessment of need, the Minister will understand that there is a huge level of trepidation and worry out there about the delivery of a service that has seen abject failure over many years.
We know that the reason this is being tackled is because, at last count at the end of June, we had 23,282 children on the waiting list for an assessment of need. T…
As I follow my two colleagues, the Minister will have got the idea that we have a particular problem with section 8, and why would we not? Anyone who had needed State services in the last while knows that, in order to access them, particularly online, a public services card is required. We need to just knock the idea that it is voluntary on its head straight away. We know there are huge issues. For want of a better t…
Táimid críochnaithe le hobair an lae uilig. Caithfidh mé rud éigin beag a rá. It was great to see Louth GAA and Louth LGFA in the Oireachtas. I could not let this occasion go without thanking them for the great results across the board that we have had. I thank Sean McLean and his team for delivering what is going to be a top-class stadium. I just hope that Gavin Devlin and his team can go ahead and we can learn from…
58. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality for an update on the progress being made to provide alternatives to assessment of needs. [65850/26]
I ask for an update on assessments of need. There are now over 23,000 on the waiting list. This is not working for anybody, particularly families who are awaiting services and therapies. Since August, the autism assessment service has been up and running and the disability amendment Bill has been brought to Cabinet. I ask for an update on how this is going and how we can improve the circumstances for the children and…
I suppose that information is the information that is available, even from the press release yesterday. I would like the Minister of State to get into some detail on what is being proposed in the legislation because we are talking about statutory guidelines that will standardise the assessment of need processes and procedures State-wide. The statutory guidelines will be used by the HSE to ensure consistency in how as…
Could we actually see the Bill as quickly as possible?
Usually, I do not trust myself when I am doing a search online but I have not been able to see the wording of the Bill, so I ask that we ensure copies go out from that point of view.
I checked it with somebody else because I would never generally trust myself in my ability to search for documentation.
Could I get the updated number of those on the waiting list for assessment of need at this point in time and over the six months? I accept the Minister of State is saying that people are not losing that statutory right so there is a need to deliver on that. I understand she will explain it more nex…
It is fair to say that we all welcome any moves in relation to anything that streamlines or simplifies, particularly when we talk about road traffic, whether it is from a point of view of retention of information and sharing information in relation to collisions or anything that can lead to something that is safer. We have all seen the absolute slaughter on our roads in recent times. Unfortunately, we have had too ma…
I had the privilege of being in Dundalk District Court this morning to hear incredibly warm and deserved tributes to the late solicitor and senior counsel, James MacGuill, who died unexpectedly on 6 September. James, as many will know, was a titan of the legal profession, not just in Louth or the State but across Europe. In many ways, he was passionate about the rule of law but he also rewrote the rules himself at ti…
The irony is not lost on solicitors and the public that this was the first piece of legislation to come before the Dáil in the new term. This Bill places on statutory footing the existing right of people in custody to consult a solicitor before and during interview and provides for electronic recording of interviews by gardaí where, previously, everything that was said in a Garda interview had to be handwritten. The …