Tom Brabazon

I raise the issue of Uisce Éireann and the lack of meaningful engagement it has with the public and public representatives. I have had a number of dealings with it recently, most notably on James Larkin Road where it is doing an important project. While there has been engagement with public representatives, there has been no meaningful reaction to the problems raised about the traffic chaos on the…

18. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Taoiseach for an update on the implementation of the Dublin city task force report. [24955/26]

I welcome what the Taoiseach said in respect of the Dublin city task force. Us Dubs agree that the city centre certainly requires a lot of TLC. Speaking with many constituents in Dublin Bay North, they have fond memories of travelling into town to go shopping in the Talbot Street area. However, over recent years, they have begun to feel that the area is becoming unwelcoming due to litter, vagrancy…

Howth Yacht Club caters for all types of people. One might think a yacht club is the preserve of the wealthy middle class but the club goes well beyond that and has ambitious plans to become an inclusive club catering for those less able and less fortunate than regular club members. Recently, the EPA granted a licence to dredge the harbour, which is a welcome development and the first time it will…

I certainly would not be raising this issue in this public way in the Chamber if the matter were progressing in the manner the Minister of State has described. We have been waiting two years for the resolution of a consolidated lease in circumstances where the club's specialist hired solicitor has, in effect, done the work for the State. He has drafted the lease for the Department. It should take …

6. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department will consider introducing a statutory indemnity for gardaí who are acting within reason while pursuing persons driving scramblers and other vehicles recklessly and illegally. [49644/26]

I raise again the issue of scramblers. We all know responsibility for this is across the Minister's Department and that of the Minister, Deputy O'Brien. We need to get to grips with this problem. We need to take back our streets from scramblers, which are being deployed by criminal gangs as a method of muling drugs and intimidating communities. I warmly welcome the enactment of Grace's Law but, on…

I welcome the Minister's response in that regard but the suggestion made is only one of a suite of measures to combat this reckless carry-on. We need more accountability from importers of scramblers, more Garda pursuit training, more intelligence gathering and more community involvement in handing over intelligence to Garda authorities. Police services in other jurisdictions are provided with trai…

I thank the Minister again. We must act with a comprehensive suite of measures, as he said, and we must make rapid progress on this. I know what he said about thousands of scramblers being seized by gardaí but there are still many on our streets endangering the public, so we must act with speed.

86. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department will increase funding for the local authorities financial contribution scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47945/26]

I raise with the Minister the financial contribution scheme whereby local authorities acquire houses from over-60s at market value. In return, one third of the net proceeds of sale are given to the local authority and the senior citizens get a local authority unit and pay a differential rate on same. There are significant benefits for the economy and the overall housing situation. Those getting ol…

The scheme, as the Minister of State said, is non-statutory and it operates erratically. It is subject to funding being available in local authorities. Sometimes it is available and sometimes it is not and it is difficult as a public representative to be able to advise constituents who are in the over-60 age bracket on this, when the availability of the funding is intermittent and in some cases no…

I thank the Minister of State. I welcome what he said but I ask him and his officials to light a fire under it and get it moving as quickly as possible so the new policy framework can be delivered as quickly as possible.

I commend the Minister and his Department on bringing forward the Bill. The Government committed to implementing the e-evidence package and to establishing the new office of the director of criminal justice international co-operation, CJICO, in the programme for Government. It is welcome to see that commitment now being progressed. The Bill is practical and necessary and will strengthen Ireland's…

149. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the action he is taking to increases Ireland's attractiveness as a destination for FDI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45635/26]

I again raise the issue of scramblers, e-bikes and e-scooters. We have to get a grip on the import and supply of these vehicles. We also need to have a far greater accountability from the suppliers of these vehicles, which are wreaking havoc in communities across the country. I have spoken previously of gangs of youths wearing balaclavas when driving on scramblers, etc., but they are not even wear…

I wish to raise the issue of St. Francis Junior National School as it is set to lose one of its mainstream teachers because it was short one pupil. One teacher is going to be lost because of the lack of one single pupil. This is ridiculous, bureaucratic, box-ticking nonsense. The school appealed this decision and, in turn, that appeal was refused. It is frustrating to engage with the Department. I…

We have given the school DEIS plus status and the decision to remove one teacher from it is a policy contradiction in itself. It is utterly ridiculous. I have found since I have been elected to this House that the Department of Education and Youth has been relying on circular this, circular that and circular the other. We are constrained and what is missing is common sense and practicality. It has…

I welcome this Bill being progressed and the opportunity to speak on it today. This is very important and, frankly, overdue legislation. Like all Members of the House, I am appalled and horrified by the treatment of the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli authorities and I condemn the Israeli Government, the genocide it has committed, the ongoing occupation of Palestinian lands, the des…

Aontaím leis an Teachta O'Callaghan sa mhéid is go raibh sé ag tacú le muintir Northside Home Care. I fully agree with Deputy O' Callaghan in relation to Northside Home Care issue. It is really important that the considerable and important work done by these people is acknowledged by the Government and that they at least get equal pay for equal work. With regard to the Finance Bill, my constituen…

124. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Defence the engagement which has taken place with the United Nations and Ireland's international partners in relation to the future of the Irish peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL particularly in view of ongoing hostilities in Lebanon. [44191/26]

We are the only country in the world to have a continuous presence on UN mandated peace operations since 1958. Our peacekeepers have served with distinction and pride, and in particular with their deployment in Lebanon as part of the UNIFIL mission there. It is very disappointing that this mission is to come to an end and especially in light of ongoing hostilities in south Lebanon. Will the Minist…

Our peacekeepers have been operating in very difficult circumstances in recent months, as the Minister has outlined, with air strikes, drone strikes and ground operations in the Irish area of operation. The escalating hostilities and recent deaths of peacekeepers is extremely concerning. We need to make sure that the Irish peacekeepers are given every necessary protection. On top of that, the loc…

Our responsibility is essentially twofold in that we have to continue to support the people of south Lebanon, who are at real risk, and we must make sure that each Irish peacekeeper returns home safely to his or her family. I will finish by thanking all those who served in UNIFIL and particularly those who made the ultimate sacrifice in support of peace in that area. They have worn the Tricolour …

9. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if she will report on the political agreement at the recent EU Foreign Affairs Council to move forward with targeted sanctions vis-à-vis extremist settlers and entities supporting settlements in the West Bank. [37999/26]