I can give the Taoiseach a copy of the letter.
TDs / Colm Burke
Colm Burke
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
1,291
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
49,488
words spoken in the chamber
3,972 as a minister, 45,516 as a TD
430
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
239
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 1,291 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 266 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 7 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 23 | 7 |
| March 2025 | 73 | 4 |
| April 2025 | 62 | 18 |
| May 2025 | 64 | 38 |
| June 2025 | 72 | 11 |
| July 2025 | 89 | 16 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 96 | 12 |
| October 2025 | 53 | 18 |
| November 2025 | 105 | 33 |
| December 2025 | 74 | 9 |
| January 2026 | 57 | 4 |
| February 2026 | 62 | 7 |
| March 2026 | 91 | 17 |
| April 2026 | 67 | 17 |
| May 2026 | 61 | 3 |
| June 2026 | 72 | 16 |
| July 2026 | 72 | 18 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 64 | 0 |
| October 2026 | 27 | 18 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 247 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 Cork North-Central 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
I will be brief. I thank the Minister, the Department, the vets and all involved in this for all the work they are doing. One issue that has come to my attention is the additional compensation that is available. It is available on the basis that the total number of reactors is 9.5% or above. That is fine in a situation where it is 9.5% of 50 animals but if it is 9.5% of 300 animals and the number of reactors does not…
100. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the engagement his Department has had with relevant stakeholders in relation to generational renewal policies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54722/25]
The commission on generational renewal in farming has published its report. I ask the Minister what engagement the Department has had with relevant stakeholders on generational renewal policies and whether he will make a statement on the matter.
I thank the Minister. As he will be aware, the report clearly sets out that only something like 4% of farmers are under 35 and 37% are over 65. This means we have a major challenge. It is also about the demands of farming. In dairy farming especially it is a seven-day week and people are on call all the time. There are jobs outside the agricultural sector that are very attractive. Only 3% of CAP supports are going to…
I am a solicitor and if we go back 25 years there was a lot of succession planning, whereas I find the same level of planning is not there now. I am wondering how we can encourage that, talk openly about it and ensure there is a plan in place. In one case, in order to do a proper transfer of land we had to transfer the land to the daughters-in-law because that was the only way we could do proper planning in relation …
17. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport for an update on the co-ordination between his Department and the Department of Health, in particular in the delivery of community-based and national health promotion programmes assisting people on how they can identify supports in improving their mental health; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52512/25]
I thank the Minister. It is accepted that the more people get out of their own homes and are involved in community activities makes a huge difference to their mental health. It is important we continue to promote that but it is important there is co-ordination between Departments as well, especially regarding the cultural area. The Minister mentioned the issue of nursing homes. One example of people getting involved …
I thank the Minister. I welcome the development that has occurred. The collaboration between the HSE, the Department of Health and the IPU is a welcome development. The agreement that has been reached shows that providing healthcare in the community is extremely important. Progress is being made in this area. Over recent years, pharmacies have been playing a greater role in providing healthcare. It is important for t…
Article 1 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which came into effect in 1951, is very clear: "The Contracting Parties confirm that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish." It is now beyond question that Israel is guilty of committing war crimes in Gaza and that Israel is n…
98. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Transport for an update on the progress to date regarding the N20-M20 Limerick to Cork motorway project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51598/25]
Will the Minister give an update on the progress of the M20 Limerick to Cork motorway project and make a statement on the matter?
The big challenge we have is the growth in businesses and in the number of people having to travel to work in Limerick, Mallow or Cork and the resulting huge volume of traffic on this road. The road was fine 50 years ago, in particular from Cork to Mallow and Mallow to the Limerick boundary, but it is now past its sell-by date. It is important that the project be expedited. For instance, I travel to Mallow to get a 6…
-----because there is still indecision about the final route.
The Ryder Cup will take place in two years' time and work has already started on the roads there. It will have an effect on the area because a huge number of tourists will come to the country during that period. For them to see the road infrastructure without any evidence that we are trying to improve it will not be helpful. This issue needs to be prioritised because of the number of people who will travel to Ireland…
It is amazing how the market changes. One issue that is now on the market is high puff count vaping devices. They have exploded onto the Irish market in a short period. They are known as carousel or click-on vape devices, but they are commonly known as “big puff”. While they do not breach existing laws because their tanks contain 2 ml of vape liquid, big puff disposable vapes are in clear breach of the spirit of exis…
I want to raise with the Minister my concern that there is no structure in place between local authorities and Uisce Éireann. If an engineer in a local authority wants to make a representation about a connection, he or she is treated in the same way as a member of the public. I ask that the Departments would sit down with Irish Water and the local authorities to set up a proper structure. I know of one housing projec…
I thank the Minister of State and the Department for the work they are doing in this area. The numbers availing of school transport have increased to 172,000 this year from 149,000 in 2022-23. The number for people with special educational needs has gone from 18,000 to 21,500. It is not easy to increase services like that because, as a lot of speakers mentioned, there is demand for the vehicles and for the drivers. T…
I thank the Minister for the work being done. Hopefully, we will see success in the pilot projects that have been started.
I have a letter in my hand from Dr. Derville O'Shea, consultant haematologist, in respect of a constituent of mine, Aishling Thornhill, who, unfortunately, has relapsed refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. It is a complicated condition. My understanding is that treatment would be available to her if she was under 25 but because she is over 25 it is not being made available. I understand some progress was …
As the Minister of State will be aware, the programme for Government sets out quite clearly that a task force will be set up to deal with the challenges that exist in Cork city centre. There is a need for major redevelopment and for an overall plan to deal with those challenges. In real terms, a lot of progress has been made in Cork city but we need to work through how we can grow and develop the city centre into the…
My concern is that it would be delayed further, given that we are already over 350 days in government. Even if we set up the task force in the morning, it would take 12 months to get the report and further time to set up an implementation mechanism. I am concerned about the timeframe in which this task force will be set up.
It is also important that the task force is inclusive. I accept that Cork City Council is pla…
The Minister spoke of funding for Irish Water.
More than 500 treatment plants throughout the country were built between 2002 and 2008. Many of the developers who built them have gone into liquidation or receivership. In one case in Whitechurch in Cork, raw sewage is flying out of the treatment plant into the stream. I have taken samples from it. I have been writing to Cork County Council, Uisce Éireann and the EPA f…
I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, for all the work done on flood relief programmes. The problem I have with them is the time it takes from start to finish. One, the Glanmire flood relief project, is being done in my constituency at the moment. It is nearing completion and was very well managed by the OPW. I am concerned about the one in Blackpool, which started in 2013 and, 12 years later, the most recent …
91. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will provide an update on the progress of the €5 million pilot programme of counselling and well-being and mental health supports for the academic years 2024-25; to provide a breakdown of the progress in Cork in particular; if there are plans to expand the programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40008/25]