Jerry Buttimer

Since 2020, our Department has allocated Kildare County Council €11.1 million for the public library service, be it the library service to Clane or the mobile library service. It is a testament to the vision of Kildare County Council in terms of its recognition of the importance of our library service. This is maybe tongue in cheek, but perhaps the Tailteann Cup can be showcased in the new librar…

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important matter and he is right that it is a recurring theme when we speak to people who are very committed to the work they do. The Government's five-year strategy to support the community and voluntary sector, Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, was published six years ago. It is a whole-of-government strategy, led by our Department and it …

I am committed to continuing to provide supports to the community and voluntary sector. I am not absolving us from any role here but our Department does not set terms and conditions of pay. We are very much of the view that it is about supporting the community and voluntary sector. My priority is to create an environment where the sector can thrive, that is enabling and empowering, and that is bui…

To be fair, we are aware of and are very cognisant of the challenges in the sector. I reiterate that it would be inappropriate for our Department to be involved in the setting of pay and conditions, while recognising the importance of the sector and the brilliant work being done. What we are committed to doing and what we will do is to look into an estimated time to boost the budget for the Depart…

I thank the Deputy. Our Department's social inclusion and community activation programme is our country’s primary social inclusion programme. SICAP is a national programme delivered locally in both rural and urban areas by local development companies. It supports those in the greatest need to address high and persistent levels of deprivation through targeted, locally-led initiatives and approaches…

I thank the Deputy who is right to raise this matter. He has raised it previously. I have asked the Department to examine this issue. The Irish Examiner recently had an interesting profile of the north side of Cork city. It is an issue I am concerned about. We need to have a serious conversation about it. The Glen Resource Centre has a good programme for the families of those in prison. It has hel…

I thank the Deputy for the work he has done. I taught in St. Aidan's Community College; I am familiar with the area. I recognise the issue he has highlighted, despite the great work by a variety of community organisations and mentoring. There is an empowerment piece, training, retraining and engagement between agencies. There are a number of people who re-offend once they leave prison. We have an …

The public library strategy was published in July 2023. It contains 66 actions which will enable our public libraries to become multipurpose social and educational spaces for all members of the community to enjoy. As I said in response to a previous last question, our libraries are now transformed into places of community activity. They are no longer just for reading and studying; there are men's …

There is huge merit in those suggestions. I am certainly very open to that. Athy library was mentioned as an example. Birr library is another example. In other parts of the country refurbished buildings are, through a variety of means, being used. Our libraries are now community spaces. They are being used by a variety of people. Our traditional library has changed, thankfully, from a place where …

In regard to the sensory room issue, I was in Ennis library last week, where there is a sensory space. There was a mum with two kids in the sensory space and their joy and contemplative ease was phenomenal. I commend the staff in Ennis library on that space. It was breathtaking to see the way in which they were able to take a piece of the library floor area and use it for people with autism or oth…

I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this very important matter. I am taking it on behalf of the Minister for Transport. The Department of Transport has responsibility for the provision of funding and setting of policy in relation to transport issues, including active travel. The NTA has responsibility for the allocation of funding to projects at local authority level and works with local authoriti…

I again thank Deputy John Connolly for his remarks and contribution. He is right that there is a need for co-ordination between all the different agencies and stakeholders to ensure we deliver for citizens and residents. I thank him for raising the matter, which is of huge importance to him, the people of Galway and the wider community. It has an impact on life and impinges on the quality of busin…

I am responding on the motion on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Dillon. I thank the members of the Social Democrats for their contributions this morning and thank all Members of the House for their varied and interesting comments. I begin by reiterating that the Government fully acknowledges the concerns raised in this Private Members' motion regarding the rising cost of groceries and th…

I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. I apologise that the Minister is not here and that I do not have a copy of the speech for the Deputy. I will get it to her as soon as possible. Like her, I deal with parents and children every day and every week and she is right that there is frustration. We all need to work collaboratively to ensure access to services is improved and that par…

I thank the Deputy again for raising this very important matter, which is a priority for the Minister and the Government. This is reflected in the current programme for Government, which includes a clear commitment to support families who are waiting for assessments of need and to ensure children and their families can access the supports they need. The Minister understands the scale of the challe…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. It gives me the opportunity to remind the House on behalf of the Minister for Education and Youth of the significant challenges facing us in meeting increasing demand for pupil places throughout the country. As the Deputy raised the issue of Portmarnock in the coming years, I am grateful for the opportunity to clarify the position on the provision of pri…

I thank Deputy Smith for raising the issue and I hear his remarks and concerns regarding the provision of school places at primary level in Portmarnock. The Department uses data from a range of sources, including child benefit data, enrolments and information on new residential developments to plan for school placement needs. I will take the points Deputy Smith has made back, and I ask him to prov…

I apologise because I was not given copies of the script.

I thank Deputy Burke for raising this very important matter. He is right to highlight the relationship between data centres and electricity demand, which is a global challenge. There is the additional demand for energy by data centres and the need to ensure we are competitive. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment. I will first set out the work …

I thank Deputy Burke for his contribution and comments, and I will take his remarks back to the Minister. As I said earlier, next month the Minister will bring a policy document on private wires to Cabinet. However, private wires alone will not solve the issues currently facing the data centre sector in Ireland. To date, Ireland has attracted the best data centre and tech companies in the world, w…

I thank Deputy McGrath for raising this very important issue. I am taking the matter on behalf of the Minister. As Deputy McGrath will know, the formulation and implementation of monetary policy is an independent matter for the European Central Bank, ECB. As it sought to combat excessive inflation, the ECB increased official interest rates on ten occasions, to 4.5%, in the period 2022 to 2023. How…

The Deputy is right to raise the matter. It is an issue vexing many of our neighbours and friends. The Government is acutely aware of the impact of the rising interest rate environment and the strain it has caused for some borrowers, and has responded with various initiatives to assist those affected. Following engagement with the then Minister for Finance in 2023, the mortgage industry put in pla…

I thank Deputy Daly for his question. Infrastructure is a matter that has been raised by many Local Link companies. Arising from the Indecon review, it is important that we look at the issues the Deputy has raised in consultation with TFI and the NTA. They are valid concerns but there are also issues in respect of safety, the suitability of certain stops' locations and certain signage. I will work…

The Deputy's question is different from the one that was submitted. To provide one figure, under this Government and the last Government, we have seen an increase in funding for the rural transport programme. It has gone from €16 million in 2022 to €25 million last year. As the Deputy will know quite well, we have seen growth in his county of Kerry. For example, route 280 from Waterville to Killor…

The Government is very committed to rural transport.