I thank the Deputies for raising this question and giving me an opportunity to reassure the House that the Department of Education and Youth and the NCSE are committed to ensuring that all children can access an education suitable to their needs. The Department of Education and Youth is committed to engaging intensely with the NCSE in relation to forward planning for new special provision to ensure every child has a …
TDs / Niall Collins
Niall Collins
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
223
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
63,958
words spoken in the chamber
63,945 as a minister, 13 as a TD
351
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
87
topics asked about
Across 17 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 223 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 201 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 14 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 13 | 7 |
| March 2025 | 10 | 7 |
| April 2025 | 16 | 2 |
| May 2025 | 11 | 7 |
| June 2025 | 12 | 3 |
| July 2025 | 13 | 40 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 10 | 13 |
| October 2025 | 11 | 27 |
| November 2025 | 14 | 8 |
| December 2025 | 9 | 4 |
| January 2026 | 6 | 8 |
| February 2026 | 15 | 5 |
| March 2026 | 16 | 7 |
| April 2026 | 4 | 8 |
| May 2026 | 11 | 20 |
| June 2026 | 16 | 0 |
| July 2026 | 8 | 21 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 10 | 1 |
| October 2026 | 4 | 13 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 146 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 Limerick County 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister of State at the Department of Justice 29 January 2025 to 4 June 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration 5 June 2025 to 28 May 2026
- office Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine 28 May 2026 to now
I thank the Deputy. I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that, following the MV Matthew seizure and forfeiture, immediate steps were taken to prepare for its disposal. In November 2023, initial consultations commenced with a shipping broker with a view to marketing the vessel for sale. In December 2023, the Revenue Commissioners were advised by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions that disposal coul…
I cannot give the Deputy any sense of the timeline. There is no better organisation within the public service than the Revenue Commissioners in terms of efficiency and the expediency of the work done. I believe the Deputy would agree with that.
It its fairly clearly implied in much of the information the Revenue Commissioners have supplied to me that there are circumstances outside our control. The Irish Revenue Com…
I thank the Deputy for the question. We are well aware of the misery and distress the use of illegal fireworks can cause around this time of year. We also hear and see enough to know that they pose a real risk to the health and safety of young people and to the elderly and vulnerable. They also terrify family pets, service dogs and other animals.
Our Department runs an annual awareness campaign that seeks to inform …
I accept what the Deputy said about the season starting earlier and earlier each year, which is regrettable. That is true of the community in which I live, which is a rural part of Limerick. Some elderly neighbours were very put out by it.
Under Operation Tombola, the Garda has carried out 1,218 fireworks seizures to an estimated value of €225,000. These seizures have undoubtedly contributed to reducing the harm ass…
I would like to make the point to the Deputy that we are in the process of establishing local community safety partnerships throughout the country. That is a step up or ramping up of the former joint policing committees. I know the Deputy is aware that 36 community safety partnerships will be stood up. They are in the process. Some are up and running and some have had their first meeting. Many of the local authoritie…
On behalf of the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, I thank Deputy McGrath for submitting this Topical Issue and acknowledge the concerns raised in relation to the very serious issue of drink spiking. Spiking is a crime that preys on vulnerability, that undermines consent and that can have devastating consequences for victims. The Government is committed to taking a zero-tolerance approach to domestic, sexual and gender-b…
Again, I thank the Deputy for raising what is a very serious issue. I acknowledge that the incident in question was very serious for the person and family on whose behalf he is raising this matter. Combating and eradicating sexual and gender-based violence is one of our core priorities. The programme for Government reaffirms our commitment to introducing stronger laws to combat the spiking of drinks. This is a specif…
I am responding on behalf of the Minister for justice to the issue that was raised. We in Ireland are lucky to have a police service in An Garda Síochána that has the widespread community support that has been hard earned over decades of service to the State and to our people. The common refrain from the public is that they want more gardaí in their community and on their streets. This is certainly not the case in ma…
That is not true.
That is not true.
It is not true.
That is not true.
What about locking down the city and the tunnel?
The Dublin Port tunnel.
You see, the Deputy tries to own the argument every way. She does not have a monopoly on concern for the Palestinians. I have been to the Middle East. I have been to Palestine and to Ramallah and Hebron. I have walked the streets of East Jerusalem. I have been to the settler communities and seen the impact those have on the people of Palestine. The Deputy does not have a monopoly on concern for the Palestinians. She …
You cannot have it both ways. You want to have it both ways. The Deputy thinks we can just lock down Dublin city centre every single day of the week.
That is what the Deputy is saying, because if it is okay once, then it is okay twice. Where does it go from there then? The Garda was right and acted completely correctly in my view.
I have seen the video and I will support every single member of An Garda Síochána who policed that event because they were looking out for the hundreds of thousands of people around this city and region who-----
-----have an absolutely right go about their business and use the public roads to get on with their business, get home to their families, do their day-to-day activities, get to work, get home, rear their children and bring their kids to their clubs and their sports. The Deputy, though, seems to think that locking down Dublin is acceptable.
No, it is not. People are absolutely entitled to protest. Nobody disputes that. The Deputy, though, wants to elevate it and bring it to a place where it actually discredits what they are protesting for, and that is regrettable.
This record justice budget of over €6 billion reflects our strong commitment to build safe and secure communities. Youth justice has a crucial role to play in this. The significant increase of €7.3 million in youth justice funding which I have secured is a 22% increase and enables us to achieve comprehensive nationwide coverage of our network of youth diversion projects for the first time ever. The importance of this…
I thank Deputy Gogarty for raising this issue, acknowledge the contributions of all speakers and reiterate that the Government is not opposing this motion. There has been significant interest in this motion and it is an area we take very seriously. We are all in agreement about the need to address the root causes and impact of antisocial behaviour. The harm this behaviour causes communities can be significant. As Min…
It is not a secret.
It is not a secret.