Molaim iarrachtaí an Aire an cheist a fhreagairt i nGaeilge. Tá mé fíorbhuíoch dó as sin.
To put things in numerical perspective, 8% of children can attend primary school through Irish, and 3.8% of those proceed to attend secondary school in Irish. However, titeann sé sin go dtí níos lú ná 1% sna hinstitiúidí tríú leibhéal. That falls to less than 1% of students who complete their tertiary education through Irish. A…
TDs / John Connolly
John Connolly
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
1,092
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
53,367
words spoken in the chamber
Across 219 contributions
424
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
265
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 1,092 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 219 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 32 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 30 | 24 |
| March 2025 | 45 | 5 |
| April 2025 | 53 | 16 |
| May 2025 | 55 | 22 |
| June 2025 | 70 | 15 |
| July 2025 | 31 | 13 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 33 | 10 |
| October 2025 | 22 | 17 |
| November 2025 | 94 | 6 |
| December 2025 | 42 | 15 |
| January 2026 | 56 | 4 |
| February 2026 | 83 | 17 |
| March 2026 | 64 | 5 |
| April 2026 | 43 | 11 |
| May 2026 | 43 | 6 |
| June 2026 | 71 | 20 |
| July 2026 | 71 | 4 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 71 | 2 |
| October 2026 | 83 | 7 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 178 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 Galway West 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
We should look at that Welsh model. It is a state framework for the promotion of courses through the Welsh language across their third level institutions. It has doubled since 2011 the number of students completing their third level education through Welsh. It offers additional grants to the institutions to offer courses through Welsh and scholarships to students. Those people from Conradh na Gaeilge who attended the…
I compliment the recent changes made by the Minister in the budget to increase the income thresholds for the SUSI support and to put more families in a position to get the SUSI grant.
Will the Minister's Department review the method used to calculate commuting distances for the SUSI adjacency grant eligibility?
I welcome the fact the Minister has outlined a method that prioritises being fair, whereby we give every option to ensure the detail is clear for the family about having that non-adjacent categorisation. There is one thing we should examine, namely, the household income threshold. This should reflect in some way the institution the student wishes to attend. If we take my own example, I am fortunate to live in Galway …
I welcome that. Again, it contributes to the impression I have of the Minister in terms of innovation and what he is bringing to this Department to make sure more people can access third level education and that no opportunity is denied.
To reiterate, there is some inequity in that household income is assessed irrespective of a student's adjacency or proximity to the third level institution. That is something we can…
I welcome today's debate. It is a significant day for third level education in the State. It indicates the commitment of this Government and that of the Minister to the development of the sector and, as he has rightly said time and again, the crucial nature it has in terms of the provision of skills. As the Minister, Deputy Lawless, has always said, this portfolio has an economic impact, and today we are seeing that …
I think I have said it all. I compliment the Minister and Minister of State and look forward to seeing the implementation of this over the coming years.
I welcome the emphasis in the budget on capital investment in infrastructure and housing. There is a full allocation of €19.1 billion for infrastructure in budget 2026, which is an increase of more than €2 billion on the 2025 figure. I very much welcome this. When we have such quantities of money to spend, it is important that we do not allow it to become bogged down in red tape and bureaucracy, which slows down the …
I want to bring to the attention of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, my concern about the proposal by Inland Fisheries Ireland, IFI, to close the Cong salmon hatchery at Cong on Lough Corrib. I cannot get clarity as to whether a decision has been made, or is due or pending. This concern has been brought to me by angling groups, in particular, but also by groups that advocate for the conservation of salmon on the…
I thank the Minister of State for his response. There is an independence to the board of Inland Fisheries Ireland. I recognise that the Minister of State is being prudent in not interfering in its decision-making processes. I do not have the scientific background required to challenge some of the content of the response. Nevertheless, there are a number of things I note. This hatchery has been in place since before 2…
That is a terrible comment.
One of the things that has worked so well to make our schools more accessible and more inclusive is the deployment of additional SNAs to our schools over the past two decades. I raise this issue in light of the recent publication of the guidelines for the review of SNA allocations in schools provided by the NCSE and the concern raised around it. I have to say I feel some of the concern is very justified. Specifically…
Classes for children include those for language, reading classes, etc. I think further clarification should be provided.
A number of Deputies have noted the recent sporting achievements of many Irish athletes. I take the opportunity to congratulate Fiona Murtagh, a Galway native, who was successful in the World Rowing Championships in the single sculls grade. She is an Olympian. I think this may be her second world title, but it is certainly a notable achievement and deserves congratulations.
I echo the sentiments of many speakers abo…
One issue that pertains to this was brought to my attention last week. It pertains to a number of schools in the Connemara region. Unfortunately, due to the upgrading of guidelines over the summer preventing food from being heated or cooked on site, a number of operators are no longer providing a service to these schools, which has resulted in the loss of the service for the children and families there. The schools a…
92. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of active participants in the fish assist scheme in each county, in tabular form; to consider an increase in the rate of payment under the fish assist scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50828/25]
What is the number of participants in the fish assist scheme? How many are there per county? Could we get that information? In light of budget 2026, will the Minister look at the scheme to see if it could be made more attractive for more participants?
I thank the Minister. It is quite a low number of participants considering we are an island nation. Fishing has been a traditional means of earning a living and sustaining some vibrancy in coastal communities in this country for centuries. The number the Minister has given us as regards people availing of this scheme is an indicator of the number of people involved in the industry in general. That is a matter for ano…
I again ask the Minister to look at that low threshold for seaweed harvesters. The income threshold for seaweed harvesters who might wish to also participate in the fish assist scheme is very low. It has not changed since the mid-nineties. It is €1,270. Taking inflation over the years into account, we could look at increasing that figure. The equivalent figure today might be €6,000 or €7,000. That would not be a regr…
I wish to ask the Minister about the commitment in the programme for Government to examine the anomalies in the means test for disability payments. Have we progressed that work?
I understand the Department is currently reviewing means testing across all of our schemes. Has that job of work progressed? When might we expect its completion? I refer in particular to the means test for the disability allowance. One issue is that a slight increase in household income can lead to a substantial decrease in the allowance paid to disabled members of society. That is one of the major anomalies the revi…
The programme for Government also makes a commitment to introduce a permanent annual cost-of-disability support payment, with a view to incrementally increasing it over the lifetime of the Government's term. Is this part of the current considerations in terms of the review of the disability payment?
2. Deputy John Connolly asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on housing will next meet. [46878/25]
11. Deputy John Connolly asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education will next meet. [46876/25]
I very much welcome the Minister's response. I have a similar question, Question No. 32, on the commitment in the programme for Government to review the infrastructural guidelines. One of the most frustrating aspects of being a public representative is the time it takes between the concept of a project to its delivery. I was a member of a local authority from 2004 to 2009, and my recollection is that public projects …