Rose Conway-Walsh

What the Minister is saying is not compatible with what we are hearing from business organisations and what we know, which is that businesses are really struggling right now. They are struggling with energy costs, red tape and so many different things. That must be addressed. It is not right to say everything is okay for businesses, including indigenous businesses.

Sorry, a Chathaoirligh, I was not counting. The Minister has heard my message.

5. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to provide an update on the work of the cost of business advisory forum. [33467/25]

I thank Deputy Gibney for accommodating me. I did not have an opportunity before Question Time began to ask her to do so. I am seeking an update on the newly established and hugely important cost of business advisory forum, which met recently for the first time. Costs in general are spiralling, with the cost of energy being one of the major difficulties reported by the SME sector. I am pleased th…

I am specifically interested in the outcomes from the sector meetings. Can the Minister confirm whether there have been any indications of a reduction in energy prices? The cost of energy is huge for businesses, with many owners telling me their energy costs are greater than their wage bill. We must do something about that. I am also keen to know whether there has been any discussion about the cos…

Many business owners barely have a wage at the end of the week by the time they have paid all of the costs of doing business. This did not begin today or yesterday. Many businesses tell us they are under threat of closure. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, is represented on the forum. I welcome that. The remit of the commission has expanded in recent years, particularly in …

I ask the Tánaiste to do a practical thing to help families impacted by the defective concrete blocks scandal. I ask him to tag on a non-consequential amendment to the emergency planning Bill to ensure homeowners currently in the process of rebuilding can avail of the updated Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland, SCSI, rates. This will help bridge the gap between the building costs and the grant…

The legislation proposed by the Minister, if enacted, will bring Ireland in step with an EU directive that should have been transposed into domestic law in 1983. While I welcome the fact that it is better late than never that the Government is attempting to provide these protections to Irish workers, I cannot help but wonder how many more workers could have been protected if this legislation had b…

As we have done for several years now, I welcome Lucia, Jim, Gemma, Pia, Aimee, Hannah and the extended O'Farrell family to the Gallery today. They are absolutely the family that would not go away, and I thank them for that, although I wish they did not have to make yet another trip to the House to try to secure justice for their son and brother Shane. It was important that the truth of what happ…

This evening, the Minister stands between €12 billion that has been spent on bombs and bullets to slaughter the people of Gaza. The Minister and the Government can stop that. The horrors and the genocide being visited on the people of Gaza by the State of Israel is shocking, disturbing and disgusting. I have never seen a state so devoid of humanity and so cruel and callous - a child with no head; …

I commend all the home carers and the people who are providing a great service. We need to have some truth around this situation because the Minister of State knows, going back to 2007 and 2008, we had an excellent home care service in this country. The HSE and the Minister for Health at the time went around and they chopped and chopped and privatised the service. They privatised home care, which…

Before I talk to the Minister about the wider CAP agenda, I raise the schedule for the women's farm capital investment scheme, in which women get 60% grant aid for TAMS 3. The normal rate is 40%, so it is attractive for many women farmers. However, when drawing up the rules of the scheme, the Department set a base year of 2022 as the year a woman has to have submitted a basic payment form. It is n…

How much more do homeowners impacted by the defective blocks in Mayo and other counties have to endure, whether they have partially completed their rebuilds or whether they are trying to get into the scheme? At every age homeowners are given assurances that they would not be disadvantaged by the timing that they entered the schemes. Now homeowners, who are in the middle of rebuilding their homes a…

The Minister of State said that the Government understands that this can be a difficult and challenging time for homeowners. I am sorry but he does not and the Government does not. I am glad the Minister went to Donegal but my god you would have to be hiding under a rock for the past 15 years to not know that this was one of the biggest scandals that has ever faced this country. The Minister of St…

I thank the Deputies for bringing forward this important Bill. The aims of the Bill are honourable, and that is why Sinn Féin is happy to support it being progressed to Committee Stage. The establishment of a clear legal process for trade union recognition from employers if at least 20% of employees are members would be a very positive step for workers' rights in this State. The North is forging …

I welcome the students and teachers from Coláiste Pobail Acla here today. I know the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Dara Calleary, would want to do likewise. While we are on the subject of Achill, which the Taoiseach will know is one of the most beautiful places in the world, there is a severe shortage of facilities for young people on the island such as a youth centre. They need a permane…

That is the question. What importance is the Government putting on facilities for young people, especially in rural areas?

Higher and further education plays a pivotal role in driving economic development, as we all know. The link between the financial circumstances of children and young people can be statistically verified, with those growing up with good financial circumstances more likely to have a third level education compared to those who experience bad financial circumstances in childhood. This is 64.1% compare…

I want to talk to the Minister about the importance of Ireland West Airport, or Knock Airport. I am sure that will be no surprise to the Minister or Ministers of State. I raise the importance of it in terms of the development of the Atlantic economic corridor, particularly the SDZ scheme there. If that is built to its full capacity, it could deliver more than 95,000 sq. m of commercial business an…

Today, as we mark Europe Day, it is fitting that we reflect on the huge positives that the European Union has brought to our island. I see every day, first hand, how Ireland has benefited from membership of the EU through infrastructure projects. That is not to say that we should not have critical analysis. We would not be doing our job properly if we benignly accepted every aspect of it. We need …

1. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment for an update on the steps he is taking to protect jobs in the technological sector; if an audit of job security across the sector has been undertaken; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22001/25]

I wrote to the Minister in March following the announcement of 300 job losses in TikTok to ask whether he would commission an audit of job volatility in the technological sector. As it stands today, almost 5,000 staff at Intel are in limbo following the company's announcement of global cuts of 20% to its workforce. I hope, like the Minister, that all of those jobs will be retained. Has he commissi…

The threat to jobs in Intel and the job losses in TikTok come on the back of job cuts in Meta. There are reports of 300 jobs at risk at Carelon Global Solutions Ireland in Limerick. This company, as the Minister will know, provides digital integrated solutions for the healthcare industry. It has talked about its decision to consider its future in Ireland, which comes after a review of its business…

There is a real urgency around this. The Minister did not address Carelon Global Solutions and what is being done there. I take it he is in there, talking to staff, and that he has SkillNet Ireland in there as well to work with these companies and to examine available alternatives in the immediate term. The question the Government must answer is where the next decade of jobs is coming from. We nee…

3. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the reason previous commitments made by the Government on workers’ rights issues are not being honoured; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22002/25]