227. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 2148 of 4 November 2025 to the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in which he confirmed that, although not required by statute, her Department voluntarily publishes its annual consultancy spending online in the interest of transparency and accessibility, if h…
270. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 2148 of 4 November 2025 to the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in which he confirmed that, although not required by statute, her Department voluntarily publishes its annual consultancy spending online in the interest of transparency and accessibility, if her Department operates a si…
274. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht further to Parliamentary Question No. 2148 of 4 November 2025 to the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in which he confirmed that, although not required by statute, his Department voluntarily publishes its annual consultancy spending online in the interest of transparency and acc…
206. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Education and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 645 of 4 November 2025, whether schools will be instructed or required by the NCSE to redeploy special needs assistants (SNAs) from their mainstream SNA allocation in order to meet above-SERC needs in autism classes under the new SNA review guidelines; whether the previous above-SERC SNA review process for autism…
325. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to schemes such as the town and village renewal grant, if local authorities may use, or support applicants to use, such schemes to bring vacant or derelict residential units or voids back into productive use;; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67513/25]
326. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to outline all current funding streams, capital supports, and operational supports made available by his Department to local authorities for the purpose of returning vacant or derelict local authority homes to use voids, including approvals, drawdown mechanisms, turnaround targets, and auditing arrangements; and if he will make a s…
327. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department maintains any form of benchmarking, comparative performance assessment, league table, or KPI-based ranking of local authorities in respect of their management of vacant/void social housing units, including turnaround times, cost per unit, and annual throughput; and if such information exists, if he will publish it…
328. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of local authority dwellings classified as void, by each local authority in each of the past five years; the number returned to use annually; the average cost of remediation per dwelling; the mean and median turnaround time; the value of Departmental funding drawn down for this purpose; and if he will make a statement on…
329. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has examined the feasibility of aligning private-sector vacant property grants with local authority programmes for returning voids to use; and if not, if such alignment will now be considered. [67517/25]
330. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has carried out any analysis comparing the cost, speed, and long-term maintenance outcomes of returning void social housing units to use versus alternative interventions such as acquisition, leasing, or new build; and if he will publish any such analysis to inform future policy choices. [67518/25]
370. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Social Protection if his attention has been drawn to the 5% pension increase recently granted to former Irish Rail staff; when this increase is due to be implemented; if his Department has assessed the impact of this increase on the eligibility of affected pensioners for Social Protection supports such as the medical card, fuel allowance and other secondary benefits; an…
108. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Transport the steps his Department is taking to address the difficulties faced by Irish citizens living in the UK who, due to post-Brexit insurance restrictions, are no longer able to be insured as named drivers on Irish-registered vehicles when they hold a UK driving licence; if he is aware of the significant impact this is having on those returning regularly to Irelan…
170. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Education and Youth for an update on the major building project at a school (details supplied); the reason for the delay; when progress can be expected; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [66368/25]
14. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to implement new draft wind energy guidelines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65419/25]
103. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the exempted development guidelines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65418/25]
142. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Taoiseach to provide the Department’s annual expenditure on State Claims Agency costs for the years 2020–2025. [66369/25]
164. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to provide the Department’s annual expenditure on State Claims Agency costs for the years 2020–2025. [66359/25]
169. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if his Department has conducted risk assessments, commissioned any studies or issued guidance on the environmental and public-health risks associated with large-scale battery energy storage systems, particularly in relation to thermal-runaway events; and if he will publish any such documents. [65617/25]
170. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the national standards, fire-safety requirements, or environmental-protection protocols which apply to proposed battery-storage installations in Ireland; if he is satisfied that current regulations are adequate; and if he will provide a list of all statutory instruments and technical standards governing such facilities. [65618/25]
171. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment his plans to introduce strengthened regulatory oversight or licensing requirements for BESS developments, in view of international experience and known fire-safety concerns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65619/25]
176. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to provide the Department’s annual expenditure on State Claims Agency costs for the years 2020–2025. [66343/25]
183. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Defence to provide the Department’s annual expenditure on State Claims Agency costs for the years 2020–2025. [66348/25]
253. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Transport to provide the Department’s annual expenditure on State Claims Agency costs for the years 2020–2025. [66371/25]
257. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the total number of claims handled by the State Claims Agency, the number of claims settled; the number successfully defended; the number resolved without admission of liability; the median and average settlement amount in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65245/25]
258. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the breakdown of State Claims Agency settlements, by claim category (details supplied), including for each category the number of claims, the total value of settlements, the median payout; the highest and lowest settlement values, in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65246/25]