Paul Donnelly

I welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue of antisocial and criminal behaviour in our communities. The reality is that every community experiences antisocial behaviour and criminal activity, some far more than others. Some of it is quite low level with noise and boisterous behaviour but in other cases, it is really serious criminal behaviour. Not a single TD on either side of this Chamber wou…

Fine Gael has been 14 years in power and Fianna Fáil has been ten years in power and yet they are still talking about forward planning. It is absolutely ridiculous. Every single child has a right to an education. It is not provided to all children because some are denied that right. Parents are forced to campaign, to protest and to demand and to share their stories. They were again promised this y…

What has that to do with the price of butter?

The fact of the matter is that normal working families are being affected by a cost-of-living crisis. This Government has lost control of it. Week on week, families see their shopping bills rise and rise, and the Government is burying its head in the sand, ignoring people's hardships and refusing to bring forward a cost-of-living package. Even the conscious shopper using the so-called low-cost sup…

I know the Minister of State is aware of the issue in St. Mochta’s National School and the two special classes. First and foremost, we should express our concern for the parents and children involved in this situation. St. Mochta’s agreed to open up two classes after long discussions and much dialogue with the NCSE - one in temporary accommodation in the library and the other in December when two…

The last paragraph is slightly worrying because in the presentation that was given to us on Monday evening by the principal and the patron of the school, it was stated that the SENO gave a verbal commitment to the school that the deadline of 19 February would be waived for pupils in St. Mochta’s as classes were not sanctioned on this date. The principal met with all parents on 5 March 2025 to advi…

Last Sunday in Dublin West, I attended the anniversary of the genocide of 8,372 men and boys, some as young as 12 years of age, who were murdered by Serb forces. This year is the 30th anniversary. I will give a brief synopsis. Between April 1992 and 1993, Srebrenica and villages in the area held by Bosnian Muslims were constantly subjected to Serb military assaults, including artillery attacks, sn…

I have read the document and, to be honest, most of it reads as a list of the failures of the systems of this Government and previous Governments and their failure to ensure that children with additional needs get the help and support, and, therefore, the education, they deserve. I have experienced a number of key ongoing issues. I started working as a family support worker in 2001. I worked with…

The people of this State should not be surprised that the Government proposes to develop the historic GPO into a commercial centre for office and retail units. It should not be surprising because the Government, especially Fianna Fáil, talks out of both sides of its mouth. It talks about protecting our heritage and revolutionary past, yet despite promise after promise the Taoiseach has backed the …

It is run by volunteers.

Volunteers did that for decades.

Look at Moore Street.

Has the Minister of State been down Moore Street recently?

Has the Minister of State been down Moore Street recently?

Has Deputy McAuliffe? Has he seen Moore Street recently?

There will be a new apartment block on Moore Street

I will read out two examples of emails that come into my constituency office: It is with a heavy heart I am asking you to find yourself another house to rent. Unfortunately, you cannot wait any longer as this application has been going on since last autumn with a tenant in situ and the eviction notice on the property was up in April and the house prices are increasing every day. We are going to h…

EnergyCloud is a not-for-profit social enterprise. It works with partners including EirGrid, ESB, Wind Energy Ireland, local authorities and housing associations. Its aim is to reduce energy poverty. In the last seven years, €2.1 billion in surplus renewable energy was unused and wasted. Some €3 million worth of wind energy was wasted on 28 May this year. EnergyCloud has a simple ask: If the Gove…

It would cost just an extra €2.

Housing provision is so dysfunctional across every part of the sector that it is no exaggeration to say it is an emergency. Day after day, I have to inform people who are on the housing list for six, seven, eight or nine years that they have many more years left on the list. That was not the case four or five years ago. The situation has grown worse and worse and I see nothing the Government is do…

We face extreme weather and flooding has become more severe and recurring across the State. From the Shannon Basin to coastal towns and rural communities, the devastation caused by rising waters continues to impact families, livelihoods and local economies. Climate change, inadequate infrastructure and years of Government inaction have left too many communities vulnerable. Last year, 2024, was the…

It must be addressed, particularly for small businesses.

I thank Deputy Nash for bringing this Bill forward again. Sinn Féin supports the Bill going through Second Stage. The Bill seeks to amend the Competition and Consumer Protection Act. There is no requirement in Irish law that a business should charge only reasonable prices for goods and services or should achieve no more than a reasonable profit. There is an exception, however, in EU law and in the…

I appreciate the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, coming in so late this evening. This issue relates to the increasing number of people contacting my office - and I have heard the same from other TDs in the past couple of weeks - regarding passport offices and not being able to get confirmation of signatures from Garda stations. It is causing huge distress for everyone involved in the process a…

This goes on every single year but people have expectations because they look at the timelines from the Passport Office and think it is brilliant, they will have plenty of time within the timeline but unfortunately, once you get one simple issue like this, it throws the whole process into disarray and delays it for a very long time. I am very interested to hear how we can resolve this - something…