A scheme has been deployed for those most under threat of energy poverty where the entirety of the cost is recovered. That is clearly for those in low income homes, whether they be elderly or significantly dependent on social supports. The Deputy should not hold me to this but I think 25,000 homes have been upgraded in that particular sphere. That is an area that can be looked at.
This will require further review bu…
TDs / Timmy Dooley
Timmy Dooley
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
102
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
78,869
words spoken in the chamber
73,967 as a minister, 4,902 as a TD
290
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
33
topics asked about
Across 15 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 102 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 266 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 1 |
| January 2025 | 1 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 75 | 12 |
| March 2025 | 2 | 1 |
| April 2025 | 3 | 5 |
| May 2025 | 0 | 14 |
| June 2025 | 0 | 3 |
| July 2025 | 0 | 9 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 0 | 31 |
| October 2025 | 0 | 12 |
| November 2025 | 0 | 2 |
| December 2025 | 0 | 27 |
| January 2026 | 2 | 24 |
| February 2026 | 5 | 24 |
| March 2026 | 4 | 10 |
| April 2026 | 5 | 30 |
| May 2026 | 2 | 16 |
| June 2026 | 3 | 22 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 5 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 0 | 11 |
| October 2026 | 0 | 7 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 168 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 Clare 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications 25 February 2025 to 1 June 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment 2 June 2025 to now
I thank Deputy McCarthy and note his interest in this important issue. The south coast designated maritime area plan, DMAP, was adopted by the Oireachtas in 2024 and designates four development areas for fixed-bottom offshore wind development. An auction process is due to commence on 22 September for the first of these areas, the so-called Tonn Nua site, with capacity for a 900 MW offshore wind farm. We anticipate th…
I know the Deputy's interest and concern in this from conversations and consultations that I, other Ministers and the Department have had with those who will seek to build out these facilities. The next auction, as I said, will be later this year. We are hopeful there will be a number of bidders. The important thing then for those who do not win is that they see a further opportunity. One will obviously win. There ma…
I do not have that information available to me today but I am happy to come back to the Deputy directly with it.
Wind generation is supported mainly through the legacy renewable energy feed-in tariff, REFIT, schemes and the renewable electricity support scheme, RESS, and funded also through public service obligations, PSO. These supports are a critical enabler of the investment needed to underpin a renewables-led energy system.
Over the 2025-26 PSO year, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities reports that over 3.3 GW of wi…
The Deputy will be aware that with the passage of the national marine planning legislation back in 2021, where we introduced the approach through the designated marine area plans, the approach to identifying those sites and the approach to engaging with stakeholders in a very open and transparent way, it has worked well. Our first DMAP was launched in this House in October of last year and was not judicially reviewed…
The Deputy has raised an important point on the environmental aspect, and the construction of certain structures can have that ability to pull together those microsystems. Part of my role in the Department is about ensuring that we meet our commitments - Deputy Whitmore will be familiar with this - in regard to the marine protected areas, an important feature and commitment that we have given to designate 30% of our …
We have skipped ahead. I will have to get that for the Deputy.
I do not seem to have that.
I will have to get that. Does the Leas-Cheann Comhairle want to go on to the next one and I will come back to that?
There seems to be an issue with my questions here.
I may be required to do that. The Deputy has raised the important issue of-----
Yes. Nuclear fission-powered electricity generation plants are prohibited in Ireland. The use of nuclear fission for the generation of electricity in Ireland is statutorily prohibited under section 18(6) of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999. It is also of note that no action on nuclear power was included as part of the programme for Government in 2025, Securing Ireland's Future. The programme for Government does no…
I thank both Deputies. I know of their personal interest because both of them, on many occasions, have spoken to me about the necessity to look at that. The Government has taken a decision, and it is a decision that is probably based on historical context, going back to the early seventies when there were proposals at Carnsore to build a nuclear facility and there was a very significant public outcry. I do not think …
If you look at the capacity to generate so much electricity, particularly but not exclusively off our west coast, it far outweighs the issues around nuclear. I am also conscious-----
-----of how difficult it is, and the Leas-Cheann Comhairle will appreciate this-----
-----to get permission for a wind turbine. Failing to get permission for a wind turbine and introducing a small-scale nuclear reactor-----
-----might not be that much easier.
I have outlined the Government position but that is not to suggest that others who have an interest or some ideas on this should not interrogate the information and the ideas and look into the future as to what is available elsewhere. Of course, I am sure there are educational facilities and research projects that could be engaged by those who are like-minded. From the Government's perspective it is now about being r…
As the Deputy said, Cabinet approved the private wires policy on 15 July, details of which have been published on the Government website. The policy allows for private wires to be developed in four scenarios: to permit private wires linking a single generation asset to a demand site; to facilitate hybrid connections; where possible to facilitate EV charging; and to allow a customer that self-supplies to provide elect…
Following Cabinet approval the Department will work closely with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to commence drafting on the Bill in the new year before seeking Oireachtas approval. The legislation will be drafted to reflect the guiding principles of the policy statement and clarify the necessary regulations to build private wires in the policies for specified use cases. Plenty of examples have been brought t…
I am very conscious of that. When there are entities and corporations that are prepared to invest their own capital in such schemes, it is an appropriate way to progress and grow our economy. We see the same in housing. It is about bringing in private capital to support infrastructure. It allows us to move more quickly and ensures that the State is not left funding all of it. For that reason, the Government is in ful…
As the Deputy knows, Rockall is a small, uninhabitable rock located approximately 160 nautical miles west of the Scottish islands of St. Kilda, and 230 nautical miles to the north west of Donegal. As the Deputy is aware, Ireland has not sought to claim sovereignty over Rockall. The UK claimed sovereignty over Rockall in 1955 and sought to formally annex it as part of Scotland under its 1972 Island of Rockall Act. The…
I note the Deputy's personal interest in this, as well as that of others in the area who have raised it consistently with me. It is a position that goes back to the 1955 situation and, obviously, Brexit then had a really negative effect from a fisher's perspective.
On Wednesday next, I am meeting the UK Minister with responsibility for fisheries, Mr. Daniel Zeichner, and I intend to raise this in the context of a br…
I will not be found wanting in conveying the feelings of this House. We are united on this issue. We are not always united on issues here but we are very united on trying to find a resolution to this. I am conscious that it has to be done through the diplomatic channels. I am also conscious that there are significant legacy issues and that, notwithstanding the view of some in this House that the securing of access to…
I thank the Deputy for her question. Sprat is a small pelagic schooling fish that occurs inshore. Sprat is a short-lived species and an important prey fish for many marine species, those vital to the ocean food chain, as well as an important source of income for inshore fishermen. The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, ICES, considers sprat to be a data-limited stock, which means that more detailed…