Simon Harris

I thank Deputy Collins for raising this matter. I want to pay tribute to Vera Twomey because if she was watching this she would be the first to say that she and I had a very testy relationship at the start. However, I very quickly realised that Vera was a mum who would do anything for her child. I think of poor Vera and the late Ava today. They changed Ireland in terms of the reforms that were bro…

I know Deputy Daly has a professional background in this as a doctor, which is important to acknowledge. The Minister's only interest, and I know it is that of the Deputy and everybody in the area, is the safety and well-being of expectant mothers and their babies. We all share that view and we all want to get that right. I remember the Walker report. I think I was the Minister for Health at the t…

I thank the Deputy for bringing up this issue and her ongoing work on this with the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. I thank the Minister for his work on this as well. The programme for Government is very clear on this. It says that the Government will "Ensure sufficient employment permits to support the agri food sector including the equine, dairy, horticulture, fish and food processing industries".…

It is breaking my heart to think about all these schools, which were in my constituency before Wicklow was carved into two. The Deputy is minding them in the Wicklow-Wexford constituency until we are one day reunited. Tinahely National School is a school I know well. I will certainly work with the Deputy and Mr. O'Connor constructively on this matter. I will ask the Department and the Minister to …

Deputy Lahart is entirely correct. There are 21 commitments on childcare in the programme for Government, which is a sign of how seriously we are all taking this and what we are hearing from our constituencies. There is a need to look at how we move sequentially and together regarding all of this because fees are a big part of it. It is a second mortgage for many people so it is a really significa…

I thank the Deputy for raising this and for his ongoing focus on infrastructure delivery in north Kildare following our discussion in the House last week. It is our collective priority to ensure every child in the State has access to a school place. I know the Department of Education and Youth, and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, are working hard on that. We remain determined to do that. Kildare is …

I thank Deputy Donnelly for raising what is a serious issue for his constituents, based on what he has told me. From memory, I think there was some legislative work done on this in the previous Oireachtas. I need to refresh my memory. I will certainly ask the Minister for justice to seek the views of Garda management and respond to the Deputy directly.

I will not cut across the Minister, other than to say that we can differentiate, and should be able to do so, between governance failures and shortcomings in an agency or organisation and the vital work done by artists on the ground in the community supported through that agency. I know that is a view shared by the Minister. I will ask him to come back to the Deputy directly on this. The basic inc…

It is an important issue. The idea of any child being othered in any school on the basis of their own wishes and choices, and those of their parents, on the education they access is not appropriate. I know the Minister, Deputy McEntee, would share that view. I will talk to the Minister about where her mind is at with regard to a circular. It certainly sounds sensible to have some degree of clarity…

I thank the Deputy. There is a lot of merit in what he has said. The Government has published in recent weeks a market diversification plan recognising, as the Deputy states, that while we do a lot of trade between the United States and Ireland, and the United States and Europe, and intend to continue that, we also have to make sure we look for other opportunities for Irish business in both direct…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue with me and previously with the Minister for education, and not for the first time. I know this is something he has been following and working on intensively since his election to the Dáil to represent Tipperary South. I welcome that it looks like we are at a moment where it is about to move on to the next phase. What we then need to make sure is that the…

The Deputy is right to raise this, and I have heard it raised in the House over the last couple of weeks. I am pleased to be able to say that we now have significant funding for 2026 onwards. The Deputy’s question is a valid one, namely, whether there is anything that can be done between now and the start of 2026. My understanding is that the Department of housing keeps this under review and, as i…

I sincerely apologise if the Deputy did not get a reply to that. I will check that.

Yes, I know, but you should have got a substantive response. My sincere apologies if that did not happen. I will ensure that it does now because there can be zero tolerance for this. “Zero tolerance” cannot just be a phrase. The Defence Forces cannot recuse themselves from zero tolerance. It has to apply to every part of Irish society, including the Defence Forces. I am open to meeting that indiv…

I thank the Deputy for bringing the matter to my attention. I will certainly ensure that contact is immediately made with the Minister for children about the Happily Ever After childcare service. Perhaps there is also a role for the county childcare committee in relation to this. I will ask the Minister, Deputy Foley, to look into the issue and to revert directly to the Deputy’s office.

The House gathers today less than a year since the last general election, as the Taoiseach reminds us, and just over 250 days since the Government was formed. The Thirty-fourth Dáil sits at a time of global uncertainty and geopolitical turbulence. It was in this context that the people made their choice at the last election and the resultant Dáil has very serious business to do on their behalf. We…

You did say it.

A different campaign.

There was a press conference.

€100 million in aid.

I support them every day.

Before I answer that question, I too want to take an opportunity to welcome the developments in relation to the Middle East overnight. I welcome the announcement that Israel and Hamas have now agreed on the first phase of a ceasefire and a peace deal for Gaza. We are now at a critical moment where we all hope and pray that we can see an end to this brutal, horrific humanitarian catastrophe, an end…

They said, "No, thank you very much." They also heard what we said and what Deputy Paschal Donohoe said during the general election as well, when we said, "Yes, we want to do measures on income tax", but we put in black and white in the programme for Government that if it was a choice between doing certain things or doing income tax we would choose the other things because we have to keep this cou…

Try to be serious.

Yes, when Sinn Féin thought it would win.