There is an agreed way forward. We have a very clear view forward regarding amending and reforming the legislation and the model around assessment of need and we want to work with people in good faith to get this right, including, most importantly, parents and those who carry out assessments of need - the clinical professions. The House can expect engagement from us on that very shortly.
We have seen an additional 2…
TDs / Simon Harris
0
questions asked
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them
566,209
words spoken in the chamber
566,201 as a minister, 8 as a TD
140
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
Members of the Government answer parliamentary questions rather than ask them, so this page lists none of theirs.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 2,972 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
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| Month | Contributions |
|---|---|
| December 2024 | 4 |
| January 2025 | 4 |
| February 2025 | 255 |
| March 2025 | 42 |
| April 2025 | 83 |
| May 2025 | 249 |
| June 2025 | 175 |
| July 2025 | 144 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 79 |
| October 2025 | 214 |
| November 2025 | 347 |
| December 2025 | 192 |
| January 2026 | 97 |
| February 2026 | 197 |
| March 2026 | 187 |
| April 2026 | 226 |
| May 2026 | 119 |
| June 2026 | 127 |
| July 2026 | 93 |
| August 2026 | 2 |
| September 2026 | 83 |
| October 2026 | 53 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 2,685 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Wicklow 29 November 2024 to now
- office Taoiseach 29 November 2024 to 22 January 2025
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Defence 23 January 2025 to 25 March 2025
- office Minister for Foreign Affairs 23 January 2025 to 25 March 2025
- office Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade 26 March 2025 to 18 November 2025
- office Minister for Defence 26 March 2025 to 18 November 2025
- office Minister for Finance 18 November 2025 to now
We are not standing over any false narrative. We are reiterating long-standing foreign policy and, I think, the long-standing policy of the people of Ireland that there needs to be a two-state solution in the Middle East, that the State of Israel has every right to exist in peace and security and that the people of Palestine have every right to a sovereign state that exists in peace and security. As we know in this c…
I have just said that. Israel is committing genocide.
I will shake my head if I want to, Deputy Connolly.
I will stand up.
I hope I will get an extra 38 seconds as well-----
-----because there was the greatest load of palaver levelled at me there.
Deputy Connolly has such vitriol for and dislike of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil that she cannot ever actually come above and rise to the moment. Ours is the first Government in the European Union to say that what Israel is doing is genocide. Do you hear that, Deputy? It is genocide.
Israel is committing war crimes, and we will pass the occupied Palestinian territories Bill.
We will pass that.
We will pass it as quickly as possible.
It will go to the foreign affairs committee in the month of June. While you are standing here just throwing brickbats at me-----
-----we are working to support the people of Palestine. The only Chamber I ever go into in the entire world where people do not acknowledge that Ireland - the Government and the people of Ireland - are standing with the people of Palestine, standing up for human rights and standing up for international law is here, when you get up and distort with your ideology the actions of this Government. I am proud of the people…
There you go. You are at it again. Hold your sign up.
You cannot work together on anything.
I thank Deputy Fitzmaurice for raising this important issue and, in fairness to him, for raising it consistently in terms of the aftermath of Storm Éowyn and the impact it has had on people across our country, but most particularly the elongated impact it has had on people living in rural or more disperse communities, many of which I know he represents in his constituency.
I will deal first with the issue relating t…
We will keep the pressure on for those who do not have service. The Deputy's second point is one of the real learnings of the storm, that when the network goes down, it is not just the loss of the phone - I do not mean to be flippant - but also the loss of all contact and connection with the outside world. For older or vulnerable people or people who live in isolated rural areas and their families, the impact, stress…
I thank Deputy Brennan for raising timely and important issue. It is worth reflecting on the level of capital investment we are seeing. Since 2019, through the national development plan, we have delivered 170 km of new roads, including the New Ross bypass, the Dunkettle interchange, the Moycullen bypass, the N22 Macroom road and the N5 Westport-Turlough road. We have delivered active travel infrastructure throughout …
The honest answer is "Yes". We need to be more ambitious. While these are judgment calls the Minister will no doubt get right in the time ahead, with Government colleagues, we also need to recognise that projects announced today obviously have a lead-in time. This Government wants to deliver 300,000 new homes by 2030. In order to fulfil that, we are going to have to press "go" on crucial water and energy projects and…
We are significantly increasing funding for defence and supporting the Air Corps, the Naval Service and Defence Forces more broadly. Indeed, funding for defence has increased by 30% since 2020 to a record level. It will increase again in the review of the national development plan shortly. We are back in an era of major investment. Deputy Doherty is right, however. It is no surprise to anyone that there are pinch poi…
I thank Deputy Ahern. This whole issue of energy security and supply is an important one. We all know where we need to get to in the context of renewable and offshore energy. We know that we need to turbocharge - pardon the pun - getting there in every way we possibly can. It is about a balanced approach, however. We do not want our country to be closed to investment and investment opportunities. I know Deputy Ahern …
I thank Deputy Gibney for her work on this matter on the committee. To add to the point she made, the IT project at RTÉ, which I believe was discussed at the media committee, came to light after the Minister wrote to agencies asking them whether they had anything they wished to tell about the wastage of public money. Deputy Gibney’s point in general about being transparent and up-front would certainly be extremely he…
I was waiting for the twist in the story. I thank the Deputy for highlighting that issue. To be blunt, there is a challenge in that lots of people around our country want to do the right thing in their own lives with regard to climate. They are finding the schemes we are providing are either not adequately resourced or are too rigid in terms of their application of rules. I am hopeful the Government can address this …
I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. He is right that there are far too many Irish teachers abroad. We would much rather, as would a lot of them, that they were back here teaching. I know this is a huge priority for the Minister, Deputy McEntee. The Deputy will be aware that the Minister made a number of announcements on policy decisions in this regard over the Easter period. They include making it easier for p…
It certainly does not sound like it, based on what the Deputy has said. I know he has done a huge amount of work on the issue of access to medication, particularly for those with rare diseases. I met the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association approximately two weeks ago. As the Deputy can imagine, we discussed trade and tariffs, but we also discussed that a new framework agreement is due to be negotiated between…