Simon Harris

I move: (1) THAT for the purposes of the tax charged by virtue of section 95 of the Finance Act 1999 (No. 2 of 1999), that Act be amended, with effect as on and from 29 August 2026, by the substitution of the following for Schedule 2 to that Act (as amended by section 2(3) of the Finance Act 2026 (No. 24 of 2026)): "SCHEDULE 2 RATES OF MINERAL OIL TAX ",". (2) IT is hereby declared that it is…

It is nine weeks.

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta McDonald. I thank her for the question. First, I join with her in welcoming Cara Darmody back to Dáil Éireann. It is good to see her again. While she continues her campaign in relation to improvements around assessments of need and disability services in general, it is also worth noting that she has already changed Ireland for the better with the creation of the fu…

I do not know who said that-----

-----but I am just relaying in good faith the information.

The 27 May 2026 is when the information came in versus 2024, but I accept the seriousness of this matter. Again, this is also just the truth: there are mixed views on the science in relation to this. A number of European countries have said "No". Some have said "Yes". We would not have a situation where the HSE drugs group was deciding to set up a rare diseases expert panel to look at this, to bri…

It is always good to see the Deputy on a Thursday. I take the fact that she is here as a sign of her seriousness on this issue. I mean that genuinely. I thank her for that. I also take the seriousness of the issue. There is no disagreeing. We can use different words to describe this situation but there is no disagreement that it is a very worrying and stressful time for these families. That is a s…

I will make sure the process is carried in the expeditious timeline that has been set out in terms of that-----

It has said it will do that within four weeks.

I wish to make one point because I am conscious that we are on the clock. The Deputy made another point around delays and bureaucracy. I have to make the point back that sometimes those delays are not on the side of the State. We need to have full root and branch review of how medicines are assessed in this country. My colleague, the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, is entirely committed to that…

-----specific issue, the rare diseases group, which is made up of not politicians-----

-----and not of bureaucrats but of doctors who treat these patients.

As am I. The group and the patient representatives will meet through this structure to assess this drug.

I thank the Deputy very much. The most important thing - and we should never lose sight of this in any discussion in relation to Ukraine or Russia - is Ireland's absolute clear position in relation to this. Ireland absolutely, fully and resolutely supports Ukraine and the people of Ukraine. We had President Volodymyr Zelenskyy here on the first day of our Presidency of the Council of the European …

I am now bamboozled by the Deputy's position. I am trying to be constructive and engage but he wants to use political rhetoric. That is fine. On one hand, he is saying to go ahead and impose national sanctions on a company that he is accusing of funding the Russian war machine and fuelling in terms of Ukraine. On the other hand, he saying to sit down and have a chat with them. Let us take this ste…

Yes.

Yes.

Let me say "Yes" and "Yes" to two very clear questions. Let me acknowledge the Deputy's own advocacy, leadership and involvement in this issue for a long number of years and that of other Deputies from the area, including the Ministers, Deputies Byrne and McEntee, Deputy Butterly and many people across the political divide trying to desperately get a hearing for people who were being ignored, obst…

No.

I thank Deputy Nash and agree with everything he says. I thank Dignity4Patients as well for the very structured and really constructive and helpful way it went about its engagement as well. The Deputy is right that Shine being sent to a prison cell, where he belongs, is justice in one part but it is nowhere near enough. We saw this again the other day in relation to Waterford. There is a case of w…

What was the saying?

I thank Deputy Fitzmaurice for his kind words in respect of Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, particularly in the context of her working on a Sunday evening and getting back to people. It is good to hear that there has been progress on that apprenticeship issue. I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Let us be honest, the issue of school bus tickets and places is a perennial one. Th…

I knew the Deputy would have to mention the GAA, especially with Galway and Limerick playing at the weekend. I wish everybody involved the best of luck. We are very committed to the school transport scheme. If the Deputy wants to see our commitment, he should look to our budget. The fact that we have more than doubled the amount spent on school transport between 2018 and now is a sign of real com…

Go raibh maith agat, Teachta Nolan, for raising this important issue. I can see her genuine concern for the family that she is advocating for while also highlighting a broader issue. I also acknowledge her concern in relation to the response that family received from CAMHS. I want to address the broader issue but I suggest she provide that information to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and I…

We are seeing more real complexity when it comes to our younger people and more and more of them with more than one clinical diagnosis. I am certainly no doctor or expert but from my engagement with many young people and parents this provides a real challenge, and it is one that needs to be met, in terms of how we meet the multiple needs across the multiple diagnoses. I do not know what happened i…