Questions

1. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if a child's passport application (details supplied) applied for in July 2026 will be processed on time for a trave date of 23 September 2026. [67397/26]

2. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment in view of the Government’s commitment to achieving 80% renewable electricity by 2030 and the rapidly increasing contribution of solar energy to Ireland’s electricity generation, if he will provide an update on the development of a national policy framework for solar energy development. [67345/26]

4. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the measures being considered in the upcoming Budget to assist SMEs and local businesses in reducing ongoing energy costs, including through increased supports for energy efficiency, building retrofits, renewable energy and other measures that can deliver long-term reductions in electricity and heating costs. [67381/26]

5. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment if he will consider measures in Budget 2027 to make energy retrofit grants more accessible and affordable for small and local businesses, particularly those for whom the upfront cost of works remains a barrier to undertaking energy-efficiency upgrades. [67380/26]

6. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment in the context of the upcoming Budget, if he intends to increase funding or introduce additional supports for energy-efficiency and retrofit works for SMEs and small businesses. [67379/26]

7. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to provide details if Ardnacrusha generation station failed to produce electricity in the years 2022 to 2025 and to date in 2026. [67374/26]

9. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Defence the annual maintenance costs incurred for the upkeep of the former Government Learjet from 2003 to 2025. [67501/26]

11. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Transport further to PQ64566/26 of 16 September 2026, to provide the report (details supplied) including timelines for projected delivery and cost; the proportion which are new services and the proportion that are enhancements; the number he expects will actually be delivered given a similar list contained in the submission for budget 2026, in tabular form; if the Government …

12. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Transport if consideration has been given to the implementation of a temporary road tax for tourist vehicles, as these vehicles are contributing to road surface damage. [67338/26]

13. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Transport if he will request the National Transport Authority to clarify when the Galway city bus services 410, 411 and 412 are put out to tender in 2027, it plans to tender the existing routes in their current form or introduce the three new services proposed under the BusConnects Galway Network Redesign; whether these new services are intended to replace the current r…

14. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Transport the way in which his Department plans to address the number of areas in Dublin Fingal East that have seen significant building since the plans for BusConnects were agreed and as such with the roll out of BusConnects will not be properly served. [67232/26]

15. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Transport to provide a full copy of the research showing the relationship between passenger fares and public transport usage recently discussed at the Transport Committee (details supplied). [67362/26]

16. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Transport to urgently review the decision to refuse driver's licence exchange for returning Irish emigrants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67498/26]

17. Deputy Micheál Carrigy asked the Minister for Transport for an update on the road transporters support scheme application for a person (details supplied); and the timeframe for payment from the scheme. [67478/26]

18. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Transport the total funding provided to TFI Local Link Laois Offaly in each of the years 2023 to 2025 and to date in 2026; the number of routes and passenger journeys supported in each year; the additional funding sought for 2027 to expand services and address unmet demand in County Laois; and whether a review of existing routes and service frequency is planned in consul…

19. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Transport if he will provide details of the funding allocated to the Rural Transport Programme and TFI Local Link for 2026; the proposed allocation for 2027; whether additional funding will be provided in Budget 2027 to expand rural public transport services in County Laois, particularly in areas where residents have limited access to public transport for employment, edu…

20. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Transport if he will work with the Minister for Education and Youth and Bus Éireann, to identify opportunities to improve public transport provision for schoolchildren in rural communities in County Laois, particularly in areas where school bus routes are oversubscribed. [67461/26]

21. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Transport further to Parliamentary Question No. 285 of 24 February 2026, the reason the LPSV (Large Public Service Vehicles) Reform Bill has not been accorded priority status for drafting or publication in the Autumn 2026 Legislative Programme; the progress made on the Bill (details supplied); the current status of the policy review and preparation of the Heads of Bill; a…

22. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Transport the efforts made by this Department, Iarnród Éireann and the NTA to address overcrowding on trains arriving into and departing Galway Train Station; if they have engaged with rail operators from other jurisdictions with a view to securing additional carriages on a temporary basis to help alleviate this problem; if any other short term solutions have been consid…

23. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Transport if his Department will consider introducing additional local link routes in Cavan and Monaghan; and if such additional services will be introduced for the remainder of 2026 and in 2027. [67633/26]

24. Deputy Johnny Mythen asked the Minister for Transport the reason he can not extend the drivers licence agreement to the United states of America, taking into account the Irish diaspora who hold Irish driving licences, yet the current agreement covers E.U. citizens, and non E.U. jurisdictions, such as Korea, Japan and South Africa; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67670/26]

25. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Transport the actions taken by Iarnród Éireann in response to complaints regarding overcrowding and passenger safety on the morning Oranmore to Galway rail service since 2024; the number of complaints received concerning overcrowding on the service; whether a passenger capacity and safety assessment has been undertaken for the 8.00 a.m. Oranmore to Galway service; the c…

26. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance further to the ongoing work of the Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles concerning false and non-compliant vehicle registration plates, whether the regulatory framework used in Spain or comparable EU jurisdictions, including approved supplier registration, supplier identification, transaction traceability and minimum manufacturing standards, has been…

27. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance whether consideration is being given to requiring suppliers of vehicle registration plates to maintain standardised electronic records of plates supplied, including the vehicle registration number, date of supply, number of plates supplied and appropriate details verifying the purchaser's entitlement to obtain the plate; whether such records could be …

28. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance whether, as part of the ongoing interdepartmental examination of vehicle registration plate regulation, consideration is being given to requiring each approved registration plate supplier to have a unique supplier identification number permanently displayed or otherwise incorporated on every road-use registration plate produced by that supplier, there…