Questions

214. Deputy John Lahart asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if there is a provision in Budget 2027 for utility and travel cost relief for lung fibrosis patients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [72396/26]

215. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance that RZL tax should not be applicable to local authorities; and if he will examine this issue (details supplied). [72410/26]

216. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance to review the way in which fuel is taxed in Ireland with a view to reducing the Government take. [72426/26]

217. Deputy Cathy Bennett asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the basis on which it was chosen to increase the help-to-buy scheme by €5,000; and the date the increase will apply to applicants. [71687/26]

218. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the assessment that has been undertaken of the distributional impact of local property tax across households according to income, household composition, property ownership; the number of properties owned; and if an assessment has been made of the ability of households to meet increases in LPT. [71904/26]

219. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance whether, as part of the Government’s planned holistic review of enterprise taxation and grants in 2027, he will include a review of the taxation and supports for residential landlords, with a view to recognising landlords as businesses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [72175/26]

220. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to provide a schedule of EU Presidency events being hosted by his Department broken down by name of the event, location, date, State agencies or other departments involved in the organising of the event; and cost or budgeted cost of same (including costs borne by state agencies under its aegis…

221. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation for an update on the development of the new Passport Office in Cork; and the anticipated timeline for its completion. [71605/26]

222. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if contracts will be structured to place the risk of cost overruns on contractors rather than taxpayers where appropriate. [71639/26]

223. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the current status of discussions regarding public sector pay negotiations; the measures being taken by Government to secure agreement with the relevant unions and avert further industrial action; and the contingency arrangements being considered to minimise disruption to public services, i…

224. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if guidance exists for his Department, and public bodies under the aegis of his Department, on responding to parliamentary questions where the information sought is held on individual case files rather than in a centrally collated format; and whether the existence of information on individual …

225. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation with regard to the OPW/SDCC Whitechurch flood alleviation scheme, if he is satisfied that there are now in place sufficient mitigation and alleviation measures to ensure that flooding will not re-occur (details supplied) given that flood insurance is a serious difficulty for householders. [71726…

226. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation with regard to the OPW/SDCC Whitechurch flood alleviation scheme, when the promised post-flood investigation report will be published; and the stage the project is at. [71724/26]

227. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the current status of the Glashaboy (Glanmire/Sallybrook) flood relief scheme in Cork, which Cork City Council indicated in August 2024 would be completed by summer 2026; the reason for the delay; the revised completion date; the expenditure on the scheme to date and the projected final c…

228. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the specific savings and efficiency measures each Department will implement in 2027 to meet the expenditure levy totalling €446 million set out in the Budget 2027 Expenditure Report, in tabular form, by Department; and the reason the Department of Education and Youth is not subject to the…

229. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the projected 2026 outturn for gross voted expenditure compared with the expenditure ceiling of €117.8 billion set in Budget 2026, by Ministerial Vote Group, in tabular form; and the Supplementary Estimates expected to be brought before Dáil Éireann for 2026. [71823/26]

230. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the amount of additional expenditure allocated towards AI-related areas across departments in Budget 2027; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [71961/26]

231. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the way in which his Department accounts for the difference in the figures in the Expenditure Report released for Budget 2027 between the detailed selected measures totalling just over €1 billion and the allocation for new initiatives totalling over €1.8 billion. [71946/26]

232. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether the reduction in carbon tax announced in Budget 2027 will affect the carbon tax revenue allocated to the sustainable energy authority of Ireland residential and community retrofit schemes, given that the Budget 2027 expenditure report provides €655 million for those schemes, inclu…

233. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the amount paid out from the Climate and Nature Fund; and the purposes for which. [72058/26]

234. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to list the projects that have been designated under s.20 of the Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Act 2024. [72052/26]

235. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation when the upgrade works to the playground in the People’s Gardens, Phoenix Park, Dublin 8 are expected to be completed; the length of time the playground is expected to remain closed to the public; the anticipated reopening date; the impact this is having on the local community; and if he will…

236. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the number of full-time craft upholsterers employed by OPW as of 7 October 2026; and if he will provide the same figures as of 31 December 2023, in tabular form. [72131/26]

237. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether his Department has received representations since January 2025 regarding the meaning of "prima facie evidence" at initial assessment under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014; whether the Department intends to issue clarifying guidance to public bodies and prescribed persons ahead of the …

238. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether the Department collects data on the duration of initial assessments of protected disclosures by public bodies; the number of reports recorded as remaining at initial assessment at the end of each of the years 2023, 2024 and 2025, as reported under section 22 of the Protected Disclosures …