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purpose-built accommodation for 1,534. We have 38,000 students in Cork between UCC and MTU. The average rent for a house in Cork right now is more than €2,000. That is one example of what the Minister can tackle but I would be concerned

fight in wars for European or US empires. The Government now wants to spend billions of euro more on weapons that should rightly go to housing, health and education. Connolly would turn in his grave

ours, with an economy that is doing well, is a 14-year-old outside Leinster House campaigning not just for her own family members but to highlight what is going on right around the country. It is not right. The Minister or some senior official should be outside … family's problem but to the overall issues. I believe in the goodwill of the Minister. I know everyone in this House wants to do the right thing by those who are disabled, marginalised or in this system looking for an assessment of need for their child

initiative operating right through the education and training systems, and a lot of emphasis on AI literacy. This applies in schools and workplaces right throughout the entire system. This is something that is reflected in the Government strategy, particularly in terms of upskilling. I commend our colleague … that people become very much aware of the transformational powers, positive and negative, of AI. We are using AI products, and rightly, already within Leinster House. Increasingly we know our constituents, businesses and organisations are raising issues relating to AI with us. A training programme in here

decorator to care for her. As they battle one unimaginable crisis, another has now emerged: homelessness. Their landlord is selling the house, as is their right. However, the Government classes Ciarán and Jessie as too rich for social housing - they are above the low threshold - but too poor

House raise the wage subsidy scheme. It is important that we look at bringing it into the Houses of the Oireachtas because it would bring more people with disabilities working right here with policymakers. It would make … huge difference. If we allowed Members to access schemes like that, we would have more people with disabilities who could work right here in Leinster House, giving them their voice at the highest level we can achieve for people with disabilities. My time is running out. We need

been none. They cannot even get planning there, never mind being able to afford to build. When was there a social house built? People have every right to live on their islands. It is the same as those who cannot afford a house being entitled to get social … right to object, but there is a proper way to do it and an improper way to do it. It is often pointed out to me how a local person could not get planning but somebody with a lot of money ended up with a house down

Reception Conditions Directive. As the House knows, this directive ensures that on reception, people have access to appropriate food, clothing, housing, etc., and have the right to access work within six months. What we are trying to do is to define in exact terms what this means

this as our role. It is a council's role to ensure housing stock is up to the highest standard and is delivered as a public good and a human right in the same way we see that education and health must be held to certain standards … problem, which is that local authorities have not been given the resources or responsibility to treat and deliver public housing as a public good and human right. That is a fundamental missing aspect of our housing policies. In my own areas of Ballymun and Finglas, there is boarded

this was what they told the people of Ireland in the lead-up to the general election. I have no faith that the housing crisis will be solved under this Government. It simply does not have the will or the ability to clean up the mess it made … these proposed changes and cuts is the tenant in situ scheme. It is not often that the Government gets things right when it comes to housing but, under pressure from Sinn Féin and other Opposition parties, the former Minister for housing, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, was forced

Will the Minister of State ask his officials to look at that issue? It is only right that people who return to their home county having not been made a housing offer in the county where they had been living should not go back … their situation be looked at again. The proposals put forward by Dublin City Council, which is the local housing authority, should be reviewed in terms of what is right for the residents. It is about building communities and homes for families, not units. Going out and seeing what

housing delivery is at risk because of electricity supply shortages. Data centres are soaking up electricity put in place for future housing and this problem goes right back to the failure of the Government to build capacity in the grid and to modernise the network to meet … members are going around in circles on this issue. Their failure to get the basic rights, to future proof infrastructure development is coming home to roost and it is impacting hardest on housing delivery. A few weeks ago the Tánaiste made a TikTok video. In it he said

Second, we need a rebalancing towards more placements with non-profit providers and social housing and away from privately funded housing. The Deputy's point is right. If it is a criticism, it is right. We are using quite a lot of private for-profit providers … best way to do this, whether it is at an Oireachtas committee or in this House, I am happy to have debate on how we get this right. This group is putting it up to us as a country to do better, and we simply have

friends in the community were refused. They have the same rights as I have. They grew up and wanted to continue to live in Togher parish but were denied by restrictive policies in regard to rural housing. We must re-address that. It is not just about creating … services where we have not been able to provide them yet. These people are essential to our communities and have a right to build a house in the community in which they have lived. We must re-address that balance. We must also address how we deal with

1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 2000s but then things went wrong, with the big developers, which was crazy, and with the Custom House down there and Ministers unable to tackle it. Ministers were afraid of it and were pushed off and fobbed … homeless, still on waiting lists and languishing there and no hope, and see where small builders are being denied the right to build the houses and let them off. Above all, once-off dwellings should be allowed to be carried on. The Minister should not be allowing people

know the principles of, knowing it is likely stripping people coming to this country of their constitutional and natural rights - you could not make it up. This House is being given days to inspect a Bill with few basic definitions, which the Department has had years to create … Bill that affects fundamental rights without adequate consideration is a level of Executive overreach I thought I would not see in this House and I am gravely concerned by it. Let me clear, if you are an immigrant or not, you will find me and my party

during elections, namely, make promises. While we are talking about workers' rights, we need to look at the rights of workers here in Leinster House, such as the Oireachtas broadcast workers and how unfairly they are being treated while being denied employment protections. I have previously highlighted … Oireachtas is not sitting. They must go from the Dáil to the dole when the House is in recess. If this debate is truly about fairness, dignity and workers' rights, then we must also address the complete neglect of young workers. I want to acknowledge the concerns raised

house, because he is a single man. He does not receive the payment. Many people who are currently in very difficult housing situations - in crisis - rightly feel there is a two-tier situation in terms of income and funds from the State for housing accommodation. People who perhaps

because there was a housing emergency in Galway directly related to the Government's policy because it failed to build houses. Deputy Hearne is perfectly right. I put it differently although I agree with him. There is an absolute prejudice inbuilt into this Government and every government … decent man whose heart is in the right place, but unfortunately government after government has made the situation worse. It is a neoliberal ideology that is completely out of control and is treating housing as something to be bought and sold with a huge profit as opposed

underpinning it in legislation, is exactly what we will have to do when we are bringing the legislation through this House. The Deputy is right when he says that it cannot be just a lick of paint or somebody pretending to resolve the dereliction. We all have … someone is sitting on land and hoarding it and it is in a residential zone, they are meant to be building houses on it. Their options are to build houses on the land, sell the land to someone else who will build houses

People wanted to reduce the impact of the Planning Act that we took three years to get through this House. People were adamant that rights came before anything else in some quarters, in other words, the eternal question of the common good versus personal, individual rights. Given

housing crisis to not be dealt with for so long. Growing inequality just allows fertile ground for the far right. I will mention some TDs in this House who were using the exact same language as the far right. I noticed "The myth of multiculturalism ... [and the] spiral

submissions came from Ireland and the Government is not listening. I have had people from that side of the House stand up here and say we are right. I will watch how every one of them votes this evening. I am asking the Government to have an open … them. I am asking the Government to withdraw its amendment. I am asking every Deputy in this House on the side of Government to withdraw it and do the right thing. I am not asking to put good civil servants at risk. I am asking the Government

delivered, but I am worried about our smaller towns and rural villages being left behind. In Ballycommon in north Tipperary, 34 houses could be built right now were it not for a lack of capacity in the system. Two developers there would build a plant if they … businesses often cannot connect. The housing estate that has developer-provided infrastructure cannot be taken in charge by the council because there is no capacity in the system. These are two examples of villages like many others right across rural Ireland. Will the Government commit to ensuring Uisce

welcome this debate on workers' rights. I said in the House 12 months ago that if we are serious about workers' rights, we also need to be serious about protecting industries, infrastructure and investment to create and secure skilled and well-paid jobs for Irish workers. In recent … working with the Government, from the upkeep of plug-in solar. I would love to see this rolled out across social and affordable housing, which does not have access to rooftops and could benefit from a Government-led plug-in solar scheme. If we bought plug-in solar