I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Burke, who could not be here this morning. I welcome the opportunity to address the issue of employment permit processing and its impact on businesses and prospective employees. Ireland operates a managed, demand-led employment permits system under the Employment Permits Act 2024. This system supports our labour market by enabling non-EEA nationals to take up employment in sectors where genuine skills or labour shortages exist. It is underpinned by defined eligibility criteria and a statutory review mechanism for refused applications. The Department has made significant progress in recent years to improve the efficiency of the system in response to rising demand. In 2024, we issued a record 39,400 permits from 46,600 applications received. The launch of employment permits online, EPO, in April 2025 marked a major digital transformation, introducing a modern, cloud-based system that streamlines how permits are submitted, processed and tracked. As with any system transition, some short-term pressures have emerged. However, the Department continues to prioritise the timely processing of applications and remains focused on maintaining a high standard of service. Turnaround times remain well below the levels experienced during peak demand periods and compare favourably with international norms. The new system’s enhanced validation features are already helping to reduce refusals on technical grounds, and this in turn is expected to ease pressures on appeals. The Department has also allocated additional resources to ensure that initial applications are processed as efficiently as possible, while continuing to improve appeal timelines. Appeals processing has seen increased volumes, particularly in the food and hospitality sector. Many of these relate to revised eligibility criteria for chef roles. The Department is actively working to reduce appeal wait times and expects improvements as the system stabilises. l am not aware of any specific delays in the processing of employment permits. However, in an operation of this scale, it is to be expected that applications will be at various stages of processing. Some may take longer due to additional checks or because they are subject to appeal, both of which are standard features of a robust and fair system. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment remains focused on ensuring the employment permits system is agile, fair and responsive to Ireland's evolving labour market.

Sentiment score: 0.27

I thank Deputy O'Sullivan. I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke. I heard the issues the Deputy raised and I hear them in my office. There are many delays in certain types of work permits, in particular in the transport sector. There are many transport companies in the west of Ireland, in particular Galway. I have met many and one of their major issues is trying to source drivers. In terms of bringing in drivers from abroad, the work permit system is taking a lot longer than it should. I will bring back the Deputy's comments to the Minister and Department. I will not read out my closing statement because it is the same as what I said at the beginning. I will ask the Minister whether something can be done to speed of these applications. I thank the Deputy for raising the issue.

Sentiment score: 0.09

I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, who could not be here. I thank Deputy Kenny for raising this important issue and allowing me to update the House on matters relating to it. I want to begin by acknowledging the importance of the very serious kill that occurred on the River Blackwater and its tributaries near Mallow, County Cork, last month and I wish to emphasise that the Government fully recognise the enormous impact this incident has had on local communities, anglers and users of this important river catchment. Since becoming aware of the incident, the Minister of State with responsibility for fisheries and marine, Deputy Dooley, has been in close contact with IFI and other relevant agencies and he has visited the site on two occasions to consult with the local community and anglers. The Minister of State chaired a well-attended town hall meeting in Mallow between agencies and stakeholders, principally anglers and their representatives. Officials in the Department have also been working closely with IFI and other agencies to co-ordinate public updates and to ensure information is being released as it becomes available. To ensure that a co-ordinated and thorough response is in place, the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, established an inter-agency group last month, co-ordinated by the IFI, which includes the EPA, Marine Institute, Cork County Council, the local authorities water programme, Uisce Éireann, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, and the HSE. The function of this group was to pool necessary resources and expertise across multiple bodies to provide for a comprehensive and evidence-based approach to addressing and investigating this fish kill. The group has already met on several occasions in the last month, including twice under the chairmanship of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, and met most recently on 22 September to agree and sign off on a draft report concerning the investigation. Over the last month, extensive investigations and testing have been carried out by the relevant agencies and all potential pollution sources in the area have been examined. While pathology testing carried out by the Marine Institute indicated possible exposure to some form of environmental insult or water-borne irritant was likely to have caused or contributed to the incident, no definitive cause for the fish kill has been identified in any of the test results. Unfortunately, this is not unusual. In some cases, the triggering factor has either dissipated or is not detectable by the time an investigation commences, making identification impossible. A significant mortality of fish has occurred, primarily of the trout species. While it will take time for stocks to fully recover, the river remains open for fishing and healthy stocks are present. Importantly, the results of ongoing monitoring and testing indicate that the river continues to be safe, including for angling, with no water quality issues currently detected. All agencies will continue to carry out ongoing monitoring and routine surveys and inspections in the Blackwater catchment and more widely across other water courses. A full incident report is being completed by the inter-agency group involving a review of actions taken by all agencies, including full and comprehensive findings from all investigations and recommendations for future action relating to the River Blackwater catchment and other river ecosystems. On behalf of the Government and the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, I thank local anglers and community members who provided vital information to IFI staff during the course of this investigation.

Sentiment score: 0.09

I thank the Deputy for his remarks regarding the Government's response to this. I reiterate that the Government takes this significant fish mortality very seriously. As the House is aware, farmers have been asked to escalate their efforts in respect of water quality protection. State agencies must do the same. Moreover, there is a duty on State bodies and actors in the public sector to take a lead in ensuring that the risk of pollution incidents and events is minimised. Incidents of this nature are a significant source of concern because of their devastating ecological impact on local ecosystems. They should not happen. I assure the House that no effort will be spared in the context of seeking to prevent or minimise the advent of further incidents of this nature. It is deeply regrettable that the extensive work carried out to establish the cause of this incident has not yielded any significant results. The Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, has requested a comprehensive interagency report on the investigation into the incident. That report will be important in the context of understanding how we can streamline our cross-agency response to these incidents and ensure that we are identifying the source of pollutants and irritants in our catchments as quickly as possible. It is essential that our agencies work with all stakeholders to ensure that our prevention compliance and incident response actions are as effective as possible. Now that the investigation is concluding, it is imperative that lessons are learnt in order that we will be in a stronger position in the context of ensuring the prevention of events of this nature in the future. I thank the Deputy for raising the matter.

Sentiment score: 0.12