I am surprised the Deputy used the term "cancel". We have cancelled nothing. Last year we had a particular cost-of-living package, and the previous year, given the impact of the post-Covid scenario and the inflationary spiral that went up as high as 10%. I also note that Sinn Féin is not challenging the energy companies.
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It is giving the energy companies carte blanche.
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Some of these companies are making significant profits. We need an engagement with the companies.
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In particular, we should focus on the companies ensuring that people under pressure and on low incomes are treated appropriately. There will be supports in the budget for those most in need. We will be targeting resources towards those who will be impacted the most by the increase in energy prices. We have taken a decision on VAT to bring it down to 9%. We have retained that. We will also look at that again in the budget.
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First, the composition of homelessness is much more complex now than it would have been in previous times in terms of those in emergency accommodation. I did not seek to deflect at all; I just made a very simple point. The national planning framework has been published. A lot of work went into that. A direction has gone to local authorities to rezone more land for housing. Some of the local authorities are displaying inertia and a refusal to rezone.
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It is true.
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I have spoken to some in respect of it.
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I also made a point in respect of emergency accommodation. I met with Cork City Council, for example. It said to me that 26% of those on the emergency accommodation list in Cork have refused an offer of a house. The story is not as simplistic as articulated by the Deputy and others. I get that they have to do it from an Opposition perspective, but it is a bit more complex than is being told. These are issues we need to drill down on.
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Some weeks ago, the Minister brought a memo to Government. Additional funding is being made available to local authorities to prioritise families in homeless situations to get homes. He allocated €50 million to do that about a fortnight ago or last week.
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Of course, we did much more than once-off payments in previous budgets. We have eliminated the cost of school books, which was a fairly dramatic intervention over the last two to three years. That is a permanent reduction in costs. The provision of hot school meals across all of our schools is a significant help and support to families, particularly those on lowest incomes. Child support payments help families on low incomes as well. There are also the working family payment and domiciliary care allowance increases last year.
Sentiment score: 0.28
On the energy costs in particular, we will take measures in the budget to alleviate and help and we have reduced the VAT, as the Deputy knows.
Sentiment score: 0.59
I do not accept the Deputy's assessment of the Government's response to the genocide in Gaza and the appalling carnage and slaughter of innocent children and civilians. It seems to me that from the get-go the Deputy's primary focus has been to drive a wedge between the Irish people and the Government as opposed to focusing on the atrocities themselves within Gaza and the responsibility of the Israeli Government in respect of those atrocities. The Deputy throws language about with a carelessness that is unacceptable, such as "complicit in this" and "complicit in that". This Government has taken initiatives on a whole range of fronts in respect of endeavouring to create leverage and pressure on Israel to stop the war, and also on Hamas to release all of the hostages, which should be done. The condition of those hostages now is quite shocking, but the slaughter of innocent children and the slaughter of residential units, housing, schools and health all point, as the UN commission has said, to genocidal behaviour.
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I think the key is-----
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I am not familiar with the particular background negotiations with TII. I have walked the Seven Heads peninsula walk, which was developed by the Foróige youth organisation, working with the farmers and those who owned the land in that area and with the local community. There was no talk of anybody. There was no TII; there was nothing. They just did it as a local community endeavour, and it has been one of the most enjoyable recreational walks that people come from all over the country to participate in. That is the kind of spirit that should inform any developments. Sometime I say to TII that it needs to ease up on the spec too. People want to retain the biodiversity. They want to retain the natural pathways. We do not need super spec in my view, or intrusions on the landscape either. I will certainly have a look at it and see what is happening there. Once you get into the CPO, you are in trouble in terms of any greenway.
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I thank Deputy Dempsey very much. I understand the case she is making. This has been a long-running scenario where successive governments have endeavoured to try to harmonise existing systems. The long-term illness scheme has survived numerous attempts by officialdom to eliminate it. However, in the past number of years, we have concentrated on reducing the level of the drugs payment scheme to €80, which was a significant reduction from where it was four years ago. As the Deputy said, however, there is a greater focus and profile on rare diseases now and we do have to examine that issue for those affected and impacted. I will talk to the Minister for Health on the Deputy's behalf.
Sentiment score: 0.23
Some elements of the planning and development Bill relating to judicial review have been commenced but others in respect of costs have yet to be commenced. Very significant progress has been made on that and that should be imminent. We are waiting on amendments to come to Government on that. On a broader level, Government is looking at all options, and I have asked the Attorney General and the Minister to look at the option of bespoke legislation to drive that project through because the common good is overwhelming here. It is shocking and unacceptable that such a key water project for so many families is being undermined and jeopardised.
Sentiment score: 0.18
I thank the Deputy for raising the issue and for the manner in which he raised it. Aisling's cousins have been in touch and have emailed me. I have spoken to the CEO of the HSE. It seems again to have been a kind of historic clinical issue about a certain age threshold for the application of CAR T-cell therapy or Kymriah, which is a specific type. In any event, there is an urgent clinical review under way today and I would be hopeful there will be a positive outcome insofar as that could be applied to Aisling's case. Obviously, there is a clinical review under way as we speak, and I will keep the Deputy informed on developments in respect of it.
Sentiment score: 0.32
I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for raising the issue. I earlier articulated our deep sense of loss on the passing of Councillor Patrick Gerard Murphy. He was a kind person who made such an impact on his community. I extend our deepest sympathies to his family. In terms of the large-scale solar farms, first of all, on the energy mix, we do need more solar. There has been a welcome acceleration and growth of solar energy in the country. That is a good thing. On the other hand, there is an emerging issue in terms of the utilisation of very high-quality agricultural land for the purposes of large solar farms. I have asked the Minister with responsibility for the planning area, Deputy James Browne, to review the guidelines, or not so much review as initiate an examination of what guidelines are required. In other countries, they do grade land and then in respect of certain types of land, it is not permissible but other lands it is permissible. The Minister is going to look at that, and it will come back to Government.
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I appreciate very much the points the Deputy has made. He will recall that the national development plan, published before the summer, prioritised the energy grid. The CRU will engage with EirGrid. A combination of the two will result in investment which will probably be triple the level we had in the previous five years. That is necessary because of the population growth and the industry and household need. It is a key infrastructural issue. That is why we are focusing on prioritising infrastructure and making sure that we can invest in the future so that generations to come can have ready access to utilities, in particular electricity and energy.
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The Minister has provided additional funding to local authorities.
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Some of it is for tenant in situ.
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I will bring the Deputy's case back to the Minister.
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I engaged with the Ministers of State, Deputies Dooley and Christopher O'Sullivan, on this issue following the consultation. Legal advice was also sought. I understand a year was required to implement the policy. I will come back to the Deputy on the actual-----
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I will come back to the Deputy on the specifics of what she has asked, in terms of the instrument and so on.
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I understand about 170,000 children avail of services under the school transport scheme. I do not have the specifics of the case the Deputy raised but I will talk to the Minister in respect of the issue.
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In response to Deputy Farrelly, there is no U-turn. There will be targeted measures in the budget in respect of children, in particular financial supports and the prioritisation of the issue of child poverty. In relation to Deputy O'Gorman, I fully accept that we have a lot more to do in terms of special education. I went through this earlier in a longer reply. We need to ensure that every child and family knows they have a place and where they are going well in advance of the school year. There has to be a cultural ethos in the Department to enable that to happen. I understand the Ministers are working on that agenda.
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