5. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the recent EU Council meeting. [22418/26]
Sentiment score: 0.00
7. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his attendance at the informal meeting of EU member state leaders in Cyprus on 23 April 2026. [31144/26]
Sentiment score: 0.00
Has the Taoiseach had any discussion about local democracy with his European counterparts, and about the fact Ireland has the lowest levels of autonomy and local democracy in all of Europe? I will give the Taoiseach a dramatic illustration of this. I have raised before with him the attempt by South Dublin County Council to massively hike rents for 20,000 families - council tenants, housing assistance payment, HAP, tenants, homeless HAP tenants and approved housing body, AHB, tenants - at an average of €1,000. It is trying to do this without a vote. It was not included in the budget. Then it tried to say it was going to be implemented from 1 July, because it is an executive function and the council can just set it. Eleven councillors signed a motion to call a special meeting to hear a section 140 motion to stop this rent increase going ahead until the previously unanimously agreed consultation would take place. Just yesterday, council management ruled that out. The motion is considered invalid and the request for a special meeting of the council is not being granted. One of the reasons the council is doing so is that it says the motion is effectively seeking to prevent the performance of a function which the chief executive is required by law to perform. The chief executive is not required to increase rents. Can the Taoiseach confirm that? Does he agree that the councillors should be allowed to meet and vote?
Sentiment score: 0.11
I am not asking the Taoiseach to intervene.
Sentiment score: 0.00
I am asking that councillors get a vote.
Sentiment score: 0.00
No, you should not. The council should.
Sentiment score: -0.15
Did you legally direct the council to increase rents? That is what the council issaying.
Sentiment score: 0.20
Did you legally direct the council to increase rents?
Sentiment score: 0.40
Did you?
Sentiment score: 0.00
I know you did not. That is what the council is claiming.
Sentiment score: 0.00
No, I do not want you to.
Sentiment score: -0.34
I am happy to get that clarified.
Sentiment score: 0.57
30. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the revised national digital and AI strategy. [41564/26]
Sentiment score: 0.00
I agree entirely. The Taoiseach has said that, "Social media is the public health issue of our time". It is nice that he has discovered it after voting against the Bill to ban recommender algorithms just a few months ago. However, does the Taoiseach think that this public health issue just stops as soon as people turn 16? Does he think that people are then suddenly immune to addictive design, to infinite scroll, to the manosphere and to pro-eating disorder content being spewed out at them? All of that will remain on social media if under-16s are barred from it because that is what is core to the big tech business model. We know from Australia that many under-16s find it easy to bypass the age verification. We cannot rely on it to keep our kids safe. The answer is very clear. It is what the media committee, the AI committee and every expert recommends: clean up social media at source by turning off the toxic algorithms that big tech profits from.
Sentiment score: 0.20
The Taoiseach voted against-----
Sentiment score: 0.00