I thank the Deputy for raising this issue at a time when Ireland's contribution to the global financial ecosystem has never been more vital or more visible. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the importance of the funds industry in Ireland and the need for competitiveness. I apologise; copies of my script are on the way. We thought they had already been sent down. The latest estimate from IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland indicates that just over 20,000 people are directly employed in the funds sector. Furthermore, in terms of those working in the financial services industry - domestically and internationally focused - in Ireland, there are over 120,000 people employed, and these jobs are regionally spread throughout the country, employing highly skilled workers in almost every county. We know how important this sector is to our economy. Work is under way on a successor strategy to Ireland for Finance, the whole-of-government strategy for the development of the international financial services sector in Ireland. Anticipated for launch later this year, the new strategy will be informed by a wide range of national and international stakeholder engagement, public consultation and research. The funds sector will be a key aspect of this new strategy. The Department of Finance undertook a review of the funds industry in 2023 and the resulting funds review 2030 was published in October 2024. The review issued 42 recommendations to continue to grow this important sector of our economy. An implementation plan was published in October 2025. This includes a full breakdown of the recommendations and those responsible for their implementation. Of the 42 recommendations, the most substantive were categorised into four cohorts. The first was to grow exchange-traded funds, ETFs; the second was to grow private assets; the third was to grow retail investment; and the fourth was to address the risks and enhance transparency in structured finance. The recommendations to grow ETFs have been delivered by the Central Bank. The recommendations to grow private assets involve legislative, regulatory and tax changes. These are on track for completion this year. There is ongoing engagement in train with the industry and the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment on changes sought to the Limited Partnerships Act. On retail investment, the Tánaiste has announced the Government's intention to introduce the legislative framework for an investment account this year. We want to make investing simpler, clearer and more accessible for ordinary people and to help their hard-earned money work harder for them over time. The aim is to legislate this year to allow accounts to be offered next year. In budget 2026 we provided for a reduction in the rate of taxation on returns from Irish and equivalent investment funds and Irish and certain foreign life assurance policies from 41% to 38%. This took effect from 1 January this year. In addition, in the same budget we committed to publish a roadmap in 2026, setting out the intended approach to simplify and adapt the tax framework to encourage retail investment. The roadmap, which will be published in the coming months, will take into consideration developments at EU level in respect of the savings and investments union. This is a major project for the Presidency this year. As home to the second largest funds industry in the EU and the third largest in the world, lreland does not just facilitate capital flows, we help to shape the architecture of the EU's savings and investment future. This is all-the-more crucial given the current challenges faced by the EU. These funding demands will continue to grow as we look to address our common goals, including security, competitiveness, digitalisation and a just and equitable green transition. It will be our responsibility to ensure we have the tools required to meet these challenges and continue to thrive.

Sentiment score: 0.22

On the alternative investment fund managers directive, the UCITS directive, the transposition was due to be done today but I am very sorry to say that this was not done by the Minister today. There will be a slight administrative delay. Work is continuing to finalise the draft statutory instruments. We hope the delay will be short and they will be ready for signature in the coming weeks. Everybody has to take responsibility for late transposition because it is a legal obligation on the State to transpose directives. One of my functions as Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs is to encourage Ministers to transpose directives on time. It is disappointing that this has not happened. The industry is rightly frustrated with this delay. I am grateful that Deputy Currie raised it. I agree it is essential that this directive is transposed as soon as possible. I will personally take that up with the Minister for Finance in the morning. A lot of people are starting to realise and be concerned about the issue of the deemed disposal rule on ETFs, which was also raised by the Deputy. That is something the Government could do. I have no doubt the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and the Tánaiste will work towards that. I strongly encourage people to examine ETFs on the basis that perhaps Governments will look at this in the coming years and certainly within the relevant period from now. It is something the Government wants to do, as the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and the Tánaiste have said. Our position in Ireland at the centre of the European funds ecosystem is a privilege and responsibility. By working together to support innovation and embrace opportunity while ensuring that our frameworks are robust, we can be confident that Ireland will remain a driving force in Europe's capital markets going forward.

Sentiment score: 0.10

In April of last year, the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment obtained Government approval for the general scheme of the short-term letting and tourism Bill. Once enacted, this Bill will provide a statutory framework for regulating the short-term letting sector, including the establishment of a national register. The register will operate in compliance with the EU Short-Term Rental Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, which comes into effect on 20 May 2026. The register will be operated by Fáilte Ireland and will commence following the enactment of the necessary legislation. While the Minister is charged with the establishment of the register, the planning elements and requirements fall under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Tourism is a vital part of the Irish economy, supporting 227,000 jobs and generating €6 billion in 2024. I fully recognise concerns about the impact on rural tourism and local economies of reducing short-term let, STL, availability. Fáilte Ireland estimates that approximately 34,020 STL properties were advertised online in the State in October 2025 based on screen-scraped data from four major booking platforms. Up to 64% were listed as entire houses or apartments. This represents a 26% increase from an estimated 26,960 units in October 2022. In Cork, around 3,300 STL units were listed in October 2025, of which 63% were advertised as entire properties. This represents a 22.6% increase from an estimated 2,690 listed in October 2022. On 9 February last, the Cabinet committee on housing agreed planning conditions for short-term letting activity as part of a broader Government strategy to tackle the housing shortage. This agreement provided that, following the introduction of the short-term letting register, accommodation providers based in towns with a population of 20,000 or less at the last census based on the census town boundaries defined by CSO will have two years to meet planning compliance requirements, and accommodation providers based in towns with a population of more than 20,000 at the last census will need to confirm planning compliance on registration with no further lead-in period if they wish to register with Fáilte Ireland. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is finalising a national planning statement under the Planning and Development Act 2024. This will be brought to Government shortly and will provide a clear overall policy approach both at national and local authority level to enable planning authorities to determine planning applications for short-term lets across the country.

Sentiment score: 0.16

I set out the position and the increase in the number of short-term lettings, even since 2022. The regulation the Deputy mentioned does impose obligations on the State to provide a register. That was passed with almost nobody voting against it in the European Parliament. Nearly 500 members of the European Parliament supported that. As set out in the A New Era for Irish Tourism document published last December, the introduction of regulatory controls for short-term letting is intended to ensure that tourism develops in a manner that recognises and complements the broader economic and social needs of local communities. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is currently finalising the national planning statement on the Planning and Development Act for short-term lets. That will establish a clear and coherent policy framework at national and local level. There are currently 34,000 short-term lets in Ireland, which is a huge increase since 2022. I acknowledge what the Deputy is saying about the income dependency in certain parts of the country. The Government has acknowledged that but there has been massive growth in the sector in the past three years, so it is necessary then to use regulatory measures to provide appropriate oversight and to ensure a balance between the needs the Deputy is rightfully describing and the needs of the long-term rental market. The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment recognises that short-term lets play an important role in the tourism sector, especially in regional and rural areas where there is limited accommodation for tourists - we get that - and where the development of accommodation at scale might not be economically viable. The Deputy mentioned properties that are not suitable for long-term letting. We know that, but the Minister is continuing to work with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to ensure clarity can be provided and a lead-in time for operators can be agreed to so that we get that balance between the needs of the people the Deputy is talking about, whom we all represent, and obviously the needs of people who are looking for long-term housing in the country.

Sentiment score: 0.30

I was there with Deputy O’Sullivan at least twice.

Sentiment score: 0.00

I will not forget my visits to Glanmire. The Deputy will remember that I was quite active on the issue when the Sarsfields Hurling Club suffered a disaster. In that case, we established a unique fund so that Sarsfields and other clubs got funding because of the flooding disaster. Another project in Glanmire, unfortunately, escaped my abilities to sort out although, as the Deputy said, it was not my responsibility but that of another body. I am certainly very familiar with Glanmire. I would be only too happy if I were in a position to deliver what the Deputy is looking for. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Foley, will do her best. Unfortunately, she cannot be here tonight, and I am here in her place. Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare remains a key priority for the Government. Based on the data available from the annual early years sector profile, the estimated number of enrolments has increased by 25% over the last three years. While the supply of places has increased, there remain indications that the demand, especially for younger children, is higher than the available supply in certain parts of the country. Living in the commuter belt myself, I know only too well the situation. The Department continues to support the ongoing development and resourcing of core funding, which has given rise to a significant expansion of places since its introduction in 2022. Now in its fourth programme year, core funding funds services based on the number of places available. Core funding provides stability to services and reduces the risk associated with opening a new service. The increased investment in core funding will allow for the natural growth of the sector driven both by new services joining the sector and existing services increasing their hours. A forward-planning model has been developed and will be central to the Department's plans to achieve the policy goals set out in the programme for Government to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early childhood learning and childcare system, with State-led facilities adding capacity. The model quantifies the nature and volume of different types of early learning and childcare places across the country and assesses alignment with the number of children in the corresponding age cohorts at local area level. The Government is also supporting the expansion of capacity through capital funding. The building blocks extension grant scheme is designed to increase capacity in the one- to three-year-old pre-ECCE age range for full daycare. Core funding partner services could apply for capital funding to physically extend their premises or, in the case of community services, to construct or purchase new premises. The scheme will deliver up to 1,500 full daycare places for one- to three-year-olds. Four applicants from Cork were approved for funding under the scheme. Following on from the success of that scheme, the Minister today launched a new capital scheme, the building blocks extension grant scheme, phase 2. The scheme will make available €10 million. It will open for applications this year and will focus on offering community and private providers funding for extensions to their existing premises. The Minister also recently announced €135 million in capital investment in buildings for high-quality, accessible State-led early learning and childcare. The process will begin in 2026, with investment in buildings in what will be a groundbreaking initiative for the Government. Capital funding will be used to acquire and-or fit out the building, depending on requirements. There will be a particular focus in the new State-led facilities on providing places for one- to three-year-old children because this is where the need is greatest, with scope for these children to progress in the service until they start school. A suite of appraisal tools has been developed, including a forward-planning model, in order to select projects that align with our objectives.

Sentiment score: 0.20

I will bring it back to the Minister. Up to eight buildings will be selected this year for the State-led initiative. That will provide places. The level of investment will ramp up during the lifetime of the Government. The initial approach is to purchase and refurbish buildings, given that that is a faster route to delivery, while the option of building new facilities will also be considered. Services will be offered on a not-for-profit basis by third parties. Where a project is being considered without an operator already in place, the Department will run a process to identify an appropriate not-for-profit operator with capacity to operate a high-quality service, where works are required to manage a capital project. The Department is assessing sites and buildings and, where required, will seek expressions of interest from operators to deliver these services. Local city and county childcare committees will be supporting the development of projects, so in the first instance, community early learning and childcare operators, local authorities, developers and others who might have suitable premises and projects should contact their local committee.

Sentiment score: 0.14