I thank the Deputy for raising this. On behalf of the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, I thank him for addressing it on the floor of the Dáil. I join the Minister, Taoiseach and the Deputy in strongly condemning the deliberate callous attack on the house in Edenderry, County Offaly, over the weekend which tragically resulted in the loss of the lives of Mary Holt and young Tadhg Farrell. I join with the Deputy in extending my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Mary and young Tadhg on this absolutely unacceptable travesty and loss of life. There is no place in a civilised society for such heinous violence. An Garda Síochána has commenced a murder investigation into all the circumstances surrounding this fatal attack. I join An Garda Síochána in appealing to anyone with information to come forward. The gardaí have given assurances they will relentlessly pursue the violent and dangerous criminals for this murderous attack. They will be brought to justice. I appreciate that this incident will be shocking to people in the community in Edenderry and across the country and may naturally give them pause for concern about their own safety. I reassure them that the gardaí are following a direct line of inquiry and they have a strong record of bringing dangerous and violent criminals to justice. It has been well reported that gardaí suspect criminals involved in the drugs trade in the midlands may be behind the most heinous act. Tackling the scourge of drug dealing and targeting the work of organised crime groups who inflict intimidation, violence and misery on families and communities across Ireland is a top priority for the Government and An Garda Síochána. The Deputy mentioned Garda resources. The Government is investing record amounts in An Garda Síochána to ensure the Garda Commissioner has the resources he needs to tackle the illegal drugs trade. A Garda budget of €2.59 billion for next year will fund the recruitment of up to 1,000 new gardaí, 200 more Garda staff and a doubling of the Garda Reserve to over 600 next year. A total of 794 garda recruits entered the Garda College across 2025, the largest intake in a year since 2018. Significant numbers of gardaí have attested from the Garda college throughout this year and as more probationary gardaí attest across 2026, all communities will see a benefit as they are assigned out to their stations. Ultimately, the Commissioner will make the decision on where Garda resources are assigned but the Minister is assured that a number of factors are taken into account, including crime trends in an area, demographics and local resourcing requirements. I assure Deputy McCormack that in relation to the heinous and murderous act we saw at the weekend that resulted in the tremendously tragic and unacceptable loss of lives, no stone will be left unturned. Every avenue will be explored to make sure that those responsible are brought to justice.

Sentiment score: -0.17

I join Deputy McCormack in extending my thoughts and prayers to the lady who was injured in the attack. I wish her a speedy recovery. Deputy McCormack's point in relation to Garda resources in Edenderry and Offaly is massively important. I understand that at the end of October, there were 399 gardaí assigned to the Laois-Offaly Garda division, a 45% increase on ten years ago. They are also supported by 51 Garda staff who provide really important support to gardaí and free them up to focus on front-line policing duties. Eight probationary gardaí were assigned to the Laois-Offaly Garda division this year and 12 probationers were assigned last year. It is also worth noting that An Garda Síochána operates a divisional model which means that it uses all of the resources within the division, not just the Garda station within a particular community, to respond to local demands on the service it provides. We can see throughout our communities the damage and devastation that organised drug crime groups heap on society, not least in Deputy McCormack's local community over this past weekend. Tackling the issue of drug-related intimidation is a high priority for An Garda Síochána. Nominated Garda inspectors are available throughout the country through the drug-related intimidation reporting programme to assist victims of intimidation. In addition, the drug-related intimidation and violence engagement, DRIVE, project, which launched earlier this year has established effective systems for assisting those affected by drug-related intimidation. There are over 400 publicly-funded drugs services, including family support services, across the country which can advise and support people affected by drug-related intimidation. Family support services are critical because drug-related violence nearly always becomes an issue for the whole family. There is more information available for anyone who needs support on the [driveproject.ie] website I thank Deputy McCormack again for raising this today and assure him that the Minister for Justice and Home Affairs and the Garda Commissioner will do everything they can do bring the people responsible to justice.

Sentiment score: -0.04

I thank Deputy Murphy for raising this issue today. The climate action plan includes targets to retrofit the equivalent of 500,000 homes to a building energy rating, BER, of B2, cost optimal, and the installation of 400,000 heat pumps in existing homes to replace older, less efficient heating systems by the end of this decade. The national retrofit plan sets out the Government's approach to achieving those targets. The programme for Government 2025 contains a number of commitments in relation to retrofitting. They include delivering more B2 equivalent home retrofits each year from 2026 to 2030, with a focus on lower-income households, improving the provision of grants and financing models for home owners, including older people who wish to retrofit, enhancing energy efficiency and reducing costs, as well as supporting group retrofitting projects. The warmer homes scheme aims to improve the energy efficiency and warmth of homes owned by people at risk of energy poverty by providing fully funded retrofits. The scheme is operated by the SEAI on behalf of the Department and is funded through carbon tax receipts and the European Regional Development fund, ERDF Last year saw a record spend of almost €230 million under the scheme. As reported by the SEAI, this resulted in 7,743 upgrades being provided to lower-income households. This year's budget includes an allocation of €250 million for the scheme, which is a €50 million increase. That represents an elevenfold increase on the 2020 expenditure figure. The scheme has been delivering a greater number of deeper and more complex upgrades in recent years, and this is reflected in the average cost of upgrades, which the SEAI indicates has increased from €2,600 in 2015 to over €29,000 this year. These deeper upgrades mean that more lower-income households are benefiting significantly from warmer, healthier and more comfortable homes with lower energy bills and reduced emissions. With regard to waiting times, which I know are key to the point the Deputy is making, increased awareness of the multiple benefits of retrofit and improvement to the warmer homes scheme is driving increased levels of demand for the scheme, with just over 45,000 applications received over the period from January 2022 to the end of October 2025. Over the same period, more than 24,500 homes have been upgraded under the scheme. We had 45,000 applications and in the same period, 24,500 homes were upgraded. For homes that have been allocated to a contractor for works under the scheme so far this year, the average waiting time was just under 15 months. Once a home is allocated to a contractor, the completion times can vary based on the types of works being undertaken at a home and the lead time for ordering and delivery of materials and products, such as windows, are factors. Homeowner availability for upgrades in their homes can also be a factor. The average waiting time from application to completion of upgrade works to date in 2025 has been 21 months for the worst performing homes and 22 months for better performing homes. It is important to note that these averages represent a significant reduction since the first half of 2022, when the average waiting time was 27.5 months. The reduction in waiting times follows a range of measures introduced by the Department and the SEAI, including the allocation of additional staff to the warmer homes scheme, a significantly increased budget allocation and active contract engagement with management by the SEAI to increase contractor output, as well as actions to address ongoing supply chain pressures. A pilot delivering additional homes from the warmer homes scheme waiting list under the energy efficiency obligation scheme was introduced last year. Importantly, the SEAI launched on 8 December a procurement process to establish a new €1.2 billion contractor panel to be in place by quarter 2 next year. This will support continued growth, with a focus on scale, quality and output under the scheme. Department officials continue to work with the SEAI to further accelerate and maximise the output of fully funded energy upgrades with the objective of minimising wait times.

Sentiment score: 0.36

I will relay the urgency of the need to increase the capacity to the Minister and the Department as a result of this debate. As I indicated in my previous contribution, we have seen a significant increase in the number of applicants. The number has gone from 3,000 homes in 2021 to 13,500 in 2024. There has been a massive increase in the number of applicants, which is obviously putting on pressure by way of demand. It is important that the capacity to deal with that and to deliver on this scheme matches the demand levels and the budget that has been allocated every year, which this year has increased, as I said earlier. The other challenging factor that is influencing waiting time is the fact that deeper retrofits are taking place. That is reflected in the increase in cost from €2,500 ten years ago to €29,000 now. That is reflecting the fact that a lot more is happening whenever a retrofit is taking place. The important piece, which will have a positive influence and will help to address the important point the Deputy is addressing, is the fact that the SEAI has put in place the procurement process for the new warmer homes contractor panel, which commenced in recent months. It is anticipated that it will attract additional capacity for the programme over the next four to five years. That tender carries an estimated value of €1.1 billion, representing a record programme of commitment for that five-year period. The SEAI expects to have the contractor panel in place for quarter 2. Its objective will be to support that continued growth with a focus on the scale, quality and output. The SEAI also continuously monitors the performance of all contractors operating under the warmer homes scheme, including in relation to the quality, level of complaints, timelines and general administration. I will certainly feed back the Deputy's key points to the Minister and the Department. I will emphasise the importance of ensuring that capacity continues to increase.

Sentiment score: 0.32

I thank the Deputy. I am taking this Topical Issue matter on behalf of the Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy Naughton, to outline to the Dáil the current position of the joint school project for St. John Bosco Junior Boys School, St. John Bosco Senior Boys School and Mary, Help of Christians Girls National School in Dublin 7. The joint school building project the Deputy outlined the background of will deliver two new 16-classroom primary schools, with additional classrooms for children with special educational needs for the senior boys school and the girls school and a new 11-classroom primary school with additional classrooms for children with special educational needs for the junior boys school. Initially, it was anticipated that this joint project would be delivered in the form of an extension and refurbishment. However, due to a scope change to include an increase of classrooms for children with special educational needs, it was decided that new school buildings would be provided. The design team submitted the initial stage 1 report in April 2023 and, following the submission of an addendum report in August of that year, the project was approved to move to the next stage. The design team submitted its stage 2a submission report to the Department in January 2024 for review. Upon review, some key concerns were identified by departmental officials and the school authorities and design team were advised in advance that, in place of the stakeholders meeting, there would be a further interim stage 2a workshop to discuss and assist the design team in progressing its stage 2a submission in a positive manner. The design team was asked to complete a review and audit of the floor area schedules and to refine some design elements in order to meet the approved schedule of accommodation. A further interim workshop was held on 22 March 2024 between the Department and the design team architect, where further refinements and adjustment to floor area were discussed. Upon receipt of the revised stage 2a report, departmental officials carried out an initial review and arranged an architectural workshop with the design team lead in May of this year to discuss it further. In early June 2025, a further meeting was held with the wider design team, school authorities and departmental officials in attendance. At that meeting, the school was provided with a progress update and advised that the design team was due to submit an addendum stage 2a report to the Department. The outstanding information for the addendum stage 2a report was received in the Department on 31 October 2025. Departmental officials will carry out a full review of the addendum report and the stakeholders' meeting will be scheduled once the review is completed. In July, the Government announced a capital allocation of €7.55 billion for the Department of Education and Youth for the period 2026 to 2030 under the national development plan, NDP. As part of this NDP allocation, the Department will place a strong emphasis on provision for children with special educational needs, with a particular focus on meeting annual school place needs. The approach to project roll-out for large-scale projects and additional school accommodation scheme projects will be to continue to maximise the capacity of the existing school estate as much as possible in the first instance and provide necessary additional capacity through targeted and prioritised project roll-out over the course of the 2026-30 period to meet the most urgent and prioritised needs.

Sentiment score: 0.30

I certainly will bring that back to the Department and to the Minister and the Deputy’s emphasis on the urgency of moving this project on. I know that whenever three schools are brought together for one project like this, it is a big commitment on behalf of all three schools. It is not easy to keep everybody on the one page and it is important the project keeps moving. I will reflect back to the Department and the Minister the full content of what the Deputy has been saying. As I said in my previous response, the Department asked the design team in early June this year to submit an addendum stage 2a report to the Department. This was received on 31 October 2025, some five or six weeks ago. The departmental officials will be carrying out a full review of that addendum report. They are committing to a stakeholders meeting being scheduled once that review is complete. This is where the process is at now. I take on board the points made by the Deputy in terms of the urgency of completing that review and giving clarity in terms of when the meeting will happen and having it happen so that the process can then move forward. On a wider note, to summarise where we are at generally and where this situation sits within the wider overall investment plans, which are going to be important in terms of moving this and other projects forward, €6 billion has been invested since 2020, as the Deputy knows. This has seen 1,300 school projects completed. In 2025 to 2026, 80% of new special classes are being facilitated in repurposed classroom accommodation, so there is particular pressure in respect of addressing that need. Departments, including the Department of education, are currently in the process of publishing their sectoral NDP implementation plans. The sectoral plan for the Department of Education and Youth will be published next week and the first tranche of projects to progress to construction will be published in January 2026. This NDP implementation plan will optimise outputs from the national development plan allocations, with a strong focus on maximising existing school capacity, progressing priority projects where local capacity across schools and areas is insufficient and ensuring delivery that is affordable, offers value for money and meets functional needs. I certainly will feed back the full content of the Deputy’s contribution and the need for the prioritisation of this project.

Sentiment score: 0.23