Bhí mé ag éisteacht leis an díospóireacht anseo agus an méid a bhí ráite maidir le fuinneamh gaoithe go háirithe. Wind energy as it applies to coastal communities, in particular, is such an important aspect of our drive to meet the targets that are so often spoken about, yet there is no operating offshore wind farm in this country. What are we going to put in place to support communities, particularly coastal ones, in delivering wind projects and ensuring we will have wind capacity into the future?

I thank the Minister of State. I have no doubt about the value of offshore wind energy to local communities, particularly, where it is being landed onshore, and about the benefits it brings. I am aware of the community benefit funds, which the Minister of State mentioned. Two major projects are being run from Dún Laoghaire in my constituency, the Dublin Array and Ocean Winds projects. RWE is a partner in the Dublin Array project. Their office is now based in Dún Laoghaire, so it has a close connection to the commun…

The Minister of State is absolutely right, and the value of the community benefit funds, in particular, is huge. We will not feel the effect of this until these things are up and running. Again, in relation to linking them into local communities and the people who are elected to represent those communities, he referred to the professional delivery of community benefit funds. Is there a role for local elected representatives or community councils or other democratic local bodies to have a say in how that money can b…

The thing I find most tiresome about debates on housing and the solutions is that every side presents its proposal as the silver bullet that is somehow going to solve the problem. There is no silver bullet. I do not pretend to know what the answer is. It is something that better minds than mine have grappled with. It is an incredibly complex problem with its roots going back well over a decade. I have some sympathy for this motion. I understand where it is coming from. In 2024, 13,000-odd residential properties wer…

The issue I raise is hydrotreated vegetable oil, HVO, which is an alternative to diesel. It is an extraordinary product that comes from the treatment of plant matter with hydrogen. I am not going to pretend for a moment that I understand how it works, but I know that the product that results from it is interchangeable with diesel in cars, for example, and results in a 90% reduction in carbon emissions when it is used. We have this fuel and 20% of the global output, which is over 30 million tonnes, originates within…

Topical Issue Debates are a really important way that we can raise issues and get direct answers. I entirely respect that the Minister of State is taking a number of matters that do not come under his Department’s remit. However, it is a source of some frustration that the line Minister from the Department is not here because that would be much more useful. I could just have tabled a written question on the matter. It would have been more helpful if a Minister from the Department to which this issue relates had bee…

We can all recognise the importance of animal welfare groups and the work that they do. I particularly welcome the increase in funding to them, to €6.5 million, in accordance with the commitment in the programme for Government. The 94 groups which will benefit from that do incredibly important work. Can we, however, put a bit of certainty in place for organisations like that? Multi-annual funding allows them to plan more into the future and increase the quality of the work they do, for example to provide support fo…

I note the Minister's comments about rural Deputies raising issues here but I agree with him that agricultural issues and animal welfare issues are not just for rural Deputies. There are farms in the Dún Laoghaire constituency. I am a member of the Irish Farmers Association, IFA. They are mostly drystock farms in the south west of the constituency but agriculture affects everybody and it is important. Animal welfare is something that is very close to my heart. As a barrister I prosecuted animal welfare offences for…

I absolutely accept the Minister's commitment to these issues. With animal welfare, everyone in this House has something to do with animals, whether they are domestic pets or agricultural animals. I think the prosecutions in the Department focused particularly on agricultural stock, and obviously there is a food safety issue there as much as anything else, but it needs to be expanded to include domestic animals. I remember as a child getting a rescue dog. He was a cross between an Old English sheepdog and a black L…

Before I outline my Topical Issue, from speaking to Deputy Butterly, I am aware that Mr. Brady, one of her former teachers, is with the group from Dundalk Grammar School. He is particularly welcome. It is always a pleasure when our former teachers get a chance to come here. It is lovely to see that group here as well. I wish to address issues relating to special education needs. I will begin by acknowledging the extraordinary investment made in this area. A total of 268 classes have been announced in recent times, …

I endorse everything the Minister of State said regarding the figures and the numbers. I acknowledged at the outset that the recent tranches have delivered 268 classes. All of that is extremely welcome. Ms Paula Kelly of St. Anne's's National School in Shankhill and Mr. John Fingleton, the permanent principal, have done the forecasting for the school in terms of what is needed. That is why the school has made its applications. Ms Kelly and Mr. Fingleton deserve credit for that. Similarly, Naomi Russo in Rathmhichae…

This is a subject on which I have been back and forth. I would say I am generally in favour of immigration. It has done this country almost nothing but good. When I think of the Ireland in which I grew up in the 1990s, it was homogenous and, by extension, quite restricted. There were no foreigners to speak of in Ireland, certainly in the early 1990s, and the homogeneity of our society meant we did not have the experience of multiculturalism and all the positive things that come with it. I say that in relation to im…

Cuirim fáilte roimh an mBille seo. Agus mé ag féachaint ar Theideal an Bhille agus na rudaí atá sé chun a dhéanamh, déanaim comhghairdeas leis an Aire as teideal Gaeilge an choiste nua a úsáid, is é sin, an coiste forfheidhmithe agus idirghníomhaireachta um chúram leanaí. Is mór an rud é go bhfuilimid ag úsáid na bhfocal agus na dtéarmaí Gaeilge sin. Ag an am céanna, ní dóigh liom go bhfuil gach éinne chun an teideal sin a úsáid gach lá. Sílim go mbeidh deacracht ag roinnt daoine an teideal sin a úsáid. B’fhéidir g…

My question refers to the humanitarian admissions programme. The Minister will be aware that it is a very important programme. I wonder if he can make a statement on it and tell us whether new applications will be accepted in 2026 or how that scheme is going to progress into the future.

I hear what the Minister of State is saying. I am not entirely clear on why there is a limit of 50 because the people we are talking about here need our support. For example, two Afghan women who are living in Ireland have spoken to me about this. They still have family stuck in Afghanistan. Their families are at risk because they have left and their families are necessarily a target then for the Taliban. We all know what the Taliban is capable of. We all know the abuse that women, in particular, suffer at the hand…

I appreciate that and I understand where the Minister of State is coming from. I do not know if it is possible to say what the cost per member of that programme is, or if it has been broken down. In the context of their families, is there room to identify a person who has come here? In the case of Afghanistan, it tends to be women; often very highly qualified women such as journalists, judges and lawyers who come here and whose families remain targets in Afghanistan. I appreciate what the Minister of State said abo…

This is a very wide topic for debate. It covers a multitude. I have listened to what other speakers have said. First, I will address Ireland's role in the European Union. I have always seen the European Union as a body which was all about the rule of law, respecting the rule of law and ensuring that the rule of law is the means by which we do business. That is hugely important. I have said publicly before that I am actually very disappointed with the manner in which the European Union leadership has approached the …

If I were from Kerry and, between the Minister of State, Deputy Healy-Rae, and Deputy Cahill, I had not had my village or townland mentioned, I wonder how I would feel. I understand and agree with many of the issues they have raised. The issue I want to raise is along the same lines, as it relates primarily to wastewater treatment. In Dublin we have a Victorian wastewater system. It is not fit for purpose any more. The extent of development of building in Dublin, while welcome from the point of view of providing ho…

My question is about the provision of offshore wind energy and initiatives his Department might have put in place to fast-track that, particularly in the context of dealing with the frustrations of people who recognise that, as I understand it, there is currently no operating offshore wind capacity in Ireland.

I do recognise that some progress has been made but I know from speaking to people around the country that there is a real frustration at the lack of speed of decision-making. If a decision is made today to start a process to establish a wind farm offshore, whether that is implanted into the seabed or floating, we are many years away from the realisation of that plan. Honestly, people do not understand why that should be the case. It should not take that long. I recognise what the Government has put forward in term…