The revised national planning framework includes many great suggestions, such as improving local connectivity to broadband, energy, transport and water networks, recognising Letterkenny as an important cross-Border network for regional development and addressing the town and village rural population decline by encouraging new roles and functions for buildings, streets and sites. However, it is clear to me there is no intention of actually implementing many of these suggestions, including the revised planning framew…

I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this Bill to repeal Part 2 of the Water Services Act 2017 and rule out the reintroduction of water charges by this and future Governments. I fully support the Bill. I am disappointed to hear of the Government's intention to reintroduce water charges despite knowing how strongly the public feels about this. The charge may be for excessive use of water at this stage. However, I believe that once it is introduced the Government will find a way to introduce domestic water charges …

I welcome the release of the draft I.S. 465 for public consultation last Monday. For a long time, homeowners affected by defective concrete have been calling for the recognition of science. The standard now recognises that pyrrhotite oxidation causes internal sulfate attack, creating deterioration in Donegal homes. It is incredible that the freeze-thaw action potential damage mechanism has been retained in the revised draft document. This despite international research, scientists, the Department of housing and the…

One of the concerns is the breach of EU regulations. The recommended total levels of sulfur they are recommending in this new version of I.S. 465 breaches EU regulations for concrete aggregates, namely, EN 12620, which limits the total sulfur level for concrete aggregate to 0.1% if pyrrhotite is present. The NSAI has set a total sulfur limit of 3% for testing defective concrete in this revised document, which is higher than EN 12620's 1%, because the test is for concrete, not raw aggregate. Raw aggregate is the pro…

I thank my colleague, Deputy Seamus Healy, for bringing forward this important motion on housing emergency measures in the public interest. I acknowledge the inclusion in this motion of the defective concrete crisis, which many Opposition parties have disappointingly failed to include in their previous housing motions. Support from all parties and independent TDs across every constituency is required in respect of the defective concrete block crisis. At least 16 counties have been impacted so far, but it is very li…

I am sure the Taoiseach is aware there are extremely long waiting lists for driving tests across the country. I have been contacted by many of my constituents who are taking tests in Letterkenny, Donegal town and Buncrana. As the Taoiseach can imagine, when people do manage to secure a test, it is important that it go ahead. Unfortunately, this was not the case for one of my constituents, whose test was immediately terminated because the insurance disc on his car was printed in black and white. This is completely u…

I would be grateful if the Minister could outline the number of applications for the local improvement scheme, LIS, in Donegal since 2020, and the number of outstanding LIS roads in Donegal. I would also like to know whether he will allocate a major increase in LIS funding to the Glenties and Inishowen municipal districts because an increase in funding for the roads in these areas is desperately needed. Will he also look at reviewing the local improvement scheme during his term?

If the Minister of State has been to Donegal, he will know many of our rural roads are in an awful state and in urgent need of upgrading, particularly around the Glenties and Inishowen areas. These are the most deprived areas. They are rural areas. The LIS as it currently stands is wholly inadequate for us as there is a need to address the infrastructural differences between rural and urban Donegal. There are hundreds of people in my constituency who have been waiting on the LIS list for years and it seems many of …

I understand this but the LIS funding allocated to Donegal must increase and be prioritised because of what is going on in the west of Donegal, Gaeltacht areas and north Inishowen, in particular. Councillors out there are constantly looking for funding. There are roads that have not been touched for years. If a plan was put in place for the LIS roads in north Inishowen and west Donegal, it would effectively help rural communities. During his term, will the Minister of State consider increasing the funding for LIS i…

Yes.

I wish the Minister nothing but the best in the years to come because what is ahead is the biggest crisis this country has ever seen when it comes to housing. When reading the Housing Commission report, I was shocked to find no mention of the defective concrete block crisis. The thousands of houses that have been impacted by this crisis are not mentioned once in the 250-page report. It is an absolute disgrace. Whether an oversight or an intentional omission, it is equally concerning. The Housing Commission claims t…

It is shocking to see the examples of overspending and waste in the public sector, as outlined in the motion. Public trust in Government decisions and Government spending is at an all-time low. It is sickening for people to watch the Government spend public money so wastefully. It is a slap in the face to families impacted by the defective concrete crisis that hundreds of thousands is being dished out on bike sheds, security huts and printers - you name it. I will highlight the staggering waste, inefficiency and fi…

I have been speaking to parents and teachers from Little Angels Special School in Letterkenny. From the day the first block was ever laid in the new building, we knew the school would be too small to fulfil future demands. Some of the temporary solutions to this issue could be to use two rooms in the old school and transport the newest modular buildings to the new building. Why did this project start when the Department already knew it would be too small? Three classrooms in a neighbouring school had to be utilised…

I asked the Taoiseach a question last Tuesday on the defective concrete scheme and his answer was completely disingenuous. He is trying to mislead the public into thinking the scheme is working and many people have benefited from it. That could not be further from the truth. He claims 450 homes are under construction while failing to acknowledge only 69 homes have been completed. There is a big difference between a commencement and a completion - you cannot live in a commencement. The Taoiseach knows this, but rath…

Will the Taoiseach give a specific date for when the people currently on the scheme can avail of the 10%? We are talking about people who are on the scheme. This scheme works. People are phoning me - the majority of whom are on the scheme - crying because the 10% is enough to keep their debt at approximately €100,000. Can I get a date for when this 10% will be implemented?

I wish the Minister and the Minister of State success in their time going forward. We may be making progress in terms of healthcare outcomes in Ireland overall, but there is no doubt that there is an enormous disparity between the north west and the rest of the country when it comes to access to healthcare and healthcare outcomes. In Donegal we are years behind the rest of the country in terms of healthcare that we are able to provide. Letterkenny University Hospital is in dire need of an upgrade to equal funding t…

The Government's defective blocks scheme has left many homeowners, particularly in Donegal, facing significant challenges. The scheme is fraught with delays, technical barriers and inadequate funding. Despite availing of the scheme, families are still drowning in debt and are expected to carry the financial burden relating to delays caused by a lack of contractors and insufficient processing by Donegal County Council. Despite thousands of applications having gone through, the scheme is not working. Work has only be…

Will the Bill include retrospective payments - these were promised previously - for homeowners who are currently in the scheme?

Only 69 have been completed.

I thank the Social Democrats for bringing forward this motion, which I support. I am disappointed that like the Labour Party motion last week, there is no mention of the defective concrete crisis in this motion. This is a crisis that impacts tens of thousands of people in County Donegal and 16 other counties. It is a crisis that every single party needs to address. Every day we discover more problems with the Government's defective concrete blocks scheme. We discovered this week that homeowners are being unfairly p…