The Taoiseach says colocation between the Rotunda and the Mater is there in essence. Yes, I agree with him and everyone can see that. The problem the Taoiseach is talking around is that it is not there in reality in the Government's maternity strategy and An Coimisiún Pleanála brought that into its decision-making process. Part of the reason it gave when balancing it with the cultural heritage of the area was that this was not the long-term plan. However, the long-term plan has changed. The Government failed to ack…

Has the Taoiseach read An Coimisiún Pleanála's-----

Has the Taoiseach read the decision?

They cited the colocation with Connolly Hospital.

You should read the An Coimisiún Pleanála reason.

It said it was because of colocation.

That was taken into consideration.

It does.

Today, the Government is using the guillotine to ram through legislation that will have one overriding result, that is, allowing record rents rip even further. Once this legislation goes through, it will mean monthly rents for new tenancies being reset to market rates. People watching at home might not know what that means because the phrase "market rate" does not capture what is really going on here. People will see monthly rents for new tenancies soaring to €2,500 to €3,000 all over the country. That is €30,000 o…

-----developers and investment funds. It is not too late to step back from the brink, abandon plans to jack up rents and finally protect renters.

When the Taoiseach considers the context of 17,000 homeless people, including 5,000 homeless children, when you consider the fact that rents have gone up 117% between 2010 and 2025 when the EU average is 28.8%, when you consider that house prices are up €200,000 since 2015, he comes in here week after week and says that his approach is working. Every day he stands up and defends his approach and somehow tries to blame the Social Democrats is another day he loses even more credibility on housing.

All I can say is, I hope in the lead-up to the next election, people judge the Taoiseach not on his empty promises in those few weeks, but on his actions now. In the depths of a housing crisis, he is introducing legislation that allows landlords to jack up rents to so-called market rate in between tenancies, which will result in more children being evicted into homelessness. It is a disgrace.

It is clear to everyone the Taoiseach's approach is not working.

The Taoiseach has been saying that for ten years.

I am going to read one woman’s account of her postnatal care: At my 6 week post natal check, the consultant who had delivered my baby asked me only about contraception. There were no questions about my mental health, my emotional state, or how I was coping. I left that appointment feeling invisible and unheard. Like I was just a vessel that had to ‘get on with things’. After giving birth, mothers are faced with a countdown. Six weeks of postnatal care. Six-weeks of check-ups. Six weeks, and then you are on your own…

I thank the Taoiseach. I acknowledge that the postnatal hubs delivered through Sláintecare do excellent work. The point that the care campaign is highlighting is that those services need to be expanded massively to address the mental health gaps in postnatal care. It is clear that it has not been prioritised to the extent that the Taoiseach just laid out. There is evidence of that in fact that is it has not been reviewed in 29 years. I specifically asked about the review of the maternity and infant scheme. It was s…

I will be brief. On behalf of the Social Democrats, I want to thank you for all of your work and wish you a really happy retirement.

The use of counselling notes in trials for sexual offences is outrageous and grotesque. This morning, the Cabinet approved new legislation on this but it sounds a lot like the status quo - a court deciding if counselling notes should be released. This is a gross invasion of privacy. It stops victims coming forward and slows or prevents their recovery because victims are afraid to seek help. They feel they have no safe space where they can deal with their pain and trauma because their inner thoughts and feelings can…

People still want a ban.

On behalf of the Social Democrats, I express our deepest sympathies to Grace Lynch's family. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, boyfriend and extended community today. This Government was elected on promises that it was addressing the housing disaster. Many people struggling to buy and rent a home believed it. They took the Taoiseach at his word, they trusted him and many of them voted for him. Those people have been looking on as promise after promise that was made to them has turned to dust. The legislati…