Of course reviews have to be carried out but it is about how a review is carried out and how it impacts on individual schools. It is no comfort to the principals who have received letters telling them about a cut, and it is a cut effectively, in their individual schools. It is no comfort to them to hear the Taoiseach speak about the macro and about the overarching numbers. What we have not seen with the way in which the review was carried out is any appreciation of the destabilising effect the removal of SNAs from …

Is that a commitment?

The Taoiseach speaks about "this school year" but I am asking about September.

Yes.

It is the impact on-----

Next week sees the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. That means the brutal bombardment of Ukraine is about to enter its fifth year. We have seen appalling casualties and appalling attacks by Russia on the civilian population and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. It is in that context that I raise the alarming revelations on the front of today's edition of The Irish Times , following an investigation by Conor Gallagher, and also covered today in the Ukrainian media today. The story is …

This is the reality of life under Russia's grinding war.

What can the Taoiseach's Government do to ensure that Irish-made components do not end up in Russian weapons?

The decision to overturn planning permission for a new critical care wing at the Rotunda Maternity Hospital is deeply disappointing. The staff there provide exceptional care to women and babies. However, the building is failing them. The Rotunda is the busiest maternity hospital in Ireland and one of the busiest in Europe. Yet, vulnerable premature babies are being treated in facilities that are simply not fit for purpose and healthcare workers tell us that space constraints are already impacting on care. We all kn…

Oh, no.

I listened carefully to the Taoiseach's response and it is more of the same. It is Government as bystander and that is not good enough. It is not good enough for the Taoiseach or for the health Minister to say how disappointed they are with a decision of an entity created by the Government. It is simply not good enough either for the Taoiseach or the health Minister-----

You are critical of planning decisions.

Sorry, I did not interrupt you.

As I have said, and I hope I get more time, it is not good enough for the Taoiseach to govern as a bystander because he is in government and, indeed, he was in the previous Government. The planning process was established by Government. It is now up to the Government to do something about this decision. What I did not hear from the Taoiseach was any clarity about the long-term plans for the Rotunda. An Coimisiún Pleanála referred to a prospective move of the Rotunda. That has not been ruled out by either the Taoise…

It is not a soundbite.

Proposed by the Government.

That is not what we are saying.

Where is the clarity?

Some 60 years on, everyone agrees there must be a resolution to the State’s scandalous handling of thalidomide. What is needed now is a fair and full resolution for the survivors, for their families and for their mothers, many of whom are now in failing health. As the Irish Thalidomide Association has warned, the clock is ticking for this small group of just 40 survivors. They have had too many false dawns. There was renewed hope in December when the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste committed to taking personal charge, w…

And the Taoiseach will be meeting them before the end of February.