In my constituency, and particularly in the north Galway area, we are facing a tsunami of wind energy developments. These are in communities such as Killimordaly, Clonberne, Barnaderg, Shancloon and Laurclavagh to name but a few, and there would be in excess of 150 turbines if all of the various projects at various stages of development go ahead. It is safe to say that north County Galway would be totally unrecognisable if this were allowed to happen. These are turbines that are 185 m high. The 2006 wind energy gui…

Irish farmers produce some of the finest food products in the world, from our well-renowned grass-fed beef and high-quality milk products to our tillage sector produce. Irish farmers are world leaders on animal welfare and food production standards. The farming sector faces many threats, including generational renewal, the loss of the nitrates derogation and farm viability. However, the Mercosur trade deal represents a direct threat to the European export market, which many farm livelihoods depend on. In 2024, Iris…

Will the Minister of State provide an update on the development of his Department's sectoral investment plan following the national development plan review? Is there a date for the publication of this plan?

Capital investment is badly needed to expand the availability and quality of public transport services. I look forward to seeing the planned projects. It is critical that works commence on the various infrastructure projects that are badly needed. For the day-to-day running of our public transport system, PSO funding is important, particularly for bus routes. Before the budget, we heard a funding gap existed between PSO funding and the funding needed for existing services and that this gap could have ranged up to €…

Can clarity be provided on how much of next year's PSO funding allocation will be used to address the existing funding gap and maintaining existing services? Will the Minister of State provide a breakdown of that, if possible? PSO funding constraints are causing difficulties in the roll-out of services. We know that from our constituency as well. For example, Athenry has been waiting a long time for a bus service. The risk here is that if the PSO funding is not adequate, we will not have a roll-out of services and …

Will the Minister of State outline the actions his Department has undertaken to deliver contactless payments on all public transport and the estimated timeline for the introduction of this?

It is disappointing to hear that this important development will not be rolled out for a number of years. As the Minister of State said, many other countries have had contactless payment options rolled out for years. However, we are still waiting for a trial run for the Dublin bus network, never mind elsewhere in the State. It is reflective of the wider failure of the current and previous Governments to keep up with technological advances. Another example of this is that TFI currently has five different smartphone …

I ask the Minister of State to comment on the streamlining of the various apps that exist to make it an easier experience for commuters. In addition, making a virtual Leap card available would be a major step forward in making the public transport system more user-friendly. The Leap card was first launched in 2011, for the Dublin area, and 14 years on, there is still no digital or virtual version available. Such digital cards exist in many cities around the world. They include the Clipper card in San Francisco and …

Drivers are being ripped off across the board when it comes to the cost of motoring. From sky-high fuel costs, car insurance costs and now a fresh round of toll hikes come January, workers and families are seeing no let-up in the cost-of-living crisis. Ireland is one of the most expensive places to run a car, with recent analysis showing that we have the third highest motor fuel costs in the EU. Couple this with rip-off car insurance costs and it is clear that Irish motorists are paying far more to commute to work,…

There is a postcode lottery when it comes to cancer care in this State. Cancer patients in the west face the longest wait times between diagnosis and commencement of treatment. I draw the Tánaiste’s attention to the fact that no PET scanner is operating in the public system in Galway or in the wider western region. This imaging technology is vital for cancer diagnosis and monitoring. Patients are currently being forced to travel long distances to access these scans or are being referred to private operators at a si…

As the Minister of State knows, the ongoing flooding on the Shannon Callows is causing huge issues for farmers and landowners. It is a problem that is getting worse and worse each year as time goes by. It is having a severe impact on the livelihoods of the people affected. There are hundreds of families affected by this and it has caused devastation. For example, in 2023, farmers lost everything as land was flooded through the summer. In recent weeks, there has been severe flooding again, impacting on land and live…

I appreciate the Minister of State's response and commitment to this. Obviously, the issue is that this problem is continuing to get worse and my constituents who are speaking to me do not feel that enough is being done to maintain the river to address those pinch points to get water levels under control. I know that the Minister of State is meeting with the Save Our Shannon Organisation, which represents local people affected by this, in the coming days or weeks. These people know the river better than anyone, hav…

I join with colleagues in condemning the despicable attacks in Drogheda. I hope those responsible are brought to justice and face very serious consequences for their actions. This island has a storied history of migration. We have seen many generations forced to emigrate due to famine and economic necessity. Today, famine and war still remain in the world along with conflict and people who are in need of international protection. Ireland must continue to play our part in providing international protection. However,…

Investment in our electricity grid is essential for Ireland's future. For many years, successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael Governments have failed to invest in adequate grid infrastructure, which has resulted in constrained housing development, major outages during storms and high electricity prices. Without a grid built for the 21st century, we will continue to see housing targets being missed. We will continue to see major outages during storms and rip-off electricity prices will not be addressed. While Sinn Féin…

I raise the situation in Ardgraigue, Barroughter and Clonmoylan bogs in south-east Galway. The local turf cutting contractor was served with a High Court injunction to cease cutting turf earlier this year. As a result, local people have been left without a supply of fuel this winter. There are over 40 families affected. It is important to say that these are bogs where local people have cut turf for many years. This is causing significant distress to the people affected. Many are elderly, have dwindling supplies or …

From the response, I do not think the Minister of State appreciates the distress and tension this situation is causing in the local community. He outlined the compensation schemes available but the reality is there are 40 families in the area who are well aware of the schemes but have not entered the schemes and will not enter them. They have been allowed to cut turf on these bogs for many years. Now they are being left without the fuel they rely on to heat their homes. I have outlined that many of the people affec…

Will the Minister consider increasing the LEADER allocation for County Galway? As he might be aware, there are concerns about the allocation for east Galway in particular, relative to other areas. Galway Rural Development is the local development company. I ask the Minister to outline whether this is something he is considering.

I want to outline the current situation with regard to LEADER funding. East Galway is receiving €37 per person which compares very unfavourably with all of our neighbours. Roscommon receives €97 per person, Offaly gets €76 per person while in Mayo, the figure is €64. This really restricts what our local development company can do because it has such a limited amount of funding. It means that our communities miss out on investment and new facilities. We all know of the fantastic impact that LEADER has had in all of …

I understand it is a complicated formula but there is clearly a discrepancy between our area and other parts of the State. Will the Minister take a look at it and engage with the local development company on it? We feel very hard done by in Galway. We are not just missing out on the LEADER allocation. Our local authority is very underfunded and is not receiving the same funding per capita as other counties. The Government as a whole needs to take a look at this. I also want to ask about the plan for LEADER in the l…

There are serious concerns about CAP. It seems the onus is now going to fall on the Government to ensure there is a sufficient budget to maintain the work that local development companies do. Will the Minister outline the Government’s plan for the future of the programme and give assurances that the budget will be protected and increased?