The decision to hike the cost of public transport fares is a deeply short-sighted move. Every day, thousands of commuters are forced on to overcrowded and often unreliable services. From January, these people are going to have to pay more to get to work, school, college or to go about their daily lives. Public transport is an essential public service, not a luxury, and in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis the Government is telling people the cost of yet another everyday essential is going to rise. This fare hike…

Will the Tánaiste outline the amount of carbon tax collected in 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026 and how he proposes to support householders who have borne the brunt of continuing increases in that tax in recent years?

Households across the State are under massive pressure at the moment when it comes to the cost of filling their car and heating their homes. In terms of home heating oil, we brought forward proposals on eight different occasions just this year to remove the carbon tax on home heating oil, but the Government has opposed that on every single occasion. There has been no reduction of carbon tax or excise duty on home heating oil this year, while prices have gone through the roof. Over the past number of years, we have …

The Tánaiste says that he understands but this year he has not done anything on home heating oil. He has not reduced the excise duty or the carbon tax on that at a time when prices have increased massively. We all understand that prices have increased because of the conflict in the Middle East. The Government still had options available to it to alleviate that pressure for households, but it has simply chosen not to do so. That needs to happen as a matter of urgency. The Government needs to completely remove the ca…

I have raised overcrowding on early morning trains into Galway with the Minister of State a number of times. It has been going on for years on all services, particularly on that train that arrives into Galway at 8.10 a.m. It is at a crisis point now. People are being put in serious danger. I have had a lot of people in touch with me, and I am sure the Minister of State has as well. What is going to be done about this in the short term?

I raised this with the NTA last week and was told that all available carriages were in use at peak times, but I have a number of questions in relation to this and would appreciate clear answers to them for the people who have to travel on these overcrowded services daily. Why has there been no forward planning and how have we ended up in a situation where we do not have additional rail carriages? When are we going to have additional carriages on the trains going into Galway? I want a clear timeline on this because …

I just cannot accept the response that nothing is going to be done here in the short term. We are told we have to wait for carriages, with very vague assurances as to when they are going to become available. I have been contacted in relation to people becoming unwell. One woman described getting on the train this week and said that people were pushing and shoving so much that she thought someone could go down the gap between the train and platform. This is the situation on public transport every morning into Galway…

For Galway?

I have been contacted by a group of midwives in Galway who have completed their internships. They are fully qualified but have been informed that there is currently a recruitment freeze in the health service and positions will not be offered to them. This is despite the fact that the director of midwifery at University Hospital Galway has confirmed to them that there are currently 23 vacant midwifery posts across the Galway University Hospitals. These midwives have spent years in education, training and gaining cli…

What about the recruitment of these midwives?

This legislation is long overdue to address a number of technical issues and, in particular, to legislate for the sharing of collision data. Since late 2023, local authorities have been unable to receive vital Garda collision data. While the Department did provide for the partial sharing of this data, there is a legitimate question to be asked as to why it has taken nearly three years for the issue to be resolved. Without all of this data, local authorities, which are responsible for maintaining the majority of the…

Back to school costs are having an enormous impact on families. The most recent cost of education survey showed that parents are now paying almost €1,800 per year for a child in primary school and almost €3,000 per year for a child in secondary school. Even more worrying is that the number of parents taking loans to cover these costs has doubled in just one year. Parents are being crippled by the cost of school uniforms, materials and the so-called voluntary contributions, which many parents feel forced to pay and …

We all recognise that digital education has an important role to play but it has to be fair and equitable. The Minister of State mentioned that the Minister has communicated with schools. She wrote a letter to schools about the use of digital devices. That is not good enough because it has not made any meaningful difference. As I said earlier, guidance without enforcement simply has not worked. There needs to be a review of the roll-out of these devices. We need to ensure there is a consistent approach and supports…

I too raise Garda numbers. Only four of 566 new Garda recruits this year have been allocated to Galway and all four went to Galway city. In recent weeks, there was an announcement of 28 new gardaí for Galway city and Salthill but none for stations in county towns like Athenry, Loughrea, Gort and Tuam. These are stations that have not seen any meaningful increase in Garda numbers in years. Assurances have been given that rural towns and villages will see an increased allocation but it has not happened. Across County…

Hear, hear.

The triple lock neutrality protection is a core part of our independent foreign policy. For decades, our military neutrality and the triple lock have served this State exceptionally well. They have allowed Ireland to play a respected constructive role in international affairs, giving Ireland a strong global reputation for peacekeeping, protecting human rights and supporting disarmament. Our neutrality matters more than ever as global conflicts grow and major powers ignore international law, yet the Government is de…

I ask the Minister to provide an update on the progress of CAP negotiations. The future of CAP will be critical for the farming sector and there are significant concerns about the European Commission's proposals.

There are significant concerns about the reform that is being proposed to have CAP sit alongside a range of other policy areas. In particular under the Commission's proposal, CAP funding for Ireland would be cut by over 20%. This would mean our indicative CAP allocation reducing by €2.5 billion, endangering the delivery of many payment schemes which family farms depend on. Of course, this comes at a time when farmers are facing higher input costs, increased volatility, rising obligations and increased competition f…

Absolutely, and that is why it is critical we get a fair allocation. In particular, the future of CAP will have a significant influence on how EU member states can support young farmers. Last year, the Department of agriculture published a report from the commission on generational renewal in farming. Have any actions have taken since the publication of those recommendations? I will focus on two recommendations: the introduction of the young farmer establishment payment and a generational renewal payment of up to €…

No parent should have to worry about what will happen to their child when they can no longer provide care for them, yet years of underfunding and a failure to plan has left our residential support system in crisis and families are left carrying the responsibility even as parents themselves age into their 70s, 80s and beyond. I was even told about a woman who is 102 years old in County Galway caring for her adult child. Yesterday I spoke to a family in my constituency in this exact position. The parents are in their…