A dedicated WhatsApp channel would work.

On 2 January, I very happily celebrated 19 years without cigarettes. I did not vape; I do not think there were any vapes at that stage. If there were, they were very new. I was lucky and did not use chewing gum. I relied heavily on licorice all sorts, crisps and anything else I could get my hands on. The important thing is that I managed. Regrettably, I smoked my first cigarette - if my mother was alive she would burst me - when I was 11 years of age, nearly 12, which was not good. I was a very committed and dedica…

I have a Topical Issue matter later so I am not being the Grinch if I do not say happy Christmas to everyone. It would feel a bit silly to do it twice. I absolutely agree with the Minister who has said many times that gardaí need to be properly equipped and need adequate resources. We need them to be adequately equipped and resourced so they can do the very important work we need them to do. As was outlined, we are not opposed to the use of this technology per se or to the use of bodycams but it has to be in the ri…

Before I raise my issue, I wish the Ceann Comhaire and her team, including Jill Gray, and every person who works in the Oireachtas a happy Christmas. We are incredibly well looked after. Sometimes it is a bit lost on us how well served we are. This is a very decent place to work because of the men and women who keep it going. I hope everybody gets a chance to spend a bit of quality time with their family, because they have all more than earned it. I hope the Ceann Comhairle gets a rest. It has indeed been a very bu…

I suppose the Minister of State's recognition of the scale of the problem is welcome. I know she was not making a massive deal out of it, but going from 1,893 to 1,841 is nothing to be proud of really. She should probably be a bit mortified. That figure of 1,841 children in my area represents families that are just left waiting. They feel very much abandoned. On the establishment of 11 new teams, the Minister of State might indicate in her second reply how many additional staff that will provide. Will they be joine…

Happy Christmas.

In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, the very least - and I mean the rock-bottom, bare minimum - that anyone could expect from a government of any decency is that it would not make things worse. A total of 21% of households that have one or more members with a disability are materially deprived. Some 20% of those are in poverty. Some 16% of people over 65 are in poverty. The extra €20, €30, €40 or €50 per month is therefore not nothing; it is massively significant to people who have already been pushed into po…

There is no allowance for that.

The Complex is a vibrant arts and cultural centre in Dublin's north-west inner city. It is fighting for its life, having received an eviction notice for January. There is, however, a chance to stop this happening but the Government has to play its part. A detailed viability plan to secure the centre's future is on the table. Dublin City Council has agreed to provide some of the money to purchase the building. It was hoped the Government would provide the finance to make up the shortfall. Management at The Complex r…

It is already on board. We need the Minister on board as well.

I thank the Minister.

I thank the Minister of State for being here. This is not meant disrespectfully to him but I regret that the senior Minister is not here. This is a practice that I do not think is brilliant. Again, I thank the Minister of State for being here but it is not good practice for senior Ministers to never be in the House to take their Topical Issues, which frequently is my experience. Some 33% of the population of Balbriggan is aged 17 years or under. We call it the youngest town in Ireland because the facts back us up. …

The Minister of State certainly can consider himself invited to Balbriggan. I would absolutely love to show him around and to show off. There is nothing we like more than showing off the good things in our constituency. This is a good thing in my constituency and I would like to show it off. The Minister of State mentioned the numbers in his response and I can see those figures on the page in front of me. However, they do not match up with the growing need in the area. The Government says it wants young people to b…

The Minister of State will have that email before day's end.

We are about to find out. I call the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell.

In accordance with Standing Order 85(2), the division is postponed until the weekly division time next week.

Talking down the clock.

Deputy Doherty did not say the Department made it; he said it shared it.

And do the dishes and all that.

It is a bit galling, to be brutally frank with the Minister of State, to listen to him telling us all about how frustrated he is and how somebody really should do something, how the blockages must be removed and how deeply frustrated he is that things are taking so long. Who could possibly be to blame? I know it is Christmas, but he could spare us the bloody pantomime.