As I said, perception is often the reality for many people. One of the problems that we have had with the whole discussion on the IPO is the lack of information. I ask the Minister and her Department to consider a comprehensive public information campaign that clearly outlines the policies, management aspects and resources that the Government is bringing to bear on this problem. That would be very beneficial in the context of trying to take control of the narrative or steer it in a different direction. The other th…

Maybe a public campaign would be a way to get those facts across to people.

It appears that the enthusiasm the Taoiseach recently expressed to me in this House about investing in Waterford Airport is not supported by his two Government partners. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, received the airport's business case on 13 December and signed a parliamentary question response to me on 11 January stating that. Despite his amnesia around that matter, he has let it be known that he has zero appetite for this project. The Government has invested heavily in all other regional airports, with the Tá…

I will divert slightly from the debate and ask a question. How does independent politics work for citizens in this House? As regards the provisions the Minister has put forward in this Bill, the value of it will become eminently clear. Social welfare assessment schemes used to take into account any and all revenues when considering applications for social welfare, working family payments and supplementary allowances. As a result, households in receipt of social welfare supports last year could not play any active p…

I welcome those who are here in the Gallery. It is telling that they feel they have to bring their children to this Chamber to try to get their message across. I remember when Deputy Simon Harris was Minister for Health, we were talking about a task force for scoliosis and spina bifida. I think that is eight years ago at this stage. It tells you the progress we are making. I am someone who has had a personal story about scoliosis. I have a cousin who had it and I was quite close to the family while they were going …

Earlier this week on the wonderfully irascible Damien Tiernan's radio show, the Tánaiste's ministerial colleague from Waterford lamented the Government's mishandling of the business case for Waterford Airport particularly referencing the painful amount of time it is taking. Two months have been lost with time running out to progress this strategic project this year as planned. The slow walking of this project appears in stark contrast to the breakneck speed with which favoured projects in favoured constituencies ar…

With respect, it is the review time.

I want to ask the Minister a couple of questions. I do not want to get into the debate on quotas because, unfortunately, they are what they are and they have done tremendous damage to the overall viability of a large Irish fishing fleet now or into the future. In the Minister's report, I would think that he is talking about the idea of sustainability and growth. To the fishermen I speak to, there is an overly negative aspect to the future of their industry for a lot of them. There are five large trawlers fishing ou…

He can come back to me in writing.

I thank Cáit Nic Amhlaoibh, our parliamentary assistant, and my Regional Group colleagues for their work on this motion. It is bad form that six of our speakers this morning were speaking to a health Minister as opposed to a Minister the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. Furthermore, not one Fine Gael Deputy has taken part in this debate. It speaks volumes for the party that claims to be all about business in this country. Our motion has three core asks and they are simple. We call for the reintroduct…

Under Standing Order 83(3)(b) I propose that the vote be taken by other than electronic means.

The Minister of State will be glad to hear that I will not be taking the full allocation of speaking time because a lot of this has been covered already but I welcome that I am able to contribute something to this debate. At the outset, I recognise the terrible loss that has been suffered by families over many years and decades, but particularly in the last three to five years. Since Covid, we have seen some horrific accidents on the roads and terrible loss of young life in particular, which is something we all wan…

My apologies, I have just come from a committee so I am not going to take eight minutes but I will lay out some points. First, I pay tribute to Deputy Kenny. He has been the foremost voice in the Chamber since his arrival here in looking for a revised drug strategy from the Government. I would not question in any way his bona fides, which stand large and tall, regarding his concern for those who have fallen into addiction and the need for them to receive rehabilitation and access to State support services to try to…

Last week the Taoiseach indicated he is keen to invest in Waterford Airport. Of course, we have been here before. Few will forget the €25 million of Government money approved by the last Fine Gael-Green Party coalition in 2007 for the runway extension in the airport. This promise turned to dust in the last days of the Celtic tiger. There is once again strong optimism in the south-east region that the runway might commence this summer. It appears it needs only approval from the Minister’s Department to make it happe…

On a point of order, it is my understanding the Minister does have a business case. I would like him to clarify that.

Can the Taoiseach update the House on the proposed Waterford orbital bridge? It is to be located downstream of the city in the vicinity of Maypark, Ardkeen and University Hospital Waterford, UHW. As he will doubtless not have forgotten, the region has been waiting for more than a decade to advance this last vital piece of the outer ring road of the city. A number of regional priorities have been stuck for the past decade, not least the plans at UHW, our own university, the airport, and the N24 and N25. The bridge w…

I am someone who speaks frequently in this House on the issues of equity and fairness and the fair distribution of Exchequer funding to support all citizens and residents of our country. Regarding the issue of migration, I might refer people to the health sector, which I know well and frequently reference. I would challenge anyone who is blind to the participation and invaluable contribution that non-national people in Ireland make. We just have to look at our acute hospital, primary care, community care and most e…

People in Waterford and the south east know that the Taoiseach and the Government have forgotten them. In the election of 2011, 2016 and 2020, voters from across the south east who had been left to stew in their anger turned away from the traditional parties of government. Parliamentary responses I copied to the Taoiseach's office in recent weeks show that University Hospital Waterford, the south-east regional model 4 hospital, received just €83 million capital investment in the past ten years. By contrast, in the …

The Taoiseach did not actually correct the record in respect of what I highlighted to him. I am glad that he seeks support for University Hospital Waterford, as do I. Since the two cath labs opened - they are operating 60 hours a week - the hospital is emulating the same service activity as the Cork centre, which has five cath labs and 168 hours scheduled. This is despite the fact the Herity report in 2015 indicated that there was no requirement for a second cath lab and that the emergency services should be taken …

I gather a new national student accommodation strategy is being developed as we speak. The 2016 policy targeted no new student accommodation in Waterford, despite the issue of a university in Waterford appearing in the 2011, 2016 and 2020 programmes for Government. To reiterate: none, nada, nothing. I cannot resist the cheap shot that this is one of the few targets in housing the Government has actually achieved. WIT, now known as SETU, was at the vanguard of developing its own student accommodation, with the Colle…