Most people would link the triple lock with our foreign policy and neutrality. A lot of people would be surprised at the proposal, given that during the Nice referendum campaign the Government parties were very silent on this issue and there was no real view that there would be a move to change it. The current position comes as a bit of a surprise. To follow on from what an Teachta Connolly said, perhaps the Tánaiste could explain in the remaining time the rationale and motivation to upend a system that has been in…

Irish peacekeeping troops were fired on. It is not the first time; it has happened through the years with Israeli forces and their proxies in that area. The fact is this is not the first time. Is it true to say that the co-ordinates of the Irish troops are given to the so-called Israel Defense Forces, that the bunkers are not moved, and that they know where the peacekeepers have been for a long time? They know exactly where the troops are. They know exactly what they are doing regarding the attacks on these troops.…

It is of little good spending €2.5 billion on jet flight capability if we are operating on a nine-to-five, weekday basis. Can we have some assurance that full-time flight operations at Casement will be brought back online at the earliest possible opportunity? Can we also have assurance that the air ambulance service is not affected?

One of the other TDs raised earlier the Garda helicopter. Again, for those of us who need the Garda helicopter - certainly, it is regularly used right across my constituency - I would be concerned about that. I do not know if the Minister has any influence in that regard, but if it is not going to operate at weekends, is there another site we could use for that? It is critical for supports in all sorts of ways. Whether it is a serious accident or a serious incident, the Garda helicopter is brought in. The idea that…

My question is to do with placements but also displacements. Challenges in the school system include cases of schools having lost a teacher because the Ukrainian children were moved out of the school. This happened in two schools in my constituency. It is outside the control of the school. We are told there will be extra resources and supports for these children, but here is a school in my constituency that has lost a teacher because of outside factors. That is not covered under the circular in regard to school pla…

The Irish Government must move to stop the flow of blood money from Ireland to Israel. The Minister tells us why it cannot be done but he directly contradicts the legal advice the Opposition received from the Oireachtas's own legal advisers. When Sinn Féin brought forward a Bill to end Ireland's complicity with genocide, it was backed by sound legal advice which clearly stated that the Bill was compliant with Irish, European and international law. Under EU law, Ireland is fully entitled to unilaterally restrict acc…

There is general agreement that it is taking far too long for vacant houses to come back into service. Properties may lie idle for months or years. There are some in South Dublin County Council that are idle more than a year and others that have been vacant for years. I know of one building suitable for housing in Rossfield that has been lying idle for more than 20 years. In Mac Uilliam, two apartment blocks are idle, with a row ongoing between the council and the Housing Agency. Such properties are an eyesore. Dep…

Israel's Government is starving the people of Gaza. Starvation is being used as a weapon of war. It is a crime against humanity. It is genocide. The stated goal of the Israeli Government and military is the total displacement of the Palestinians of Gaza. Whether by military force or an artificial famine, they want to ethnically cleanse and resettle Gaza just as they have done in parts of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The Israeli Government knows it can act with impunity, backed by the US and certain European po…

We are pushing it.

You facilitate it.

You facilitate it.

It is a fact the Irish Central Bank has been facilitating the sale of Israeli war bonds. It is also a fact the CEO of the Israeli bonds company has directly linked the money funnelled through Ireland with the ongoing war. There is no doubt what this money is paying for. Money is flowing through Ireland and is being used to buy bombs and bullets, the paraphernalia of war. We know these weapons are taking lives in Gaza as we speak here tonight. These weapons are being used to enforce a brutal cordon that is starving …

Looking at what happened to an ambulance and all its crew travelling through Gaza, I wonder what the response of the IDF would be to an humanitarian corridor, but everything needs to be tried. Listening to the contributions from both the Government and the Opposition benches this afternoon, it is worth pointing out that many of the statements from both sides of the House could be construed as antisemitic according to the IHRA definition to which this Government signed us up. While every effort must be made to stamp…

Children are entitled to an assessment of their health and educational needs within six months under the Disability Act. There are more than 15,000 children waiting right now. That number is expected to rise by more than 9,000 by the end of the year. To put those numbers in context, just 4,000 assessments were completed last year. In CHO 7, which incorporates Dublin South-West, some of the CDNTs are woefully understaffed. CDNT 8, which is based in Chamber House in Tallaght, had a 53% staff vacancy rate at the start…

There were 18,000 people on the lists at the Tallaght driving test centre at the start of this year. This was the highest figure in the State. The Minister of State and I had one or two conversations about it. It was taking seven months on average to get a test. It was reported at the start of April that the Road Safety Authority was planning on opening an additional driving test centre in south Dublin. This is something I have been advocating for in the House for several years and while I am glad that there has fi…

I do not think anyone can deny that the current state of the electricity grid, our drinking water supply and the wastewater network is a constraint on housing delivery. These issues are also inflicting misery on many areas afflicted by frequent water mains failures or boil water notices. One area in my constituency - Knocklyon - has been hit with almost 30 outages in the past three years. There is clearly something wrong. Over the Easter bank holiday, residents in Dargle Wood were left without water for four days a…

In his reply to another question, the Minister spoke of a mobility strategy. At the moment in Tallaght there are 15,000 people waiting for a driver's test. Waiting times can sometimes be over a year. I do not think that is acceptable to anyone. Media reports have indicated that at long last the Road Safety Authority intends to open a new driving test centre in south Dublin. That is something I have called for in this House on many occasions. Is the Minister aware as whether the RSA has identified a site? When can w…

Sinn Féin is often accused of being Eurosceptic. We often hear that thrown around this Chamber as an insult or a lame response to an alternative voice. We are not Eurosceptic: we believe in a partnership of European nations working towards the advancement of human rights, social justice and democratic values. What we cannot support, and will never support, is a federal militarised Europe that closes its doors to those in need and hides its face from tyranny and oppression. The European Union stands at a crossroads …

I begin tonight by mentioning Mary Prior, a friend and neighbour who passed away recently. Mary's childcare facility was an institution that supported hundreds of children and their parents in the Springfield area of Tallaght down the decades. Comhbhrón to her husband Oliver and their family. Tonight, we are advocating for parents who are at their wits' end. First, they have to find a childcare place for their child, and then they have to figure out how they are going to afford it. They also have to work out how th…

I am pleased to co-sponsor this legislation with my colleague Mark Ward. Reduction of the abuse of nitrous oxide is something I have been highlighting and working towards for some years. I introduced legislation to that effect in the previous Dáil. I am glad to have the opportunity to do so again. The abuse of nitrous oxide is something that flies under the radar for many people. It is incredibly common. Many people have seen the rubbish left behind, as Deputy Ward said, especially the large black canisters, but no…