David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and any of his officials who were involved, as well as the Irish Red Cross, for the supreme help given to my constituents when Midleton was devastated by recent flooding. The Minister has been around the town, as have I. The hurt, heartache and damage have been great. The speedy assistance, understanding and flexibility demonstrated by the Minister, his Department, the Irish Red Cross and the Government have been very helpful and impactful.

It is impossible to calculate the emotional hit that people get when their houses and everything they have worked for all their lives have been destroyed. This morning, Deputy James O'Connor and I spoke in the Dáil about crèches that were ruined as well. This has a knock-on impact on businesses because if people cannot get their children looked after, they cannot go to work. Two crèches were destroyed in the town and it will take a couple of months for them to get back to full operation.

I again thank the Minister and his officials for the understanding and flexibility shown. The anomalies continue. It is not possible, for example, for people to just restart a business in the same location. They have to relocate, which is now allowed. We are learning as we go along about the impact the flooding had on businesses. Some are very large businesses that expanded and grew. They may not have had more than 20 employees, but some of these businesses have lost an awful lot as well, as the Minister knows. The experience of the response has been good. As such, I thank the Minister.

I do not see any mention of an old issue if mine concerning the unified patent court and whether any funding is being diverted to that end. Yesterday, I heard someone say there would be referendums in March 2024. Is any funding being diverted by the Department to prepare for the advent of the unified patent court or is that the responsibility of another Department? I know we must have a referendum. I have been asking many questions on this matter and pushing very hard on it. I ask the Minister to respond.

My next issue is also an old one. It concerns the IDA Ireland site at Ballyadam. We are talking about IDA Ireland funding and its allocation. The site has not been used for decades now at this stage. I know the converter station is going in there but we need movement on this IDA Ireland site in Ballyadam. It is the old Amgen site. The Minister is very familiar with it. I raise this issue every time I get the chance because it is a shame the site is lying idle. There are 65 ha of completely serviced, entirely flat land with a railway at one end and a dual carriageway at the other, but IDA Ireland cannot use it. I know I am right in saying there is pressure on getting such sites.

A term being used now is that we are "beyond full employment". This is testimony to the great work being done by IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, the Department and others, but there are areas in the country that we might call black spots, where there are no jobs. People might be working but they have to travel every day. Youghal in my constituency is an example of this phenomenon. The Minister is familiar with the town and there may be others. Has any analysis been done of areas in the country where there are no jobs, as such, and people must travel long distances? This impacts on the environment, traffic congestion, quality of life, etc. Working from home and remote working is helping in some instances but this is issue is impacting other towns around the country that have also been hit pretty hard. Perhaps we should focus on some of these towns. It is gratifying to see so many jobs being allocated outside of Dublin.

I am very pleased to see that the HSA is focusing on renewable energy. As the Chair knows, I have spoken on this issue a number of times. The Minister is right that the whole area of AI is expanding rapidly. There are risks when something like this expands at a very fast rate. Recently, for example, we had representatives from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, before the committee. The SEAI has a list of companies that it vets and a list of installers who must be qualified in, for example, photovoltaic solar panel installation for safety reasons because these people are dealing with electricity. I understand, however, that the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has a list of companies but not a list of individual installers. I double-checked this, and it does not have one. Farming safety is a huge issue but this means that if a farmer wants to put up a photovoltaic solar panel on a cattle shed or wherever, he or she cannot find a list of installers on the Department's website. While it says it has one, it does not. I have checked. I am saying this publicly because I hope the HSA may be listening and it will check this out. It is a major issue for animal welfare and human safety that this list not to exist.

Perhaps the HSA will explore another issue as well, in which Safe Electric also has an interest. If an electrician is taken off the list maintained by Safe Electric, for whatever reason, perhaps for having been deemed not to be qualified, there does not seem to be a corresponding check with the SEAI. There were no such checks recently, anyway, because I raised the issue with its representatives the last time they were here. The organisation has its list but there is no cross-checking. It is also not live, if I might be pardoned the pun. This is also a serious matter that causes concern.

Yesterday, at a meeting of the foreign affairs committee, we discussed Perth, the importance of embassies, consulates and so on. The Minister, as a former Minister for Foreign Affairs, will realise their importance. Next week, the members of the committee are planning to travel to Canada to engage with and support the work everyone out there is doing and to learn from that experience. Canada is a huge country. We have consulates in Vancouver - that was opened recently, which is great - and on the other side of the country, as well as an embassy. However, we have no consulates in the centre of this massive country. I suggest to the Minister that we have a footprint in Calgary, to include Enterprise Ireland or IDA Ireland. The city is an area of major growth and the third largest city in Canada. It is situated in a vast area in the centre of Canada. This is a suggestion made in the spirit of being helpful rather than critical. Perhaps we should explore it and consider improving our footprint in that location. The officials in Vancouver and on the other side of Canada are doing great work providing a service, but that idea might be worth considering. I got this feedback from Canadian businesspeople in Calgary who would be interested in having a consulate there and engaging with us on this idea. I am saying this to be helpful but the Minister and his officials are the experts in the matter, not me.

On the debt warehousing scheme with the Revenue Commissioners, some €2 billion will be coming down the tracks in May 2024. Has the Minister or his Department examined this matter? Is there concern in this regard and will it impact business? Some businesses are worried about this prospect. I ask the Minister to comment.

I will have to leave shortly because I am meeting someone, but I have one other question. On work permits, I note the number allocated has increased again this year. I congratulate the Department on the efficiency with which this is being done now. It is much improved. There has been talk of linking work permits to visas. How much income accrued from work permit applications in the past year? If the Minister does not have that information with him, I ask him to make it available to the committee later.