Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for delaying proceedings, but people sped up. I indicated earlier. It has been a long day for the Cathaoirleach and it has certainly been a long day for us in Leinster House. I have two or three questions. The first is to Mr. Towey from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. In his submission paper, he stated the Department allocated funding for five EPA staff. We are talking about resources, and this is clearly a big issue and has echoed through the debate tonight. He talked about the oversight of the local authority national inspections programme. There is an issue with staff, their appointment and setting all of that in motion. We have heard about the recruitment challenges and the issues related to that. He talked about the co-ordination and supporting of staff training. That is a big issue, in particular for the local authorities. Will he touch on that? He does not need to repeat something that has already been said because it will be in the official record, but this relates to the issues of recruitment.