Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will do my very best. It seems the question about when the Government co-ordination committee meets is just a jumping-off point. I will do my best to answer a variety of important questions.

First, as to Deputy Boyd Barrett's question, I will certainly ensure there is a response issued to that organisation which has written to me on behalf of family-owned nursing homes around the national vetting scheme, the portal and a number of other issues it raised. We have obviously acknowledged it. It is out for views on it to relevant Departments and I will get back to that organisation. I thank it for its correspondence.

As for Deputy Murphy's question, I can only sympathise with the family and friends of Johnny Fox. I can only imagine how proud he must have been of Rhasidat Adeleke, who is doing our country so incredibly proud. We are all excited to see what she is going to do in Paris. The Deputy has just outlined an incredibly traumatic situation to the Dáil. It is one on which I am not suitably qualified to comment right now but I will see what advice I can give to the family via the Deputy in this regard. I can only imagine how absolutely upsetting it must have been. I will make some inquiries and revert to the Deputy.

I say to Deputy Barry that I am absolutely determined to meet disability organisations. I have, as the Deputy acknowledged in his own statement, begun those meetings with a variety of representative groups. I am very happy to engage with the 11 organisation which have written to me. While I do not say this rudely, two weeks is not an unreasonable time for me to be able to get back to people, schedule things and the like. I absolutely intend to meet them. Indeed, I will be chairing a Cabinet committee on disability again this Thursday. I am eager to continue to meet organisations and I will do that. I will also follow up for the Deputy in relation to St. Killian's Special School, Mayfield, County Cork, on the issue he raised about therapy supports, the progress the school has made and the frustration it is finding in getting that loop closed.

I thank Deputy Cairns for her fair point about the need for a co-ordinated approach across Government on the issue of school transport. The Deputy rightly mentioned the progress that can be made with Local Link. It is even more frustrating for parents and school communities when they see how certain things can be done outside the school transport system. While I could point to the big reform planned on school transport, some of which is starting on a pilot basis this September, the Deputy has raised a particular issue of school transport from Bantry to Schull Community College. I will specifically raise this issue with both Bus Éireann and the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, and ask they come back to Deputy Cairns on the matter.

I join with Deputy Tóibín in expressing my absolute sympathy to the family and friends of the Canadian tourist who has just passed. I obviously have been in the Dáil since that news broke. It is a heartbreaking situation. Out of respect to the family, I do not wish to conflate it with broader issues around safety and Garda numbers, but I can, of course, point to progress we are making on Garda recruitment and training. However, for the here and now, that is an extraordinarily devastating situation for the family affected.

As for Deputy McDonald's question, while I am not sure if the issue was raised at the co-ordination meeting, I have of course spoken to my coalition colleagues in relation to President von der Leyen. The Deputy and I have a different view on this, clearly. I respect that fact. I point out to Deputy McDonald that at the European Council, people across the political spectrum, including socialist prime ministers and presidents, backed the re-nomination of President von der Leyen. She was also the lead candidate for a political grouping in the European election that won the most seats in the European Parliament. It is important there is correlation between the votes of people.

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