Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Sorry. I will not be non-factual. He had to be here. That tells you what way Ireland is when we talk about housing, the crisis and everything else.

I am very surprised with Deputy Connolly conflating our Bill. It is accidental it has come the same day as the Government has decided to guillotine the planning Bill. We had nothing whatsoever to do with it. We and rural Ireland have huge issues with the planning Bill.

The Green Party has been part of the Government for the past five years, a Government which is now in its final days. The Government has driven us all demented by denying people their democratic rights. Planning guidelines were not published, despite Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael promising to do so in each of their manifestos before the previous two elections. The Cathaoirleach Gníomhach, Deputy Moynihan, is a Fianna Fáil TD too, although he is independent in the Chair. They said they would publish the planning guidelines, but they did not. Why did they not publish them? It is because the Green Party did not allow them to publish the guidelines. It is the Green Party tail wagging the dog. The tail has been wagging the dog for too long. Look at the damage the Green Party and its friends in An Taisce have done. None of the Green Party TDs declared whether they are members, or former members, of An Taisce. That is the kernel of the problem. Who are the members of An Taisce?

An Taisce does excellent work. I compliment it on its schools programme, the BIDs and its spring clean programme. It does huge work with the green flag scheme, of course. Of course, it does. Mol an óige agus tiocfaidh sí. Praise the bridge as you go over it. We have to praise the good work of An Taisce. It was not established in 1963; it was set up in 1964, which is approximately 60 years ago.

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