Dáil debates
Thursday, 9 October 2025
Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation
4:20 am
Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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The Irish fishing and seafood industry received terrible news in the past week that there will be further devastating cuts to the mackerel quota as well as cuts to blue whiting and boarfish. This has been referred to as economic Armageddon by the industry. My constituency of Donegal will be hit really hard by this. The European Commission has known for many years about the reckless overfishing of mackerel by fishing fleets from Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Russia and Britain but it has taken no meaningful action and there have been no repercussions. What is the Tánaiste's plan to secure our fair share of fish in our own waters? Is it acceptable in his view and in the Government's view that the fishing fleets from the countries that have recklessly overfished mackerel continue to fish in our waters?
Is the Government finally going to stand up for Ireland and our fishing communities in the face of this economic Armageddon, as they call it?
4:30 am
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Doherty very much for raising this issue. I had the opportunity to visit Donegal in the not-too-distant past and I met some of the fishing organisations and fishers in Killybegs. I know what a worrying time this is for people, as do the Minister, Deputy Heydon, and the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, who has specific responsibility for the area. There is no doubt that the proposals are deeply concerning. They will significantly impact on the Irish seafood sector.
Ireland has repeatedly raised the overfishing of key stocks by some coastal states outside the EU. The Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, will continue to highlight this critical issue for our fishers and engage intently with the European Commission and other member states on possible actions we could take to protect our stocks. The Minister of State met with concerned fishers in Killybegs last Sunday. I have not had an opportunity to speak to him since but he was also to meet relevant stakeholder groups yesterday to gather input so that we could see how best to approach this together. I will ask that he keep in touch with Deputy Doherty and other interested Members of the House.
George Lawlor (Wexford, Labour)
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In a week when hundreds of millions of euro were gifted to burger barons and builders, although the Tánaiste may disagree with that characterisation, I will raise an example of the reality that many on the ground are encountering. I was contacted by the Furlong family in Duncormick in Wexford. I have their permission to raise this issue on behalf of their son, Josh, who is 23, has severe non-verbal autism and is doubly incontinent. The mattress he has been sleeping on for the last ten years needs replacing. It is a waterproof mattress used for people who are incontinent. The mattress was originally supplied by the HSE. The family have been trying to get it replaced since January 2024. Josh wakes several times a night because of the condition the mattress is in. When the sheet is changed, it becomes wet as well. This mattress was originally approved back in March in a conversation with the autism liaison nurse. Someone was even paid to travel from Belfast to Wexford to measure up for the mattress. When I raised this matter, the response I got stated that the assistant director of public health nursing presented the purchase of a mattress for Josh to the resource allocation group but the RAG declined to approve funding because no clinical need for a mattress was identified. This is absolutely appalling treatment of a family with what is essentially a child of 23 years of age who is non-verbal and incontinent. Please, we need intervention in cases like this.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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That is disgraceful to hear. I am not going to endeavour to justify it. It is not acceptable. These sorts of things drive any right-thinking person absolutely berserk. That is appalling. I suggest that anybody who thinks there is not a clinical need should go spend an evening with Josh, as his family does in caring for him. I will ask the relevant Minister to follow up with Deputy Lawlor and the HSE immediately to see if we can make progress in this regard. I am very sorry to hear about this.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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In this budget, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael once again showed that they put generation rent behind the developers and investor funds, which were completely prioritised. During the election campaign, they never said that their big idea was going to be a tax-cut giveaway of up to €500 million a year to wealthy developers and funds. Today, the Government's developer VAT cut has been torn apart by none other than its own Parliamentary Budget Office over a lack of evidence and the fact that developers that have already started building thousands of apartments will get this windfall. This is utterly damning. Billions of euro are going to be given to developers and investors for apartments that are already being built, with no affordability obligations. Billions are going to be given to build apartments that no one will be able to afford to buy or rent. It is clear that, when the lobbyists came in and said "Jump", the Government asked "How high?" because it is unwilling to take the radical action needed to address this housing crisis. Why will it not ban evictions to stop children being made homeless? Why will it not implement the radical action we suggested in our alternative budget? The reason is the Government has been captured by the lobbyists of the investor funds and developers and is unwilling to take that radical action, so it will leave 5,000 children homeless and give billions to developers and investment funds. The Government's members should be ashamed of themselves.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Hearne is captured by an ideology that believes private investment in the housing market is bad.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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Who is? Is the Tánaiste saying I am?
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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That is completely untrue.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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What the Deputy said about me was completely untrue. It is not pleasant, is it?
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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No, it is not. It is a fact that the Government is giving billions to developers and investors.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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We are taking every step we possibly can to endeavour to increase housing supply. There is a viability issue when it comes to apartment construction. Anything that can assist in the construction and sale of apartments is a good thing. Of course, this is only one of the many things we are doing to try to help.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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Can the Tánaiste justify billions for apartments that are built?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I do not know why the Deputy keeps saying "billions" when the total cost of the measure is-----
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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It is half a billion.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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You cannot just say a million here and a million there comes to a billion.
John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Half a billion is not billions.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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In two years' time, it will be up to a billion.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Half a billion is not the same as a billion.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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In four years' time, €2 billion will have been spent.
John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Please, Deputy Hearne.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy came in here and said that we were giving billions for completed apartments.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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Yes, because the Government will be.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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We are not. That is misinformation.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The total package is millions. The proportion that will go to completed apartments is presumably a very small fraction of that.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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That is not necessarily the case.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It is nowhere near billions. Accuracy matters when one is talking about taxpayers' money.
Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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The Tánaiste still will not answer my question.
Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
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The disabled person's grant scheme and the housing adaptation scheme are vital elements in ensuring that older people and disabled persons can remain in their homes for as long as possible and enjoy a better quality of life. These grants also support employment and small builders. Tipperary County Council has stopped taking grant applications, effectively meaning that no work can be done for nearly six months. These are essential works like level-access showers, stair lifts and downstairs bedrooms. Tipperary County Council has used this scheme proactively and very effectively but the scheme has now been stopped due to a lack of funds. I ask the Minister to make funds available immediately to ensure grants can continue for the remainder of this year and to put in place a multi-annual funding model so that situations like this never arise again.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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After disagreeing with Deputy Healy earlier, I find myself more in agreement with him in relation to this matter. As the Deputy knows and has alluded to, we have allocated extra money for the disabled person's grant in the budget. The question he is asking is a fair one, namely, whether we can do anything between now and the end of the year in relation to Tipperary. We always keep these issues under review. We obviously want to see these works continue. I will ask the Minister to engage with Tipperary County Council to see if progress can be made because there is now certainty and a line of sight as regards funding as a result of the budget.
On the broader point, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, is overseeing the new human rights strategy for disabled people. This is a real example of where we need to see good co-ordination across the country and across our local authorities. Perhaps we can take that away as an action. Specifically on the period from here to the end of the year, I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, and the Minister, Deputy Browne, to engage with Tipperary County Council.
Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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A few weeks back, newspapers revealed that the Irish Prison Service paid almost €25,000 of taxpayers' money for a single podcast by The 2 Johnnies. There are also reports of other podcasters receiving payments of almost €100,000. At the same time, we see extraordinary capital spending on ten single modular homes at Shelton Abbey at a cost of €640,000 each. At Loughan House in Cavan, units housing just one prisoner each are being built on publicly owned land at a unit cost of €520,000. Coincidentally, we see that senior IPS executives travelled to Kentucky the very same week the Kentucky Derby was being held. Executives also travelled to Perth, Kraków and other expensive destinations. In light of this picture of the system, it seems we need the Comptroller and Auditor General to undertake a full forensic audit of these expenditures to restore accountability and public trust in the Irish prison system. Does the Tánaiste agree?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy O'Flynn very much. I heard the Minister for justice comment on the issue regarding podcasters recently and he expressed his surprise and, perhaps, displeasure in that regard. I will ask him to come back to the Deputy on each specific issue he has raised. The Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, is putting a real focus on increasing prison capacity and has worked very hard to secure additional funding for prison capacity. We need that going into the delivery of prisons. Value for money is going to be very important in that regard. I will ask the Minister to reflect further on the issues the Deputy has highlighted. Our plan for the years ahead is to drive forward with increasing prison capacity. I take the point on value for money being important.
Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North-Central, Fianna Fail)
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I raise the issue of newborn screening for SMA. During the week, I was contacted by SMA Ireland regarding the continued delay in expanding the heel prick test. The national rare disease strategy recently published by the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, provides a welcome and comprehensive framework to enhance diagnosis, treatment and support for people living with rare diseases with the stated aim of enabling better health outcomes. As the Tánaiste will know, one in 17 people in Ireland lives with a rare disease. A key element of the strategy, outlined in section 6, is the expansion of newborn screening.
Specifically, it states that in 2023 the then Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, endorsed the addition of severe combined immunodeficiency and SMA to the newborn blood spot screening programme. This decision should have brought to 11 the number of conditions screened for at birth in Ireland. Early diagnosis of SMA, as the Tánaiste knows, can mean the difference between a child walking or breathing independently and not doing so or can determine whether he or she requires lifelong support. Treatments are funded and available in Ireland, but without early detection through screening, access is delayed.
The Tánaiste knows that the person mainly responsible for what I am speaking about is a constituent of his. I will not mention him here today. Two years after the commitment made by the former Minister, I urge the Government to provide a binding timeline for when SMA screening will actually be conducted using a heel-prick test.
4:40 am
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I sincerely thank Deputy O’Sullivan for having put this issue in the spotlight so many times. It really is important. He is right that I am familiar with it as a result of the advocacy of an incredible person I know, a constituent of mine, in County Wicklow. This advocacy has really helped to move the dial.
The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, is also very committed to addressing this issue. She would have met and engaged with the Deputy on it. We have the rare diseases strategy, which, as the Deputy said, is very clear on the expansion of newborn screening. It is a cause of collective frustration that we still have not seen this expansion. To say the screening is transformational and life-altering is quite an understatement. I do not have an answer to the direct question, but let me talk to the Minister to see if we can get a specific timeline for delivery. I will ask the Minister to revert to the Deputy directly.
Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Last Sunday night, 400 premises in the south Leitrim region were without electricity after Storm Amy. Power was restored more quickly this time but only because other regions were less affected, allowing manpower to be redirected there. People living in the area, with its considerable proliferation of forestry through which electricity lines run, realise this is the reason for the problem. Is there a role for the Commission for Regulation of Utilities in dealing with the ongoing failures affecting electricity and communications infrastructure? In August, I was made aware that after Storm Éowyn ESB Networks had been conducting forestry, timber and vegetation clearance work. I very much welcome this, but last weekend a mid-level orange warning over a few counties threw the whole system into disarray again. The people of south Leitrim want more; they want better access in order to ensure they will not be without power for most of a week again.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Feighan for raising this issue. I am very conscious that he represents a part of the country impacted by Storm Amy and that is still very much living with the fallout from Storm Éowyn and, to put it mildly, the absolute chaos it caused. People in Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal were particularly affected by Storm Amy, as were those in Mayo, Roscommon and Galway.
I extend the sympathies of everybody in this House to the family of Mr. Connors from Letterkenny, who died due to a weather-related incident in Donegal. All our thoughts are with his family.
Preparations were put in place for Storm Amy. The ESB put crews in position in advance. At the peak of the storm, over 184,000 premises were affected by power outages. The Deputy is right about the ESB, which as taken a number of measures. It has taken on additional contractors to manage forested areas where there are damaged or weakened trees. Forestry-harvesting machines have been acquired and the ESB has sourced stocks of material to underpin repair capacity during the winter season. However, I will ask the relevant Minister to do exactly what the Deputy suggests, namely interact with the regulator of utility companies. The latter is the prudent thing to do at this stage.
Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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The Government has abandoned whole communities to the drug crisis. Yesterday, it reduced the overall budget for drug and alcohol task forces by a shameful 25%. I am a director of an addiction service in Clondalkin and I know the devastating effect this is going to have. The cut will have a negative and immediate effect on some of the most disadvantaged communities. In the area where I grew up, there is not one person - be it a particular individual, a neighbour, a family member or a friend - who has not been affected by addiction. Funding for addiction services was butchered during the austerity era but there is no excuse doing that now. What is the excuse? The country is awash with money. The cuts are nasty and cynical. I believe that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael absolutely despise working-class communities. There is no other reason they would do this to them – none whatsoever. I demand that the funding be restored immediately because everybody has the right to recover from addiction and to be given every chance. The Ministers opposite let down working-class communities; that is the truth.
Martin HeydonJohn Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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That is an outrageous statement.
John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Excuse me, but the Member has the right to raise an issue without being interrupted. I call the Tánaiste.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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And I have the right to reply.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I was genuinely rising to my feet to try to give a constructive reply, because I doubt there is a family, and certainly not a political party in this Oireachtas, that has not been impacted by addiction. I can tell the Deputy that there are many people in my party, his and all others, who have lived with addiction, have loved ones with addiction or go home to addiction. Therefore, let us not be-----
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I will deal with that constructively. I will even work with the Deputy on it, but I will not stand for the suggestion that only the people he represents are affected by addiction. It is a scourge in so many parts of society, causing pain for so many who deal with it in family life. Addiction is not a party issue at all.
The Deputy did raise a legitimate issue, however, which is what I wanted to start by saying. The drug and alcohol addiction task forces do excellent work. I am aware of the work they do in my constituency - right across Wicklow. I will speak to the Minister of State, Deputy Murnane O’Connor, about this to see what can be done to support the task forces in the context of what is a massive budget for the health service overall. I will ask her to meet the Deputy specifically on this issue. Also, I will be happy to engage with him directly.
Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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The budget is a pittance overall. In Europe-----
Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I represent many working-class communities on the northside, so I do not accept the Deputy’s analysis at all.
Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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The Deputy is standing over a budget that cut €3 million-----
Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I do not accept the Deputy’s analysis. I am happy to go with him to working-class communities on the northside any time he wants.
John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Ó Muirí, you are using up your time.
Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I appreciate that. I am just not going to let the comment go unchallenged.
I welcome the additional money allocated to the SEAI this year. It has a huge part to play in getting our housing stock retrofitted from a climate perspective, but there is something of an issue with heat pumps. Heat pumps appear to be the nirvana when it comes to retrofitting. For older citizens in particular, they are expensive, so it is really difficult for them to change to them. It is easy when it comes to new stock; 99% of new houses built this year have heat pumps installed, and that is fine. For retired people in their later years who live in older houses, however, the cost of a heat pump is prohibitive, grant or no grant. Will the Tánaiste ask the Department and SEAI to examine this issue and see whether there are shallower retrofit measures that we can identify, roll out and support in order that the houses in question can gain some benefit from retrofitting?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Ó Muirí is right. I thank him for highlighting this. It is an issue I have been raising personally for a while. We all want to do our bit for the climate – of course we do, and we are living through a climate emergency – but we also have to recognise that while quite a few people in this country would like to retrofit some element of their homes, they may not be in a position to do everything at once. We have to show flexibility in the context of the grants, particularly for those who are older and do not necessarily want the whole house uprooted but who are happy to take some measures that will help to keep them warm in their own homes and reduce their energy bills, and also allow them to do their bit for the planet.
As the Deputy rightly said, we have increased the budget for retrofitting and climate measures. We will be working through all the detail of what that will mean in terms of numbers of home-energy upgrades, and the relevant announcement will be made as part of the REV later this year. As the Deputy knows, we reduced the VAT rate for heat pumps to 9% from 1 January, which has helped somewhat when it comes to affordability for people switching to efficient electric heating. The Department and SEAI keep their grant schemes, including the terms and conditions, eligibility criteria and rates, under review. I will ask that they reflect on what the Deputy has suggested.
Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North-West, Fianna Fail)
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During last year’s general election campaign, I met many carers who were not eligible for the carer’s allowance because their partners either got overtime or a promotion. Many people felt it demeaning that their role in caring and the job they were doing were dependent on their partners’ incomes.
I welcome the increase in the income disregard. If I am correct, this means a couple can earn up to €108,000 per year, excluding PRSI, and still receive the carer’s allowance. That will substantially address the concerns of a huge number of people who have fallen into the category I have mentioned. However, the principle still remains that their income or the job they are doing is dependent on the income of their partners.
This is a fantastic and really important step forward. I urge the Government to continue to move towards the total abolition of the carer's allowance means test and to replace it with a payment for caring to ensure the dignity of the role is respected.
4:50 am
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy McAuliffe very much for raising this issue. We took an important step forward in this budget in moving towards the abolition of the means test with the increases in the thresholds to €1,000 for a single person and €2,000 for a couple. This is to show intent. We have not reached the destination yet. That destination is to abolish the means test. That is what we intend to do, working with colleagues, during the lifetime of this Government.
Johnny Mythen (Wexford, Sinn Fein)
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I have received hundreds of emails from parents, teachers and SNAs complaining that the new NCSE guidelines for the review of SNA allocations for 2025-26 are unsatisfactory. These mainly consist of four demands. Those who sent them are calling for: a suspension of the guidelines until proper consultation with schools, SNAs and parents is carried out; fair criteria for defining level 3 complex care needs; assurances SNA supports will not be reduced; and that the six-week window for application for additional SNA supports be scrapped. Will the Tánaiste and the Department consult with the parties concerned to plot a better way forward, particularly as this issue has far-reaching consequences for many parents, teachers, SNAs and, especially, children with special needs?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Mythen very much for raising this issue. There is, as there should be, constant engagement with all stakeholders in respect of special education. I am pleased that the budget has provided significant additional funding that will allow for 860 extra teaching posts in the area of special education needs and 1,717 extra SNA posts. Also, we will be providing funding of €16 million to roll out the national therapy service in education to special needs schools. I will ask the Minister to respond directly to the Deputy on this matter.
Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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The Tánaiste has acknowledged that there is a viability issue in terms of apartment construction. However, the Government has ignored the fact that this issue is having an impact right across the construction sector. That is why we have the paradox whereby we have a housing crisis but so little development, particularly in rural counties like Mayo. Housing commencements for the first six months of this year are among the lowest in a decade. I know small and medium-sized builders in County Mayo who would be willing to build but who simply cannot afford to do so because of construction costs. I know families who have jobs, mortgages and planning permission that simply cannot afford to build at the moment. That is the viability gap that exists right across the construction sector. Meanwhile, the Government took in over €3 billion from VAT on construction materials and services last year. Development contribution levies, connections to services, etc., are driving the cost of construction and choking housing delivery.
I ask the Tánaiste not to refer to housing schemes, because these do not exist in Mayo for middle Ireland. The affordable housing scheme delivered five units. There were no cost-rental units in Mayo over the past number of years.
John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy should conclude.
Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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Why has the Government ignored middle Ireland and ordinary families across Mayo? Why is ignoring couples who choose to self-build as well? These people are totally locked out of housing schemes and so on.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I will try not to do what the Deputy asked me not to do. We obviously need to look at the housing situation nationally but we also need to work locally, county by county, in relation to housing. That is what we are trying to do. It is what the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, and the Minister, Deputy Browne, are trying to do. The Taoiseach and I will be interacting with a number of local authority chief executives. I will see if we can engage with the chief executive of Mayo County Council as well. Even in a country as geographically small as Ireland, there can be certain ways that local authorities and national government can work together to try to advance a response to the housing challenges. I would point out, though, that we are seeing in Mayo, for example, one of the largest drawdowns in the country of the vacant property refurbishment grant. The latter is a practical measure that is helping.
On the viability issue, we have to try to get the balance right. We felt it was a prudent use of taxpayers' money for apartments. We thought the need in that regard was more acute in terms of the viability issue and a better use of money as opposed to a wider tax measure on housing. Such wider measures have not always worked in the past.
I will mention schemes, but they will be the only ones. The first home and help to buy schemes have a lot of relevance in County Mayo, and perhaps even greater relevance there or in some counties that are even further away from Dublin. I will be happy to have a proper conversation with the Deputy on the matter.
John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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They are available for self-builds too.
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Minister of State reminds us of a good point.
Natasha Newsome Drennan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The targets for mammograms in 2023 and 2024 were missed by nearly 80,000. On KCLR recently, I listened to so many women across Carlow and Kilkenny telling their stories. One woman told of her experience after being referred for a scan by her GP because of a lump on her breast. She said months went by without a single word from the hospital. She contacted the hospital only to be told that she was marked as an urgent case but that the wait for her scan could be up to ten months. The results of the scan took a further 16 weeks. That is more than a year for a potential cancer to be spreading. The emotional stress and toll this is taking on thousands of women is overwhelming. This is happening in circumstances where the time from referral to result for someone who has the money to go private is less than a month. This is very wrong. Budget 2026 leaves cancer patients and clinicians with so many unanswered questions, which is deeply worrying. Is the Tánaiste satisfied that public patients have to wait more than a year for their results when private patients wait less than a month?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy very much for raising this very important issue during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Minister for Health engaged with the national cancer screening service recently and has engaged with cancer advocacy groups too. I am not satisfied if people are experiencing those waiting times. The Deputy is quite right. As well as the clinical importance of quick diagnosis, there is also – as she very eloquently put it – the hugely stressful and worrying time that it is for women and for their families. I will ask the Minister to come back to the Deputy on the actions she and the HSE believe we can take since there is clarity regarding funding for the health service in budget 2026. We will try to make progress on the matter.
Aisling Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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I recently met a lady in my constituency of Meath West who was finally approved for a carer's allowance nine years after she first started to care for her beautiful daughter who has many additional and complex needs. A short time later, this lady's husband got a modest increase in what is a good income, shall we say. That income, though, does pay for many private supports and therapies they need to get. In this instance, carer's allowance was going to someone who saved the State so much money by caring for her daughter, day in, day out. It provided her with a tiny bit of financial independence from her husband. More importantly, it was a small recognition of the work she does so diligently.
To say she was devastated when the family received a review letter would be an understatement. She felt used, let down and targeted when it arrived. To receive such a letter a few short months after being approved for carer's allowance to begin with is deeply unfair. She is lucky in that the family will survive financially without the allowance, but some others will not. Will the Government take immediate action to remove the review process for those who are approved and in receipt today of carer's allowance?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Dempsey for raising this case. In many ways, it reminds us of why we need to abolish the means test. We are all hearing too many stories of carers not qualifying because of the income of the people they are married to or in a relationship with. As the Deputy said, there are also cases where people finally get the allowance and then find that if their spouse or partner does a few hours of extra work or gets a promotion, which are good things that happen in family life, they lose out.. These are kinds of traps and anomalies. I do hope, without knowing the particulars of that person's situation, the budget might have helped. It is one of the reasons why we have significantly increased the income disregard for single people and couples in this budget. We want to build on that in the years ahead to deliver on the programme for Government commitment to abolish the means test. In the interim, I will ask the Minister, Deputy Calleary, to reflect on the point the Deputy made regarding the reviews.
Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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The Tánaiste recently launched a joint framework on the legacy of the Troubles with the British Secretary of State. We hope that will provide a route to bring about truth and justice for the many people affected by conflict-related tragedies. Would the Tánaiste be willing to work with Members of this House to establish an independent, time-bound, historical inquiries unit in this State to deal with legacy issues? I refer to issues relating to the heavy gang within the Garda Síochána, other conflict-related cases in this State and instances where there were clear cases of investigative failures, many of which continue to cast a shadow over communities. Will the Tánaiste support such a historical inquiries unit that would allow for effective and independent police investigations into unresolved deaths and incidents of torture or ill-treatment?
5:00 am
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am always open to engaging on a cross-party basis on this. I was with the First Minister for Northern Ireland in Hillsborough last night with representatives from western Balkan countries. We had a conversation about our peace process and the learnings from it for other parts of the world. It was a brief opportunity to talk to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in relation to legacy matters. We have a framework. It needs to be implemented and translated faithfully into legislation in the House of Commons. We will then need to do our corresponding piece of work here. I am happy to have a further or longer conversation about this with the Deputy and his party. What I will say now, however, is that we are already proposing to do two things in this jurisdiction. First is the establishment of a legacy unit within An Garda Síochána by the end of the year. Second, going back to Stormont House proposals, we have, from memory, committed to establishing that cross-Border information retrieval body to operate on a pilot basis for two years. I am interested in the Venn diagram as to where there may or may not be gaps, but I am very happy to have a conversation with the Deputy.
Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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More than half of the submissions relating to a recent EU inquiry into the evaluation of whistleblower protections came from Ireland. There were 40 such submissions. This is concerning. The length of time - whatever the outcome - it is taking to process disclosures, the manner in which some of them are being dealt with and the toing and froing involved is not good for the State and it is certainly not good for the individuals involved.
I want to raise the case of Noel McGree, who first pointed out wrongdoing in the Prison Service in 2013. He made a substantial protected disclosure in 2019. Noel is being made homeless, as are his wife and two kids. I have met Noel. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle knows the issues relating to Noel well. He is going to be out on the streets. He and his wife and kids will have nowhere to live because he had the guts to open up an issue relating to how funds were being misspent within the Prison Service. This is what he gets for doing so. I want to ask two things. Can we ensure that the process by which protected disclosures are dealt with is done in an efficient manner and as quickly as possible and that we do not have another scenario whereby we are the laggards in Europe in relation to this? Will the Tánaiste try to ensure that no one else will end up like Noel McGree, namely having to sacrifice the family home because they cannot pay their mortgage and ending up on the street because they did what was right?
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The first thing I will do is read that EU report. Deputy Kelly was right to bring it to the attention of the House. We want to be leaders in terms of the structures we have here. We certainly do not want to be laggards. This matter sounds concerning from what he tells me, which I am not doubting. We have taken a number of measures in recent years in trying to establish the new structures for protected disclosures, greater clarity around what is meant to happen when disclosures come in and greater understanding across the system. This is a responsibility in the first instance for the Minister for public expenditure and reform. I will reflect on what the Deputy has said and ask that the relevant Minister reverts to him. Without commenting on any specific case, all whistleblowers are, under law, expected to have all of the protections that are right in the context of whistleblowing. Bringing information into the public domain is a very important part of our democracy.