David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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Across the State, households are watching the price of fuel surge in real time. In the days since the US-Israel strikes on Iran, the cost of home heating oil has skyrocketed. We are hearing from people across the country and, in most cases, the price of a delivery has effectively doubled. The average price for 500 litres is now just under €800. Since my colleagues and I have raised this issue publicly over the past number of days, I have been inundated with emails from people describing what is happening. One household told me that on Saturday, they were quoted €525 for heating oil. Days later, the same supplier was charging €859. When prices jump like that in a matter of days, people draw a very obvious conclusion: somebody is cashing in on a crisis.

It is not just one case. A worker who contacted me ordered oil at €498 at the weekend. Within days, the same supplier was charging €700. Another worker, a carer who travels long distances for her job, paid €447 for 500 litres last month. This week she checked again and the price had jumped to over €800. For her, as she put it to me, higher diesel and heating costs mean that she may have to take a second job just to stay afloat. I also heard from pensioner households, who placed orders earlier this week, only to be told the price could not be confirmed until the day of delivery. When they checked again, the costs had nearly doubled. They had to cancel their order because they did not have the money to pay for it. This is the reality facing people right here, right now today. Workers, carers, farmers, pensioners and rural households have no alternative to heating oil. This is price-gouging with companies exploiting a crisis to squeeze more profit out of households already under severe pressure. This is an emergency and a crisis for each and every one of those families.

The Government's response so far has been completely out of touch. This morning, we heard Ministers saying families may feel acute pressure in the coming days. What an understatement. Another Government TD said on television last night that it is premature to talk a the cost-of-living crisis. What planet are they on? There is a cost-of-living crisis right here, right now facing so many families. The Government does not seem to understand what people are facing. This is not something that might happen in the future. People are in crisis today. People cannot wait. If their home is cold tonight, it needs to be heated tonight, not next week, next month or in six months. It needs to be heated tonight, yet those families do not have the money to pay. These are real people facing a real crisis. The message, it seems, from the Government - and I have listened over the past number of days - is to wait and see.

The Minister for enterprise, Deputy Burke, said he will meet the industry on Friday to talk about pricing structures. Unfortunately people have seen this movie played out before. Ministers met big retailers about grocery prices. What happened? Grocery prices went up. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien did something similar with energy companies. What happened? Energy prices went up. There is little point in Ministers having cosy chats with companies. We need to see real action on price-gouging and real action from this Government in relation to supports for families. Here is why. One in four people has less than €500 in savings. An increase like filling a home heating tank wipes out those savings. Many more do not have any savings. People see companies cashing in on a crisis. They see a Government, frankly and shamefully, standing idly by while it happens. I will ask the Tánaiste directly and plainly: what concrete and immediate steps will he take to stop this rip-off and protect households facing these outrageous fuel price hikes?

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Well said.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy. The Government has been working round the clock on the very serious situation in the Gulf and the Middle East. We have been working on it from a whole range of aspects, including the economic aspect, which I will get to now in relation to the question. The first and most important thing we have been doing in the here and now is working to protect Irish citizens abroad and to get them home. I welcome the fact, as we meet today, that we are now seeing hundreds of Irish citizens arrive safely back in Dublin. We have seen some commercial flights resume activity. We have plans in relation to chartered flights. Across the House, I know everybody welcomes that work.

I thank the Minister, Deputy McEntee, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and officials on the ground who have been working really hard in what has been a very stressful and anxious time. There is absolutely no doubt that the conflict in the Middle East and the Gulf is going to have an economic impact. It is going to have a potential inflationary impact. It is going to have an impact in on commodity prices, including oil and gas. It is also important to say that the scale of that impact will depend on the length and the depth of the conflict that is under way. My Department, at my request, is currently carrying out a macroeconomic analysis in terms of what we believe the impact to be on a whole variety of indicators. We will publish that in our spring forecast at the end of this month.

The Minister, Deputy Burke, has been extraordinarily proactive this week. He has done exactly what a responsible Minister would do in formally communicating with the body that has responsibility for consumer protection and competition. The Government's view that we have been receiving, as it sounds like the Deputy has as well, many reports across the country as what many people are referring to as price-gouging. People are putting up the price and causing panic and fear for people, quite frankly. I have seen the text messages telling someone to get the fill of oil now or it is going to go up. That sort of behaviour is causing real concern as well. The Minister has worked with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, which has said it will open an urgent investigation into the concerns. I note the Deputy has been asking people to contact him with any concerns that they have. I encourage him and every other Deputy to please pass on all of that information to the CCPC. I also encourage all our citizens to use the helpline to pass on any information as well. There are laws in this country, which must be upheld. The CCPC has a range of powers to investigate and prosecute where there are breaches of law. It can impose fines of up to €10 million in certain circumstances, or 10% of a company's turnover. There is a confidential whistleblowing service as well in relation to any suspected cartel behaviour too. The Minister is meeting the industry representatives tomorrow, which I had presumed the Deputy will welcome. Meeting the industry representatives and suppliers is an important thing to do. The Minister will discuss with them the sharp increases that we have seen in recent days. They will be asked to explain how their pricing structure has changed so drastically so quickly. That is an important thing to do.

We keep everything under review in terms of assisting. As the Taoiseach and I have both consistently said, we are monitoring this situation extremely closely. On Monday, I will meet with European counterparts at the Eurogroup. The issue of energy affordability is specifically on the agenda. It is important that we continue to monitor everything and keep everything under review. It is also important to say that real action is being taken in the here and now to help people with energy costs. Next week, 50,000 more households will qualify for the fuel allowance. That will be backdated to 1 January. That means up to 50,000 households will receive the fuel allowance for the first time. They will receive up to €380 in a lump sum payment, as well as them being entitled to it going forward. That is progress and real action. We continue to monitor the situation to keep everything actively under review.

I have to be honest too. I do not doubt the Deputy's bona fides or anyone's bona fides on this. We are a couple of days into a conflict here. We cannot do anything that is knee-jerk. Something that might seem like the right idea today could indeed be the wrong recipe next week or the week after. We are monitoring this, we are working on this and we will act where required.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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I am not knee-jerk because I understand what families are going through

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As do I.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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They are faced with rent hikes and grocery price increases.

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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Hear, hear.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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They are faced with insurance cost increases, and now energy price increases, which have skyrocketed over the past few days. Not a single word of what the Tánaiste said will bring any comfort to families who are under fierce pressure. I do not believe that the supports he said are in place are in fact in place. One of the measures the Government brought in was to increase the carbon tax, which has increased the cost of fuel on families, not made it any cheaper. The Tánaiste's approach is that his head and those of Government representatives are in the sand. I do not believe they really get it. If they did, they would have supports in place. I am asking the Tánaiste to speak directly to those families and to the people who contacted me. What should they do? They are faced with those hikes now. A bill comes in the door, or their tank at home is empty and needs to be filled, but they have no money, or whatever money they do have simply will not be enough with all the other bills. What message is the Tánaiste giving them? What do they do? He should speak to them, because I have not heard a single word from him about what they should do.

The Government's head is in the sand when it comes to the cost-of-living crisis.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy may not have been listening to my reply. Let me say it again. Practical action that will help 50,000 more Irish households will take place next week. The Deputy likes to say that this will not matter to anybody, but 50,000 households will qualify next week for assistance with their fuel who do not qualify for it today.

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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That will not even cover the increase in the past two days.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Cullinane does not need help. Give him a chance. He was picked to do it today. In addition to the 50,000 households, we also took a decision in the budget to reduce the rate of VAT on people's energy bills and keep it there for years ahead. We also took a decision to reduce the public service obligation, PSO, on people's energy, as well as increase the fuel allowance. The Taoiseach, the Government and I have been consistent on this. We will continue to keep under review-----

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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“Under review” does not mean anything.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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-----any measures that are needed to assist households and deal with price impact.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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Out of touch.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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We will do things in a way. We are five days into a major global conflict.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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We are years into this Government.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy nor Mystic Meg, Lord rest her, could predict where this conflict is going to go. We are working to protect and get our citizens home and seek de-escalation. We are working at a European level to see what further actions are appropriate in terms of energy affordability. That is what a responsible Government does. I wish to let the people watching in at home know that we are acting and we will take further action-----

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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What they have heard is that they are on their own. That is what they have heard.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Please do not scaremonger them.

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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They heard that they are on their own.

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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The war in the Middle East is in its sixth day and the price of oil and gas is continuing to skyrocket. People are now being charged absolutely extortionate prices for home heating oil. The Tánaiste saying he is going to monitor the situation and keep it under review is of absolutely no use to people facing big bills right now. The increases are absolutely outrageous. How are elderly people on pensions supposed to pay these extortionate costs? This includes vulnerable people and those with medical conditions. They need to be able to heat their homes. They will be going cold either because they are rationing their heating or they simply cannot afford to fill their tanks.

Families with young children who are already struggling to get by are also feeling rising panic. They do not have a spare €500 sitting in their bank accounts to heat their homes. They are already living day to day, with every cent in their budget accounted for. What they are now seeing is an avalanche of price rises coming towards them on everything from groceries and childcare costs to energy bills, and they get virtually no support from the Government. Instead, all the Government seems to do is introduce measures to push up prices even further and make their lives even harder, such as the recent changes to rents that are causing soaring rent rises in new tenancies.

On Tuesday, the Taoiseach was clear that price-gouging is going on. Yesterday, the Minister, Deputy Chambers, accused companies of profiteering. That is all we get from this Government - empty words and meaningless rhetoric but no action or meaningful support. We are now told that the Minister, Deputy Burke, is hauling in representatives from energy companies for a meeting. This echoes the infamous supermarket summit in 2023. Back then, the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, talked tough about putting manners on supermarket chains. He called a meeting with them and promised that prices would come down. What actually happened? He turned up, wagged his finger and went home. Nothing changed and prices continued to soar. The meeting was nothing more than an exercise in optics, something the Government could say it was doing when, in reality, it was sitting on its hands, just like it is doing today.

We are now in an extraordinary position where we have a succession of senior Ministers talking about profiteering and accepting that price-gouging is going on but, in the next breath, saying they will not take any meaningful action. A review by the toothless consumer agency is not going to cut it when people have bills to pay today. The Social Democrats have proposed a fully costed, targeted €400 energy credit that would provide some relief to people. The Government has refused to adopt it. Will the Tánaiste now change his position and introduce this measure?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It is unfair to the work of the CCPC to call it toothless. Last year, it secured six convictions and its first ever criminal conviction. It is a body that can levy fines of up to €10 million. I hope, before the Deputy gets into the litany of his view about what the Government should do, that he will join with us in welcoming the fact that the CCPC, which has significant powers, has opened an urgent investigation into allegations of price-gouging in relation to the energy situation. I encourage everyone in this House to pass on any information they have in this regard. There is an independent agency. The Deputy and I cannot stand up and decide to convict people for price-gouging. What we can do is seek an urgent investigation into it, which we have secured. That is an action that a responsible and effective Minister has taken.

If he were not meeting the companies tomorrow, the Deputy would be questioning why he were not. Sometimes, he cannot win. Earlier in the week, the Opposition asked why the Minister just sent a letter. The Minister is doing what a Minister should do, that is, sitting down with the companies and industry representative bodies tomorrow, in addition to the urgent investigation under way by the CCPC. I thank the Minister for the work he is doing in this regard.

To say there is no support from this Government for families is just not true. This Government has taken many actions to assist people right across the country, such as free school books, hot school meals and increases to pensions and the carer’s allowance. There are more people in work than ever before. We saw less than one hour ago figures come out on our economic growth that show that real incomes are now rising. Real incomes in Ireland are rising. You would not think that in here with the conversations we have.

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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So are arrears.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Real incomes are rising. The Social Democrats often call for targeted supports. I listened to their proposals. They are not in favour of energy credits for all different people. The Opposition has many different views. The Social Democrats call for targeted supports. Next week, we will bring in a targeted support in which 50,000 households will benefit from a fuel allowance payment for the first time. It will be backdated to 1 January. These are working families in receipt of the working family payment. They will receive up to €380 in one lump sum. We are continuing to work on this intensively.

The priority this week has been trying to get people safely home from a dangerous region. We are also working to try to map out the potential economic impact of this. While I do not want to make a direct comparison with Ukraine because prices and inflation rates are not in that space, let us just take it as a comparison of when we last saw a major conflict break out. What did we do? We worked together at European level. We worked with other European countries. It was not about one Department doing something here or one country doing something there. The Deputy will remember that, by Europe working together, it brought us to the point of the windfall tax legislation. On Monday, I will meet with fellow European finance ministers to analyse the impact in terms of energy affordability and supply. The Taoiseach will attend a European Council meeting where this will be an agenda item as well.

As he said yesterday, and as I say today, we will keep this under review and we do not rule out actions that may be needed to assist people or the economy. What we cannot do, five or six days into a conflict, is try to predict where this will bring us economically in the time ahead because it depends on the length and depth of the conflict. We have got to make sure that any response is the correct one in helping to secure our economy.

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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Tá díomá mór orm le freagra an Tánaiste. Tá níos mó agus níos mó daoine nach féidir a gcuid billí a íoc. A total of 320,000 homes are in electricity arrears before these prices increased in the past few days. That is the scale of the problem we are facing in the country. What the Government is doing is not addressing that. With regard to the fines being issued and the CCPC, when was the last time it issued a significant fine to a large company? It has issued small fines to small companies and retailers around price information, but when has it issued fines in the millions of euro for this kind of price-gouging that is going on? When has it taken that kind of action?

People are faced now with a serious issue as to how they will heat their homes and where they will get the money to do so. The Tánaiste saying that the Government will monitor the situation and keep it under review is of no use to them. They need the Government to act now. Will it take action for people who cannot heat their homes because of the electricity arrears they are already in and these huge increases in the past few days?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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We are acting. We did not need a conflict in the Gulf or the Middle East to take action on energy costs in Ireland, which are too high. That is why more people than ever before in the history of the State are eligible for fuel allowance. It is why we have increased the amount of fuel allowance and are bringing the working family payment recipients into it-----

Eoin Hayes (Dublin Bay South, Social Democrats)
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It is not enough.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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-----for the first time next week and backdating it to 1 January. That is practical action. It is not abstract. There are people tuning in today, whether watching this on their television screens or listening on the radio, who will benefit. A total of 50,000 households in Ireland will benefit next week from a fuel allowance payment-----

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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Some 320,000 households are in arrears.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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-----that they have never benefited from before. Many people in arrears will benefit from the fuel allowance as well. The Government has to look at all of these issues.

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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That still leaves a gap of 250,000 households.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It does not.

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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Yes, it does.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Hearne, over-----

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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Some 50,000-----

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Over 400,000 homes qualify for fuel allowance support, which makes up more than a quarter of the homes in the country.

That maths just does not add up. More people are qualifying for fuel allowance than are in energy arrears in Ireland, according to the Deputy's own figures he just shared with us. We will continue to work on this situation intensively. I do not doubt anyone's bona fides; we all want to assist people. The first thing, though, is to call out price-gouging and to not add to it by buying into the narrative that fuel prices should be going up right now. There is a lag in any impact on changes in wholesale prices and what people should be seeing at the pump and that should be called out. The CCPC has an important job to do in relation to this. The Minister is working on this too and we will continue to work to monitor the economic impact of this conflict as it unfolds.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I call Deputy Stanley.

Brian Stanley (Laois, Independent)
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I agree around the cost of living and particularly the cost of energy to households at the moment. That has obviously escalated further this week. We have one of the highest gas and electricity prices in the European Union. Added to this is the fact that householders are paying almost double the cost of electricity that data centres are paying. The average cost per household is 36 cent per unit while for data centres, it is 19 cent per unit. They are clearly using their financial clout to get their way but householders and small businesses are effectively subsidising them. Added to all of this now are the latest price hikes on oil and gas due to the illegal war by Israel and the United States in the Middle East. As an example of how much fuel has gone up in the past couple of days, one company in Laois was charging 99 cent on Monday morning and by yesterday morning it had gone to €1.57. For a litre of kerosene, some companies are charging up to €1.71. The number of households with arrears for electricity has hit a record high at 319,459, a jump of 20%. One of in four households is in arrears with gas. Workers and households on low and middle incomes are particularly hard hit. The fuel allowance has been extended but there is a cohort not being caught with that. The hikes in energy costs come on the back of higher rents, higher mortgages, higher insurance costs, higher college fees, higher grocery costs and it goes on and on.

One group that is really struggling is people with disabilities. They have additional costs due to their additional needs. A Government report from 2020 found that the additional cost for people with disabilities was between €8,700 and €12,300 annually. They tend to need and use more energy because they are at home more. In the budget prior to the general election, they got cost-of-living measures, additional fuel allowance, living alone allowance and energy credits. When there is no election, they get zero. They got nothing this year. The budget came and went and they did not receive anything. Their representative group estimates their income is down by €1,000 per year on what they were getting in 2025 but the response so far from Government is that they should go to the community welfare officer for an exceptional needs payment. The vast majority of people on low and middle incomes would not qualify for that. What is needed now is a targeted single energy payment. I say targeted because I do not want money thrown all over the place. I got an energy credit a year and a half or 15 months ago from the Government. We should not be getting an energy credit. We need to target it at those who need it, such as those who are on the median income or on low incomes. They need to get it. Will the Government now move to assist these people and introduce a one-off payment for that? Will it also move in terms of the price-gouging? I heard the Tánaiste say the Minister is meeting the companies but he also needs to strengthen the powers of the CCPC.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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We have intentions to further strengthen the powers of the CCPC and we look forward to working with people across this House in relation to that. I agree with the Deputy on that point. I also agree with him on there not being a need for a universal energy credit anymore. I agree that TDs do not need energy credits. There are people who need assistance. We can debate this and different parties will have different ideas but the targeted way the Government is going about it is through the expansion of the fuel allowance. The Deputy makes the case that he would like to see it further expanded to cover more people. We are adding 50,000 more households next week.

I hear the point about the data centres and I want to respond to that. I do not mean this in relation to the Deputy but people can see a headline and think that that does not sound fair. It does not when you see the headline but when you look at the detail, it is not comparing like with like. The data centres have to pay significant fixed costs for the infrastructure, as is right and appropriate. The tariff might be lower but the actual amount they are spending on the energy infrastructure is a hell of a lot higher, as it should be, than a household. That is an important point.

Regarding people with disabilities, the Government has been very clear on this. We have increased the level of investment in disability services this year by around 20%, with €618 million extra. That was the priority - investing further in disability services with much-needed investment. We have said very clearly that we will devise a cost-of-disability payment. The Minister, Deputy Calleary, has opened the consultation process on that. We are eager to get everybody's idea and views as to how best construct that. We have increased the weekly disability payments, the weekly carer's payments, the weekly pension payments and we kept the likes of the Christmas bonus. I have to reject the Deputy saying nothing was done.

We have seen inflation fall from a very high level, and we have to be honest about this. For the first time in a long time, we have seen real incomes in Ireland rising again. We need to make that point. These figures are there for all to see. They are not my figures; they are published by the CSO. Incomes are now increasing in this country again. If we get into a position of a prolonged conflict in the Middle East and in the Gulf region, what we have to watch and be honest about is the adverse affect that could have on inflation, on commodity prices and the shocks that could cause to the global economy. That is where our priority and our focus has to be now. I am conscious people are anxious and worried. I can fully understand that with what they are seeing on their television screens, the text messages they are getting about heating and the things they are seeing at the pumps. However, this country is approaching this moment of potential economic shock from a position of strength where we have more people in work than ever before, where the economy is performing well-----

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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There are 300,000 already in arrears.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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-----where we have built up financial buffers. That allows the Government to make an informed evidence-based responses in the time ahead. That is exactly what we intend to do. Governments right across Europe are grappling with this. That is why will also have that engagement at a European level, starting with European finance ministers on Monday.

Brian Stanley (Laois, Independent)
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I thank the Tánaiste for his reply. He said the Government will make an informed evidence-based response. That is fine but the evidence is there. There are in excess of 320,000 households in serious arrears and we are only talking about electricity there. It is one in four is in arrears with gas. There is a real problem. I have constituents contacting me - people who are on middle incomes - who just cannot make it all go around. I am sure the rest of the Members are hearing this as well.

I wish to highlight one extra factor. Progress is being made with retrofitting but it is slow enough. Some 75% of homes in the midlands and in counties like Laois are basically on solid fuel or oil. That tells you they need an energy upgrade. They are caught because they have high energy costs. There is a particular problem here for people in County Laois and in the midlands. I know they cannot be targeted specifically but there is a real issue. There is an immediate problem. I am not asking the Government to thrown money all over the place. I am asking it to do a targeted one-off payment to help those people and householders who are really struggling and cannot make ends meet at the moment. I am asking the Government to introduce that one-off payment to help them, people with disabilities and low- and middle-income workers.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am extraordinarily conscious of the fact that people at home following this debate and people in workplaces are feeling an extraordinary sense of economic anxiety. However, I also have to make sure we have the best data and best analysis available in terms of the economic impact this conflict may have in our country, on the eurozone and on the global economy. That enables the Government to then decide how best to intervene should that be required. I made the point earlier today, and I make it again, that working at a European level is important. That is what we did as a country at the start of the brutal Russian illegal invasion of Ukraine. It brought about policy changes, regulations and decisions at a European level that allowed, for example, for a windfall tax, and the benefits of that being utilised for our citizens. As the Taoiseach said yesterday and I say today - we are completely ad idem on this - we keep all of these matters under review. We have taken a number of practical measures already to assist people, including the expansion of the fuel allowance to 50,000 more households next week, the reduction of the VAT rate on people's energy bills, the reduction of the PSO and increasing the rate of fuel allowance. We will continue to work on this intensively in the time ahead.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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Mr. John Barrett, an established civil servant at assistant secretary general grade and an executive director of An Garda Síochána, was purportedly abruptly dismissed on 18 September 2024. The Government has been formally notified of the legal contention that the dismissal as unlawful on five separate occasions, namely, on 5 July 2024, 18 November 2024, 20 January 2025, 28 July 2025 and, again, earlier this week. The central legal issue is rather straightforward. Section 5(1) of the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956 provides that the dismissal of an established civil servant requires the will and the pleasure of Government.

Yet, Mr. Barrett received a letter signed off by an official of a lower grade, purporting to convey a ministerial direction. I ask the Tánaiste directly if his Government took a decision to authorise the dismissal of Mr. John Barrett. Was a memorandum brought to the Cabinet? If so, on what date did the Government exercise the statutory authorisation? If not, how was the dismissal lawfully effected in compliance with section 51? Beyond the statutory questions I have put to the Tánaiste, he has also been put on notice on five separate occasions of the fact of serious allegations regarding the process leading to the purported dismissal, including that the dismissal compliance was attributed to a senior garda whose office has now officially denied making it, and that Mr. Barrett was not furnished-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy O'Flynn, this is-----

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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-----with the complaint upon reply. Protected disclosures were made-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Sorry, Deputy O'Flynn, this will be a matter for the legal process.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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------of alleged wrongdoing. I will get to that. If the Leas-Cheann Comhairle will bear with me, he will understand where I am coming from. The parallel process was initiated without transparency and there has been a prolonged non-compliance with High Court discovery obligations. I am not asking the Tánaiste to determine the truth on the floor of this House, which rectifies the matter for the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, but there are other people there. I am asking the Tánaiste if he will accept that as a former Taoiseach, as Tánaiste and as a senior member of the Government, he has a duty to ensure-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy O'Flynn-----

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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-----that the dismissal of an established civil servant is compliant with statutory constitutional fair procedure.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy O'Flynn, that is out of order.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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This is about the Constitution. This is what it is about-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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It is out of order.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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-----and it is about the statutory procedure. That is what it is about. Will the Tánaiste's Government confirm that-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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It is out of order in terms of the legal aspect of that case.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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The Tánaiste has now had this before him for 19 months. Has the Government authorised the dismissal and will he confirm it? If not, who in the Government, or who else, has purported to exercise the power that is reserved for the Cabinet? This is not merely an unemployment dispute. It goes to the heart of collective responsibility and Cabinet responsibility under Article 28 of the Constitution and the statutory framework of the Government Civil Service. I put it to the Tánaiste again-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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You need not, Deputy O'Flynn.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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Did the Government authorise the dismissal of Mr. John Barrett?

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy has asked a number of questions of the Tánaiste, parts of which I believe are out of order. I ask the Tánaiste to reflect on that. If he can answer any of the other parts that might be relevant to him, the Government or the office, I ask him to do so.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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This is where I perhaps need the guidance of the Leas-Cheann Comhairle or the Oireachtas. In my time in this House, I have never known that we would discuss the employment circumstances of any individual civil servant on the floor of Dáil Éireann. Frankly, without getting into the individual, I do not have any such information available to me today. It is a starting point anyway, but on whether it would be appropriate to discuss any individual person, I always thought that the rules of the House are that you should not be naming people. I am quite confused as to where to go in relation to this. To be helpful to the Deputy, I suggest that we get the transcript of what the Deputy has asked. Truthfully, I do not have information available to me in my files today or in my recall. I am happy to suggest that we get a transcript of what the Deputy has asked and perhaps the Ceann Comhairle's office could adjudicate on any appropriate areas where the Government could assist the Deputy in providing information. If that is appropriate, I am happy to do that.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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The Tánaiste has had this information for 19 months.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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No.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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He was notified on 5 July 2024, on 18-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy O'Flynn-----

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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I am talking now. On 28 January 2025-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy O'Flynn, you are out of order.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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On 18 November-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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You are out of order.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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What is out of order is the Tánaiste not answering a question-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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No, the Tánaiste-----

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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-----on a constitutional and statutory obligation of the Cabinet and who made the decision.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Tánaiste-----

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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Will he answer the question? Did the Cabinet make the decision or was the decision made by a lesser official, which is in conflict with both-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Tánaiste has suggested that he will come back to the Deputy.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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-----the Constitution and the statutory responsibility of this Cabinet? I am asking for the simple truth.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Sorry, just one second, Deputy O'Flynn.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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This comes under Standing Orders.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Tánaiste has explained things. I have tried to explain things to you, Deputy O'Flynn.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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I have explained section 1 of the 1956 Act three times now.

John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Respect the Standing Orders.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I am going to have to rule the question out of order. If Deputy O'Flynn accepts what the Tánaiste has said, he will check to determine what can be said to the House and will reply directly to the Deputy or the House, whatever is deemed legally correct to do. We will move on from there.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy has made a number of comments on the record of the House. Let us have the transcript of that and I will certainly seek guidance from the Oireachtas as to what parts of the question, if any, the Government should provide any information on to be helpful to the House.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Thank you. We will move on.