Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Leader, this afternoon, after 11 days, a boil-water notice was lifted for Wexford town and parts of the surrounding area. So for 11 days, including over the St. Patrick's holiday weekend, the people in and around Wexford town were not guaranteed to have clean water and a reliable supply. Other parts of the country have experienced the same problem and last year my home town of Gorey had a well publicised case of E.coli.Many of us have said that one of our biggest challenges in the housing field is making sure Irish Water responds. Clearly, it is not, so I ask again for that debate on Irish Water.

I am conscious there will be a debate tomorrow on humanitarian issues in respect of Ukraine, but we also need to look at the educational and higher education and research implications of what has happened. A significant number of refugees who come here will look to integrate into our school system. Quite a number of them will have experienced trauma and will need additional counselling supports. There will be language issues in some cases. It is important that both the Department of Education and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science are able to respond effectively.

There are a number of anomalies. If we treat Ukrainian students who come here as EU students, will Ukrainian students already studying here, who are currently classified as non-EU students, now receive the same treatment? A number of Irish students had been pursuing their education in Ukraine and some in Russia. They have now come back to Ireland and there is an issue about integrating them into the Irish system, especially because a number of these are in the medical and paramedical fields. Will the Deputy Leader write to the two Ministers concerned to look at outlining the strategy and organise a specific debate on the education and higher educational needs of those coming here from Ukraine?