Alan Dillon
Mayo · Fine Gael · Ireland
“Landlords are generally not in a position to supervise day-to-day waste management practices within occupied properties. The Government therefore has significant concerns regarding both the practicality and effectiveness of these provisions.”
“The Government has commissioned an independent study to examine the feasibility of moving Ireland's household waste collection system from the current side-by-side competition model to a franchise-based system. That study is examining the environmental, economic, operational and consumer implications of alternative market structures.”
“If the evidence supports significant changes to the market structure, the Government will consider those recommendations carefully. If the evidence suggests improvements can be achieved through strengthened regulation, enhanced enforcement or targeted reforms within the existing framework, those options should also be considered.”
“We also want to see a well-designed waste collection system that not only delivers environmental benefits but also provides householders with the opportunity to reduce their own household waste costs through reducing residual waste, correctly segregating recyclable materials and correctly segregating organic materials.”
“We have a lack of capacity so we need to continue that, and investment certainty is really important in that regard but also to enable Ireland to meet both our national and European obligations, which are far reaching. These will all benefit from a stable and predictable policy framework.”
“Ireland requires continued investment across the waste and resource sector. We need investment in collection infrastructure, recycling capacity, material recovery technologies, organic waste treatment, digital systems and innovation. Those making long-term investments require certainty regarding Government policy.”
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“The funding under the NDP transport sectoral investment plan will see significant advancements made in a number of public transport projects, including various elements of the DART+ programme including DART+ West. This funding will also allow compulsory purchase orders to progress DART+ South West and will provide the procurement process for the project with some of framework contracts being established in common with DART+ West and DART+ South West. It is important to state that, following on from the initial investment in the DART+ fleet, DART+ West was always recognised as the critical step for the DART+ programme which will help to enable DART+ South West and indeed the other infrastructure projects of the programme to develop for a number of reasons.”
“In addition, procurement for DART+ South West and DART+ West is progressing with pre-qualification questionnaire notices for design and build works advertised in May 2025. The NDP transport sectoral investment plan provides an investment of €22.3 billion of Exchequer funding to the transport sector from 2026 to 2030, along with an additional allocation of €2 billion from the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund to support the development of MetroLink. Of this total allocation, funding in the region of €10 billion is being provided for public transport infrastructure plus €2 billion for MetroLink over the period from 2026 to 2030.”
“On behalf of the Minister for Transport I thank the Deputy for the opportunity to address the House on this issue tonight. The DART+ programme comprises five different projects in and around the greater Dublin area. It will extend the existing network from the city centre to Maynooth, M3 Parkway, Hazelhatch and Celbridge, and Drogheda, and will improve current DART services from the city centre to Greystones. The programme will triple the length of the electrified network and will double city centre capacity from 26,000 passengers per hour per direction to 52,000 during peak hours. DART+ South West will extend DART services from the city centre to Hazelhatch and Celbridge, including four-tracking from Park West to Heuston Station. An Coimisiún Pleanála approved a railway order for DART+ South West in November 2024.”
“We have made significant strides with regard to our efficiency by transitioning to an online employment permit system. Since its launch, we have processed over 22,000 employment permits and we have issued over 15,000. That has been successful with regard to processing times. We see now critical skills employment permits, including healthcare roles, are being processed within 14 days. That by any yardstick is important to recognise. We will continue to work with the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to ensure that we have a seamless application process and work is under way in that regard. We hope that the next phase will deliver a faster, more integrated experience not just for the applicant but also to ensure that employees have that certainty and good user experience.”
“I thank the Deputy for bringing this important matter to our attention. Certainly, a healthcare professional should not lose their job or employment on the basis of a backlog. As I said earlier, employment permits allow for the commencement of work while the registration is pending. That is important to factor in. Our immediate priority, as a Government, is to keep hospital staff and ensure patients are cared for. Permit holders can start work on that basis. We are all working together and working with the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to accelerate any systemic issues that may present. We want to ensure our permit system is fast and flexible and it delivers the critical skills employment permits that we require to have a functional economy. Healthcare is a critical component of that.”
“Processing timelines currently stand at seven business days for a critical skills employment permit and 25 business days for a general employment permit. In particular, I have engaged closely with representatives of the health and social care sector to support that sector. This includes ensuring speedy delivery of permits for non-consultant hospital doctor rotations, ensuring access to a nursing workforce and recent engagement on the topic of healthcare assistants and home carers. My Department does not engage with the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration regarding its processing times for individual visas. However, I am working closely with the Minister of State, Deputy Colm Brophy, in regard to a single permit.”
“It is my understanding that all employment permit holders can commence the employment stated on the permit while awaiting confirmation of their immigration permission to remain. A period is provided to facilitate registration with immigration service delivery. However, it is the responsibility of the non-EEA worker to ensure his or her permission is appropriate and up to date. Significant work has been carried out by my Department to ensure that the national economic migration system supports all sectors of our economy. The new employment permit system has made the application process easier, more secure and more intuitive, resulting in a more streamlined processing experience. These timelines have been steadily decreasing and I am confident that this positive trend will continue.”
“The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Deputy O’Callaghan, has complete ownership of matters relating to the granting of visa and immigration permissions and is solely responsible for the administration of its registration appointment service. Queries relating to immigration status or any initiatives or temporary flexibilities in accessing its services during periods of high demand should be addressed to that Department. My Department has responsibility for the employment permits legislation which provides permission to take up employment in the State subject to the granting of immigration permission to enter for that purpose by the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration.”
“Part of that is ensuring that local authorities and regional stakeholders are part of the discussions in terms of what is the right fit or what are the right sectors within each of our regions across the nine sectors that are under the regional enterprise plans. We very much want to push this out into 2026 and ensure they are up and running and are measurable and accountable to the oversight group.”
“Again, as I said earlier, this Government is very much committed to ensuring we have the skills and talent within each of our regions. We have had a real focus on apprenticeships and upskilling. We very much want that to be a core part of the regional skill set forums, driving investments into areas where it has the talent. Indeed, regional enterprise plans will be a key driver in that regard, working with further and higher education institutes. We know how important that is in terms of workforce planning. We have seen successes then within the pharmaceutical and hi-tech sectors where we have graduates with engineering or life science skills to take up employment in these areas. That is a core part and component.”
“Back in January 2025, MSD Ireland announced it was expanding its Irish operations with its acquisition of WuXi vaccines in Dundalk and the creation of up to 1,000 new jobs across Ireland, including 150 roles in Dundalk. We want the enterprise plans to be a core part of each of the regions and very much part of that is the key agencies working in tandem with private and Government agencies.”
“I acknowledge the Deputy's advocacy for Louth and the north east. That is really significant and important. We want to get the regional enterprise plans back up and running in 2026. As part of that, we have looked at ensuring there are programme managers based in each of the local authorities. That is really important to drive implementation, but also to give the accountability piece. We will be focusing on 12 actions under the five strategic objectives, as I stated earlier, one being around decarbonisation and climate action, to ensure that many companies and SMEs have digitalisation and the capability within their own organisations and also around leveraging growth sectors. We have seen real positivity within Louth, as the Deputy said earlier.”
“A steering group made up of the regional enterprise stakeholders and Department officials oversaw the review, which included significant engagement with regional enterprise stakeholders, in-depth analysis of the plans and their implementation progress reports and consideration of international approaches to regional enterprise development. This review also included recommendations and options for the future of the regional enterprise plans. I will be considering the complete review, along with the final progress reports for the regional enterprise plans from 2022 to 2025, over the coming months as we plan for the future approach to these matters.”
“The north-east regional enterprise plan has 12 actions under five strategic objectives, which focus on areas including decarbonisation, digitalisation and place-making. The last north-east regional enterprise steering committee meeting was held in June 2025. The regional enterprise plans were extended for one year to the end of 2025 with agreement from the regional enterprise plans national oversight group at its meeting on 25 April 2024. This extension provided an additional year for continued implementation of the existing plans and time to review the regional enterprise plan initiative and consider the best approach to the future of the regional enterprise plans. In this context, my Department commissioned an independent review of the regional enterprise plan initiative in 2025.”
“Balanced regional development is a Government priority and a central component of the White Paper on Enterprise 2022-2030 is to support balanced regional enterprise development. My Department and its agencies contribute to this agenda in several ways, including through the nine regional enterprise plans, REPs. These are bottom-up plans developed and led by regional stakeholders that focus on collaborative initiatives to strengthen the enterprise ecosystem in each region. The north-east regional enterprise plan covers the counties of Cavan, Monaghan and Louth and its steering committee includes stakeholders from the enterprise agencies, local enterprise offices, local authorities, regional skills, higher and further education, Fáilte Ireland and companies in the private sector and others.”
“I thank the Deputy for his question. Enterprise Ireland manages the fund. The fund reflects geography and Enterprise Ireland has a target of up to 60%. Funding is very much targeted at manufacturing, internationally traded services and high-growth potential areas in life sciences, healthcare, pharma, fintech, technology, digitalisation and the green and environmental sectors and is very much focused on areas which can ensure quality and inclusivity. In 2024, 22% of all seed venture capital supported companies were women-led. Enterprise Ireland is very much to the fore in that regard. We want to ensure that funding does not go solely to tech companies in Dublin. Our ambition is that many founders will come from many different backgrounds right across the country.”
“There are significant gains in research and development and valuations. Many Irish companies have scaled onto the international and global markets as a result.”
“I thank the Deputy for his question and interest in this area. We know how important it is. Recently, the Minister, Deputy Burke, launched the start-up Ireland programme, along with the seed and venture capital scheme. These two pillars are critical to the strategy to make Ireland one of the best places in Europe to start and scale a business. We have allocated over €28 million to start-up Ireland in 2026 to strengthen the start-up ecosystem. The seed and venture capital scheme has gone from strength to strength. The most recent review shows that we are making huge headway with regard to the number of additional jobs that have been created - over 4,300 since it was established in 1994. The review of the scheme from 2013 to 2022 provided up to €2.5 billion in gross value added.”
“The Minister, Deputy Burke, launched the latest cycle of the scheme in August 2024 which will run for the period 2025 to 2029. The Government agreed to an increase of €75 million on the previous cycle. That brings the total available to invest under the 2025 scheme to a record allocation of €250 million. The first open call for the current scheme closed in February 2025 and received a record number of applications, demonstrating that there is a high level of demand for finance to invest in Irish start-ups. Enterprise Ireland made its first commitments to the fund in quarter 4 of 2025. This will be followed by a period of further fundraising by the funds.”
“By providing access to finance at the critical start-up phase, the scheme has also played a very important role in developing the pipeline of talent, innovation and high-growth Irish-owned companies. It is funded through our Department and administered by Enterprise Ireland. The scheme operates by making commitments to selected venture capital funds which, in turn, make investments into high potential, innovative companies, according to their investment strategies. The funds are selected to align with national objectives and Enterprise Ireland's strategy. The fund managers participating in the scheme look for the best of Irish innovation, namely, companies that can compete on the global stage and which typically require significant equity investment to develop their products and services. The scheme operates in five-year cycles.”
“As set out in our Department's sectoral capital plan, I and my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Burke, published last week, ensuring a vibrant seed and venture capital market that supports high growth and market disruptive businesses at all stages of development from seed to follow-on is a key priority for this Government. The seed and venture capital scheme was established in 1994 and since then has invested €700 million to support and sustain national and regional innovation which, in turn, has leveraged €3.3 billion in private investment. The scheme's key purpose is to increase the supply of risk capital to Irish SME start-ups and scale-ups, to support their growth, leverage private sector investment and establish a robust, commercially viable and sustainable venture capital sector in Ireland.”
“We are very much focused on working with key State agencies, through Enterprise Ireland and the IDA, to ensure that we can continue investment across regions, including Louth. The most recently published report outlined that over 57% of all IDA investments, that is, 323 investments last year, were in the regions. That delivered huge positivity in the regions to ensure that people can work in their areas close to home. We have also committed a significant amount of research and development grants, totalling over €2.5 billion, to support 33,000 employees in terms of upskilling. We want to continue regional dispersion to address the imbalance in projects in urban areas while ensuring that the likes of Louth is also supported. There have been real success stories in retaining FDI investment in the area and bringing new investments to Louth.”
“That is the first step in activating the site, building on it and ensuring it is marketed correctly for the right sectors to ensure that jobs can go into the area. We are putting the public capital in place and ensuring that regional enterprise funding is allocated to each of the regions. We are supporting the IDA in that regard.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta. I acknowledge her question and her commitment to the people of Louth in regard to high-quality, skilled jobs. The Minister and I recently published the new national development plan and part of that capital plan is an emphasis on regional enterprise and supporting the regional ecosystem. That is around helping SMEs start, grow and scale, while supporting the IDA on next-generation FDI sites and on its regional property portfolio. That will strengthen innovation and capacity within the regions. With regard to County Louth, the IDA will commence the advanced building solution in Drogheda. It is also partnering with Meath County Council for the delivery of an advance planning permit for an ATB in Navan.”
“We know that investments by IDA Ireland client companies consistently generate high-quality, skilled jobs nationwide. It is significant that 183 investments, representing 57% of all investments in 2025, were in regional locations.”
“Employment in Kildare and Meath increased by 490 and 1,259, respectively, while employment in Louth and Wicklow decreased by 710 and 66, respectively. Over the period of its last strategy, 2021 to 2024, IDA Ireland supported the delivery of 973 investments and the creation of 76,790 jobs. Some 54% of these investments were won to regional locations. In the mid-east, 51 investments were won against a target of 40. Under the current strategy, the IDA is targeting 550 of a total 1,000 investments to regional locations, including 60 in the mid-east. The first year of this strategy, 2025, saw IDA Ireland achieving the highest ever number of investments, 323, a 38% increase on 2024, which are expected to create over 15,300 additional jobs in the coming years.”
“Regional development is a key focus of our programme for Government and is central to the work of my Department and our enterprise development agencies. The mid-east region, comprising Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow, is home to 126 IDA client companies employing 20,284 people. The mid-east has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across technology, life sciences, international financial services, and engineering and industrial technologies. The region has also won significant investment in the food and the film subsectors. FDI performance has been consistent over the six years requested by the Deputy, 2020 to 2025, with IDA-supported employment increasing by 973 people, or 5%, over that period.”
“Also, we are investing in regions, and that is through IDA Ireland’s Adapt Intelligently programme. We even see that a new advanced manufacturing facility is being progressed in County Mayo, in Castlebar, and the securing of a new land bank is being considered.”
“We are doubling down on skills development. Very much part of that is the fact that we are working with the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science on apprenticeships and training courses, expanding many of the skills within Springboard and Skillnet and working on digital and green skills. The results of IDA Ireland’s most recent report show there were over 183 investments, 57% of which were regionally based. That demonstrates how important it is to ensure we have the jobs outside our main cities. The facts do not lie. This comes on the back of our upskilling of many people, including students, right across the country. We have a commitment concerning over 33,000 employees, with a focus on the retention of skills.”
“The Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity, which will complement the successor to Pathways to Work, contains targeted activation measures to ensure that we will have the necessary skills and participation, and that we will remove any barriers that exist for those within our regions.”
“I acknowledge the significant buoyancy within our labour market. On the Deputy’s earlier point, it is not a matter of a song and dance; it is actual fact that we are very much creating balanced regional growth. That is evident from the high employment and rising participation rates right across the country. With 2.82 million people at work, a record level, we continue to implement good, sound Government policy. With regard to our regions, we have an open and highly mobile workforce. Remote working has certainly enhanced the attractiveness of working within the regions, with the activity in this regard very much related to urban companies. We will have the next iterations of the nine regional enterprise plans. These are bottom up and will be led by local stakeholders, focusing on key sectors. We will also ensure labour market resilience.”
“Nonetheless, over the past year we have seen some increases in regional unemployment rates, notably in the mid-west and Border areas, where the unemployment rates averaged 5.2% and 4.8%, respectively, over the first three quarters of 2025. Furthermore, the increases over the year in these areas were above the national average. At the same time, some areas saw a decline in unemployment, with the south-west region’s unemployment rate averaging 3.8%, well ahead of the national average, and the employment rate in the west averaging 5% over the first three quarters of 2025. Balanced regional development is a Government priority under my Department.”
“The overall robust employment performance reflects both the inherent dynamism within the economy and the success of Government policies aimed at supporting job creation, fostering innovation and providing opportunities for all sectors. Ireland’s labour market performance also compares very favourably with our European counterparts. In respect of the regions, this is something we have watched very closely. It is important to stress that the labour market here is very open and dynamic, with strong increases in labour supply. Furthermore, the prevalence of remote working and commuting patterns complicate comparisons across regions.”
“As the Deputy is aware, the programme for Government sets out a strong enterprise and fiscal framework that prioritises economic and employment growth and competitiveness, with a target to support the creation of 300,000 extra jobs by 2030. I am pleased to report that, one year on, the Irish labour market continues to record sustained employment growth, rising labour force participation and record job numbers last year, indicative of a resilient performance. In total, over 2.8 million people are now employed in Ireland with employment up 61,500 on average in the first nine months of last year. While this is a record level of employment, it is the case that the pace of job creation slowed as the year progressed.”
“With regard to the Government's commitment, in recent weeks we have seen huge announcements about investment in our electricity and energy system. It is unprecedented and akin to rural electrification. Over €18.6 billion is being invested to reinforce our grid through a number of capital projects. Over 500 capital projects will be delivered right across the country. We are very much focused on ensuring we can connect the over 300,000 new homes that we have committed to out to 2030, and on continuing to support enterprise and industry. We have heads of Bill for the private wires legislation coming before the House. That will go through committee and both Houses in 2026. It will certainly act as a catalyst for private investors to invest in electricity generation that can support many industries right across the country.”
“Deputy Brennan mentioned the excellent warmer homes scheme, which is supporting those who are finding it difficult to maintain rising energy bills. The scheme has one of the largest budgets into 2026, of over €230 million. It has been successful in that it has delivered over 7,700 grants to date. We are ramping up the number of contractors who can support the delivery of these warmer homes. We know how important it is to those who are waiting and who need these upgrades as quickly as possible.”
“On the first question, it is not accurate at this time to talk about increased energy prices. CBAM is still in a transitional phase. We are working very closely with the European Commission on adopting a simplification package - this arose in October - to clarify how we will be reporting and how carbon prices will be aligned. Until the Act is implemented or finalised early next year, any cost estimates would be speculative and misleading. We have a number of engagements with the European Commission. It is working very closely with the UK on how we carry carbon costs and how they are aligned to the EU emissions trading system price. We are very much focused on encouraging cleaner generation globally.”
“The simplification package that was published in February and adopted in October permits the European Commission to more accurately reflect the carbon price paid, including for imports from Britain, which Ireland welcomes. CBAM is currently evolving at a rapid pace. The week ending 12 December saw voting taking place on some of the implementing regulations and acts, and other votes are to follow in the days and weeks ahead. At this time, until the exact details are clear, any estimation regarding the cost of CBAM in relation to electricity imports is likely to be inaccurate. Overall, CBAM provides an opportunity for the electricity sector to embrace sustainability and contribute to environmental protection by positioning businesses as socially responsible and environmentally conscious players in the market.”
“CBAM is an instrument implemented by the European Union to address the risk of carbon leakage. The EU's ambition is to become climate neutral by 2050. CBAM will aim to ensure that imported goods are subject to a carbon price equivalent to the carbon price of domestic production in the EU. CBAM affects the electricity sector by putting a price on emissions associated with electricity produced in countries outside the EU and imported into the EU. It aims to encourage sustainable practices and reduce carbon footprint. For electricity importers, compliance with CBAM initially involves reporting direct emissions associated with electricity production as an imported good from third countries on a quarterly basis, relying on supplier information.”
“As I said earlier, unprecedented investment in our energy grid will support resilience and ensure we can get connections to those 300,000 homes we want delivered by 2030.”
“We hear the Deputy loud and clear on this side of the House. I acknowledge the tremendous work of all the operators and workers within ESB Networks who have gone above and beyond. We saw that during Storm Éowyn when they reassured us that they were working day and night to get supply back to many households. That is why the Government has responded. We have allocated over €1.5 billion to ESB Networks. That was approved through the national development plan and legislated for last month. That will, in one sense, lower finance costs for ESB Networks. It will support the delivery at pace. We want to see that in west Galway, Mayo and all across the country. We want to ensure we have limited impact across the network when we have severe weather events. We will continue that investment over the next number of years.”
“We also approved heads of a Bill in July for the ESB Networks' statutory corridor powers because we have had difficulties in the past accessing major works. That is certainly something we will prioritise into 2026.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising her concerns on behalf of her constituents in Connemara. That is why we published PR6 this week, which is one of the largest investments in the history of the State. More than 500 capital projects will be delivered as part of the programme and, as I said earlier, we are placing resilience at the centre of this policy to ensure we can deal with energy emergencies and severe weather events. That is why we established the national emergency co-ordination group, chaired by the Department of housing and a co-ordinated with a national response. That certainly aligns with energy actions. As I said earlier, we have introduced a number of operational measures and we need to continue to work with ESB Networks and EirGrid to build resilience into our network.”
“The national electricity and gas sectoral plans align with the aim of the critical entities resilience directive, to enhance the future resilience of the energy grid to the long-term impacts of climate change.”
“We are preparing legislation to enhance ESB Networks' powers to manage vegetation and the Government approved heads of a Bill in July. Work on advancing that legislation continues as a matter of priority. While those measures will have crucial short-term impacts, for the long term, significant investment in the electricity grid will support overall resilience. On Tuesday, 16 December 2025, the CRU published price review 6, PR6, which sanctions investment in the grid up to 2030. The CRU has proposed approval of an investment of up to €18.9 billion, with a €13.8 billion baseline investment guaranteed. Under the 2024 national adaptation framework, a new suite of sectoral adaptation plans across 13 key sectors, including electricity and gas networks, were recently approved and published by the Government.”
“The Government has taken steps with immediate and medium-term impact to improve the resilience of critical energy networks. In February 2025, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, asked ESB Networks to prepare a winter resilience plan to enhance the grid in the most vulnerable locations following Storm Éowyn. That plan was updated in October. Core work undertaken includes remedial work to the network; work with Coillte and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to identify segments of the network that are at the highest future risk; replenishing emergency stock, spare parts and materials; increasing staffing levels and available contractor resources; and establishing formal mutual aid arrangements for extreme weather events. ESB Networks is also increasing the number of access officers who engage with landowners on forestry works.”
“I appreciate the points raised by the Deputy and I will take them back to the Minister and the SEAI. The replacement of oil and gas boilers has been a challenge in that EU laws prohibit us to incentivise fossil fuel boilers from 2025. New boilers cannot be installed or supported through grant schemes. Replacement parts can be supported through local authorities for sure but the scheme itself is constricted on the basis of the fabric first principle, which relates to insulation, ventilation and then more complex technology. We will take the points back that the Deputy has raised today and try to fine tune them to meet the concerns of his constituents and the wider public.”
“I completely agree. The first principle of the SEAI warmer homes retrofit scheme is all about reducing bills, improving comfort for householders and ensuring that the vulnerable are part of and very much protected within Ireland's renewable energy transition. We have made significant progress on budgets. We increased the latest budget to record levels with over €230 million now under the warmer homes scheme. That has delivered 7,743 free upgrades. If we look at where we have come from, the average cost per household back in 2015 was €2,600 but it is over €29,000 today because we are tackling the worst performing homes first. To the Deputy's point, we are piloting the schemes in the ongoing review. More exploration is needed on how we integrate alternative technology for older homes to ensure those are protected.”
“The Government remains committed to ensuring that low-income households benefit from Ireland's renewable energy transition and we will continue to work with Deputies to explore how best to integrate other technologies into our energy poverty programmes.”
“The upgrades recommended for a particular property depend on many factors including age, size, type and the condition of the property. For each eligible home, the SEAI’s technical surveyor determines which upgrades can be installed and funded. The SEAI is currently piloting the installation of renewable technologies, including heat pumps, where major renovations are taking place under the scheme. These pilots are helping to assess the suitability of such technologies in the context of energy poverty and long-term value for money. The scope of upgrades under the scheme is kept under ongoing review and my Department continues to work closely with the SEAI to ensure we maximise the impact of resources available.”