Emer Higgins
Dublin Mid-West · Fine Gael · Ireland
“With regard to the background, and as the Senator has touched on, this project was designed on the basis of a 30-year operational lease, with the primary objective of delivering value for money over the lifetime of that lease.”
“Regarding the specific situation in Castlebar that the Senator has raised, Tusla has indicated that following careful consideration, including extensive negotiations, which he referred to, and legal mediation with the developers, it was unable to reach an agreement.”
“They came forward, often at enormous personal cost, and continued to seek answers and accountability when the very systems that should have protected them had failed. For many survivors of child sexual abuse, the abuse does not end when it stops.”
“The strongest projects are those that invest in feasibility studies, site assessments, stakeholder engagement and detailed design from the outset, because decisions made at the earliest stage often have the greatest impact on cost, quality and operational performance.”
“As a result, it made a significant uplift on its original offer. The additional increase sought could not be justified, however, when benchmarked against comparable projects across both Tusla and the HSE. That comes back to the value-for-money argument.”
“Justice Michael White for their significant work and acknowledge how deeply distressing the findings are. They reveal repeated missed opportunities, ignored warning signs and systemic failures that allowed abuse to occur over many years. Children who should have been protected were instead left vulnerable.”
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“That is a really worthwhile idea to explore. Based on the evaluation, and the Senator read out some of the statistics that came from that evaluation, AIM is now being extended on a phased basis as funding becomes available. As a first step in this extension, since the beginning of September last year, all AIM-targeted supports have been available to ECCE children beyond the time they spent in the ECCE programme. It is intended that over time all children with additional needs in early learning and childcare services will have access to supports under AIM. The next phase of expansion focuses on a redesign of AIM for children under three to meet the specific needs of the younger age cohort.”
“Senator Scahill referenced a family he is working with, where the mam is an occupational therapist providing much-needed services to children and, perhaps, even adults right across her CHO level. The Senator raised a really important point. The childcare hours of some families in that situation are unfortunately reduced as a direct correlation in relation to their needs. I thank the Senator for raising and escalating this issue here today. As I said, the AIM is under review and this is something I will definitely take back to the Minister, Deputy Foley.”
“Officials in the Department are currently considering the policy implications and appropriate mechanisms to extend AIM to children aged under three. It is critical that any extension of AIM supports for this cohort are evidence-based and reflective of their needs. It is intended that, over time, all children with additional needs registered in the early learning and care services will have access to supports under AIM. It is therefore intended to also give consideration at a later date to an extension of AIM to children attending school-age childcare. Such an extension will also need to meet the different needs of children in the older age cohort. Both extensions will obviously require additional funding through the annual budget process.”
“In line with the commitment in First 5, a whole-of-government strategy for babies, young children and their families for 2019 to 2028, an independent evaluation of AIM was undertaken in order to inform an extension of AIM beyond the early childhood care and education, ECCE, programme as well as any potential enhancements to the model. This is the review and extension the Senator called for and is something the Government is absolutely committed to. AIM has, as the Senator is aware, expanded beyond time spent in the ECCE programme, allowing children access to AIM targeted supports for an additional three hours a day during ECCE term and six hours outside of the ECCE term. The programme for Government, as the Senator campaigned for, commits to examining and expanding the AIM model and making it available to younger children.”
“AIM funding provides a suite of universal and targeted supports across seven levels. The universal supports are designed to create a more inclusive culture in early learning and care settings, through training courses and qualifications for staff. Where universal supports are not enough to meet the needs of an individual child, targeted supports are available. These include things like equipment, therapeutic supports, the facilitation of a lower ratio of children to staff in preschool rooms, or funding for an extra staff member as a shared resource where a child with additional needs is present. Access to AIM is based on the needs of the individual child. In the context of a preschool setting, that means they do not require a diagnosis.”
“It has been such a widely welcomed and much-needed support for families up and down the country, including, of course, in Roscommon. More than 35,000 children have received more than 80,000 targeted supports across 4,800 early learning and care services nationwide. The 2025 budget allocation for the access and inclusion model, AIM, was €80.9 million, which represented a 41% increase on the 2024 allocation. This significant increase reflected the Government's ongoing commitment to supporting children with disabilities and additional needs to meaningfully participate in early learning and care. The 2026 budget, which we just passed recently, further increases AIM funding to €86.5 million. That will ensure continued expansion and sustainability of supports for children, parents, carers and, of course, service providers.”
“I thank the Cathaoirleach for his warm wishes. I welcome everybody in the Gallery, and particularly Seán Keane, a transition year student who is working with me this week, and who is here to make sure I do a good job on this Commencement matter. At the outset, I wish to say I am taking this on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Foley. The Minister thanks Senator Scahill for raising this really important issue, and offering me the opportunity to respond on her behalf. Since 2016, as the Senator is aware, the access and inclusion model, AIM, has had a major impact on the lives of children with disabilities and the overall quality of learning and care. The Senator himself cited the statistic that 82% of parents and carers reported that AIM has benefited their child.”
“I really want the Senator and those living in his area to be aware that the funding is there and is being made available by Government. The reason it is being made available by Government is there is a huge willingness on the part of the Government to make sure we are investing in the Senator's region and in the transport network in his region as a clear priority. I again thank him for his advocacy on this and I will pass that on to the Minister for Transport.”
“I thank the Senator for his understanding on this. I appreciate that the response does not answer the question of when it will start. As he outlined, it is a very complex project but it is something the Government is absolutely committed to. It is important to note that €10.5 million in Exchequer funding has been allocated this year alone for the national road network in Galway city and county. For example, Galway County Council received over €5 million for capital protection and renewal, over €3 million for new roads and almost €1 million for the protection and renewal of current roads. Galway City Council received €592,000 for capital protection and renewal and current protection and renewal. There is a reason I outlined those statistics.”
“The Minister for Transport is confident that Galway City Council and TII will continue to work together to advance the delivery of this really important road project in the Senator’s region.”
“I have recently requested further information from Galway City Council, including an updated environmental impact assessment report and a Natura impact statement. Galway County Council submitted its response to this request by An Coimisiún Pleanála on 14 April. On 13 June, Galway County Council was informed that a further consultation would be required. A consultation period was held between 27 June and 1 August, and 28 submissions were received in response to that public consultation. As the Senator said, the next iteration of the NDP review means the Ministers now have to put their funding priorities in place and outline their plans for the coming years.”
“An Bord Pleanála subsequently took the decision not to oppose the judicial review taken by Friends of the Irish Environment against the decision to grant planning permission for the project. An Bord Pleanála stated that it took this decision on the grounds that the Government's most recent climate action plan was not taken into consideration before making the decision to grant permission. It was then for the High Court to decide whether to grant an order to quash the decision of the board. On 30 January 2023, the High Court quashed that decision to approve the scheme and remitted the application back before the board. An Coimisiún Pleanála will need to consider the application and make a new decision.”
“Benefits that the project could bring include increased accessibility to the west, a reduction in traffic volumes on the existing city road network and safer journeys for all road users in the city centre. The Senator clearly outlined that in his contribution. The Galway city ring road is a component of the Galway transport strategy. The Senator referred to the ring road as having a long and chequered history, and the Minister for Transport has provided me with the background to that. This scheme was submitted to An Bord Pleanála, which, of course, is now an coimisiún. It approved the scheme with conditions on 6 December 2021. Subsequently, there were three applications for judicial review submitted to the High Court, which imposed a stay on progressing the scheme.”
“Each line Minister has been given their capital funding allocation, and they are now putting together their priorities and their list. In the context of the national roads programme, the capital budget that is provided by the Department of Transport to TII is significant, and significant funding has been provided towards the development of the N6 Galway city ring road, which has been allocated €13.4 million since 2020, including €2.4 million this year alone. This is because it is a very important project. It acts as a gateway to Connemara and the western region, as the Senator pointed out, and that includes the large Gaeltacht areas. The optimisation of transport connectivity within Galway city is critical to help the region chart a steady course for economic growth.”
“As he will be aware, once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Acts 1993–2015, and in line with the national development plan, the planning, design, improvement and upgrade of individual national roads is a matter for TII in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. Ultimately, TII delivers the national roads programme in line with Project Ireland 2040 and the national planning framework as well as the NDP. The Senator spoke about the review of the NDP and he is right that we had a very big review of it in July this year. We put additional funding behind a new and even more ambitious national development plan for our country. Part of that involves investing in our roads network and our transport and infrastructure networks.”
“I thank Senator Kyne for tabling this important issue. The Minister for Transport has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding in relation to the national roads programme and he has asked me to take this matter on his behalf. I start by saying thank you to the Senator for his strong advocacy on behalf of Galway and Connemara over several years. He read out a huge list of areas where progress is happening, projects that are being delivered and funding that has been in place. This is down to strong local advocacy, so I thank the Senator for that.”
“It is very difficult for parents, students and staff to be caught in this loop where they are still waiting for the next phase. All I can say is I will absolutely raise it with the Minister and ask when the design will be finalised and when it will go to tender. Once it goes to tender, the Senator will have a much clearer indication of what that timeline looks like and will, at that point, be in a better position to be able to keep students, staff and parents informed. I thank her for her ongoing work on this matter. I know it is something that is very dear to her heart as a past pupil. It is something I will pass on to the Minister for education.”
“I thank the Senator for outlining that situation in relation to the primary school and safer routes. That is obviously a big programme the Government is investing in. We want to encourage more children to walk, cycle or be dropped safely at their schools. I am very disappointed to hear that any delays with the secondary school might be having an impact on the primary school. I will raise that directly with the Minister for Education and Youth. Surely, there is a way we can make sure that whatever footpaths will not be disturbed during the construction phase of Coachford, can at least be done now to protect and enable Safer Routes to School for those primary school children. I thank the Senator for raising that. I fully appreciate her frustration with this. It is 2020 since funding was approved. That is a long time.”
“In relation to the roll-out of large-scale projects, which the school referenced by the Senator is, and additional school accommodation schemes, the approach will be to continue to maximise the capacity of the existing school estate as much as possible, in the first instance, and then provide necessary additional accommodation through targeted and prioritised project roll-out over the course of next year right up to 2030. It will be prioritised on the basis of urgent need. This school has been in the system a long time. It has its funding and planning. There is a very clear case, which the Senator again put forward and is on the record of the House today. I will absolutely feed that back to the Minister and ask that it be prioritised.”
“About 80% of new special classes in 2025 and 2026 are being accommodated in repurposed classroom accommodation. In July, the Government announced a capital allocation of €7.5 billion for the Department of Education and Youth for the period from 2026 to 2030 under the new NDP. As part of that allocation, the Department will place a very strong emphasis on the provision of education for children with special educational needs, with a particular focus on meeting annual school place needs.”
“At this juncture in the project, it is unfortunately not feasible to give an indicative time for delivery because it has not gone to tender yet. The Department will continue to engage directly with Cork ETB to provide assistance in regard to the project as required. Since 2020, the Department has invested over €6 billion in schools throughout the country under the national development plan, which initiated in my own Department. It involves the completion of over 1,300 school building projects. In addition, repurposing and optimisation of existing accommodation capacity across the school estate has been a key enabler of timely and local provision of special class capacity in a way that supports best practice in inclusion and integration.”
“The project has been devolved for delivery to Cork ETB, which has appointed a design team to design the accommodation being provided through the various stages of architectural planning. Projects progress from stage to stage in accordance with the project brief and the Department's design guidelines. The project for Coachford Community College is currently at stage 2b. That is the post-planning process. As the Senator said, funding was approved in 2020 and planning was approved in 2023. At this point, the architectural process will allow for the detailed design and planning to obtain the necessary statutory permissions for the preparation of the tender documents. The next stage will be the tender.”
“This week's Cabinet meeting was moved from yesterday to today to facilitate the presidential inauguration and, for that reason, the Minister for education has asked me to take this matter on her behalf this morning. She has asked me to update the Senator and the House on the current position regarding the planned school building at Coachford Community College in Coachford, County Cork. As the Senator has said, it has been approved as a major devolved project to deliver a new school building for a long-term projected enrolment of 1,000 pupils. I note she said there are 850 pupils in the school already and that figure is growing. When it is finished, this school will be able to accommodate that growth trajectory. It will also have a four-classroom special education needs base.”
“I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I know it is very dear to her heart. It was her own secondary school that she attended. It is very commendable that as a past pupil, she is here in the House and enabled to advocate for and represent her community and her former school. I will take this opportunity to welcome students from St. Joseph's College to the Seanad. I hope they find this debate an interesting one. Their school was in this situation a number of years ago. Thankfully, the Tánaiste opened a brand-new school recently. It takes a very long time, as the staff and students of St. Joseph's College will attest to, but it happens eventually.”
“Local people were appalled and frightened by the violence and disruption brought to the community in recent weeks. They are still being impacted because the onsite gym and restaurant in Citywest remain closed on foot of Garda advice. Over 3,000 paid-up members are missing gym sessions. These are small things but they matter to people's quality of life and morale. People just want to be heard on this. We need trust in the system maintained.”
“We need a permanent increase in Garda visibility in Saggart and Citywest, as Councillor Shirley O'Hara and I have continued to advocate for. We need investment in amenities like St. Mary's. We need to make sure resources move in line with population growth. We do not have enough public health nurses or SNAs in the area. We do not have any youth service. Those are the kind of real services we could deliver in order to keep up with population growth. That is what the residents, businesses, education providers and sports clubs I engage with want. It is a very reasonable ask of the Saggart Village Residents Association. No one is asking for things they do not deserve or for special treatment; they are asking for what is fair and just.”
“Before and since the horrific alleged assault on a young girl in Citywest and the outbreak of deplorable violence, I have been out speaking with local people, business owners and services providers in Saggart. I hear their frustration, worry and upset but I also hear their compassion. The people I speak to do not want division or labels. They just want fairness and information and that is the very least they deserve. For months I have been raising with the Minister the need for permanent gardaí for Citywest and Saggart. I have raised the need for stronger local supports and I have been working closely with the Minister's engagement team. I have had meeting after meeting and call after call. I have met with residents groups on the ground and brought their feedback to more meetings and calls. Now we need to respond and take action.”
“In my own constituency of Dublin Mid-West, particularly in Saggart, but also in Lucan, Clondalkin, Brittas and Palmerstown, people have been decent and compassionate. These communities have been patient and they have been fair. They have done their part. They have more than stepped up. In return, they are asking for something very reasonable, which is for the State to step up too. They want clear communication, proper planning and services that keep pace with population growth - joined-up policy. They know better than any of us what the pressure points are and what supports are needed. We cannot just ask for their feedback and ideas; we need to act on it and respond to it.”
“However, if we truly want to rebuild public trust and confidence in the system, we cannot just talk about national policies. We need to focus local because that is where policy becomes reality. Policy becomes real in communities, on people's doorsteps, in schools, in GP waiting rooms, on the street and in local facilities. That is where trust is built or lost. That is why we need to rethink what community engagement looks like in practice. It cannot just be treated as a procedural step. It is what makes or breaks a community’s trust in our system. Alongside clear decisions, we need real community investment and practical support on the ground. Take my own community, for example.”
“That is because services and decision-making have not kept up. As a result, confidence in the system's ability to keep up has been shaken. People want a process that is firm, fair and credible, and a system that acts quickly. If someone has a legal right to be here, the Department should make that decision quickly and support them to settle in well and contribute positively to society. Equally, if someone does not have the legal right to remain here, the State must act promptly and deport them. This is how rules-based systems work in any functioning democracy. I acknowledge the work under way by Government and the clear commitment, especially that shown in recent days and weeks, to strengthen our system, make it more efficient and ensure decisions are timely and fair.”
“Migration, when managed well and planned well, works well. We see that in the people who staff our hospitals and care homes, those working on our building sites and buses, in our restaurants and hotels and across the local services we all depend on, and in entrepreneurs running businesses and employing people in our communities. I am truly grateful for the contributions many of those people make to our society, communities and economy every day. I am also very conscious that some people who arrive here do not come by choice; they come because they are fleeing conflict, persecution or deep instability. They come here seeking shelter and safety. There is another truth people feel in their day-to-day lives. They feel that right now the pace and scale of migration is too fast in many communities.”
“To test the full capabilities of the 5G standards, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer built a private 5G network core that implements the most recent standards for which the public protection and disaster relief, PPDR, services are deployed and tested. Those standards became known as mission critical communications. They will provide an equivalent feature set to that seen on the Trans-European Trunked Radio, TETRA, networks, for example, push-and-talk functionality in emergency situations.”
“Absolutely. It was fantastic to meet public health nurses from the HSE who advised that they had clients in rural island communities who were badly impacted by people's inability to communicate directly with emergency services or the ability of emergency services to co-ordinate. That is what this initiative will help to resolve. Any systems deployed for the emergency services have strict requirements for both bandwidth and latency. That is to ensure the highest level of service is always achieved. From the time a radio call button is pressed by a garda anywhere in the country to when it is complete, it is less than 300 milliseconds. That is kind of critical component of infrastructure we are talking about.”
“Components of the Irish system have already been deployed in recent years as part of the recovery and resilience facility project 2.5 and the remaining components will be installed to meet whatever timeline is ultimately agreed with the European Commission. As I said, that is likely to happen on our watch, during the EU Presidency.”
“I thank the Deputy for that feedback. I will double-check but it is my understanding that they would well be able to use it. I met with members of the Civil Defence based in Mayo who were already part of that active trial and it is great to see that the community initiatives are also built into it. For the Deputy's information, the European Commission is proposing to bring in legislation next year that will formulate that entire system. It is likely that will happen during the Irish EU Presidency. That will give us a great opportunity to influence this. Ireland will then co-ordinate with the European Commission to agree a date to have its sub-system in place.”
“It was a maritime scenario where they looked at a Coast Guard vessel that was five miles offshore and they were able to make sure they were able to receive real-time video streaming from an aircraft. This was done using satellite technology. It was done using satellite-enabled links that are designed to provide communication connectivity even if terrestrial networks fail. It was successfully trialled. It is part of the broader European critical communications system. I can give the Deputy more information in my next contribution.”
“I suppose that identified communities, in particular, rural communities, and especially the island communities, which were vulnerable in a situation where our already resilient systems unfortunately were unable to perform because of power failure. The mission critical communications system, which was under the EU resilience fund, was built as a system of systems to be able to make sure that our lines are fully resilient. We tested it in September. That happened in Westport. Both I and the Minister, Deputy Chambers, were delighted to be able to join emergency services' colleagues not only from Ireland but from across the EU, who together ran a live testing.”
“I thank the Deputy for this question. I am pleased to advise that officials are actively discussing the launch of the Irish component of the EU critical communications system with the European Commission with a view to Ireland becoming an early adopter of this. I hope the Deputy will be pleased to know that six weeks ago Government launched a new mission critical communications system that was built by Vodafone in partnership with the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer. It has been set up to be able to help emergency services, such as An Garda Síochána, the Fire Service, the National Ambulance Service, the Coast Guard, Civil Defence, to be able to communicate and co-ordinate effectively through more resilient challenges. The Deputy mentioned Storm Éowyn.”
“His work ethic, integrity and genuine compassion have always been at the heart of how he serves. During our darkest days, Simon led our nation through the Covid-19 pandemic. He transformed how we deliver apprenticeships and on behalf of the people of Ireland, he recognised the State of Palestine, creating ripple effects which led to the UK, Canada and Australia following suit. Simon represents us with distinction at home and abroad and diplomacy has never been more important than it is in today's geopolitical climate. It has never been more important that good people with good intentions go into politics than it is in today's negative political climate. We need more people like Simon. We need more people with his courage, commitment and compassion. I have absolute and full confidence in him as Tánaiste.”
“I acknowledge that at the centre of this issue is heartache. This is personal for children with scoliosis on waiting lists and their families. It should not be a moment of division or political point scoring. It needs to be a moment of doubling down on our efforts to deliver for them. The tragic death of Harvey Morrison Sherratt touched the lives of people across Ireland. We think of his parents, Gillian and Stephen, and their families and the parents and families of children who need and deserve better access to improved services. All Simon Harris has ever wanted to do is improve access to better public services. That is why in 2009, he stood for election to Wicklow County Council. Policies were personal to him. Since then he has devoted his entire career and adult life to improving public services.”
“I will take this opportunity to thank the officials in the Department of Finance and my own Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, who worked tirelessly to put this budget together. Many of them worked all weekend and late into the night Monday or into early Tuesday morning.”
“Lone-parent households and single people of retirement age will experience permanent income gains of between 1.9% and 4%. That analysis is available on page 16 of the expenditure report. Many Members welcomed the change in the means test disregard for carer's allowance. That is very welcome. Senator Ruane raised a very interesting point regarding the 18.5 hour limit and asked whether it should be looked at in view of the changing thresholds. That is certainly something I will bring back to the Minister, Deputy Dara Calleary. I hope that covers most of the responses. Every year, the Government is presented with complex choices as to how best manage our budget to deliver progress towards a more inclusive, resilient and prosperous Ireland. With that in mind, I was very happy to engage today.”
“It is about protecting those jobs and supporting those people. Senator Ruane mentioned a number of statistics that show that poverty rates are projected to increase this year in comparison to last year but they are then expected to reduce next year in comparison to this year. That is based on the income measures brought in through this budget. Page 15 of the expenditure report sets out the impact of the budget on household incomes. A key priority of this budget is to provide assistance and support to the most vulnerable. The chart on page 15 clearly shows that the measures announced in the budget will have the greatest impact on the households in income deciles 1 to 4. The analysis in the expenditure report also shows the impact of the measures on different household types.”
“However, there are between 500 and 550 beds when we take hospitals and community services together, so it is worth looking at them holistically. There will also be an additional staff of 3,300, which is very welcome, as well as more nursing home beds. From a defence perspective, retention is an issue. Moving to level of ambition 2 is part of dealing with that. From a sport perspective, the point on referees is good feedback. I will take that on board. On the national minimum wage, the Government has accepted the unanimous report of the Low Pay Commission. The commission, which comprises our social partners, unanimously recommended this increase to the minimum wage and we accepted that. As was mentioned, many of those on the minimum wage or low wages work in our hospitality sector. That is what that 9% is about.”
“As Senator Kyne said, it is brilliant that the Government has invested in order to reduce the cost of childcare in recent years, but it is access to childcare that is the biggest issue. We need to resolve that next before we go back to childcare costs. From a disability perspective, there was a huge increase in the disability budget of, I think, 19%. Senator Rabbitte asked when that money will be felt in communities, which is a valid point. I will bring that back to the Minister. It is worth noting that part of that funding will include an extra 1,000 staff, which will bring the figure up to 23,500 in the workforce in that area. That is very welcome. I know the Senator did a lot of work in this area in her previous role. From a health perspective, Senator Tully mentioned the 220 beds in hospitals.”
“Regarding school transport, my understanding is that 170,000 children will avail of the school transport next year, and that is what is budgeted for. From a national childcare scheme perspective, we now have an additional 35,000 children covered under that scheme. The issue of community centres was raised as a concern from a childcare perspective. In my own constituency, many community centres also offer ECCE and national childcare schemes, and that works well. It is also worth noting there was an increase of 8,400 in the AIMS childcare programme. I agree that access to childcare is a huge issue. Earlier this week, I was pleased to open a new crèche in my constituency, the First Steps Academy at St. Edmunds, Lucan. We need to make sure more crèches are opening up, and that is the reality.”
“In my own constituency, when I was speaking to principals last night, it was very welcomed. I think this money is very well invested in the people who take care of the children in our schools. The measure regarding therapists in schools was welcomed. One of the questions that Senator Tully asked was where those therapists will come from. I assure her that we have also funded additional college places. As part of this budget, there are 1,100 additional college places between medicine, healthcare and therapies, which is welcome. There were many questions on DEIS+. There is €16.5 million allocated for it, and the Department of education is putting together the detailed information as to what that will look like. I know a committee was established and has been working on this over recent months.”
“We also have the €1 million that is earmarked for the national biodiversity plan, the nature restoration plan and the action plans behind them. Flood alleviation was mentioned. That funding is very welcome in the constituency of Senator Rabbitte and many constituencies up and down the country. Many speakers referred to the expansion of the living city initiative, which is to be welcomed. Senator Maria Byrne made the point that we need to look at it from a red tape perspective, and that is feedback I will certainly pass on. The defective blocks issue was raised. There is €293 million for housing remediation in this budget, which includes apartment defects, pyrite and defective concrete blocks. With regard to education, there was a broad welcome for the capitation grant increase.”
“There was a question about the residential zoned land tax and asking for a note on it. I will certainly ask for that. My understanding is that active farmers now have the opportunity to apply to the local authority to dezone their land, and the local authorities have until June to make a decision on that. That is as it was last year, and it has been extended to this year. There was also a query regarding the local government task force and whether I could get further information on that. I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, for that. Concerns were raised by Senator Noonan on heritage and biodiversity. I am pleased that we have €196 million for conservation and heritage. The National Parks and Wildlife Service is a beneficiary of that.”
“It looks at things like performance indicators, equality and well-being. Members will find a lot of information on the budget there. It was great to hear people talk about the investment in our economy in terms of the role of the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Údarás na Gaeltachta, as well as the entrepreneurs, employers and workers who have got us to a point where we have such a good and strong economy. I take on board the point that we need to continue to invest in tourism, Fáilte Ireland and the spin-off trade. I hope Senator Martin Conway will agree that Fáilte Ireland and tourism were beneficiaries in this budget. There were a number of comments in relation to housing, which is welcome because housing is one of the biggest challenges facing the Government. Record funding was invested in the housing budget this year.”