Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin
Wicklow-Wexford · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“This is Groundhog Day in terms of school transport. It is the same as last year. The only thing that has changed in the school transport system is the families affected. We are still inundated with emails from frustrated parents from Rathdrum to Kilmuckridge. Children who have always qualified have suddenly been refused tickets.”
“Children in Coláiste Bhríde, Carnew, who had always received transport were told no service was available, but when we contacted the provider, it said that a service was available. The waiting time to hear back from Bus Éireann is unacceptable.”
“Irish author Emma Donoghue stated, "They are robbing us in hopes of replacing us." That is a shocking statement. Irish artists, writers, musicians, actors, composers and performers are being ripped off by big tech billionaires through plagiarism or, to give it the proper term, theft.”
“They tell our stories and shape national identity. However, they are now forced to take on some of the world's largest tech companies simply to vindicate their rights. It is creating a dystopian nightmare. We have to stop it.”
“Higgins, Joseph O'Connor, Gerry Adams, Anne Enright, Colm Tóibín and Sally Rooney. We need to see action on this in Ireland and at a European level to protect artists' rights and income, respect their creativity and defend their livelihoods. It has to stop now.”
“I highlight the serious case of a ten-year-old called Poppy, whose experience is a compelling example of a wider service failure for children in my constituency of Wicklow-Wexford, which covers south Wicklow and north Wexford.”
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“The imported grain is substandard and often genetically modified. It is coming in with blackgrass, which is an invasive species. That is not to mention the huge carbon footprint of all this importation of food. As Deputy Carthy mentioned earlier, we are insanely planning with Mercosur to flood the European market with 99,000 tonnes of untraceable beef produced in South America on land that was once rainforest. It is insane. At the same time, Irish farmers are highly regulated. If things do not change, we could face a food shortage in years to come. A tillage farmer who contacted me in my area, Thomas Kenny, wants to hand the baton on to his son, Tomás, who is 15 years old and who I used teach.”
“Mass importation of products is not the vision of our patriotic founding fathers, the 1916 Proclamation or the Democratic Programme of the First Dáil - politicians who wanted us to have some level of economic independence. However, Ireland is slowly becoming a dependent vassal state, not an independent and sovereign one that our patriots gave their lives for. Ireland has stopped growing grain for human consumption, such as flour, would you believe. It imports the majority of it: approximately 69% from the UK, 11% from Germany, and 8% from France. That is why I salute the farmers in the south east who, last week, attempted to blockade a boat coming into Wexford with 300,000 tonnes of foreign barley. Direct action is one good thing we are importing from France and we need to see more of it.”
“Of course, the Government closed down our own fertiliser industry in Arklow in 2002. Only three years later, they torpedoed the sugar beet industry in the south east and beyond. However, unbelievably, barley now costs the same as it did in 1974, the year that Abba won the Eurovision Song Contest and I started school. That was the price back then and it has not changed. It is crazy stuff. We use approximately 300,000 tonnes of grain in the drinks industry annually. We know that we do not have enough grain in Ireland, so at the very minimum, we should be using all Irish grain first before mass importation. Would the Government not agree on this? It is fairly obvious.”
“Tillage farmers, as the Minister of State knows, are in deep crisis. The question I want to ask is whether the Government will introduce a proper area-based payment tillage incentive scheme. Currently, the Government is giving just €40 per acre while it needs to be at least €100 per acre or €250 per hectare, as requested by the farming organisations. It really needs to be done as a matter of urgency in this crisis. Irish farmers are being fleeced with rising input costs, machinery costs, fertiliser, sprays, diesel and other things in the local hardware shop that they are buying. They have less money to spend locally so we are all being affected, directly or indirectly. Fertiliser prices have tripled since the Ukrainian war so I am just wondering how can farmers withstand this.”
“As Irish people, the attempted eradication of an indigenous people in a colonial land grab, which is basically what this is, is not alien to us. What can we do today? We need to do all we can immediately to protect the lives of our own citizens, do all we can to get the humanitarian aid into Gaza and enact the occupied territories Bill in full as well as pushing for every form of international sanction that is possible and that we can legally do against this psychotic entity that calls itself Israel. We must act immediately.”
“I have heard of tanks driving and reversing over heavily pregnant women for sport, doctors being followed home from hospitals by drone systems in order that the Israeli forces can target and blow up their families, and children carrying the emaciated body parts of other dead children on their backs. We have seen stuff that we thought was unimaginable. It is psychotic and it is livestreamed into the palms of our hands. Unfortunately, it has been done with the complicity and the active assistance of the western powers, whether we like to admit it or not. While it has taken a genocide for the Irish Government to start taking meaningful action, we do now have the opportunity to become a leading voice for peace and justice in the world, owing to our own history of genocide, plantation and forced starvation.”
“Those on board the humanitarian aid flotilla are under clear and present danger as it approaches the coast of Gaza today. Our own Senator Chris Andrews and Barry Heneghan, TD, are on board. We know that Israel has no bottom line - anything goes, basically - and that, previously, it killed nine people on board a humanitarian aid flotilla, so we must act immediately. Over 20 years ago, I experienced the hospitality of the people of Gaza and the West Bank. It is hard to imagine what may have become of those who warmly welcomed me back then. The unrelenting bombardment, the unimaginable brutality, the psychotic blood lust of a state that is using children's body parts for sniper target practice while they are being deliberately starved - it is like something out of The Hunger Games .”
“They are ripping the very fabric of Ireland apart. They are ripping society apart. The Government is doing absolutely nothing about it while at the same time letting companies make 17% profit margins. For over a decade, my colleague here in front of me, Pearse Doherty, and Sinn Féin in general have been producing legislation to end this great insurance rip-off, yet the Government simply will not act on it. I have no idea why. The Government needs to support the legislation tonight, rein in these cowboys, stand up to them, make them accountable and force them to pass on the obscene profits they are making to the people they are ripping off. We are all getting ripped off by this. It is absolutely changing the fabric of Irish society. The Government has to support this legislation tonight.”
“Many of those people were those who were already struggling to hold on to their insurance. A lot of people I know are dropping their health insurance and coverage at the moment. Home insurance costs are crazy. Public liability costs are forcing the closure of businesses and the ending of many community events that make Ireland what it is. Four years ago, in my area, a local children's recreational park in County Wicklow faced closure due to skyrocketing insurance costs, which were hiked from €26,000 to €88,000, which is incredible, despite the company not having made one single claim. Another town in Wicklow that used to hold great summer festivals no longer does so due to the high cost of public liability insurance. Basically, rocketing insurance costs and burdensome regulations in Ireland are operating in an insurance cartel's paradise.”
“The insurance rip-off, which is what it is, affects every single household, every motorist, every business, every community and every group across this land. We are all getting fleeced by a cartel of insurance companies that are making two to three times more profit here in Ireland than they are in other countries. It is a gangster's paradise basically. That is not speculation; it is fact. It hiked up motor insurance by a massive 11.5% last year, four times the rate of inflation. Many young people in my area of rural north Wexford and south Wicklow have to have a car to get to work but are getting punished by these gangsters for driving to work. Health insurance costs that a lot of people are forced to have - over 2.5 million people in the State have to have private health insurance now - have been hiked by over 50% on pre-Covid levels.”
“Let us ensure that the next generation is informed, supported and safeguarded from the dangers of nicotine addiction, which is orchestrated in a very manipulative way by the tobacco industry. I would appreciate whatever the Minister of State can do on this issue.”
“In Ireland, an estimated 12.5 million disposable vapes were sold in 2022, most of which ended up in landfill as plastic waste. Vaping is far from harmless. It poses serious health and environmental risks. Of course, as always, the same industries that profited from tobacco addiction for decades, going back to the fifties when they told us how great smoking was for us, are now aggressively targeting a new generation of customers. We must take action. We need to protect youth through education, regulation and awareness. Sinn Féin wants to see legislation introduced in this Chamber to regulate the marketing of vapes and ban disposable vapes, which are basically the equivalent of smoking a battery. They are in the most dangerous form, both for children's health and the environment.”
“Companies are manipulating young people, as mentioned, through clever marketing tactics, having vapes cheaper than cigarettes and as my colleague, Deputy Ward, said, in appealing flavours, designs and colours, and a very strong social media presence, especially on TikTok and other platforms. Irish research showed that 23% of 15- to 17-year-olds vape regularly and teenagers who vape are three to five times more likely to start smoking compared with those who never vaped. Vapes are also harmful to the environment. In the UK, 5 million disposable vapes are thrown away every week, so we then have plastic, heavy metals, nicotine, salts and lithium batteries in the environment. As I said, most of the popular vape brands are owned by the big tobacco companies.”
“I will also highlight the growing concern about vaping and nicotine use among young people. While vapes are often marketed as safer alternatives to smoking, the reality is far more troubling. Vapes and similar products, such as nicotine pouches, pose a very serious health risk, particularly for young people whose brains are still developing. This scourge of modern society, as we could call it, is nearly everywhere. They are sold in every local shop, as previous contributors mentioned. In my constituency, there are dedicated vape shops in Gorey and Arklow. Vapes pose serious health risks. They can lead to nicotine addiction affecting brain development, mood, concentration and memory. They contribute to health issues, mental health issues and a transition to smoke and tobacco products.”
“We know most companies lost one or maybe two drivers due to Bus Éireann's illogical regulation on people over the age of 70, which is age discrimination really. If a person qualifies medically, then he or she should be allowed to drive. Such drivers, for example, can come in later in the year and bring the children on a school tour as long as it is on a private bus. We can all see this is a kind of nonsense. Once they have passed the medical test that should be sufficient. It needs to change. We just need to return to having a bit of common sense in this country. It seems to be not so common these days.”
“Does anyone from Bus Éireann actually drive these routes or do they use artificial intelligence or online maps for the mapping system? Something must change. Another parent contacted us from the Arklow area. They have three children all travelling into a school in Arklow. One is in the CBS and two are in St. Mary's. One child gets a ticket but the other two have been taken off the route they have always used and put onto another route that has no bus. The parent now has to follow the school bus with her two children in the car. You could not make this stuff up. Private bus companies are pulling out at the last minute as they feel it is not worth their while dealing with Bus Éireann due to costs.”
“The provider is close to the Castletown area and he would be able to cover the 15 children I mentioned in a 25-minute route if he was given approval. We have so many empty buses and children with no bus seats. We are also dealing with another case, which is in the Kiltealy to Ballindaggan and Bunclody area. There are ten children with no bus seats. Parents from Ferns to Bunclody are paying up to €1,300 per year to a private company. There are others in the Ballygarrett and Monamolin areas of Wexford. I have contacted the Minister's office about the issue and we provided names and contact details so they would be investigated. The Minister has committed this, which is very welcome. With Bus Éireann where is the joined-up thinking?”
“In my 34 years as a primary school teacher, and having been on three secondary school boards, this is probably the worst year I can recall in terms of school transport chaos. My office is inundated with messages and calls, mostly in relation to transport for children with special needs. I could give numerous examples such as the 15 children who are today without a school bus place for Castletown National School near the Wicklow-Wexford border. Most of the children had a bus seat for years but now have none. This makes no sense. We have provided help to a bus operator who submitted a tender over six months ago but had not been contacted by Bus Éireann until we intervened. Now he has a tender but there is currently no route for him to bid on.”
“When she went back at the age of 25 because she was still having problems, she was told recently that she does not have that either. At the meeting, we heard many similar stories from County Wexford about maltreatment and young women who had been rendered infertile from it. It is time to end the suffering and silence, to stop exporting this problem and instead to build our own centre of excellence because endometriosis is affecting one in ten women. This is the least they deserve.”
“It was that bad that when they opened her up, they could not find her womb. The endometriosis covered her bowels as well. She is now aged 69 and still suffering because of endometriosis, which is this unspoken disease that we are supposed to believe is non-existent. Sadly, little or nothing has changed in 40 years. My personal assistant's daughter, Sarah, also suffers severe pain, bleeding three weeks every month, yet “the experts” did not listen to her or her mother despite knowing their history. At the age of 18, she got off the DART, went to the accident and emergency department and sat there until she was listened to. She was diagnosed with endometriosis, had a tilted womb and also a sister condition, adenomyosis.”
“The Arklow meeting was full of harrowing accounts from women who had been suffering in silence. We heard stories from three generations in one family, a mother, daughter and granddaughter. One such story came from the political assistant in my office, Nicola, who is from County Wicklow. She spoke about her symptoms from her early teens and her first surgery at the age of 16. After five surgeries to laser off the endometriosis, she was told to have a child at the age of 22 because that might help. However, she ended up losing her ovary to endometriosis in her early thirties. Nicola’s mother, Phil, suffered constant pain as a young women. Like many other women, she was told that it was only women’s problems and to get on with it. At 34 years of age, she had a full hysterectomy after being diagnosed with endometriosis.”
“Cuirim fáilte roimh mhná na hÉireann atá thuas san Áiléar Poiblí anocht. Tá céad míle fáilte rompu. Like most men, I knew very little about the silent problem of endometriosis until we held a meeting in Arklow recently for the Wicklow-Wexford constituency. It certainly was an eye-opener for me. I am sure it would be for most men, and for many women as well. We heard so many heartbreaking stories one after the other of women not only having to battle with chronic excruciating pain, but also having to endure the trauma of having to fight for a diagnosis in the first place, to be listened to and to get adequate treatment. That is simply not good enough in 2025. No one should be forced to fight to be believed, to be diagnosed or to receive proper care.”
“It will mean the difference between going to college or not. As we all know, tá Éire thar a bheith saibhir faoi láthair. We are awash with money. We have the financial resources and it makes economic sense to invest in our people. The Government needs to turn back on this and go in the opposite direction on fees. It should be reducing them as promised. Speaking as a teacher of 34 years, I believe education is a right and should be free and available to everyone. We would do well to remember the famous words of Benjamin Franklin, "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance." I call on my fellow Deputies in Wexford-Wicklow, namely, Deputies Brian Brennan and Malcolm Byrne of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, respectively, to support Sinn Féin's motion this week. It is important for them to do so.”
“It was the last thing students and their parents needed or expected to hear because promises were made not only in the election campaign but in black and white in the programme for Government. Bhí mic léinn agus a gcuid tuismitheoirí i gContae Chill Mhantáin agus i gContae Loch Garman i dteagmháil liomsa agus bhí siad thar a bheith buartha faoi seo. Worried students and parents across Wexford and Wicklow have contacted me as they had made decisions based on the commitment the fees would not go up. That was the expectation. As the Minister will know, County Wexford, my own county, has one of the lowest rates of third-level access. Mar sin, is buille uafásach trom é seo. It is a blow to the families that simply had not planned for this extra €1,000 per student. This will impact tens of thousands of students across the State.”
“The Government plan to hike fees by 50% or €1,000 in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis represents a betrayal of the students up in the Gallery, whom I welcome, and their parents. I am sure they will not forget this. Tá géarchéim costais mhaireachtála uafásach againn in Éirinn faoi láthair. Tá daoine ag fulaingt agus faoi bhrú mór. The cost-of-living crisis is raging and, instead of helping the students and their parents, the Government is adding fuel to the fire. The hike proposed nine days ago sent real fear throughout households that fees will go up by €1,000 as there will be no cost-of-living package in the budget this year. Chuir sé seo isteach ar go leor mac léinn agus a gcuid tuismitheoirí.”
“It did not have Government approval and it certainly does not have the approval of the Irish people. We must also assist in the efforts towards peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and a commitment to encourage Ukrainians to return to their homeland once peace is restored. Taking three significant proposed regulations as part of one debate on a quiet Thursday afternoon in July shows no commitment whatsoever to sovereignty, democracy or ensuring proper scrutiny. Ireland should not opt into these motions under Article 3, as proposed by the Government, under any circumstances.”
“This is alarming and it should be a wake-up call for anyone who thinks it makes sense to hand the Government a blank cheque in relation to such regulations. For Sinn Féin, the issue comes down to sovereignty. This is paramount, considering the three motions under question today. We see a constant drip-drip handing over of our sovereignty to the EU. This undermines democracy and our ability as a country to act in the best interests of the Irish people. Unless there is a compelling reason to the contrary, Ireland should be making its own decisions on the issues for consideration in these motions, which are, basically, designation of safe countries of origin, designation of safe third countries and the transition of Ukrainians out of temporary protection, which we must expedite. It is crazy to extend this to March 2027.”
“Unfortunately, it is a growing trend of the Government to seek to opt into EU measures in areas of freedom, security and justice where Ireland enjoys the right to opt out. This shows shocking disregard for Irish sovereignty. Crucially, once a country opts in, it cannot opt out. The withdrawal of the motion, with only 24 hours' notice, on the returns regulations reinforces everything that Sinn Féin has been saying from the very beginning, namely, that we should not opt into such motions under Article 3 of Protocol No. 21. It is concerning that the Government was planning to push through an Article 3 opt-in on a regulation where it has now been revealed that Ireland's manner of participation is still under discussion with EU counterparts.”
“Eurodac would help with tackling child trafficking into Ireland for sexual exploitation, a scandal that was well documented in the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, IHREC, evaluation report on progress to combat human trafficking. We know that the vast majority of Irish people want to see this commonsensical approach as well as an end to the speculative and greedy cash cow approach to the International Protection Accommodation Service, IPAS, centres that have been imposed on local communities by the Government across Ireland. Protocol No. 21 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, TFEU, came into effect in its current form in the Lisbon treaty in 2009. Protocol No. 21 provides, through the opt-out, the choice to opt into legislation adopted to govern areas of freedom, security and justice on a case-by-case basis.”
“First, we have to be able to return those who seek to make an asylum application here to the first EU country that they entered or applied for asylum in before travelling onwards to Ireland. An applicant who has already been living in, for instance, France, Spain or Italy should not be able to arrive in Ireland and stay here having claimed asylum in those countries previously. Second, in relation to the Eurodac regulation, we have to be able to access the fingerprint database to ensure we have more information on those who enter the State, assist with vetting and conducting checks, and return asylum seekers to other EU countries, if appropriate.”
“It is crucial that we retain what little bit of sovereignty we have left. Last year, Sinn Féin strongly opposed the vast majority of measures in the EU asylum and migration pact because the majority of the pact's measures were not in Ireland's interests and ran contrary to the wishes of the Irish people as shown in numerous polls. Polls show that many communities believe that the current Government is implementing policies that are not in the interests of Irish citizens but are done at the behest of Brussels. Sinn Féin supported opting into only two of the measures contained in the pact, namely, the asylum migration management regulation and the Eurodac regulation. We did so for two primary reasons.”
“Sinn Féin has been clear that where a person is not entitled to be in Ireland, he or she should be returned safely to his or her country of origin and that deportation orders should be both enforced and tracked. We need to have powers to immediately return those who are found not to be entitled to be here. I am looking up behind the Minister at a statue of Cathal Brugha, Pádraig Pearse over here and James Connolly behind me. I firmly believe that an Irish Government is best placed to make decisions in the best interests of the Irish people, not unelected bureaucrats in faceless EU institutions making such decisions that undermine democracy. Ireland must resist this constant drive to hand over more of our sovereignty, power and control to the EU, including that in relation to migration policy or control of our borders.”
“We still have to go through phases 4, 5, 6 and 7, the construction phases, so they fear we might not see a greenway for another ten years or so. That is simply not good enough. Will the Minister explain the delay? Will he commit to ensuring the project progresses in a timely manner? Will he give a timeframe for delivery?”
“The Arklow to Shillelagh greenway project, which is of great importance for tourism on the east coast and in south Wicklow and north Wexford, is still stuck at phase 2. There has been no update since 2023 so two years have passed without visible progress. It will be an absolutely tremendous asset for the area, providing scenic walking and cycling routes through the beautiful valleys of south Wicklow. It will extend benefits into north Wexford and across the east coast. It will connect the villages and towns of Shillelagh, Tinahely, Annacurra, Aughrim, Woodenbridge and Arklow. As the Minister knows, the Wicklow Mountains are a great attraction. This is a unique opportunity to develop a flagship tourism project in the region. The constituents of south Wicklow and north Wexford are very frustrated that it has not yet moved to phase 3.”
“Enhanced rail connectivity would not only improve people's quality of life because they are not fighting traffic gridlock every morning but would also boost tourism and benefit the environment. The time to act on the Wicklow-Wexford rail line is now. Let us invest in the Dublin to Rosslare rail line and leave a legacy for future generations. I will leave the Minister of State to ponder those points. I hope he can have an input.”
“There are trains from Arklow at 6.03 a.m. and 6.57 a.m. They are full by the time they reach Wicklow town. We wonder why only 11% of people use this service and we have gridlock on the M11 every day. I experienced it this morning. If we are serious about reducing car dependency and protecting the environment, we need to commit to investing in the rail network. Wicklow and Wexford are beautiful counties that hold immense potential. They connect the capital to the gateway to Europe, which is Rosslare Europort. The port is currently expanding due to the evolving trade arrangements between Ireland, the UK and the EU. The two counties have a population of over 300,000. We are at a pivotal moment. This is our chance to transform the role of rail along the beautiful east coast of Ireland.”
“In the region that contains Carlow and Kilkenny, 46% of students and 69% of workers commute to Dublin. These are real people. They are workers, students and families who struggle through gridlock every morning and evening. They rely on a transportation system that fails to meet their needs. Only 11% of them are using public transport, including coastal rail and bus services. A staggering 70% are forced to use their cars. Is this the future we want for our communities and for the island of Ireland? In 2021, it was reported that we need to reduce car journeys by half a million per day under the Government's climate action plan. In 2019, Irish Rail announced 41 new carriages but not one for the Wexford-Wicklow area. If you live in Gorey, there are only six services per day and the latest leaving Dublin for Wexford is just after 6.30 p.m.”
“We must do far better for the people of Wicklow and Wexford. For years, I have raised the issue of the inadequate rail network in these counties, including most recently last week at a meeting in Buswells Hotel with representatives of Iarnród Éireann. My hopes were briefly lifted with the all-Ireland strategic rail review when the Wicklow and Wexford rail line was mentioned. However, unfortunately, this optimism was very short lived. The report suggests that solutions for this vital region on the east coast and in the south east would be "costly and ... unlikely to be justifiable". According to the review, the rail line could not be expected to have more than one or two trains per hour in each direction. How can we accept such a conclusion when over 4,000 people are crossing the Wexford-Wicklow border on their commute every morning?”
“Unfortunately, many of our citizens in the Six Counties, as well as those abroad in the diaspora, feel completely abandoned by this State. The Government has a constitutional duty to uphold the citizenship rights of everybody born on the island of Ireland. We should not be facing into this presidential election in a few months' time with fellow citizens in the Six Counties once again excluded. This must be the last time it happens. The time for excuses is over. People want to see action from this Government, not just fine words.”
“Ba chóir agus ba cheart go mbeadh cead ag muintir na hÉireann, muintir na Sé Chontae, Fear Manach, Ard Mhacha, Tír Eoghain, Doire Cholmchille, Aontroim agus an Dún, vótáil i dtoghchán d'Uachtarántacht na hÉireann. Our fellow citizens in the Six Counties should be able to vote in the presidential election. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil Governments have previously accepted this right but, of course, did nothing about it. Last month, we had an historic vote in the Northern Assembly in support of extending the voting right to the Irish citizens of the Six Counties, and 12 years ago, the constitutional assembly in this State voted similarly. Bunreacht na hÉireann states that it is the birthright of every person born on the island of Ireland to be part of the Irish nation and to call themselves an Irish citizen.”
“As we know, Mary McAleese was the first President of Ireland born in the Six Counties and she proved to be a very effective President. However, incredibly, when she ran for election in 1997, she was not allowed to vote for herself. Our Presidents Mary Robinson, Mary McAleese and Michael D. Higgins could have presented the Sam Maguire or Liam MacCarthy cups to players like Joe Brolly, Peter Canavan or Oisín McConville in Croke Park on all-Ireland final day but those same Irishmen were not allowed to vote for these same Presidents. It is wrong, it is ridiculous and it is blinkered. It is the result of a very partitionist mindset of this Parliament over the past century that has viewed the Irish nation as an entity that ends at Dundalk, Clones or Lifford.”
“There is nothing more annoying and insulting to those impacted by the housing emergency than the sight of perfectly good homes lying boarded up and empty. We need to see local families in these as a matter of urgency.”
“We both served on it at the same time. However, of the 108 vacant council houses in County Wicklow, shockingly, seven of these are lying boarded up for more than three and a half years. Four of them have been lying empty for more than five years and two houses have been lying empty for more than seven years. That is unbelievable. All the while, local families are looking at these crying out to have a roof over their heads. Sinn Féin has repeatedly called for greater funding for refurbishment, an adequate number of council staff to turn them over and a faster streamlined process for getting vacant homes back into use. We want to see the average relet time down to, at most, 12 weeks and to ensure best practice is adhered to across all local authorities.”
“We have a bit of contradiction in that there are so many people without homes, yet there are so many homes without people. The vast majority of these are in private hands. However, there are more than 2,500 vacant council houses throughout the State. Of these, 834 have been vacant for more than a year. Each of these homes should have a local family living in it. Almost all councils have unacceptably long waiting times for reletting, caused in part by underfunding on the part of central government, lack of council staff for turnover, red tape and bureaucratic delays in the approval of funding by the Department. As the Minister knows, letting times vary quite a lot. For instance, in my constituency of Wicklow-Wexford, County Wicklow has double the letting time of County Wexford. The Minister is familiar with Wexford County Council.”
“A little country like ours can, in fact, make a big difference because we have the power to pull the plug on the Israeli war bonds across the whole of the EU. If the Government's words on the genocide in Gaza are to mean anything, the Government will support this Bill. It is drafted by Oireachtas legal experts. The Government should not wriggle out of this with weasel words. I implore it to do the right thing and be on the right side of history.”
“Israel, with super-advanced firepower, is breaking every single international law yet is rewarded, funded, armed and given cover by the wealthy and powerful of the western world, including the Irish Government. Last week, a hospital doctor was dropped to work by her husband only to receive the incinerated corpses of nine of her ten children shortly afterwards. We see babies shot through the head with precision sniper fire and soldiers boasting about it on social media. Sadly, Ireland has been complicit in this apocalypse as Ireland funds this genocide by selling war bonds. The Irish Central Bank is the bank that gives them permission to sell the bonds across the EU. It is shameful that the Irish Central Bank and the Government ever allowed this to happen. However, we can redeem ourselves. We can make amends for this blood money.”
“Some years ago, I was fortunate enough to stay with the lovely people of Gaza. It is a tiny place just one third the size of County Dublin or one quarter the size of my constituency of Wicklow–Wexford. It now has 2.2 million people, mostly children, who are corralled into what is, in effect, a concentration camp. We see emaciated, corpse-like children deliberately being starved and sometimes incinerated. Irish people, of course, naturally despair and feel helpless and powerless in the face of a Cromwellian-style scorched earth campaign, which has seen a level of depravity and bloodlust not previously witnessed by any of us. It is literally a holocaust that is being livestreamed into the palms of our hands.”
“Under the Disability Act 2005, children are entitled to an assessment of need within six months. However, 15,296 children are overdue their assessment of need. Worryingly, the HSE anticipates that this will only get worse and expects that by the end of this year, there could be as many as 24,796 assessments of need due for completion. This is not good enough. The Government is failing to implement the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, and is therefore breaking the law. We in Sinn Féin will continue to fight until it is sorted and children get the services and supports that they are legally entitled to access and deserve. I call on the Government to support Sinn Féin's motion this evening.”
“One is a Gorey parent, Kellie Nolan, who contacted me, stating that her ten-year-old son, Finn, has been waiting for seven years for an assessment of need and supports, so basically has had no supports since preschool, which is mindboggling. He had a private ASD assessment and has been waiting for years for a communication device, as it is the only way for him to communicate with his parents. This is shocking. I could speak of equally shocking stories from County Wicklow, where a Carnew mother fears for the mental health of her son, who is staying in his room due to a very frustrated younger brother, who is lashing out at him, harming him and harming himself, so much that she has had to send the older brother to their grandparents, who are over an hour's drive away. This is heartbreaking for the parents concerned.”
“As someone who was in my 35th year of primary teaching when I finished up in December, having taught in the area of special education for most of the past decade, it is an area that I am quite familiar with. A shockingly high figure is that of 2,314 children still waiting for an assessment of need in the Wicklow-Kildare HSE area, which is the highest number outside of Dublin. A smaller but significant number are languishing on waiting lists in County Wexford, awaiting an assessment. Like other Deputies, I could mention numerous case studies, but have just two minutes, so I will briefly mention two cases.”