George Lawlor
Wexford · Labour Party · Ireland
“I commend my colleague, Deputy Eoghan Kenny, on bringing this motion to the floor of the Dáil. One line from his contribution this morning is at the nub of everything, where he said, "Poverty should never determine potential." That is the key component of this motion.”
“The ESRI and University of Limerick found that three in ten secondary schools mandate digital devices, including 17% of DEIS schools - the very schools serving families least able to absorb these costs.”
“Parents who are already struggling with rising rents, food prices and energy costs are now being told that, without a laptop, their child will fall behind. It is shameful that the State's own free book scheme savings are being wiped out by digital demands that schools have no business imposing without the proper funding.”
“We are calling for enforceable guidelines, proper ICT funding, a national loan scheme, the removal of exam fees, the reversal of transport fee hikes, the restoration of the back-to-school allowance and a ban on voluntary contributions that are voluntary in name only. Families cannot take any more.”
“At the outset, I would like to join, as everyone here has, in warmly welcoming to Leinster House Cian and Jordan Adams, the FTB brothers, and also Cian's partner, Helen, who played such a vital and key role in the whole 33 marathons in 33 days. They are most welcome.”
“The programme for Government commitment, in particular the statutory home care scheme, must be something we seriously look at bringing into being following its insertion in multiple programmes for Government.”
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“So, we're serving eviction notices". The tenant asks, "So, we're getting kicked out then?" The agent said: Maybe not. It's just that the new rules are coming in on 1 March. [...] We think it is probably better just to sell up and get out. We're giving ourselves the option. Today we're only giving ourselves the option that we can do that. We don't know how it's going to pan out over the next fortnight. Next week, there'll be loads of radio shows and political debate [...]. We'll make the final decision probably in about ten days. Is this how landlords in this modern, wealthy country can treat its people? Evictions are absolutely linked to the new tenancy laws introduced by this Government. Please, this has to be investigated and these tenants must be looked after in the way they deserve.”
“A few days ago, the Minister, Deputy Browne, referring to the eviction of 36 families, said there had been misinformation which, he said, is insinuating that this move by the landlord is a reaction to the new rental rules. He was backed by the Taoiseach, who fobbed off Deputy Ivana Bacik on Leaders' Questions and Questions on Policy or Legislation. He said that claims by the Opposition were insinuations that this move is a reaction to the new rental rules. A couple of hours ago, presenter Alan Corcoran on his "Morning Mix" programme on South East Radio played the audio from a doorbell camera video, which I can give to the Tánaiste, of one of these evictions being served last Friday. The agent for the landlord, armed with a batch of envelopes, declared to the tenant, "Bad news. Have you heard about the new rental rules?”
“That is criminal in the context of what the State could get back if that money went into a properly structured HSE-run agency.”
“Without meaning to put a price tag on anything, we are paying an agency whose only aim is to maximise profits, as we have seen in myriad sectors across Ireland. The moneys involved, which are almost being demanded by these agencies, are off the charts. As the Minister of State has suggested, the money being invested in the area of disability has gone up hugely but that is because we have to meet these bills. Imagine what a proper caring agency run by the State could get for that €1 million. We would be able to pay nurses and train them properly to the highest standards rather than forcing people into these positions. In many instances, we have no choice because the nurses are not there. They are not there because we are not remunerating them as we should. As I have said, €74 per hour goes to the agency while €18.50 goes to the nurse.”
“I have not mentioned the family or the company involved. The Minister of State is quite right in saying that this lady's care for her children is a vocation. I have worked with her over many years and her dedication and commitment to her children, who have profound and complex needs, is just remarkable. She is now exhausted and distressed. She has been fighting for a long time. If the Minister of State will believe it, she actually did some of the training for some of the nurses who came in. She showed them how to work various pieces of equipment. Given the level of investment, this is incredibly frustrating to this family. That level of investment could be justified if they were getting the quality care that figure demands.”
“They are excellent nurses in their own right and in their own areas, but they are not suitably qualified to provide the level care. This is replicated in many other instances across Wexford, according to the information I have been given. It is something that we have to investigate given the level of public money going into these private agencies. This case is indicative. The matter has to be urgently examined.”
“That is just shy of €1 million per year for providing the care. When a risk assessment was done, the recommendation that came back from the agency was that it needed more nurses on top of the €18,650 a week it was getting. This is indicative of so many of the problems in this country arising from privatisation, particularly of care. Here we have an agency that is literally creaming off the top and making massive profits. It appears to be the only agency providing this type of care in County Wexford. It is receiving just shy of €1 million per year for one home for three children, but it is not paying the nurses a proper wage. As a result, it is getting nurses who are not suitable or qualified in this specific area.”
“For example, she has been asked on a few occasions by different nurses how to turn on a portable bottle of oxygen, among other basic nursing questions. None of the nurses she has been supplied with through the agency - this is not the nurse's fault but the HSE's fault in terms of governance - have ever used a hoist prior to coming to her house to, as she puts it, "allegedly" care for her children. She provides the training. The woman has made recommendations to the agency and the HSE in relation to the training of these nurses prior to coming to work in this area in terms of induction. Of course, the HSE is washing its hands. Believe it or not, the agency is paid €18,650 per week to provide the care package. The nurses get €18.50 an hour. The private company gets €74 an hour per nurse.”
“However, in recent times, the quality of nursing has drastically deteriorated overall. She puts this down to a number of factors, including nurses being put in positions outside their level of expertise. ICU neonatal nurses, following a four-week induction, are being placed to care for her three adult children with very complex needs. The HSE passed the buck constantly. Any time she questioned it, it said the agency managed the package. The HSE will not interact in any way, shape or form. The management and the director of nursing in the HSE will not meet to discuss the issues with the parents. Instead, parents have to speak with a liaison nurse who then refers them to management. There is no governing body over home care packages.”
“This Topical Issue is to discuss supports available to vulnerable children and adults in County Wexford who suffer from a disability. Families with children and adults with disabilities are in crisis in terms of the supports and carers that are made available to them. I was contacted by a distressed and exhausted mother who has three children with serious disabilities. She is literally at her wits' end. She has a 25-year-old, a 22-year-old and a 17-year-old. They all have very complex medical needs, including intellectual and physical disabilities. A home nursing package was sanctioned by the HSE many years ago. First, it was through the Nurse on Call agency. It was then transferred to another agency, which I will not name. The woman in question said she has had the pleasure of meeting and working with many exceptional nurses.”
“Take Enterprise Ireland for example. This State agency is reportedly requiring staff to return to the office three to four days a week, despite the fact its headquarters are in Eastpoint Business Park in Dublin, which is extremely difficult to access by public transport. The predictable result is more people forced into cars, adding to congestion and emissions. This directly undermines our stated climate and transport goals. When State bodies behave like this, they normalise going backwards and they give cover, or absolute encouragement, to the private sector to do the same. This legislation offers a clear alternative. It would expand participation, support regional communities and give people back hours of their lives currently wasted in traffic.”
“This legislation is about dignity at work, quality of life, and whether Ireland is serious about building a labour market or retreating to an outdated model built around control rather than productivity. In the past, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil legislated for the employer's right to say "No". As long as the paperwork is in order, the refusal stands no matter how arbitrary or outdated the reasoning. That is not balance; it is a blank cheque to employers. It is also important to say that this is not about forcing remote work into roles where it does not fit. It is about ending refusals based on habit, suspicion or a fixation with visibility rather than productivity. For many, this will be the difference between being able to work or not being able to work at all. As a Government and an Oireachtas we must lead on this.”
“This may be as a result of the need to protect business confidentiality or intellectual property and to comply with enactments relating to data protection, that the health and safety of the employee at work is not protected, that poor Internet connectivity and other infrastructural resources at the proposed remote location are not sufficient or that the proposed arrangement conflicts with the provisions of already applicable collective agreements. These are serious safeguards to allow employers the peace of mind when hiring new staff or engaging with current employees. This legislation would give workers an immediate and enforceable right to work remotely where their role allows, and it would end the sweeping right employers currently enjoy to refuse flexible and remote working arrangements.”
“No employer should be forced into an agreement that jeopardises their business, their business's confidentiality or already agreed practices. For this reason, the Bill contains the following grounds. An employer may refuse a request if the arrangement is "not reasonably practicable." They may refuse if the nature of the employee's work does not permit that it be done at a remote location. They may refuse if it is not reasonably practical for the employer to reorganise the work done by their employees to facilitate remote working. They may refuse if the proposed arrangement is reasonably likely to adversely affect the quality of the employer's product or service, the quality of the work of the employee, or if the workspace at the proposed work location is not a suitable workspace for the employee to work in.”
“This Bill would promote access to employment, particularly for persons who face particular difficulties in taking up employment, such as people with disabilities or those who often find childcare difficult and expensive. It would result in reduction in traffic congestion and in carbon emissions arising from the number of employees commuting between home and their workplaces. It would result in a rebalancing of the population densities as people would not be forced to reside in the major cities while enduring extortionate rent and property prices. However, mainly, this Bill is about seriously improving the work-life balance of workers where it is reasonably practicable. That is the key here. This Bill also enshrines safeguards for employers.”
“I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." This Government has driven hesitation and has stitched delay and employer vetoes into law. Only a few months ago, it vetoed our Bill to stop employers holding a veto over joint labour committees. It endeavours to leave workers with the allusion of flexibility but none of the protections of a just society. The result is a system that talks about modern work while quietly forcing people back into habits that no longer make sense. This Bill would facilitate the enjoyment by employees of an appropriate work-life balance, with due regard to the rights of employers to manage an effective and efficient work force.”
“We owe it to the people, particularly in rural areas, who are suffering year in, year out but who are really suffering now as a result of the condition of the roads. We really need an extra special allocation for this.”
“Similar to my colleague from Wicklow-Wexford, I would like to raise the issue of the condition of roads in County Wexford. I travelled some of the rural roads in Wexford over the weekend and, quite frankly, they are in an appalling condition. I do not have to tell the Taoiseach that Wexford suffered an enormous amount of weather damage over the past number of weeks. The roads were in a very poor condition. I recently met officials from Wexford County Council and they were quite worried about the allocation of money that will come to them given the level of damage. I ask that extra provision be provided to bring the roads up to somewhat of a good standard, in particular the rural roads. They are like lunar landscapes, such is the level of damage.”
“We need to work together and offer a unified front at local authority and at Government level in order to ensure that whatever measures are necessary are taken to stop this type of devastation, which happens almost on an annual basis in places in my county, from happening once and for all.”
“Wexford County Council did its best, and nothing could have prevented the devastation that happened in Enniscorthy, even if we had received word in advance. We need to look at our warning systems. In Enniscorthy, where the flow of water from the River Slaney was devastating, there are people who are seasoned when it comes to their properties being flooded and who could have tried to get some of their equipment, furnishings, etc., to higher ground. Instead, they were battling against the tide as they strove to save some of their property. This has been going on for far too long, as we know, but now is not the time to be battling each other.”
“These should be available in every town and village and operated by the fire service on behalf of local authorities. They could be stored in local authority depots and deployed very quickly when there is a threat of flooding. We have enough instrumentation and information at this point to ensure that we have foreknowledge of when flooding is likely to happen. We need these interim measures. We absolutely need a permanent solution for Enniscorthy but, for the other areas, we need to have interim or mitigation measures to allow people to be protected from flood waters. In Wexford town, we are affected by coastal flooding. The aqua barriers or dams to which I refer are readily available. One tonne sandbags and other types of sandbags are made available long in advance of any flooding arriving.”
“It is 60 years since Bunclody was flooded. Bridgetown was flooded only a few years ago. It was badly flooded on Christmas Day, which brought devastation. We saw Our Lady's Island lake overflow this on this occasion. In Kilmore, some local businesses suffered badly as a result of the flooding. Our amendment calls for extra resources to be given to local authorities to hire additional general operatives in order to ensure that staff are in place to maintain and clear drains, culverts and ditches and respond quickly to weather events. I have spoken to the Minister of State about this and about providing grants to local authorities to purchase the emergency flood protection equipment such as the aqua dams. Thankfully, following the Minister of State's intervention, Westmeath County Council supplied an aqua dam to Enniscorthy.”
“This type of siloed thinking, where the OPW looks after inland areas and the Marine Institute looks after the sea, is a perfect example of how we need to bring this together. Enniscorthy is tidal up as far as the bridge from Wexford Harbour, but then the River Slaney comes into it. Two different agencies appear to be operating the portals relating to tide levels and gauges. That is something we need to investigate, particularly in a place like Enniscorthy, which is essentially covered by both. Enniscorthy was the focal point of the flooding in Wexford. We all saw the devastation there but we also, as the Minister of State knows, saw devastation in Bunclody, where many houses were flooded, Bridgetown, which flooded in the past and was flooded again, and Kilmore and Our Lady's Island, places that have seen flooding.”
“The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, and I met in Enniscorthy last April to outline, in conjunction with the Office of Public Works, OPW, the plans for a new application for a flood relief scheme that is so badly needed by the people of Enniscorthy. For decades, this town has suffered. I will not say that it has been affected on an annual basis, but it has been affected regularly. I know Joe Berney of Berney Saddlery Limited, which is located on the quay in Enniscorthy and which has been flooded 16 times. That is devastating. There is one matter I would like to raise. Perhaps the Minister of State could investigate it. Why are all the State-operated water level and tide gauges not on the same portal? WaterLevel.ie is operated by the OPW and the Marine Institute operates its real-time observations in respect of tidal issues.”
“I am sorry. I move amendment No. 1: To insert the following after "with a view to supporting these families": "; further notes that the increase in storm severity and recent floods are the result of accelerating climate change; and further calls on the Government to: — resource local authorities to hire more general operatives to ensure staff are in place to maintain and clear drains, culverts and ditches, and respond quickly to weather events; — provide grants to local authorities to purchase emergency flood prevention equipment like Aqua Dams, and deploy strategic local reserves of sandbags to at-risk communities; — introduce a national flood warning system and overhaul our emergency preparedness and response systems, implementing best practise from international comparators; — place the Emergency Humanitarian Flooding Scheme for businesses and community organisations on a permanent statutory footing, as was committed to in 2023, after flooding in north Louth; — introduce a national Flood Re scheme, modelled on the United Kingdom system, to provide re-insurance to the increasing number of homes and businesses denied coverage even when flood defences are in place; and — reform the Office of Public Works, to give it a stronger statutory role in climate mitigation and flood prevention works.".”
“I thank the Ministers of State for being here. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, in particular for his visits to Wexford to view the devastation, particularly in Enniscorthy. I met him there last April when we sought to devise a new plan after the rejection, on environmental grounds, of the-----”
“As we all know, technology moves and evolves quickly and so must the protections that safeguard the rights of the people affected. We in this House must be committed to strengthening the law so that the creation of these images is treated with the seriousness it deserves. We simply have to work to ensure that victims are not denied justice simply because these offences often come to light after they occur. Victims must know they will not be left behind. Their experiences must shape stronger protections, clearer accountability and a legal system that recognises the depth of the harm they have faced.”
“The harm lies entirely with those who chose to misuse technology and exploit their privacy. They deserve to hear that clearly. The victims are not alone in this experience even though it may have felt that way. Many people suffer in silence because shame and fear convince them they have no voice. However, their voices matter. Their stories matter. The emotional weight of discovering that an intimate or harmful image has been created without their consent can and has been overwhelming, and it is completely valid to feel anger, frustration and, sometimes, even grief. This is not a journey they should have to walk without support. As legislators, we have a responsibility to ensure the law keeps pace with the reality of digital harm.”
“Together, these changes would modernise the 2020 Act, reinforce the State's commitment to protecting individuals from digital exploitation and ensure the law keeps pace with emerging forms of online harm. They would also send a clear societal message that the creation of non-consensual intimate imagery is a serious violation of personal autonomy and that victims deserve adequate time and legal support to pursue justice. The perpetrators of these heinous, devious and cowardly crimes should have, and will have, no place to hide. To the victims I say that what they have endured is not a small thing. Having their image or even a fabricated version of them used without their consent is a profound violation of dignity and trust. None of that is their fault.”
“The second major reform, extending the timeframe for initiating proceedings, responds to the reality that victims often only discover these harmful images and content long after they are created or circulated. Online material can be hidden, shared anonymously or stored on private platforms, making timely detection often difficult. The existing six-month window for summary offences can therefore be unreasonably restrictive. By lengthening this period, this amendment would give An Garda Síochána and prosecutors greater flexibility to act, and it would acknowledge the unique challenges posed by digital evidence, delayed reporting and the emotional trauma many victims face before coming forward.”
“As technology advances, individual facilitators such as Elon Musk and others, and, indeed, the deviants in our towns, villages, neighbourhoods and households, can fabricate intimate images using very accessible editing tools or AI-based systems, even where no original image exists. This form of abuse can be as damaging as the sharing of real images, yet the current legislation does not fully capture the act of creation itself. This amending legislation would close that loophole by making it an offence to produce, alter or manipulate imagery depicting a person in an intimate or compromising context without his or her consent regardless of whether the image is subsequently shared. We often hear of these images being used to mentally torture or coercively control.”
“The core purpose of this amending legislation is twofold. It seeks, first, to explicitly prohibit the creation of non-consensual intimate or otherwise harmful imagery and, second, to extend the period during which proceedings may be initiated, thereby ensuring victims are not denied justice due to the often slow discovery of online offences. Coco's Law, the 2020 Act brought through the House by my predecessor in Wexford, Brendan Howlin, working with the inspirational Jackie Fox, already criminalises the distribution of intimate images without consent and addresses a large range of harmful online communications. Unfortunately, however, gaps remain. One of the most significant is the absence of a clear stand-alone offence of the creation of non-consensual intimate imagery.”
“Facilitating it, and making remote working an ordinary thing to do, is something we must enshrine in legislation. In bringing this Bill before the House, I am conscious that many employees around the country will benefit from it. I believe that many employers will benefit from having workers who are content to work and who improve their productivity from their homes, hot desks or office spaces in the locations where they reside.”
“It is about creating a better work-life balance and a better atmosphere for employees to become more productive, not to sit in traffic and not to depend on public service transport that has reduced in quality and efficiency in many areas across the country. The Bill also facilitates people who simply cannot afford to live, reside or rent in areas such as Dublin. Many people from my own county of Wexford travel to Dublin on a daily basis and have to deal with the gridlock. Last week, a relatively small flood in Kilmacanogue meant that it took me 4.5 hours to get from Wexford town to Leinster House, a journey that usually takes approximately one hour and 45 minutes. Remote working and the ability to work remotely would have a tremendously positive impact on that.”
“It states: An employer may refuse a request under subsection (1) if the arrangement requested is not reasonably practicable [such as in cases where]: (a) the nature of employee's work does not permit that it be done at a remote location; (b) it is not reasonably practicable for the employer to reorganise the work done by his or her employees amongst them, so as to facilitate the proposed arrangement; (c) the proposed arrangement is reasonably likely ... adversely to affect— (i) the quality of the employer's product or service, or (ii) the quality of the work of the employee; (d) the workspace at the proposed work location ... is not a suitable workspace for the employee to work in. This Bill has many safeguards for the employee and the employer. It is not just about blindly facilitating an employee who wishes to work remotely.”
“During the Covid-19 pandemic, we witnessed the benefits of remote working. When it was forced on us all, we saw the benefits in productivity. We saw the benefits to families. We saw the benefits for people who may otherwise not be able to enter the workforce because of restrictions. They were able to join the workforce. Those included people with disabilities and lone parents. This Bill contains clauses to facilitate employers where it is not deemed suitable to make remote working a possibility.”
“Many hours are stolen from workers who sit in traffic, in many instances for hours on end. It is only getting worse. Workers rely on public transport that is reducing in availability and quality on a regular basis. I was told today that the Department of enterprise is asking its workforce to return to work. Some are moving from three days to four days in-office. Others are moving from four days to five days. Those workers are based in East Wall, Dublin. It is horrendous trying to get to work in East Wall, such is the level of traffic and congestion. Those workers are expected to give up hours that they could be spending with their families or giving to their communities. They give up hours. They start work by sitting in cars for many hours of the year, week in and week out.”
“I move: That leave be given to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to provide for an entitlement of an employee to remote working arrangements where reasonably practicable, for this purpose to amend the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023, and to provide for related matters. Colleagues may recall that a couple of weeks ago, my colleague Deputy Mark Wall proposed a motion in this House regarding flexibility and flexible work. The irony was that the Deputy left Athy, County Kildare, at 6.30 a.m. and was late to propose the motion in this House when he arrived at 10.05 a.m, such was the level of gridlock and traffic congestion on the M7. This is a campaign that he has carried on for many months. As it stands, workers only have the right to request remote working, but an employer can very easily refuse.”
“When a Minister in control of agencies and Departments with direct responsibility will not take responsibility for their portfolios, what hope do they have? I ask for the Tánaiste’s direct intervention to resolve this dreadful ongoing nightmare for the homeowners and businesses of Enniscorthy.”
“Yesterday, on South East Radio, the Minister, Deputy Browne, who is the Minister with responsibility for the national emergency co-ordination group laid the blame for the latest flooding incident in his home town of Enniscorthy firmly at the door of Met Éireann. Incredibly, today, on the same radio station, the same Minister, who also has responsibility for local government issued a statement effectively blaming Wexford County Council for the lack of a planning application for a new flood relief scheme. On 15 April 2025, I attended a meeting in Enniscorthy with the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, and senior officials of the OPW at which they outlined the new flood relief scheme plans to public representatives and Wexford County Council officials. The long-suffering people of Enniscorthy deserve much better than this.”
“As stated said, it is my belief and that of many people in Wexford who have had interactions with the psychiatric unit in Waterford that the latter is not fit to meet the demand that exists across the region. We worked very closely with Waterford Marine Search and Rescue, which has been very helpful. The Minister of State will agree that it terrific work. We assisted Claddagh Watch in Galway with its establishment. The intervention of these organisations opens our eyes to the reality of what is happening on the ground in terms of people who are in crisis. Ours is only one organisation. The ten-bed acute unit for Wexford General Hospital is not too much to ask for in the context of the mental health crisis our county is facing and for the county's population of 180,000.”
“Very simply, we do suicide prevention patrols around Wexford Harbour and in the Wexford Bridge area. There was almost an epidemic of people using Wexford Bridge for self-harm or attempted suicide. We have literally encountered hundreds of people since our establishment. In some instances, we give these people vouchers to attend It’s Good to Talk counselling in Wexford town - we have come to an arrangement in that regard – and this has worked very well. However, we have also seen situations where we intervened with people and where gardaí came along and cared very well for them and where those individuals were brought to Waterford and were discharged the next day. This was despite the fact they were clearly in crisis.”
“Wexford is a county that is above the national average in terms of the rate of suicide. There is a serious mental health crisis in County Wexford. There is also a serious crisis in CAMHS in County Wexford in the context of mental health. I was recently approached by two young people who gave testimonies to me, which I will send on to the Minister of State, which decried the care they received. I know we will always get good and bad, and we probably hear more about the bad. Where people are not being cared for in the manner you would expect, however, particularly when it comes to CAMHS, there is a need for change. About 13 years ago, I and some of my friends in Wexford town, led by a man called Frank Flanagan, set up a group called Wexford MarineWatch.”
“I am also told that there is an excellent psychiatrist there - I wrote to the Minister of State about this recently – who has not been retained by the HSE. Whether that is the physician's personal choice or is down to the fact that she simply has not been retained by the HSE, the matter needs to be investigated nonetheless. I have been contacted by numerous families and parents who stated that this person really provided excellent care for the people in her care. There is no sign of the promised 54-bed unit in Waterford coming on stream. What we require in Wexford, which has a population of 180,000, is a dedicated ten-bed unit adjoining Wexford General Hospital and operating in conjunction with the acute facilities there. There is an urgent need for such a unit.”
“If you arrive between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. in Wexford General Hospital, you will be seen by a psychiatric nurse and excellent staff working to the pin of their collar but after 5.30 p.m., there is nobody. At weekends, there is nobody; you will be seen on Monday. You may be referred to the psychiatric unit in University Hospital Waterford but, as the Minister of State knows, while the staff are doing an excellent job there, it is not fit for purpose. It is not fit to meet the needs of the entire region, responsibility for which, essentially, has been forced upon it. I am told that if you are referred by a doctor or a hospital to the HSE unit in Summerhill in Wexford, you might have to wait up to three months to receive an appointment.”
“I am very pleased to support this motion. It contains some excellent proposals, many of which I know the Minister of State would take on board and agree with. It recalls the commitment in the Government's mental health policy, Sharing the Vision: a Mental Health Policy for Everyone, to provide appropriate mental health emergency facilities in every hospital. It calls on the Government to require every model 3 and 4 hospital to have a dedicated mental health emergency room separate from chaotic emergency departments. I know the Minister of State is familiar with the situation in my county of Wexford, one of the most populous counties in the region, heading for 180,000 people. There is a terrific general hospital there but simply no facility to cater, from an acute point of view, for people with mental health difficulties.”
“All the big Irish civil engineering companies have reported that they are in the UK operating and building the water infrastructure there because there is no, for want of a better word, pipeline of work here for them to depend on. I ask the Minister to look at these two issues of unfinished estates and new connections.”
“Still Uisce Éireann will not agree to allow or facilitate the taking in charge of these estates. With regard to new connections, I have spoken to a number of developers who, when they look to develop new homes, and I know this is a key tenet of the Minister's campaign on the housing issue, often hit brick walls when it comes to accessing the network or infrastructure. I spoke to one developer who had to invest €1.4 million to upgrade Uisce Éireann facilities or else wait three years before he could build 180 houses. Another developer had to invest €1.3 million as Uisce Éireann would not intervene, and there were 500 houses involved. Luckily these developers went ahead and invested the money but, unfortunately, it was the new home owners who had to foot the bill. This is happening across the country in county after county.”
“The issue of unfinished estates is something the Minister is familiar with. It is taking an inordinate amount of time for estates to be taken in charge, particularly some of the older ones where I appreciate there are some difficulties. Mostly the hold-up is down to Uisce Éireann. County councils, unusually, have come to the table on this and have said they are anxious to take estates in charge, yet Irish Water seems very reluctant to allow this to happen. It wants to engage with developers and companies but some of the developers have, sadly, passed away. Some of the companies involved in the development of these estates are gone. Who are we waiting for? Who are we going to be able to call? We cannot call the developers who have passed away or the companies that have gone.”
“This motion seeks to create a workplace measured by output rather than a person’s presence, and circumstances in which our roads and public transport infrastructure are supported by smart policies rather than held back and stifled by outdated rules of management. If we want an Ireland that is resilient, innovative and humane, we must make decisions that facilitate the workers who contribute greatly to our economy. Flexible work should not just be an option: it should be an obligation. It is time to deliver a system that respects the people who keep this country moving. With the Government totally failing to address the right to remote work in their counter-motion, we in the Labour Party are left with no choice to bring forward legislation now on a real right to remote work. We will publish that legislation next week.”