James Geoghegan
Dublin Bay South · Fine Gael · Ireland
“I say, in a non-partisan way, that it would be helpful if other political parties carried out an exercise similar to the one we are carrying out and if they presented different papers.”
“I welcome the opportunity to debate such a significant issue. It is helpful that this debate is being framed from a line Department perspective in that it has begun by looking at the fiscal implications of a united Ireland. It would be helpful if we also had a debate on the implications for education and health of a united Ireland.”
“Obviously, none of that will be sufficient unless we can demonstrate to every community in Northern Ireland that the country will be an inclusive place, but we in Ireland have shown just how inclusive we can be. I am 41 years old.”
“With the passage of time, however, any fair and impartial observer would recognise that institutional benefit of ensuring that Ireland and the United Kingdom had a joint role in the affairs of Northern Ireland proved to be instrumental in all the subsequent peace agreements we ultimately arrived at.”
“However, nobody can underestimate the challenges the State faces in persuading a population that is very sceptical that we would we welcome them to this country and that we could provide a state that would function.”
“He highlighted the euro, which is important. If we think back to the Scottish referendum, one of the biggest reasons it failed was because the Scottish people were not certain whether they were going to have the British pound or the euro.”
The complete record
Every one of 352 lines we hold for James Geoghegan, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 5 of 8.
“This Bill provides that and strikes the balance needed to make CPOs work. Unfortunately, our current system does not provide that. It is primitive. It is opaque, creates uncertainty and slows down the delivery of housing and infrastructure. A hodgepodge of about 70 statutes currently govern how the State can acquire land. Two of the most important laws date back to 1845 and 1919, before the foundation of the State. In 1845, we barely had a rail network, no electricity grid and the Great Famine was yet to happen. We had a feudal land law system and no planning system. Any CPO-type powers were not used for the public good but to consolidate large estates. It is wrong that such an important process is made unclear and often unviable because we are still governed by laws introduced by our old colonial masters.”
“CPOs are integral to the economic development of the country. If the State cannot acquire land in a transparent, timely and cost-effective way, we will not build the infrastructure we need. Without this infrastructure, our economic development comes to a halt. A well-functioning CPO system is also essential if we are to meaningfully tackle the housing crisis and end dereliction. These are problems that affect Dublin, but also towns and villages across the country. It should be put on the record that the compulsory acquisition of land is a sensitive issue. It is not always pleasant when people are moved involuntarily from their homes or required to sell their lands. Although we need a streamlined and cost-effective CPO system, these landowners are entitled to clarity, transparency and fairness.”
“I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to provide for the assessment of compensation payable on account of the compulsory acquisition of land; to provide for the acquisition of land by vesting order; to provide for the making of advance payments to owners, lessees and occupiers on account of compensation owed to them as a consequence of the compulsory acquisition of land; to provide for the transfer of functions relating to the assessment of compensation for compulsorily acquired land to the Valuation Tribunal; for those purposes to repeal the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919; and to provide for related matters. This legislation will overhaul a fundamental part of our land and planning system, namely, the compulsory acquisition of property.”
“The AI summit hosted by President Macron in February was a big moment for Europe, demonstrating innovation and a change of approach at a European level. I put it to the chair of the AI council at the AI committee that Ireland could host a similar AI summit during the hosting of the EU Presidency. That is something that has been taken up by the Minister of State with responsibility for AI, who also appeared before the committee. She indicated that she would prepare a report for the Taoiseach on the AI summit, which she advocates for. Does the Taoiseach agree that the EU Presidency presents a unique opportunity for Ireland to demonstrate that it will be the best in class for certainty when it comes to the regulation of such an important industry?”
“At last Thursday's meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts, the Garda Commissioner confirmed that he had reported to the Minister for justice on the controlled delivery operation that related to the late Evan Fitzgerald. The Commissioner went on to say that he took note of the comments made in the Seanad by Senator McDowell with regard to what was or was not said in the currency of a live bail application, and that he had referred those comments to the ombudsman for consideration. On Sunday's "This Week" programme, the ombudsman's office confirmed that there is nothing further to be considered by it. Does the Minister for justice consider the matter concluded regarding what was or was not said in that District Court bail application? Does he intend to carry out any further inquiries on the matter?”
“The sacrifices of the men and women who stood in the GPO in 1916, ordinary people who laid the foundations for the freedom we enjoy today, deserve better than to be dragged into a cynical and false debate manufactured by Sinn Féin to divide and distract. Drop the charade. Let us work together for the betterment of our capital city and for a GPO redevelopment that lives up to its history and to our hopes for the future.”
“The Government announcement includes a commitment to additional investment and to the redevelopment of the GPO as an ambitious and historic flagship project. In my view, that project should be nothing less than a world-class historical museum honouring the legacy of the GPO while breathing new life into the heart of our capital. Year one of the roadmap for delivery includes a clear commitment to conceptualise and decide on the future use of the reimagined GPO. That process will be led by the OPW, with support from a new special-purpose vehicle under Dublin City Council to drive delivery. The interdepartmental report published alongside the roadmap makes clear a detailed proposal for the future use of the GPO will be developed by the OPW and submitted for approval by the Government in due course. Let us be clear.”
“On 6 April last year, Simon Harris, then the Taoiseach in waiting, made a clear commitment to convene a Dublin city centre task force bringing together the council, retailers, business, community groups and An Garda Síochána to chart a path towards a safer and more vibrant Dublin. He delivered on that commitment. The city task force was established, chaired by David McRedmond, and one of its most important proposals was to make the redevelopment of the GPO the centrepiece of revitalising O'Connell Street and the surrounding area. Last week, for the first time in decades, Dublin city centre received the kind of focused attention it has long needed, thanks to the task force Simon Harris established. The city centre can and should be clean, safe and vibrant, a capital we are all proud of.”
“Some families have the wherewithal to keep going in battling through an appeals' process, but it is a strange phenomenon that in a payment we have assigned from the State to give to parents of children with disabilities, that they have to go through an appeals process to get the allowance. Worst of all, I regret to say there is a system where parents have to go to a solicitor - I do not know whether solicitors do such work pro bono or get paid for it - to get a solicitor's letter to get this payment. They are battling on all fronts.”
“I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. Fundamentally though, there is a problem here in that I cannot think of any other allowance in the State where many people who apply for it are refused. It has been one in three applications over the past four years. I do not believe that those families are applying because they think that a little bit of extra money would be of assistance. They are applying because they absolutely need the money to support the needs of their child. They may be spending the money on occupational therapy, on private speech and language therapy or on private psychology therapy. They may be spending it on fitting out areas of their house to accommodate someone with physical disabilities. However, they are not getting the payment.”
“Does the Taoiseach agree with me that we need a full review and reform of the DCA? I do not believe that one in three families is applying for something that they simply do not need. I believe that too many are losing out because the system is asking them to fight, rather than supporting them. Does the Taoiseach agree with me that these families deserve better?”
“The Minister, Deputy Helen McEntee, has committed to expanding the educational therapy support service, which is being piloted in 75 schools, into both special and mainstream schools nationwide. This kind of wraparound support is crucial, but it is being undermined by the battles parents still face, not just in service delivery from our child disability network teams, CDNT, but in simply accessing a payment that has existed for decades, a payment where the legal test has not changed, despite a significant rise in the number of children with additional needs. We do not even collect data on families who give up. These are parents who cannot face the appeals process because they do not have the time, resources or energy to instruct a solicitor or go to court. I suspect that many of them would have been successful too, but we will never know.”
“Yet, of those who appealed, 60% were successful. In the most extreme cases, 67 families took the State to the High Court and in every resolved case, they won that case. This is not a fair process. It is a system that forces families already under pressure, to fight for what they are entitled to. The recent ESRI study, published ahead of the economic dialogue, found that disability-related costs absorb from 52% to 59% of disposable income. This rises to more than 93% in cases of what the ESRI terms, "severe disability." Research by AsIAm shows that parents of autistic children face costs of between €10,000 to €28,000 per year. I acknowledge that there has been progress.”
“Like many Members of this House, I speak not only as a public representative but as a former councillor and as a parent of three young children. I regularly meet parents of children with disabilities. What they tell me is clear; the system is not working for them. The programme for Government commits to progressively increasing the domiciliary care allowance, DCA, and to phasing out the means test for carer's allowance. As the Taoiseach knows, the DCA is a non-means-tested payment of €360 per month for children under 16 with significant additional care needs. It comes with a medical card and a €2,000 annual carer's support grant. However, here is the reality. Figures I obtained through parliamentary questions show that between 2020 and 2024, more than 52,000 families applied for the allowance. One in three was refused.”
“I fully acknowledge that at every juncture where a new system is introduced, it cannot be done overnight. There has to be a structure in which it can be done. I ask the Minister of State to go back to the senior line Minister in this respect and ask for her commitment that this matter will be brought to the Cabinet committee on disability and given significant priority. At the end of the day, just like the mother who phoned me during the week whose child has effectively been iced out of having a preschool setting, no doubt there are countless examples around the country where unfortunately because of the medical or additional need of a child, there is no childcare setting that can support him or her. That is not something we should be able to support as a State.”
“I thank the Minister of State, in particular for the remarks he made off script, which are welcome. I acknowledge that a commitment to examine and expand the AIM programme to make it available to younger children is contained in the programme for Government. I have concerns, however, with some of the language the Department used in the reply that was prepared for the Minister of State, whereby it needs to examine the evidence. Ultimately, why is a child aged two years and ten months, two years and nine months or two years and six months, with whatever additional need that child has, different from a child of three years and one month? There is not a lot of evidence to examine. Rather, a technocratic structure needs to be deployed to support parents who have children under the age of eligibility.”
“I can perhaps understand why, for bureaucratic reasons, the AIM programme was set up to match the ECCE scheme but from a discriminatory or equality standpoint, it is difficult for me to understand how the State has set up a system whereby a mother or a father would be left in a situation where their child, just because of that need, has no supports to be in any kind of setting to be cared for.”
“As matters stand, although the Minister of State might put me right, the mother of this child is left with zero choices because the preschool setting cannot accept him, having told the mother that he cannot be accepted, while the preschool setting does not get any support from the State in terms of additional AIM supports because the child is below the age of eligibility. It seems problematic and discriminatory that the parent of a child with an additional need, simply because he is below the age of eligibility, cannot secure him a place in a mainstream preschool setting.”
“Either she can discuss with her medical practitioners whether her child meets the criteria for the incapacitated child tax credit, which is a significant burden and a difficult form for parents to seek their practitioner to sign for them. Perhaps either through that tax credit, which could support additional care in the home, or alternatively, if that family were in a position to do so, they could hire somebody in the home to provide that support. However, if they did either of those things, they would not get the benefit of the national childcare scheme or the ECCE scheme, so the cost is extremely burdensome.”
“They are intended for children who are supported by AIM in the setting of a mainstream school where that is not an appropriate setting for the child. It is clear we need more of those preschool settings as well. The challenge that was brought to my attention earlier this week by a mother who called me is the age of eligibility for the AIM programme in a mainstream setting. This mother has a young son who has a medical need. The medical practitioners are encouraging her to go back to work and maintaining that the child, with appropriate supports, could function and flourish in a preschool setting. However, the child is below two years and 11 months, which is the age of eligibility for the AIM programme. She is left with very few options.”
“The access and inclusion model, AIM, has proven to be a successful model of supporting children of every need to be present in a mainstream setting, which is its primary aim. How it works is straightforward. Where either a parent or somebody working in a preschool setting has identified a child with a need, and following consultation with that parent, an application can be made to the Department to increase the ratio of staff that might exist in that preschool setting so that there is an appropriate ratio of staff to ensure that child, with whatever need he or she has, can be supported in that setting. In addition to that, the Department of education has established early intervention classes. Clearly, there are not enough of those early intervention classes but they do exist.”
“The Government has made clear that a focus on capital investment is a key and central priority of this Government. The Taoiseach will have seen the report today from KPMG identifying that a €70 billion investment in Dublin will be needed. That is in the area of housing and wastewater, but investment that always produces returns is investment in sport. The Federation of Irish Sport held a well-attended briefing this morning in the AV room where it emphasised the need for multiannual funding in sport to support the more than 450,000 volunteers participating in sport and the return on that investment for the State. The Minister of State might comment on any of the submissions the federation is making, both at a budgetary level and in general, in terms of the investment the Government is going to continue to make in sport.”
“Meanwhile, other children with more urgent needs were left waiting. We do not know at this moment in time who those children were, but the parents of those children and the children themselves are also deserving of an apology and perhaps more, depending on what all of the subsequent reviews reveal. Further accountability is needed in the immediate term on the part of the current CEO, who has to account for things that took place prior to her reign. That is notwithstanding the fact that the former CEO is still a strategic director in CHI, albeit the HIQA report made clear in its findings in respect of governance that there were no specific itemised challenges made against her. For the benefit of the Committee of Public Accounts, it would be beneficial helpful to have the current and former CEOs appear before it.”
“It is clear that serious matters of public concern were not disclosed during the appearance of CHI before the committee last Thursday. The Sunday Times reports that an internal investigation conducted by CHI in 2021 identified the misuse of the NTPF by a consultant, resulting in treatment delays of up to three years for children in need of urgent care. As we know, this investigation was not brought to the attention of the Department of Health, the Committee of Public Accounts or any other relevant Oireachtas committee. It has to be said that is a glaring failure in governance, transparency and accountability. According to the report in The Sunday Times , patients were selected by the NTPF-funded clinics not based on clinical urgency or time spent waiting, but on non-transparent criteria.”
“She acknowledged and apologised to those who were facing the distress of having received letters arising from the audit. She also apologised to and acknowledged the families - I believe there are 35 - who were affected by the Nayagam report. It appears following the revelations in The Sunday Times that the new CEO, who was not the CEO when any of this happened, may have to issue apologies in the future regarding children who might not have received the services to which they are entitled, which the Minister and the CEO of the HSE have acknowledged and expressed with some alarm. It was against that background that I wrote to the Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts on Monday seeking to recall the chief executive of CHI to appear before the committee at the earliest possible opportunity.”
“It undermines and belittles the tens of thousands of nurses, doctors, healthcare assistants and people who are engaging in the health system every single day. This is a very challenging time for CHI. The issues that have arisen are serious. This is a scary moment for parents who are affected and have children who have been affected. However, that does not support a statement that says the entire health system is not to be trusted. The Deputy should consider that remark because it is not fair or supported by evidence and should not be said in that sweeping way. This is a serious issue. On Thursday, the current CEO appeared before the Committee of Public Accounts and acknowledged and apologised to those affected by the HIQA report.”
“I thank the Minister and Ministers of State for attending, making themselves available, responding to the issues and outlining precisely the measures taken in response to some of the events over the past number of days. Words matter and for a Deputy on the other side of the House to tell the public in the Dáil that they cannot trust the health system is inappropriate.”
“Where there are people who are wronged by the State in the criminal justice system and where there are victims who are wronged by the criminal justice system, and they are forced to use the only means by which they think they can vindicate the rights of the victim through bringing their action to court, it is incumbent on the State to review and consider how we can respond to that case in the most expeditious, fair and proportionate way. This is so that we do not do what the State did to the O'Farrell family, retraumatising them for more than a decade by not providing the type of justice that Shane richly deserved. I have nothing further to say other than to wish every member of the O'Farrell family the absolute best. Well done to all of you for bringing Shane's memory alive today.”
“I hope this story will contribute not just to the statutory changes the Minister has outlined today, which I welcome, but to a further rethink of how we treat victims in the State. It is the case that laws have changed in the State since Lucia and the O'Farrell family set out on their quest for justice. We have a victims of crime Act now, which essentially transposes EU victims of crime legislation into Irish legislation. It provides victims with greater involvement in the criminal justice process. However, it is still the case that victims feel they do not get the justice they deserve and they are forced to bring their case to the courts. This is something we need to consider at the outset, in the same way as we are doing in many other areas of the State, particularly when it comes to clinical negligence.”
“It is unquantifiable to recognise, see and feel a family who have worked so hard to keep Shane's memory alive. It is an appropriate and proportionate announcement that the Minister has made in respect of memorialising Shane as a law graduate in UCD. In any conversation I had with Lucia, she reminded me of how far he could have gone. I think of this as someone who has gone through that career and worked as a barrister for ten years, and what contribution Shane could have made to the legal system. He is making a contribution to the legal system by virtue of the scholarship the Minister has announced today. Forevermore, if you are a student of law in UCD, you will know this story. You will hear this story.”
“When I listened to Deputy John McGuinness speak earlier, whom I know has been to the forefront of raising these issues in the Dáil, it made me as a new Member of the Dáil ponder just how important the privilege of the Dáil is and how we use Dáil privilege. In truth, if Lucia had not come into the Dáil or Seanad as many times as she did, the O'Farrells may have been a family who never got justice. They may have been given the runaround in the courts system. They may have never got this apology. That is the reality. It is the sad reality that there are almost certainly families throughout the country who could not endure what the O'Farrell family have put themselves through to arrive at a day like today but, my God, are they a credit to Shane.”
“It is simply an extraordinary stain on the State that, once again, a family has had to fight for years after years after years to receive justice. He did not receive justice in the criminal justice system. As the Minister for Justice has acknowledged today, he shares the opinion of the O'Farrell family that had the criminal justice system appropriately dealt with the person who killed him, Shane might be alive here today. That must be an appalling pill to swallow, and something that absolutely needed to be acknowledged. I praise the Minister for doing so. Not only is it the case that the justice system failed the O'Farrell family in advance of losing their son, but the system has failed the family in every month and year since.”
“One of the ways in which we can pay tribute to our media in some respects is that, very often when incidents of crime occur, we see lots of pictures of the perpetrators of those crimes, but in Shane's case, we have seen his beautiful smiling face throughout this period in which justice has been sought for him. It is impossible for me to even consider, contemplate or even remotely understand the loss that every member of the O'Farrell family has felt over the years since Shane's passing. I now have my own kids; I did not then. I now have my own family. I cannot possibly imagine how I would feel to lose a child and then, having lost that child, not receive justice for the manner in which he died. If there is any case that demonstrates to the Irish public how cold the State can sometimes be to victims, it is the case of Shane O'Farrell.”
“In each of those conversations, Lucia brought this person, Shane, whom I had never met, to life. I think I spoke to her four, five or six times on the phone. Subsequently, I was sent a series of documentation, which I reviewed like many others in the House did. Only a couple of weeks ago, some 12 years later and now a Member of Dáil Éireann, I met Lucia again. What struck me when I met Lucia was how, for her, time was still so frozen. The grief she expressed to me on the telephone 12 years ago was still ever present, and yet the adoration and love for her son was precisely the same. The memories of him were the same. He was as much alive in her memories then as he was 12 years ago when she spoke to me on the phone.”
“I want to acknowledge Jim, Lucia, Aimee, Pia, Hannah and Gemma who are in the Distinguished Visitors Gallery. I acknowledge the apology that has been issued on behalf of the State by the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the Minister for Justice. I first spoke with Lucia almost 12 years ago on the telephone. We have heard many people speak of the engagement Lucia has had in this building. I was then somebody who had recently qualified as a barrister, not having practised and with a limited knowledge of the criminal justice system in truth. I spoke to a woman who was deep in grief for her son. In every conversation I had with her, she identified to me the number of challenges she witnessed throughout the process of dealing with the grief of the death of her son and how the criminal justice system pursued his assailant.”
“When I asked a question two weeks ago about the Dublin city task force, the Taoiseach said progress is being made and that he hoped to be in a position to bring it to the House before the recess. In the intervening two weeks, has there been any further progress? Has the Taoiseach been briefed on any progress? Will he give an outline of what that progress looks like? With regard to the implementation of the Dublin city task force recommendations, is it the Taoiseach's expectation that they would be funded through the national development plan? Will there be specific lines in the national development plan that make clear some of the recommendations that flow from the task force will be funded?”
“Recruitment is going to be absolutely key here. Replies given to me about how many OTs and SLTs we have recruited from abroad, which are based on employment permits issued, indicate the figures are extremely low. That is an area in which we could do an awful lot better. Of course we must invest in the long term in delivering more OTs from our college and third level system, but in the short term, similar to what we have done in maternity services, there must be a better way in which the State can try to recruit a larger number of OTs and SLTs to deliver direct therapeutic services in schools and support all the needs of children.”
“She is a determined young lady who has already done too much in terms of what she should be doing as a child. So many parents of children with needs are similarly out there campaigning all the time. We need to deliver the services to which every child in this State has an entitlement. The Minister is committed to improving how we deliver the assessment of need process. I welcome the announcement she has made with regard to the domiciliary care allowance. I ask that increased flexibility be afforded to the whole method by which the domiciliary care allowance is awarded because we all deal with parents who have been refused that domiciliary care allowance on the first point of entry and are subsequently awarded it on a later appeal. However, the bills have been mounting due to spending money on private SLTs and OTs.”
“We do not wish to arrive at a situation where, in order to get services, parents are trying to, perhaps, find a setting for their child that may not be the appropriate one but where they know they will get the necessary supports. As a State, we must support all of those parent support groups that every one of us deal with both inside and outside of this House as constituency TDs. They support children in their locality. Groups in my constituency, such as Involve Autism in Dublin 6 west, Neurodiversity Ireland and Neurodiversity Irishtown, Ringsend and Pearse Street, do extraordinary work on their own. Perhaps there are better ways in which the State can support them in the work they do to support children. I absolutely support Cara Darmody and what she is doing.”
“How can we support primary schools and secondary schools where needs have been identified? I refer to the initiative of the Minister, Deputy Helen McEntee, of prioritising therapeutic services with a direct delivery in schools. Programmes the NCSE already delivers in schools are making a big difference. One of the big differences that delivering direct therapeutic services in schools can make is it can reduce the pressure on SNAs and teaching staff because children get the services they need to support them through their education pathways. Similar approaches need to be adopted, not just in special schools, where projects are being piloted, and in the programme for Government where we have made clear commitments, but also in mainstream schools.”
“The Minister highlighted an important factor in her statement before this House, namely, the importance of parents knowing what services are available to them, with or without an assessment of need. That does not dilute, however, the absolute need to get this right as a State to ensure every child’s pathway is an appropriate one and that we have identified the level of need every child requires. Equally, in the context of the systems and the moments when children interact with the State, such as with their public health nurse in their developmental checks, for example, how can we improve the pathways direct from that check into the supports that child needs? How can we improve the pathways of services for a child who has been identified with a need in a preschool setting?”
“It supports staff to identify need and then be supported by that AIM programme in order to ensure that, where a need is identified, the appropriate services are provided. In primary school settings, we have tooled up our schools with SNAs, increased the number of autism-friendly and special classes in schools and also increased the number of special schools. There is so much more to do to ensure every child of every need, irrespective of whether they have an assessment of need, is getting the type of education they require. There is so much more to do. Significant changes have also been made in the access to, and delivery of, third level education. The law as it relates to assessment of need simply is not working. It is a law that is being broken 94% of the time, based on figures the HSE has produced. That is not good for anyone.”
“First, I recognise Cara Darmody. I met her when I was the Lord Mayor of Dublin. I brought her into the Mansion House as part of our initiative to make Dublin the world’s first autism-friendly capital city. Cara is a determined and brave person. I absolutely lament the fact she feels she has to sleep outside the Dáil for the next 50 hours in order to highlight one of the biggest challenges we have in this State when it comes to the delivery of disability services, that is, the assessment of need process. It is important to highlight the areas in which the State has delivered improvements when it comes to supporting children with needs. For children in a preschool setting, there is an access and inclusion model, AIM, programme.”
“It would be remiss of me, in the context of wastewater treatment plants, not to mention, in my own backyard, the Ringsend wastewater treatment plant, which has received record levels of investment after long years of pursuing it, and fines and everything else, with more to come. There is an aspect of that I would like Uisce Éireann to respond to me on, which is the modernisation of how it manages wastewater tanks during storms. The impact of that, especially on Sandymount Strand, is it makes areas no-go for swimming. The water quality is such that it is one of the few beaches in the Dublin area where people cannot swim. There must be a more modern way in which we can manage storm outflows than simply throwing that untreated treatment straight into the water that is going directly into the UNESCO biosphere.”
“I thank the Minister of State for his reply. Some people might find it shocking to know that 85% of all the water supply in the GDA comes from one source. It is definitely the case that we have been talking about the Shannon to Dublin pipeline for well over a decade at this point. This specific example I spoke to illustrates the urgent need for that critical infrastructure project, which, let us not deny, will cost several billions of euro. That is why the Government has taken a decision to ensure that the priority, when it comes to capital investment, will be infrastructure. It may be that wastewater treatment plants and water pipelines are not the pretty things, as it were, with shiny red bows on them, but they are absolutely essential to delivering our most pressing need, which is housing.”
“We must see and believe that the new Planning Act, significant parts of which have been commenced, will make a substantial difference to the planning process so that the public can have faith that when these applications are put forward that only in very exceptional circumstances will they end up in the higher courts and experience delays that we simply cannot afford. I have no doubt the kind of example I have given in Ballyboggan could be replicated throughout the country on smaller parcels of land. It is so essential, in the moneys we give to Uisce Éireann, that we see demonstrable connection between those moneys and how many water connections for houses it will deliver over the long term and the kind of interim solutions that can be provided. In many cases, we simply cannot wait for those long-term solutions to arrive.”
“The example of Ballyboggan is a classic case where if we banged heads together, we could find interim solutions and ensure that councillors could be confident that if they rezoned the land, they would be doing so in a way that was safe and sufficient, that would have an adequate water supply and wastewater treatment plant and that interim solutions could also be provided. Ballyboggan is also illustrative of the multifaceted challenges we have in the delivery of housing in this country. Uisce Éireann’s mentions the absence of a wastewater treatment plant. That plant was first before An Bord Pleanála in 2019 but arising from local objections, it ended up in judicial review in the High Court. It is only back before An Bord Pleanála.”
“The context for this master plan being put out to public consultation is as a result of the Government’s decision to update the national planning framework to go out to every local authority in the country and ask them to identify what parcels of lands they have to deliver more homes and houses. However, elected members of Dublin City Council will be faced with a very challenging decision when it comes to the rezoning of those lands if Uisce Éireann, formerly Irish Water, is telling the council and the councillors that there is not a sufficient wastewater treatment plant in the area and there may be risks to the water supply. As someone who previously served on the council, I would find it very difficult to make a decision to rezone that land. That is why it is so essential that we establish this strategic housing activation office.”
“I raise this in the context of a very live issue. Dublin City Council recently went out to public consultation on a brownfield site known as Ballyboggan where more than 6,000 homes could be built. As part of that consultation, Uisce Éireann identified two very significant challenges to the delivery of those homes. The first was wastewater treatment and the absence of a wastewater treatment plant in the area to service those homes. The second, and it is either fortunate or unfortunate that the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley is in the seat here today, relates to the Dublin to Shannon water pipeline and the possibility there may be an insufficient water supply to support the construction of those homes on this site.”
“Will the Minister confirm that mainstream schools will also be part of this programme? The National Council for Special Education has run a very successful programme of direct delivery of therapists. That could make a massive difference, take the pressure off teachers and deliver the services we know so many children need.”