John Connolly
Galway West · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“The decision of the Government to purchase the Hammerson site on O'Connell Street - the site of the old Carlton Cinema - clearly shows the intent and determination of the Government to progress and complete the MetroLink project.”
“I mention one such community organisation in my constituency, Connemara Care, which provides home care and support for the elderly, people with disabilities, and people with dementia.”
“I had been aware that the deceased man had been diagnosed with dementia some years earlier. When I expressed my condolences to my friend, his response really struck me. He said that this was the second time they had lost their father.”
“If we can look at training more people in this area and promoting this as a profession, it might help. A concern has been brought to my attention but I do not want to imply wrongdoing on anyone's behalf. A family asked me to get clarity. They were provided with home care hours to be provided by a private company.”
“Families want to support that wish for their own loved ones and I know that across the House, Government and Opposition want to support this. Our health service should be structured to support that. However, in the correspondence that we have received, concerns have emerged regarding the availability of HSE home support services.”
“Cuirfidh mé tús le m'óráid leis an méid ar chríochnaigh an Teachta Aird leis. Molaim an tAire Stáit go bhfuil sé anseo le linn na díospóireachta ar fad. Tá sé anseo ag fanacht. Ní dheachaigh sé amach as an Seomra.”
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“However, Ceannt Station will now have five platforms, yet we will only have a single track into the station. It is going to be very difficult to make the most of the redevelopment of Ceannt Station without doubling the rail track to Athenry. That should be borne in mind. I recognise and welcome that there is the project to develop a second platform in Oranmore and a passing loop. It is a start but I would like to see greater intent as to how we are going to progress the recommendations in this study as they relate to Galway and rail infrastructure in Galway.”
“It was mentioned earlier in the Dáil today and it is worth reminding ourselves of the recent cost of congestion report in Galway city which showed that the cost of congestion in Galway city is going to double between now and 2030 and is going to reach a level of €107 million. Clearly, that report is saying we need to do more in terms of infrastructural development to tackle congestion in Galway city. The two moves included in this report will go some way towards reducing the congestion in Galway city and reducing the cost associated with that. There are just one or two operational matters regarding rail services in the city I want to draw people's attention to as well. There is a very positive project at the moment in terms of the redevelopment of Ceannt Station.”
“I put down a number of parliamentary questions as to how we are going to move from this report towards the implementation of both of those objectives in terms of doubling the track to Athenry and reopening the western rail corridor and I am finding it difficult to see real intent and to be able to say purposely and specifically that this project is going to progress. As I said at the time of the publication of the national rail review, I hope the national development plan reviews it in terms of rail infrastructure for Galway and clearly highlights that both the doubling of the track to Athenry and the western rail corridor are part of the national development plan.”
“However, there was no reference in the national planning framework to reopening the western rail corridor or to doubling the rail track between Galway and Athenry as part of the key enablers for Galway city. That was regrettable given the strong sense that came from this review of the all-island strategic rail review to include both projects into the future. Other Deputies mentioned their own constituencies but when Galway and Cork are compared, Cork has a double track to Mallow and a double track to Cobh. In Limerick work has started on progressing the double track between Limerick and Limerick Junction. Yet, I do not see the same intent arising from this report.”
“I welcome the outcome of the rail review study. I particularly welcome the outcome as it pertains to the recommendations it makes for my own constituency and for the west in general, especially the doubling of the rail track to Athenry and the proposed reopening of the western rail corridor. I know the Minister is familiar with this. However, I go back to the publication of the national planning framework about a month or six weeks ago. In the national planning framework for each of the regional cities of Cork, Limerick and Waterford and Galway, a number of key enablers were outlined as to how these cities can be developed and what infrastructural projects will be required for these cities to develop. For Limerick, Cork and Waterford, the key enablers all included some reference to rail transport or rail projects.”
“In the aftermath of Storm Éowyn, the Government committed to a full review of the response of the State to the impact of the storm. As we recall, across the west and north west, there were extensive periods of outages of water, electricity, broadband and communications services. It has had a large impact on the minds of people in that part of the country. Even today, constituents have reported to me an increase in the occurrence of intermittent electrical outages as a result of Storm Éowyn, which happened on 21 January. I am asking that we consider the publication of the report prior to the summer recess.”
“Maybe it is necessary to change the title of that to the Minister of State with responsibility for "additional educational needs" rather than "special educational needs". We can make all the legislative and policy changes that are planned but, ultimately, resource change is what will have the biggest impact. We need more SNAs and supplementary teachers.”
“The figure for staff who saw the student support plan as being "helpful" or "very helpful" was close to 90%, I think. One of the things I noticed from the student support plans I read and participated in developing over the years was how they also tried to link with the other agencies that might be working with the child. It took the recommendations from other therapists and psychologists and tried to make sure the targets in the plan were included and implemented, and all the while, working with teachers and parents. I welcome the feedback on terminology in the report. We should be conscious of its findings. Consideration should be given across the board to replace the term "special" with "additional". We should probably start with the Minister of State's portfolio.”
“I expect that there are special educational needs organisers, SENOs, and inspectors who would have seen very good practice in the completion of the student support plans. They have become a very important document in schools. Again it is worth noting the feedback, with 75% of parents saying that they had been "fairly involved" or "very involved" in developing or reviewing their child's support plan. This is very positive. It highlights the importance the schools place now on the positive relationship between schools, teachers and parents in progressing a child's education. I will give some more of the data. More than 70% of parents said that they found the student support plan to be "helpful" or "very helpful" and staff really see it as being helpful.”
“One aspect of school life of the child where the reflections are not as positive is in the area of transition, be that children transitioning from one primary school to perhaps a school for children with additional needs or children transitioning between primary school and secondary school. In the implementation plan brought forward as a result of this report, we should examine this. We need to try to define how we do this well. I am sure there are good examples of this throughout the country, where the transition is done well between schools. We must examine that and try to make sure we implement it across the board. I welcome the plan and the move to place the development of what was known as the individual education plan, and is now known as the student support plan, on a statutory basis.”
“A total of 86.3% of parents with children in mainstream primary schools view the education their children are in receipt of as being "fairly good" or "very good". Some 87.6% of parents who have children in a class for children with additional needs in a mainstream setting gave a very positive response and see their child's education as being "fairly good" or "very good". In the special schools, 86% of parents said they found that the education their child was receiving was "fairly good" or "very good". This is a very positive thing. It does not surprise me. As a teacher and as a parent, I would have assumed those statistics would be as they are but it is nice to see them written down and to see that they were collated in the manner that they were in this review.”
“I hope that all the children who are participating in the summer programme are enjoying it. It was a great measure to take. It highlighted the fact that we have come a long way in terms of the provision for children with additional educational needs. I hope to see this programme grow and that more schools will become involved in the scheme in the coming years. I welcome the publication of the review of the EPSEN Act. I commend, in particular, how thorough the data-collection process was as part of the review. I will start my own reflections on the report by highlighting something that I do not think has been highlighted yet by any other speaker. This is the positive feedback provided by parents on how they rate the quality of the education their child receives in their current school. As I said, the feedback is overwhelmingly positive.”
“I will start by mentioning the July provision in schools around the country. One of the many successful measures taken by the Minister of State's predecessor was the expansion of the in-school July provision to mainstream schools, which occurred following the Covid years. I am not sure if the Minister of State has the figures but I estimate that tens of thousands of children are currently participating in July provision across the country. Schools have the discretion to extend participation, not only to pupils with additional needs, but to all children whom the school considers to be at risk of educational disadvantage. I commend the mainstream schools that have embraced the measure. This year, the scheme has become more amenable to schools. There is a great emphasis in the programme on well-being, wellness and connection.”
“The Minister of State noted the challenge of purchasing land not currently covered by the sports capital grant. We could have something like the Housing Finance Agency for local authorities to allow them to draw down long-term loans at low interest rates for the purchase of land specifically for community and sporting facilities.”
“The GAA has done a lot of analysis of its activities in different parts of the country. It is concerned about the future organisation of the GAA in some urban communities because the lack of playing space will limit its ability to undertake activities and increase its membership among new communities. That is worth noting in this debate. As a concrete example, in 2017 Galway City Council developed the Kingston master plan for an area quite close to where I live. It was to include playgrounds, changing rooms, outdoor gym equipment, pedestrian walkway, cycle paths, a pitch and ancillary facilities. We are yet to see that go to planning. We have been talking about it for eight years but, due to the challenge of financing it and some of the land not yet being in local authority ownership, it has not come to fruition.”
“That makes it difficult for voluntary clubs to be able to purchase the land, as the Minister of State noted in his response. The viability of buying land for sporting clubs in our major urban areas is a really significant challenge.”
“The Minister of State noted many of the challenges that sports groups and local authorities meet in the development of facilities. The programme for Government also includes a complementary commitment to conduct a nationwide audit of sports facilities to address shortages in areas where there is a population of over 1,500. The audit will probably find a deficit in the provision of playing spaces in urban areas. I am not familiar with the locations but I have heard from some of my colleagues and from the media that there are significant parts of Dublin city which have no active recreational spaces for clubs to pursue their interests. That is something we need to challenge. It also happens outside Dublin. The demand for land has led to increased pressure in terms of its price.”
“There is a very progressive commitment in the programme for Government to support local authorities in the acquisition of new lands for parks and playing pitches to help build liveable communities. We all know the importance of active recreational spaces. Have efforts commenced to develop a strategy around that commitment?”
“The healthcare sector is one sector of our public service that relies heavily on attracting and recruiting practitioners and staff internationally. In 2024, 6,000 of the 17,000 critical skills permits provided by the State were in the health or social work sectors, 5,031 of which were for nursing staff. In 2023, the OECD said that 54% of nurses working in Ireland had trained in other jurisdictions. The equivalent figure in the UK was 18%. I harbour a guess that many of them are probably Irish. I arrive at two conclusions from this. First, we are not training an adequate number of healthcare professionals, in particular practitioners and particularly nurses. Second, nurses particularly are choosing post qualification to seek opportunities in countries other than Ireland. Both of these conclusions need to be interrogated.”
“The Opposition will claim that we are doing this to facilitate large landlords and major investors. From next March, those landlords will have no cause to evict a tenant. There will be a total ban on no-fault evictions. That is commendable. Opposition Deputies know well that this is a good measure, and they will be willing to support it when it comes to the vote this evening.”
“It will abolish any uncertainty that tenants and families have that a landlord could, at any point and under certain circumstances, end their tenancy. That six-year duration is timed well, and I commend the Minister. It is something that will help build communities. The sole effect of it will, of course, be to protect the family or tenant, but it will also have the impact of helping to build communities. The Minister has made efforts to balance the desire for greater security for tenants with the needs of smaller landlords who have three properties or fewer. In the event that they or their family find themselves in difficult financial circumstances, they will be able to sell the property. They will continue to be able to do that if a family member requires the home.”
“In fact, this will do the opposite. It will extend the rent controls and protections that tenants enjoy in certain locations at the moment to the rest of the country. It is notable that the Housing Agency review, published before the legislation came to us, found that tenants outside RPZs did face higher rent increases due to the lack of protection in those locations. The Minister is to be commended on making sure the protection of the zones is extended to all tenants throughout the country. It is also important for existing tenants to know that the terms of their tenancies will not change, despite some of the inferences that have been made. Another thing that is really good about what is coming forward here is that from next March, each tenancy will have a duration of six years. That is very welcome.”
“It has been very interesting to observe the debate and listen to the significant criticism and disapproval on the part of Opposition Members of what the Minister is bringing forward. Those same Members then say they do not intend to vote against the measure. In a very challenging scenario, the Minister has brought balance to a situation in which it is difficult to do so. Primarily, it is to his credit that he is protecting existing tenancies. The inference, namely that existing tenants will face substantial rent increases as a result of this, is simply untrue. It is important to state that clearly, as many of my colleagues have done. There are people who have the sense that what we are doing today will have that impact. It is important to state clearly and with certainty that it is not the impact of the provisions.”
“The report states the planned interventions - other than the road - are not sufficient to offset the increase in congestion in the city centre and wider metropolitan area. The report also highlighted the rate of public transport usage among commuters was five times the rate in Dublin as opposed to the regional cities.”
“I raise the recent report by the Department of Transport regarding the cost of congestion in the regional cities of Waterford, Cork and Galway. The report highlighted the cost of congestion in Galway will double between now and 2030, from €54 million currently to €107.4 million in 2030, which is an astronomical figure. In the following decade, from 2030 to 2040, the cost for Galway is expected to stabilise to €106.9 million. This stabilisation is based on the assumption the Galway city ring road will be operational post-2030. We heard already during Leaders' Questions how the Taoiseach values this project and wants to see it being promoted. Despite this, Galway is still projected to be the city with the highest cost of congestion in 2040 - higher than Cork and Waterford.”
“I welcome that the Minister will engage with Defence Forces personnel regarding a base for the Naval Service Reserve in Galway. There is little coastal coverage for the Naval Service between Limerick and Donegal, which is quite a wide area. Some of the subsea cables to which the Minister referred come into the country through Galway, including some of the transatlantic ones. Indeed, some cables come in north of Galway as well. One cable comes inland in County Mayo. Of course, Galway already has Defence Forces personnel within the city. We have Dún Uí Mhaoilíosa Barracks in Renmore, which the Minister has visited twice since his appointment. In the context of the recommendations of the Commission on the Defence Forces, this recommendation for a base for the Naval Service Reserve is a prudent one.”
“One further recommendation of the Commission on the Defence Forces was the development of a naval base for the Naval Service Reserve in Galway. This should form part of this strategy. The Naval Service has no coastal cover on the west coast between Limerick and Donegal. A naval base in Galway, therefore, would be appropriate.”
“The Minister has outlined well the potential threats that exist to our subsea cable infrastructure and to other aspects of our maritime domain, which require addressing and this strategy. One other recommendation that came from the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces was that the powers required by the Naval Service for effective enforcement in support of national security in the maritime domain should be addressed as there appears to be some inconsistency between the pieces of legislation in this area. Has the Minister any plans to address that issue? There seems to be an inconsistency between the Sea-Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006, the Maritime Security Act 2004 and the Maritime Safety Act 2005. Is a consolidating piece of legislation needed in this area?”
“As the Minister is aware, the Commission on the Defence Forces report proposed the development of a national maritime security strategy. I hear welcome news this morning that a public consultation process on the development of the strategy has been opened as of this morning. Will the Minister provide us with further information as to how the strategy will develop and evolve from here towards its completion? Will he provide a timeframe as to when we will see the strategy completed and ready to be enacted?”
“The programme for Government commits the Government to reducing the four-stage approval process to a single-step process. We should do that at the earliest possible opportunity. We need to look at the funding for capital acquisition, tenant in situ and the capital advance leasing facility. Local authorities and approved housing bodies are advising us that they are finding the approval process challenging, lengthy and burdensome. That is delaying the commencement of public housing development. We need to look at that, streamline it and get quicker decisions.”
“I might say one thing, a Leas Cheann-Comhairle, about the provision of public housing. I have consistently found it frustrating that it takes 59 weeks - that is the Department's own estimate - to bring a public housing project from the initial concept to the signing of contracts to begin construction of that project. That is immensely frustrating. It is too long. There is currently a four-stage process on which the local authority must engage with the Department, and approval must be sought at each stage. I think we are duplicating work. As my colleague Deputy McAuliffe said some moments ago, the local authority should be advised that it has a certain budget and that the Department would like to see a certain number of units being developed based on that budget, rather than this toing and froing, which is taking too long.”
“I am looking forward to the work of the housing activation office and the infrastructure task force because as much as we need anything else in the whole area of housing, we need both of those offices to commence work soon. I imagine that come July, when the new housing plan is published, that will feature centrally in it and there will be concrete actions to show us how both of those bodies will work with respect to triggering housing development.”
“However, in some locations it will be more challenging. There is scope, albeit limited, to increase the amount of zoned residential land within the confines of the boundaries of Galway city. It is the smallest geographical local authority in the country, yet we expect its metropolitan area to expand by 40,000 people within the national planning framework timeframe. The constraints of the city boundary are an issue we need to look at. We do have the MASP area but, again, we need clarity around the planning of it. Reasonably large tracts of land have been zoned for residential development in Galway city but we have the problem, as has been noted by many other speakers, of the lack of road and water infrastructure to trigger the development of that land.”
“Tá súil agam go mbeidh cruinniú maith againn ansin agus go mbeimid in ann réiteach a chur ar an bhfadhb ar leith atá sna ceantair Ghaeltachta. On that, I know the Minister, Deputy Browne, is visiting Galway on Friday to meet some of the activist groups who are campaigning for further housing options in the Gaeltacht. I hope the outcome of that meeting will be positive because while we have a housing problem throughout the country, the lack of housing in the Gaeltacht puts it in danger. If young people who speak the language cannot reside there, obviously that is going to place its future as a Gaeltacht region i mbaol, in some danger. I have heard a lot in the debate regarding the lack of infrastructure and the need to expand the areas in our local authorities that are zoned for residential development, and I concur with that.”
“Ba mhaith liom caint faoi fhadhb ar leith maidir le cúrsaí tithíochta sa tír: an fhadhb atá inár nGaeltachtaí agus inár gceantair Ghaeltachta. Mar a luadh go minic sa díospóireacht seo, tá fadhb an easpa tithíochta fud fad na tíre i ngach áit. Ach is fadhb ar leith í sin i gceantair Ghaeltachta. Cuireann sí todhchaí na Gaeltachta i mbaol. Más rud é nach bhfuil duine nó daoine in ann cur fúthu i gceantair Ghaeltachta, beidh tionchar aige sin ar an teanga sa cheantar sin agus ar thodhchaí na nGaeltachtaí. Tá a fhios agam go rachaidh an tAire, an Teachta Browne, go Gaillimh ar an Aoine chun casadh leis an ngrúpa BÁNÚ, grúpa gníomhaithe sa cheantar sin atá ag impí orainn ar fad níos mó a dhéanamh chun soláthar tithíochta a chur ar fáil sa Ghaeltacht do dhaoine atá ina gcainteoirí dúchasacha agus gurb as na ceantair seo iad.”
“We need the ring road in Galway; we also need to complement it with enhanced public transport. Unfortunately, the evidence I have seen suggests the NTA is focused on the greater Dublin area. We need the NTA to expand its focus more to the regional cities. I understand the Minister for Transport has some measures in that area and I hope he brings them forward soon.”
“Proportionately, five times as many people in Dublin use public transport as in the regional cities. That is because of its availability. The options to use public transport in Dublin are much greater than in the regional cities. I would welcome any and all interventions that will enhance public transport provision in Galway, give us better public transport infrastructure and give commuters a greater option to use public transport. There is one thing I fear and I asked the Minister for Transport about it recently. The report published last week says the data on public transport usage I have just quoted reflects the insufficient scale and coverage of the public transport network, as well as poor frequency and accessibility in regional cities. People cannot use what they do not have.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit as ucht an fhreagra. I will focus on the last paragraph of the Minister of State's response. He is correct to say we need more than enhanced infrastructure. I am glad, though, that his response also recognises the enhanced infrastructure, which will predominantly be the ring road, will alleviate some congestion and the report notes that. The last paragraph is interesting because it makes the point we need greater public transport and we need people to use public transport more. One of the reasons I said I think this document requires further debate is it highlights one startling statistic. That is that only 4% of the population in the regional cities use public transport as their preferred mode of transport, whereas in the greater Dublin area that is 20%.”
“A report last October highlighted that light rail is feasible for Galway, but we need to progress that to a route options assessment.”
“Again, this report highlights that those interventions will not be sufficient to alleviate the traffic congestion that Galway suffers. If we cannot or do not increase the level of intervention and invest further, we will see traffic concerns in Galway unfortunately getting worse. Such interventions are not rocket science. Some of them are already alluded to in many national and local reports, such as the doubling of the rail track to Athenry, developing the western rail corridor between Tuam and Athenry, implementing the new bus network for the city at the earliest opportunity, bringing the park and ride and bus priority measures to fruition in the shortest possible timeframe and progressing a route option study for light rail in the city.”
“Unfortunately, and this will not be news to anybody with knowledge of Galway and its transport strategy, the ring road alone will not be sufficient to offset the increase in congestion. Further interventions are required. That is the crucial part. It would be horrific for Galway commuters to hear that not alone are our current plans not going to alleviate the traffic congestion in the city, but the traffic problems could get worse because we have an insufficiency in the interventions we are proposing. I raised the issue last week with the Tánaiste that the NTA advised me it had paused development of a new transport strategy for Galway. Since that the NTA has provided me with updated information that it is still progressing many of the projects included in the Galway transport strategy from 2016.”
“Outside of that this report highlights that the cost of congestion in Galway will reach a peak in 2030 but will fall marginally towards 2040. It will fall due to the assumption in the report that the Galway city ring road will be operational after 2030. It must also be borne in mind that the report assumes the increasing population and economic activity the city will experience in accordance with the national planning framework towards 2040. Part of what the report is saying is that the growth expected in Galway city is one of the reasons we will experience future costs associated with congestion, but the development of the ring road will alleviate that marginally.”
“I want to dispel that because the report clearly says differently. Galway city ring road is currently undergoing its second assessment by An Bord Pleanála. The first assessment was accepted by An Bord Pleanála. It charged that the regulatory obligations had not been adhered to in the assessment process, which is regrettable, despite it approving the planning for the road. The Galway road project office has since furnished An Bord Pleanála with thorough further information as part of the current assessment process. I hope An Bord Pleanála will undertake the assessment carefully and prudently, but quickly. It is important for the city and the region that we get a quick decision on this. I am hopeful we will get a positive decision.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle as ucht m’ábhar a roghnú le haghaidh an mhír seo ar an gclár. Mo bhuíochas freisin leis an Aire Stáit as a bheith linn chun an t-ábhar a phlé. As the Chair noted, I bring to the fore a number of issues that arise from a report published last week by the Department of Transport called The Economic Cost of Congestion in Regional Cities 2022-2040. I understand this follows a similar study that was done for the greater Dublin area last year. Some issues arise from the report that I feel warrant further reflection on future national transport policy, but I will confine much of my comment to the report as it refers to Galway. I first want to dispel an inference put forth by some since the publication of the report that it claims Galway will not benefit from the development of the proposed ring road.”
“Hopefully, by the time it enters the planning process, the new planning Act will be in action and we will be guaranteed a decision within the legislative timeframe of 26 weeks. I hope this will be the outcome. I recognise that it is a complex project that will be designed to protect the city against tidal and fluvial flooding. Some of the complexities that have delayed the project have been caused by the processes and systems we use in bring projects to fruition. Even at this point - midstream - I hope we can expedite it and bring it to fruition more quickly. I ask the Minister of State to use whatever powers and resources are in his Department to make sure it happens.”
“The final scheme I will discuss is probably the most complex, and this is reflected in the length of time it will take to bring it to fruition. Consultants were appointed for the Coirib go Cósta - Galway city flood relief scheme in 2020 and it is now not expected that construction will commence until 2030. This is a ten-year design and planning phase, which seems excessive. I heard a colleague say earlier that it is hoped to go to planning in 2027. I am concerned by what the planning process might encounter. Galway city is proximate to Galway Bay complex special area of conservation. I think the community would be very interested in seeing the final design for the flood relief works in the city. The design may not meet with universal agreement.”
“This is something that interests the community there, which would be interested in reading that report, as would I. It would help to get more information about the decision-making process within the OPW but it does not seem as though a decision is imminent, when it should be. I was concerned that in a recent response to a question of mine, the Minister of State advised that it is open to Galway County Council to make an application for funding under the OPW’s minor flood mitigation works. That should not be necessary. I understand that a budget has been provided and funding has been agreed. The OPW is saying that it accepts the report, this is the best recommendation coming from the report and we should progress to develop that scheme at the earliest opportunity.”
“There will be challenges with that because it is an area of significant natural beauty and is located adjacent to the Galway Bay special area of conservation. I also want to discuss the Clifden flood relief scheme. A draft options report for that scheme to manage the flood risk has been presented and I understand that it is with the OPW. My understanding is that the OPW has sought further information from Galway County Council and it is the opinion of the council that all the information the OPW needs is in its possession. What is required now is a decision to progress the scheme. I have not been able to access the draft report on flooding in Clifden. I do not know what remediation proposals are suggested in the draft report.”
“He may recall the devastation it brought to business and life in the village of Clarinbridge in County Galway. This study aims to ensure that this does not reoccur. I am no engineering expert but I cannot see the remediation of the risk at this location coming within the minor flood mitigation works and coastal protection scheme category. I think it will require a far more significant budget than what is available. We cannot allow for a significant gap in time between the publication of the study, which I hope is imminent, and the commencement of the design of the flood relief measures. The risk of flooding of a nature that occurred during Storm Debi at that location is simply too significant.”
“Like many people who have already spoken on the issue, most of my comments will be confined to local issues as they pertain to flooding and the risk of flooding in my constituency. I ask the Minister of State about the ongoing study on the flood risk that arises on the coast line between Oranmore and Kinvara. A study was commenced in February 2024 and given a timeline of in the region of 12 months. We do not yet know the outcome of that study. I think we can take it as given that the outcome will propose that a significant level of protection is required to protect the community there. I encourage the Minister of State to ensure that, following the publication of the study, a budget is provided in his Department to facilitate the outcome of that study. I am not sure if the Minister of State was in office during Storm Debi.”