Mark Ward
Dublin Mid-West · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“The second largest part of the subvention is the €4.1 billion that relates to public debt. Ireland would have no legal liability to pay any part of this. The cost of defence and international relations is approximately €2.7 billion and almost none of this expenditure relates to activity taking place in the North.”
“It has not allowed us, as a nation, to reach our full potential. I also think it is important that we take the current financial situation in the North seriously. It is always disappointing when Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael use the North as a stick to beat Sinn Féin. Even the Labour Party used this tactic this week.”
“It has been a long-standing policy of Sinn Féin to bring waste management back to public control. Privatisation has failed ordinary people. Bin companies act like a cartel in how they raise their prices. When one company increases its price, the rest follow.”
“The total subvention includes central British Government costs allocated to the North that would not be relevant to a united Ireland and here is why. The subvention from the British Exchequer to the North was €16 billion in 2023.”
“I thank Deputy Sherlock for bringing forward this legislation to bring bin collections back to public control. I am disappointed but not surprised that the Government is opposing this legislation. Fine Gael has a long history and policy of privatising public services.”
“We have a situation that allows multiple bin trucks to operate on the same street. On my road there could be three different companies coming down the road, sometimes at the same time. This goes against everything we are trying to achieve to make waste collection more environmentally friendly.”
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“That could be part of the tendering process as well and, again, could be teased out in pre-legislative scrutiny. We would also allow for local authorities to re-enter the market. The independent regulator would set and review standards, prices for customers and the criteria for workers to be able to join a union, which is really important. Many of the bin companies are not unionised at the moment. As I said already, we introduced similar legislation in 2019. I am probably the last Sinn Féin person standing before the recess. I thank the Ceann Comhairle and all the staff for their help over the year and their tireless work that keeps this place going. I hope everybody gets a chance to get out and enjoy the good weather and has some sort of a break over the summer. I will see you all after the recess.”
“I gift-wrapped the solution but the Government kicked it down the road. Sinn Féin is happy to support this Bill. The process of returning waste management to public control can begin with having one company per local authority. A single bin operator per local authority would reduce the number of bin trucks on streets and should reduce the incidence of illegal dumping. This would lead to a decrease in prices, which could be set out in the tendering process. We would like to see this go further by the introduction of an independent regulator. We are drafting our own legislation that will do this, as well as the remunicipalisation of waste and the introduction of a fee waiver. The Minister of State mentioned costs and how this would be paid for.”
“Over the last number of years, the nature of what is in our waste has changed. For example, in 2012, there were no problems with nitrous oxide. However, earlier this week thejournal.ie reported that 160,000 nitrous oxide canisters end up in Irish waste facilities every year. This shows the scale of the problem. Over 13,000 nitrous oxide canisters have been collected by the local authorities in Dublin in recent years. There were 120 explosions over a two-week period in waste compactors in Ireland. This is costly and dangerous. I introduced legislation to tackle this scourge but the Government delayed it by nine months which means it will not be read again until October. We have youth health issues and environmental issues with nitrous oxide. The Government really needs to take this seriously.”
“I grew up in north Clondalkin back in 1980s. We did not have much. It was an area of disadvantage but it was a lot cleaner then than it is today. Illegal dumping has no place in our communities. People who do it need to stop because they are affecting all our communities. In response to a parliamentary question of mine, the Minister for the environment stated that over €27 million is given to local authorities for anti-dumping initiatives. In 2025, South Dublin County Council alone, in my own area, spent over €2 million to tackle illegal dumping. This money could be better used to enhance our communities. We have sports clubs and community groups that are always looking for funding. We should be able to give them this funding rather than tackling illegal dumping.”
“At the time, we had engagement with SIPTU and Fórsa, which backed this change in policy. The Dublin city task force also recommended a single bin operator. In 2022, Dublin City Council commissioned independent research which looked at similar-sized cities to Dublin and compared their waste management systems. Dublin was an outlier. It was the only city that was fully privatised. In other jurisdictions, cities of a similar size at least had some part of their bin collection in public control. Since bin collections were privatised, illegal dumping has been commonplace in Dublin. I am probably paraphrasing the Minister of State when he says there is no evidence that privatisation has led to more illegal dumping. That is the gist of what I thought he was saying. I can only go by what I see with my own eyes.”
“We have a situation that allows multiple bin trucks to operate on the same street. On my road there could be three different companies coming down the road, sometimes at the same time. This goes against everything we are trying to achieve to make waste collection more environmentally friendly. Sinn Féin has raised the idea of taking waste management back into public control in the Dáil on several occasions. In 2019, I came in here after a by-election. I had nine sitting days before the general election was called. In those nine days I managed to introduce a Bill co-signed with Deputy Cullinane. It was a combination of the work I was doing on the council and the work Deputy Cullinane was doing in the Dáil. This legislation was to appoint an independent regulator for waste management with an aim of reducing fees.”
“It has been a long-standing policy of Sinn Féin to bring waste management back to public control. Privatisation has failed ordinary people. Bin companies act like a cartel in how they raise their prices. When one company increases its price, the rest follow. I reported this practice to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, when I was a councillor in 2016, as referenced by the Deputy. Earlier this year, Panda increased its prices by 9% for customers. Ordinary people are being pushed to the pin of their collar. No one's wages have gone up by 9% in the past year so nobody's bill should go up by 9% in the same time. Some bin companies have even increased their recycling fees, as the deposit and return scheme has reduced the amount of waste they recycle. It effectively means that people are paying more for less now.”
“I thank Deputy Sherlock for bringing forward this legislation to bring bin collections back to public control. I am disappointed but not surprised that the Government is opposing this legislation. Fine Gael has a long history and policy of privatising public services. It has not worked in housing, water or transport and it definitely has not worked in waste management. By his own admission, the Minister of State knows there is a problem here because he would not have commissioned a report in relation to side-by-side competition otherwise. I am not sure that some of the issues the Minister of State raised could not have been teased out during pre-legislative scrutiny. Then, if they were not sorted out at that stage, the Minister of State had the opportunity to vote down the Bill but he did not even give it a chance.”
“That is beneath them. The people of the North deserve more respect than that. My colleagues in the Assembly would love to have the huge surpluses that the Government in the South has in every budget but they spend every single penny on the people in the North. If Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael want to criticise us, our tactics and what we do up in the North, I suggest that they run candidates in the elections there next year.”
“It has not allowed us, as a nation, to reach our full potential. I also think it is important that we take the current financial situation in the North seriously. It is always disappointing when Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael use the North as a stick to beat Sinn Féin. Even the Labour Party used this tactic this week. The Six Counties have been held back from reaching their full potential because they have not seen the necessary investment. Westminster holds the purse strings. The devolved institutions can only work with the budget that the British Government allocates to them, yet Sinn Féin as the lead party in the Assembly is working tirelessly to deliver for all the communities in the North. That does not stop Micheál Martin or Simon Harris from bringing in clippings or printouts and standing up in the Dáil with a big "gotcha" moment.”
“The second largest part of the subvention is the €4.1 billion that relates to public debt. Ireland would have no legal liability to pay any part of this. The cost of defence and international relations is approximately €2.7 billion and almost none of this expenditure relates to activity taking place in the North. This expenditure would not be carried over into a new Irish State. Taxes that are raised in the North would also now revert to a united Ireland. This includes taxes that are currently collected by Westminster, which would be used for the benefit of everybody on this island. What is often overlooked are the economic benefits of a united Ireland. An all-island, all-Ireland economy would have huge benefits and would allow our nations to thrive once we remove the shackles of partition. Partition has failed everybody on this island.”
“The total subvention includes central British Government costs allocated to the North that would not be relevant to a united Ireland and here is why. The subvention from the British Exchequer to the North was €16 billion in 2023. Recent analysis shows that the true deficit that would transfer to a united Ireland is approximately €1.7 billion. To put that in context, that is about 13% of the Apple tax money. The 2027 budget in the South will be over €125 billion, so the cost to the Irish State will only be 1.4% of the overall budget. The single biggest factor of the British subvention to the North is pensions, which is around €6.8 billion. The cost of pensions is unlikely to transfer to a new Ireland. Many people living in Ireland already receive British pensions because they have worked in Britain and now they live here.”
“However, last week, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Independents failed in their duty and their constitutional obligations to make preparations for unity. The debacle arising from Brexit is all the evidence you need to plan for the future. Fail to prepare and prepare to fail. In fairness, the biggest question I get when we discuss Irish unity is around how we are going to afford it. It is a genuine concern for the ordinary people I have conversations with on this island. It is based on the British subvention and the figures that are being bandied about. The figures frequently quoted as representing the British Government's annual subvention to the North is a British accounting exercise. For the purpose of this debate, any figures I reference will be in euro.”
“Last week, the Dáil debated Irish unity during Opposition time and today, the conversation continues on Government time. This is a welcome and positive step. The conversation about our constitutional future is moving forward and it is right that the Government begins the serious work of planning for constitutional change now. Across Ireland, more and more people are engaging in this discussion and asking what a united Ireland could mean for their families, communities and future generations. The national conversation is well under way and it is important that it is informed, inclusive and focused on the opportunities that lie ahead. I welcome the fact that the Government is recognising this by scheduling this debate on the economics of Irish unity today.”
“I thank the Taoiseach for his update on the future of the GPO. As he knows, the GPO is a historic building in the centre of our capital city. It is where our Republic was declared. It was the central location of the Easter Rising. I know the Cabinet committee met to discuss the future plans for this historic building. I welcome that there will be a public consultation on the future use of the GPO but I want to know what the Government will do to make sure that this consultation process is accessible to everybody. Will the Government consider Moore Street and the potential historical quarter that surrounds the GPO and Moore Street as part of that future consultation about the GPO? As the Taoiseach knows, our republican history is important and it simply cannot be paved over.”
“As was said already, safeguards are definitely needed in relation to this aspect to make sure there is no coercion or anything like that. This is an important step to protect women form potentially violent partners. I am on the justice committee. We recommended that this legislation be named in honour of Jennifer Poole, who was murdered in 2021 by her ex-partner, Gavin Murphy. It was only after Jennifer was killed that her family became aware of Murphy's history of domestic violence. I commend Jennifer's family, in particular her brother Jason, who I welcome to the Gallery. He has led the call for the introduction of this register.”
“That is only talking about deaths; there are countless other women experiencing domestic violence and abuse in their own homes. Domestic violence refuges need more funding. We need accommodation in every county. Another report I saw shows that over a six-month period, nearly 1,900 women were turned away from services because they were oversubscribed. I know women who could not find a safe place and had to return to unsafe and potentially deadly home environments. This legislation will introduce a register to apply to individuals convicted of domestic violence against a partner or former partner. The register will be publicly accessible. Inclusion on the register requires victim consent before publication.”
“Before I talk about the legislation, I want to put it in context. As the Minister knows, there is an epidemic of violence against women and girls in this State. Most recently, we saw the murder of two women, Jamey Carney in Kerry and Adina Raluca Constantin in Laois. I extend my condolences to their families and loves ones. The suspect in their murders is their partner or former partner. Women's Aid has published some very startling figures. Since 1996, 286 women have died violently in this State. Some 63% of them were killed in their own homes, 55% were killed by a partner or ex-partner and nine out of ten knew their killers. Your home should be a safe place. Unfortunately, it is not a safe place for many women. This is a huge problem.”
“My cousin, who I spoke to yesterday, had to make the really difficult decision around her ma having to go into residential care. She signed up for the fair deal scheme, and her words to me yesterday were that, "There is nothing fair about the fair deal scheme". Whatever improvements have been made, the people at the front end of this situation are not feeling the effects. I think this needs to be looked at too. I will not go into too much as I know my colleague wants to contribute on this issue too. As was mentioned before, however, proper home care is needed too. At the very least, while it might not stop someone having to go into a care home at some stage, it could delay that day and give people and their families that bit of quality of life, instead of having it robbed from them.”
“That is their truth, and you allow them to have their truth. My mother and her siblings really fought for the appropriate care for their mam back then. If we fast-forward a few years later, one of those siblings, my aunt, is 66, now has Alzheimer's disease and is living in a care home. She is my godmother. I am really fond of her. She spoiled me rotten as a child. She gave me the odd clip around the ear when I was a child. She also gave me a few clips around the ear when I was an adult. Now, I deserved every single one of them. She is another one of these really formidable Dublin women who have this quick-witted sense of humour. She could cut you in two with a sentence. She worked really hard over the years. She bought a home, raised her children and doted on her grandchildren.”
“I do not think there is a family in the country not affected by somebody having this life-changing condition. My family is no different. My nanny, May, passed away several years ago. She was a strong Dublin woman, raised in the Liberties. She raised her own family, including my mam, in Drimnagh. She was a dressmaker and worked alongside my grandfather in his tailor's workshop on Wellington Quay, just beside Temple Bar. If she was alive today, she would have celebrated her 100th birthday a couple of weeks ago. My nanny, however, was robbed of her later years in life by Alzheimer's disease. I remember her getting upset in the early stages when she misremembered stuff. I learned very quickly that if somebody with Alzheimer's disease misremembers stuff, that is the truth. You do not argue whatsoever.”
“I also welcome Jordan and Cian to the Public Gallery and all their family and friends with them. I thank them for raising awareness of dementia. I was looking at their achievement, and they have done 32 marathons in 32 days. That sends shivers down my spine. I do not know how they managed to do it. I ran one marathon in 2018, and not 32 of them, as a person living with multiple sclerosis, just to raise awareness. The thought of doing 32 marathons is something else. I cannot contemplate it. That is some achievement. I hope to see Jordan and Cian on Sunday when they will be doing laps around Croke Park because I will be on the Hill cheering for the Dubs at the same time. I will give those lads a cheer when they are going around the pitch. I also appreciate the opportunity to speak on dementia.”
“Does the Taoiseach believe that gardaí have proper training and protections to tackle this scourge? Does he believe that adequate regulations and laws are in place to protect our communities from the scourge of dangerous scramblers and e-scooters?”
“Grace Lynch died in January after being hit by a scrambler. This came after years of calls for increased action against illegal scrambler use. Grace's law has been passed and this is welcome, but we have not seen the benefit or significant changes in our communities. Scramblers are still being driven recklessly. Grace's law made it very clear that the illegal use of scramblers in public spaces is against the law. The Garda Representative Association, GRA, has said not one member of the gardaí is trained in pursuit driving. It has called for its members to be trained and protected if they pursue a scrambler. Scramblers and e-scooters go hand in hand. In the past two weeks, six children have been admitted to Temple Street hospital with traumatic brain injuries because of e-scooters.”
“They are really disappointed with the response I had to send to them this week indicating that the new bus we were getting for the whole of the DMR West was going to be taken for the EU Presidency. We are back to square one with no bus available. This bus is vital for community groups but also for building good, positive relationships with the Garda. I ask that the Minister do everything in his power to restore this bus and also look at funding for an additional bus for the area.”
“I respect that I only mentioned the Garda community bus at the end of my question. I got a response this week from the Garda station saying the DMR west Garda community bus will be unavailable from the end of the month for the rest of the year due to the requirements of the EU Presidency. I met two groups in the area recently, the Quarryvale Butterflies and the Rowlagh women's hub, which are campaigning for an additional bus. The bus that was available was in Blanchardstown, across the River Liffey, and we have managed to get a new bus for that area, which we will use and share. The women were delighted and are still going to campaign for the additional bus.”
“I thank the Minister. DMR west is a huge area. It covers Blanchardstown, Clondalkin, Lucan, Saggart, Rathcoole, Brittas, Palmerstown and the junior Minister's area, Ballyfermot. It is a wide area so we need more than 125 cars. I would like to see that scaled up. I raised a situation here last year that despite having these 125 cars, on one occasion last year, only one Garda car was available to cover the Clondalkin, Rathcoole, Newcastle, Saggart and Ballyfermot area. On that particular night, there was a serious incident, because of which the car was tied up, and that meant that calls in that area went unanswered. The Garda car did not call out. I have concerns about that. I asked in the question - I know it was not in the written part - about the availability of the Garda community bus to residents in DMR west during the EU Presidency.”
“It is apt for me to ask this question on the day that is in it. It is particularly about DMR west, which includes Clondalkin and Lucan Garda stations. I have a particular interest in the availability of Garda cars and the Garda community bus.”
“Independent Ireland and others having a different opinion about Sinn Féin on policy matters is great and is called having political differences and engaging in political discourse. I am happy to argue with them any day of the week, but they should not make things up because people will see through them.”
“Last week, we had to listen to what I can only describe as a rant from Independent Ireland regarding Sinn Féin's policy on carbon tax. Independent Ireland was caught out in its misrepresentation. The Dáil record does not lie. Here are the facts. For those down the back who may struggling with what I am going to say or who hear what they want to hear, carbon tax was brought in by Fianna Fáil in 2010. Sinn Féin opposed it. Some Independent Ireland Deputies were members of Fianna Fáil when it introduced the carbon tax in 2010. Sinn Féin opposed the carbon tax in 2012, 2013, 2019 and at every opportunity since. The climate action Bill had absolutely nothing to do with carbon tax. Carbon tax is not mentioned in the Bill.”
“The cost of living is one of the biggest issues that people raise in my constituency office. People are struggling to make ends meet. Workers are handing over more than half of their wages in rent. They can barely cover their bills, put diesel in their cars, food on the table or pay for childcare and ever-increasing insurance costs. The cost of fuel is crippling people as they go about their daily business. Sinn Féin has pushed every step of the way for the Government to do the right thing. While other parties, including the sponsors of the motion, were sleeping away last week, Sinn Féin, through Deputy Doherty, put forward amendments to the Finance Bill to reduce the cost of petrol and diesel at the pumps. We have also submitted an amendment to today's motion to improve it.”
“I have a final point which I have raised numerous times as well. It is a national embarrassment that Dublin Airport does not have a current rail or metro link. MetroLink was spoken about in 2005. Fianna Fáil crashed the economy. It basically crashed MetroLink at the time. Twenty years later, it was announced. Will the Minister fill us in on any update on MetroLink? Will we see it any time this decade?”
“I have raised many times with the Minister that there is no practical way to travel from Dublin Mid-West to the airport using public transport. The Airport Hopper was the most economical way for people in the area to get to the airport. People in Clondalkin, Lucan and Tallaght have been impacted by the decision to close this route. People in these areas have been left without a dedicated bus service to the airport for over a year. As the Minister knows, I asked him and the NTA to step in because when a privately run service stops, the State can take it over through a public service obligation agreement. My pleas have fallen on deaf ears so far. In light of removal of the passenger cap, I ask that any public service obligations are revisited and reconsidered because of the impact that will have on people in Dublin Mid-West.”
“He told me that pilots are regularly rostered for standby duties, which leaves them in a really difficult position. Either they pay in advance for expensive parking that they may not ultimately need or they risk having no parking available if they are called off standby and have only an hour to report for duty. As can be imagined, this is really far from practical. During the summer months, public parking is often fully booked, which adds further uncertainty. It does not take a rocket scientist to work out that lifting the passenger cap will mean more staff. More staff will mean more driving and more driving will mean that we will need more parking. I am calling on the Government to plan for this certain outcome when lifting any passenger cap. Public transport is not a viable option for that pilot and many other people in Dublin Mid-West.”
“As the Minister knows, Ireland is an island and, therefore, its connectivity to the rest of the world is essential. The passenger cap at Dublin Airport is simply not working. In 2025, the cap was exceeded by around 4 million. Not only is it not working, it is not being adhered to. The Government must be mindful that any increase in the passenger cap at Dublin Airport will put pressure on existing services. As was said already, Dublin Airport is an important employer. I was contacted recently by a pilot from my area about car parking issues for staff at Dublin Airport. His employer is unable to provide staff parking due to limited DAA parking capacity, which means many airport workers are being pushed into paid DAA parking or private airport parking options that require pre-booking.”
“I know it is not a rare disease and there are about 10,000 people living with multiple sclerosis in Ireland but it took me a long time to get diagnosed. I was waiting to get diagnosed and get the treatment I needed. The treatment provided by the HSE is absolutely brilliant. The neurology service in Tallaght is absolutely fantastic. If you can get early intervention for no matter what it is, it makes a big difference. The access to public health nurses in Dublin Mid-West needs to be looked at. There are children who are not getting their full developmental checks and that is something we could look at as well.”
“Campaigners want to see that the eligibility criteria for givinostat are aligned with the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, NICE, approach, ensuring access for boys who can walk or stand with or without support. They are looking for the same criteria that is there so that boys in the South are not disadvantaged over boys in the North and everybody receives equal access to care. I will finish up on a small point. We are talking about early diagnosis and how it is key for early intervention. I speak as a person who is living with multiple sclerosis. I often say I am not living with multiple sclerosis but multiple sclerosis is living with me - and God love it. However, it took me a long time to get to that place.”
“In fact, I would like to see the next step in this process prioritised so that the drug givinostat gets to the children who need it. Families should not have to watch their children lose abilities while waiting for access to treatment that already exists. Lost abilities cannot be recovered. As we heard directly from parents, "time is muscle". They are some of the most poignant three words I have ever heard in any briefing from anybody - "time is muscle". Every day these children are waiting for this life-changing medication, their children's muscles are literally wasting away. Parents and campaigners also want to see equal access to the drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.”
“I was at a recent briefing in Leinster House and listened to families affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy. I cannot say there was one person who left that briefing, across the parties, who was not affected listening to the real-life stories of these families' struggles in trying to get this lifesaving drug. I thank every person who contacted, rang or emailed me or called to my constituency offices in relation to this. There has been progress and I welcome the Minister's comments in relation to the progress. I accept the struggles she had with other jurisdictions in trying to get this across the board so that is to be welcomed as well. While it is welcome, we still have a bit to go. What I would like to see happening is that the next step in this process is not delayed.”
“Givinostat is not available for Duchenne muscular dystrophy in the Republic of Ireland despite being available across the North.”
“I welcome the women's shed here as well. My family now lives in Wexford as well. My father is in the men's shed in Gorey and he loves it down there. Thank you, a Cheann Comhairle. I am delighted to have the opportunity to talk about rare diseases. I have been contacted by many residents in my area about Duchenne muscular dystrophy. As the Minister knows, Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a severe, progressive genetic disorder that weakens muscles and affects around 100 children in Ireland. Two of those children are in my area. They are brothers Conor and Dean from Lucan. They are nine and ten years of age. I met with their parents, Karen and Jamie, as they fought to secure life-saving treatment for their two beautiful boys. They were campaigning for their boys to have access to the drug givinostat.”
“Is the Minister of State willing to stand over legal protection for survivors of domestic, sexual or gender-based violence that is less than what we provide for people in Ireland? The Minister of State might say that the legal systems here are different and have different safeguards and that would be true but is she willing to stand over whichever legal system in the EU may provide the least amount of protection to survivors-----”
“I move amendment No. 10: In page 21, between lines 34 and 35, to insert the following: “(9) Counselling records in relation to sexual offence trials shall not be processed under this Act.”. We have had extensive engagement with the Minister in recent weeks in the Dáil regarding the disclosure of counselling notes in trials. I appreciate that the Minister has moved somewhat on the issue but I will take the opportunity to ask him to move further and meet the needs as outlined by survivors with whom we have engaged. This gets to the core of the concerns regarding this Bill. It involves what happens with a court case in another jurisdiction regarding an alleged offence when it is known that a counsellor has electronic records of counselling notes. An order is received by a service provider in Ireland that provides online storage facilities.”
“If the Minister of State has the information, in relation to the 20 members of staff and the 24,000 orders per year they are going to be processing, how long will each of these take to process? Does the Minister of State think that is going to be a burden on the staff?”
“I do not know how long these orders are going to take to process but, if each of those staff members will be processing orders and will not be there for other administration purposes, that is 1,200 orders each member of staff will process per year. How long does the Minister of State reckon it will take to process one of these orders? There seems to be a really big burden on the staff the Minister of State is hoping to recruit. I ask for clarity on that.”
“I thank the Minister of State for giving us some sort of clarity that there will be an annual report. I refer to the process yesterday and today. We were here yesterday for Second Stage and the senior Minister got up and gave his opening statement. We all stood up and asked him some questions we were hoping would be referred to in his concluding remarks. Those questions were not answered, however, because another Minister for State came in and did not address the specific questions we had asked. No offence to the Minister of State, but we have another Minister of State here today. There is no consistency with this whatsoever. The Minister of State expects 24,000 orders per year will be processed by this body and she hopes to have 20 staff in place by the end of the year.”
“In relation to the annual report we are asking for, and in addition to the costs, the staffing levels and the other matters that were outlined by Deputy Carthy and me, the annual report could provide the evidence of how this is impacting on our court system. Having an annual report on something that is new is a no-brainer. It is best practice for anybody bringing in something new at the very start. Whether a small or medium-sized enterprise, a multinational or a government, when bringing in something new, there should be an annual report to see how things are working. The Minister of State should consider it.”
“That is why I am saying that having an annual report to report on how many staff are coming in and the cost of it is a no-brainer and it will give us the evidence to see if we need to put more resources into it. The office may have more resources than it needs and we might be able to deploy those resources somewhere else where they are really needed. I also have concerns about the impact on our court system, which is already bursting at the seams. Nothing I have heard so far, yesterday on Second Stage or at the pre-legislative scrutiny, has given me any confidence that this operation will not put any additional pressure on our court system. Does the Minister of State have any evidence that the court system will not be unduly impacted by all of these orders coming in?”
“Having an annual report on something that is new - a new Bill, a new operation or a new entity - is an absolute no-brainer just to see how things are working. We have no idea of the scale of cost of this and where it will end up. Based on the bit of information we got at the pre-legislative scrutiny stage, it is starting with 29 staff. It could be dealing with up to 300,000 orders each year and there are some suggestions that the staff number could rise to 150. Will 150 be the maximum number of staff in this new body? Do we expect 300,000 orders a year or could that rise? There is the potential for this to be a runaway train. We do not know where it is going to end up.”
“The manner in which the Bill has been brought through the Houses of the Oireachtas has seen Second Stage taken yesterday, with us going straight to Committee Stage today without the proper pre-legislative scrutiny that was needed. It may be that there is no need for the DPC to have a role in this but we do not know that because we did not have the time to tease out that question. We did not have proper scrutiny of the Bill. In that context, I support my colleague's amendments to provide for an ongoing engagement with the DPC.”