Michael Collins
Cork South-West · Independent Ireland · Ireland
“This matter has been raised twice already this morning, but it is hugely important. I will make a personal appeal to the Taoiseach regarding Skyclarys and the further delay that has now arisen. Yesterday, Emma O'Shea came to Leinster House from west Cork with her mother, father and brother.”
“Another huge problem which normally arises in August is that relating to school buses. Parents have no way to get their children to school because of the nearest school rule. The current and previous programmes for Government contain promises that this will be done away with, but nothing has happened. The rule needs to be abolished.”
“Every parent knows that September has become one of the most expensive months of the year. While free schoolbooks are welcome, many families now face growing costs for other items. Parents are being asked to purchase laptops that cost €400 or more, make increased payments for school transport and pay charges to cover examination fees.”
“Either 25 children are left without a school place this September, or two senior infants classes are merged into one class of 34 children. Does the Minister of State agree that schools should not be punished for helping to solve an enrolment crisis? Will he immediately sanction the additional teaching posts required for St.”
“Education should not be measured by means of the distance someone lives from school, and school transport should not be measured on that basis either. I want to raise a matter that Councillor Bill Clear brought to my attention. It is a very serious issue regarding St. Corban’s National School in Naas in County Kildare.”
“I was chairperson of a board of management and know the difficulties that schools face just because they are one or two children short. That can be made up as the year goes on but it is a crisis that Councillor Clear finds unacceptable.”
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“We won the Ballinspittle battle, actually, and the battle for the Ballinacarriga Garda station, actually. Unfortunately, we lost three of those Garda stations in west Cork at that time and many more besides outside of the constituency. From talking to people, meeting people or attending the community alert meetings, I know that left them very vulnerable. It was a huge loss to those local communities. Some of those Garda stations are still lying idle. They should be given back and a garda should be appointed to each community. I have always advocated for the local garda appointed to the local area. I see that down in Kilbrittain with John McCarthy, who lives locally, and in Ballydehob with Jonathan McCarthy. McCarthy is a good name when it comes to the Garda. They are there and can nick matters in time, before they get out of hand.”
“Let us not forget the mess we are in today, scrambling to approve these Votes because the justice committee is not even up and running. We are being asked to rubber stamp millions of euro with no debate and no scrutiny. That is not how a republic should run its business. I am not here to block progress. I am here to fight for fair, balanced reform that sees a garda walk down the street in Ballydehob safely, not just another press release in Dublin. It is reform that restores community trust, not just reshuffles it. If the Act is to mean anything, it must start where it was most broken, namely, in rural Ireland, not in new authorities but in old values, present partnerships and protection. We fought bitterly against the closure of the Goleen, Adrigole and Ballinspittle Garda stations.”
“Let me remind the House that when you close a Garda station, you do not just shut a door. You shut down a sense of security. Older people in west Cork, people living alone miles from the nearest town, are left wondering who will respond when trouble comes. Now, they rely on a passing patrol or a text alert system we had to fight tooth and nail to establish. I have been secretary of the local community alert group for years. I know the Schull community alert. I know the commitment involved. I know the cold nights spent out checking roads, helping neighbours, attending meetings and keeping an eye out, but these groups are struggling. They have been left without Garda support, without proper engagement and without a signal from Government that their work matters.”
“It is worth noting that the briefing note circulated by the Minister for Justice states that he said on 4 March that he would ensure the Vote could be approved by the House in time for the legislation to be commenced this month. Well, he missed that deadline, and on April Fool's Day, too. I am left to wonder whether the Government prioritised looking after Mr. Lowry and company over pressing ahead with urgent business. The new authority, the PCSA, and the new ombudsman's office are getting tens of millions in funding. That is fine if they deliver results but where is the guarantee that community gardaí will be put back in the areas that lost them? Where is the commitment to opening even one rural Garda station? I do not see it. What I see is more management, more renaming, more lawyers but not more boots on the ground.”
“Today, I am not armed with some briefing note drafted by civil servants far removed from the realities of rural Ireland, but with the voice of the people I represent. People in places like Goleen, Adrigole and Drimoleague who have not seen a community garda in years. We are told the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act was the most significant reform in two decades but to be honest, I have seen what reform meant the last time and I am not buying the spin. Reform meant shutting 139 Garda stations between 2012 and 2013. Reform meant leaving five upgraded taxpayer-funded properties to be flogged off for peanuts. That was not reform. That was rural abandonment. That was the beginning of fear taking root in communities, once proud of their safety and solidarity.”
“We were willing to deliver on tourism where we would not see a drop of 30% in February and 20% in January in people coming to this country and where we would have forced the hand of Government to deliver the long promises about the 13.5% VAT to 9%. We would have delivered on all hotels the length and breadth of Ireland to be open for tourism and not IPAS. The Taoiseach did not want to do business with Independent Ireland because our policies could not be negotiated. He wanted a blank sheet from Michael Lowry's side, full of nods and winks. I was not happy with the happenings in the Dáil last week. That is why I will be voting no confidence in the Ceann Comhairle.”
“We were willing to deliver on real climate action where people would get their homes insulated within a few months of application and a freeze on the hungry cash grab by this Government called the carbon tax. We would freeze any increase to enable our elderly and families to fill the tank of oil at home, heat the house or put the diesel or petrol into the car to do their normal daily work. We were willing to deliver on farm payments for the close to 10,000 farmers waiting two years for GLAS payments, for the long-forgotten fishermen of Castletownbere up to Killybegs and down to Wexford to get new fishing quotas or even the bluefin quota the rest of the world has and not the dirty decommissioning deal delivered by the previous Government.”
“We wanted a Government driven by policy and a proper programme for Government, not new ministerial positions, with perks and Mercs alone costing the country more than €5 million. Independent Ireland was willing at all times to talk and to deliver on housing without dreaming up false figures on housing targets and delivering on infrastructure in a country that has wastewater tanks all over leaking into local rivers, delivering on health without people waiting years on waiting lists, delivering on education where parents would not have to stand outside shops fundraising to keep the school door open or go to the local parish priest to pay the electricity for the local school.”
“This is truly misleading the Dáil because we in Independent Ireland came forward. The problem the two parties had was that Independent Ireland had policies and solutions to problems. We were willing to sit down, marry our policies into the programme for Government and deliver for the people. The Taoiseach, in his only acknowledgement of our honest negotiations, said he could not meet our demands. The honest answer is he did not even speak to us until the stinking deal was done with Michael Lowry. We knew then the train was gone from the station, and we were left at the station. The Taoiseach and the Tánaiste did not want to do a deal with us because we would have stood by our principles and not caved in like the Regional Independents.”
“We are talking about a vote of confidence in the Ceann Comhairle. While circumstances have led us to this incredible situation, it is unfair that the Ceann Comhairle should share all the blame. I attended every business and Dáil reform meeting of the new Dáil. The antics of some leave a lot to be desired and it leaves a bad taste in this Dáil that will not be forgotten for a long time. The bottom line is that the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste did what I have called a stinking bad deal with Michael Lowry and his team of Regional Independents. Without a scrap of paper, without a policy and without even a website, this shocking nod-and-wink deal that could well run to billions of euro of taxpayers' money was done. The Taoiseach asked at length about what choice did he have because no one else came forward.”
“It is a collapse unless measures are immediately put in place to counteract this drop, such as a decrease in the VAT rate from 13.5% to 9% and the freeing up of hotels throughout the country. What are the Government's plans in counteracting this huge fall in the tourism sector numbers?”
“This weekend's CSO figures on visitors to this country have cast a serious doubt over our once glorious tourism sector. The figures show a drop of 20% in the number of visitors in January and 30% in February. Visitor spending has dropped 31% in those two months compared to last year and overnight bed bookings are down 33%. This is a concern for cities like Dublin, Galway, Cork, Waterford and others but it is also a disaster for rural communities like west Cork, Kerry, Connemara, other areas and more if this trend continues. The reasons given are cost of staying in Ireland, cost of food spiralling out of control and the low availability of hotel space, as many of our traditional hotels are now IPAS centres. This is not a dip.”
“I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I agree with the previous speakers, but there are other issues of serious concern too. Today we need time to debate farmers' payments and the delay in same, up to months for some people. A staggering 9,300 farmers are waiting since early 2024 on delayed agri-climate rural environment scheme, ACRES, payments, 2,300 of whom are waiting for their payments since 2023. There are also farmers in the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme, TAMS, and the suckler carbon efficiency programme, SCEP, waiting for urgent payment. The Minister has promised to solve this issue, but if farmers are waiting almost two years for their income, it puts them under enormous pressure. A debate must be had in this House immediately to try to address that issue.”
“Since 2016, CIÉ salaries for active staff have increased by approximately 30%. However, the CIÉ pensioners have had no increase. The treatment of women in respect of their pension entitlements is deeply concerning. It is absolutely unacceptable that a wife's pension is means-tested based on her husband's income. In effect, she is treated as a second-class citizen. Women have the right to have their own pensions and to be financially independent. I have a number of constituents who receive very little pension because their entitlement is assessed against their husbands' pension. While this may be acceptable in households where both partners are content with the arrangement, that is not always the case. In some homes, this situation leaves the wife financially vulnerable and potentially subject to financial abuse by her husband.”
“They want to know what the Government is doing to protect and help them. Until 2008, CIÉ pensioners were awarded increases to their pensions in line with pay increases to active staff. However, no increase in pensions has been approved by the CIÉ board since 2008. For 16 years, despite repeated requests and representations, the majority of CIÉ pensioners who are members of the 1951 scheme, who have no other income, have had no increase. They do not qualify for a State pension because, as public servants, they paid class D1 PRSI. This was not a choice they made when they joined CIÉ; it was their only option. Since 2008, the consumer price index has increased by 20.8%. The State pension has increased by 24%, before taking account of the living alone allowance and the fuel allowance.”
“Many victims feel embarrassed and are reluctant to take action but this particular constituent is determined to recover her money. I, too, am determined, along with my colleagues, to get to the bottom of this scam. I raise this issue in the context of this Bill to alert people to the scams targeting our elderly population. The Bill aims to protect vulnerable individuals, which is why I am bringing this matter to the attention of the House. An individual has been taken to court by many victims but the case has been adjourned on four occasions by the judge. This is only the beginning for me. We must try to put a stop to this constant taking advantage of vulnerable people. A group of CIÉ pensioners has been in contact with me in regard to their issues with their pensions.”
“She was approached by a local individual who promised substantial returns on an investment in his company. Between them, she, her husband and her son invested more than €500,000. They have received nothing in return except approximately 3,000 emails over the past three and a half years from the individual concerned promising that their money is forthcoming. There are two other men also involved in the scheme. My constituent has conducted extensive research and discovered that hundreds of people have been similarly affected by these three individuals and their scam. It appears they set up companies, go into liquidation and then move on to establish new companies. They offer clients loan deals for their investment, which are documented but ultimately worthless.”
“One would think in this day and age that there would be an understanding that people can leave the country for a month, two months or three months, for a break abroad with family or whatever, without losing their pension. It is astonishing that the State can allocate millions of euro to various international causes while our senior citizens are treated so poorly. I previously observed that the State will pursue individuals to the grave. That needs to stop. While we all understand the need for fairness, there is no sense of fair play when an elderly man following his doctor's advice to seek a change of scenery for his health has his pension stopped. Another elderly constituent recently approached me in great distress to report that her life savings had been taken from her.”
“While we are discussing pensions in the context of this Bill, I note that we are unduly harsh on our senior citizens. Some of them may not have sufficient contributions to qualify for a contributory pension and instead receive a non-contributory pension. They are penalised for leaving the country for a short period such as a month or six weeks. I have a constituent who has been very ill for much of his life. He is currently recovering from surgery he had in late December. I met him in my clinic a couple of weeks ago. His mental and physical health are fragile. His doctor advised him to take a couple of months to get some sun and recuperate. Upon his return to Ireland, he discovered that his pension had been stopped. He is 75 years of age. That is an astonishing attack on a 75-year-old.”
“We in Independent Ireland are committed to assisting in any way possible to ensure its successful passage through the House. I have a constituent who tragically passed away after battling a severe illness. Her partner of 20 years, with whom she had children, was unable to qualify for the widow's pension. In this day and age, it is unacceptable that such situations occur. This legislation must proceed as families endure significant hardship when a loved one dies. They are confronted with the shock and grief of their loss, the impact on their families and children and the daunting task of organising a funeral, often for the first time. They face the emptiness left behind by the deceased, while bills and expenses continue to accumulate. Partners are left without the widow's pension. Therefore, I welcome this legislation.”
“I join Deputy O'Flynn in congratulating the Minister on his new role. This is the first chance I have had to do so. I look forward to working with him and knowing his history, it will be easy to work with him. This new law is a response to a Supreme Court decision from 22 January 2024 in the case of John O'Meara and others against the Minister for Social Protection. John O'Meara lost his partner Michelle Batey to cancer and Covid-19 in 2021. They had three children together but since they were not married, John could not claim the widower's contributory pension. I would also like to pay tribute to John O'Meara and his family and I fully support naming this Bill in honour of his partner Michelle. I extend my gratitude to the Minister for bringing forward this legislation.”
“Everyone in the Dáil has someone close to them suffer from cancer at one stage or another. As I stand here, I express my heartfelt thanks to the Irish Cancer Society and to all who work and care for those suffering from cancer. This coming Friday is daffodil day and I hope people come out to support the cancer society in whatever way they can. A cancer diagnosis turns people's lives upside down. Their daily routines change completely. They cannot work and they still have bills, childcare and mortgages to pay. The least we can do in this State is ensure that anyone diagnosed with cancer receives a medical card. On behalf of those who suffer from cancer, Independent Ireland is once again calling for an automatic medical card to be issued to all cancer patients for the duration of their treatment. Will the Taoiseach support this proposal?”
“Sometimes we do not have the resources or manpower to protect our nation. From now on, that is where our focus must be. It is not too long ago that the door fell off a Defence Forces helicopter while it was in the air. The situation in which we find ourselves in this country is that money needs to be spent, but spent here to protect the Irish people going forward. I support the motion.”
“I urge every TD in this House who still believes in those things to do the same. In a number of interviews, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade mentioned that we are spending more money on our Defence Forces. I have no issue with that because over the years little or nothing has been spent. Members of the Defence Forces have been treated appallingly. I listened to a radio interview recently where it emerged that even some retired members of the Defence Forces cannot find a home for themselves. People find themselves in a difficult situation. They have been treated very poorly all along. I agree that money should be spent on the protection of the State. We must defend our country. We recently saw ships training off our coastline in an area where there are underwater cables. That caused serious concern.”
“We are respected across the world as peacekeepers, not aggressors or enforcers. We do not need to change that; we need to protect it. Independent Ireland, the party I am proud to represent, is clear. We will oppose any removal of the triple lock. We will not stand for Irish troops being sent into conflict zones without the backing of the Irish people and international legitimacy. If the Government wants to change that, it can take it to the people in a vote and let them decide. Until then, I urge the Minister not to mess with neutrality or the trust of the Irish people in how we use our Defence Forces. The Government should not change a core policy without the people's consent. I fully support the motion, which respects our neutrality, democracy and sovereignty.”
“A referendum is the proper place for that. The people of Ireland would send a very clear message to the Government about their feelings on this matter, but it will not allow a referendum on the matter. The Government knows the people do not support this direction, so instead of asking, it is sneaking it through. The Government tells us it is about flexibility and not letting one country's veto stop us from acting, but what it really is about is the first step on a slippery slope. Today, it is about peacekeeping; tomorrow, it is about deployments without proper oversight; and next week we will be tied into someone else's military agenda whether we like it or not. We are a neutral country. We are not part of NATO. We are not part of a military alliance and we do not need to be.”
“What is being proposed by the Government is a direct threat to Ireland's long-standing neutrality. I will not stay silent while it is being chipped away bit by bit. The triple lock mechanism is not some red tape dreamt up in Brussels; it is a safeguard, which means that Irish troops cannot be sent abroad unless three things happen: Government approval, a vote in the Dáil and, crucially, a United Nations mandate. That is the balance and the brake and now the Government wants to remove it. Let us be honest with the people: this move would mean that foreign powers – the permanent members of the UN Security Council – will not get a say, but neither will the Irish people because the Government will not even allow a referendum. That tells us everything.”
“We need to know. The taxpayer needs to know. The ordinary man and woman who cannot afford to pay weekly bills need to know here and now. They know it is a sleazy deal that taxpayers must pay heavily for. On top of that, the Taoiseach wants them to ask planted questions in this House to make a mockery of the Irish people in Dáil Éireann. I ask the Taoiseach to come clean on the deal that might yet crumble around him and to pull back from the mockery of the Irish people who are not with him on this one. Will he admit he cut 45 minutes of Taoiseach's Questions? Will he admit he cut the Order of Business time? Will he admit he cut Private Members' business time for our party by 20% on Wednesdays and Thursdays? This Lowry deal has cost us enough financially.”
“I thank the Ceann Comhairle. It looks like, no matter what we say here, the Government is going to railroad these changes through. It is very clear to the good, honest and hard-working people of this country that this is what the Taoiseach was going to do anyway. He has to be straight and honest. What is the deal he has done with Deputy Michael Lowry that has him spellbound? We know the deal has cost more than €5 million already with extra super junior Ministers, extra junior Ministers and extra payments for them alone over five years. Is it going to cost the honest and hard-working taxpayer €50 million? Is it going to cost €100 million, €200 million or above?”
“We have written to the Taoiseach numerous times to try to resolve this issue and to make sure this dark day for democracy would not happen but he has chosen to ignore it. Will the Taoiseach at this late stage, sit down with the Opposition leaders and thrash out an agreement to bring this sorry episode to an end?”
“------and a railroading of democracy was going ahead. When summing up today, the Taoiseach will say we had enough time to try to get an agreement from the Opposition but it would not agree. Since the day he was elected, however, we have only had two meetings of the Dáil reform committee to try to resolve this issue in 28 days. I know because I attended these meetings. Is the Taoiseach a man of his word or not? Does he agree with me that this was the sequence of events? Am I right in saying if he really wanted to bring this to a fair and honest end, he would have asked his Chief Whip to meet every day to resolve the issue and not two meetings - one to iron out the procedures for the next meeting and the next to railroad through, making a mockery of this House and its procedures?”
“-----as they have clearly agreed to support this Government one way or another, which is their own prerogative I may add. The next scheduled meeting of the Dáil reform committee was scheduled for 26 February. At this meeting came the bombshell from the Government Chief Whip, Deputy Mary Butler, that the previous verbal agreement given by the Taoiseach and Tánaiste and read out by the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, was now being reneged on------”
“It was agreed by the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and all the Opposition that, "the Government will today bring forward a motion to establish the Committee on Standing Orders and Dáil Reform...and to work to secure agreement, as soon as possible and acceptable to Government and Opposition, as regards formation of technical groups." The Business Committee met that day and agreed we would all put forward submissions on a way forward. Again, the Opposition was clear. We never denied any speaking times to Michael Lowry's group of six TDs but this would be specifically during Government speaking time slots, not Opposition-----”
“Every effort by the Government since has been to do everything but that. On the morning of 23 January, the Taoiseach and Tánaiste met with us leaders to end this row and let the Dáil get back to the business it had to do - elect the Taoiseach, set up committees - and we all agreed we would work together to create a solution on this hugely important issue for the country. Less than an hour later, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, read a statement into the Dáil record.”
“Our general election took place on 29 November 2024, and for a couple of months a Government had to be put together. On 22 January, the Dáil sat and for the first time was forced to call off Dáil proceedings so an agreement could be made to bring this speaking row to an end. All of this time we the Opposition were united on one front: that Deputy Lowry's group had a right to speaking time in this Dáil but not on Opposition time.”
“If we go ahead today with Government proposals on giving extra time for Government-backing TDs in Opposition time, it shows how far this Government is capable of going in eroding the democracy of the island of Ireland.”
“I saw it myself in Bishopscourt Residential Care centre last week because I was invited to meet the residents, the staff and the owners there. It does not matter, however, if it is Bishopscourt, Baltimore, Clonakilty or Drimoleague; all these people are providing a fantastic service. The bottom line is that community hospital staff, who do an excellent job which is very much the same as that of nursing home staff, are at least being respected and adequately paid but the person who does the same work in a nursing home is not being paid a fair income and given pay parity. It is a cause of deep hurt, and rightly so. I saw last week the care these people give. Some of the staff were able to tell me exactly who a person was. There are a lot of residents in Bishopscourt and the staff were telling me who they were and where they were from.”
“Those loved ones would be in a hospital or a nursing home and requiring this type of care only for these carers. The Minister needs to understand that changes need to be made immediately. I have spoken already this week about section 39 workers. I welcomed the pay increase of 9.25% in the Workplace Relations Commission agreement last week but then we find out afterwards that people who are caring for loved ones, families or for residents in nursing homes will not get that increase. That is very unfair. I have spoken to Tadhg Daly and to a lot of different people this week who are badly hurt by this decision. These are people who show the hand of love every day of the week to people in nursing homes.”
“It certainly is and we find that right across the line. When we means test the carer's allowance, that tells us how out of touch a Government is. It continues to punish people who save the State millions of euro in this country. As I said, we have 67,000 young people who are carers. How many adults are caring for loved ones at home and are saving the State millions but are literally being ignored by the State? Instead, the first thing the Government needed to do, especially in a country where we are led to believe there is money, was to abolish the means test. That would have given people a chance to be at least recognised in some small way. It is not a lot of money. We are not talking about €1,000 here. It is maybe €250 or €300. It is small money but it is recognition for what they do.”
“Independent Ireland will also be supporting this motion on young carers. I thank the Labour Party for putting forward this very important motion. It is astonishing to think we have 67,000 young carers in this country. We have given them nothing but lip service over recent years, which is an injustice to those young people. Many of them are in the Gallery and were in the audiovisual room earlier. We need to show them the respect they deserve because looking after someone - actually for nothing - is a very unfair situation for a young person to find themselves in. Many - 67,000 of them - have found themselves in that situation. We as a State need to step up to the mark, show them the respect they deserve and put measures in place. I heard someone say earlier that the system of care in this country is broken.”
“We do not involve ourselves in other people's wars, but we can certainly voice our opinions. That brings me on to my next point on international trade. It was recently pointed out to me in west Cork by a very intelligent man who said that the first people to implement any tariffs in this country were the Irish. If you tried to bring a vehicle in from England, you pay something called VRT or some other fancy kind of name. There was no problem putting tariffs on vehicles when it suited us to do so. I want to move on to the meeting between the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, and Donald Trump. I fully agree that he was right to meet with Donald Trump, particularly as we have no hope of resolving any issues if we stand outside the door. Deputy McDonald's stance on this was wrong, as was the stance taken by the SDLP and the Alliance Party.”
“It is not long ago that a Russian ship was circling our island within our territorial waters and claiming that it was going to carry out exercises that would perhaps have led to the loss of a massive number of fish. It took the fishermen from Castletownbere to go out and negotiate with the Russians to get them to accept that what they were trying to do was not going to work. The underwater cables located off our shores are not being properly protected. We need to spend money to protect people from what is going on in this country and from what is happening off our coast. We must ensure that we spend money on our Defence Forces and on protecting our country, while always accepting that we are a neutral country. The one thing we have failed to do over the years is get that point across. We are a neutral country.”
“Many peace talks do not work out, and sending a small number of members of the Defence Forces to certain countries to negotiate and keep the peace there could lead to an awful loss of life among them. Those in the Defence Forces are angry and hurt because they have been mistreated over the years. Successive Governments have failed to deliver for members of the Defence Forces in the context of their everyday lives. We are now suddenly talking about spending an astronomical amount of money to change things around. Where is that money going to be spent? It is not long ago that a Defence Forces helicopter up flew into the air and the door fell off.”
“These statements on international security and international trade provide an important opportunity for TDs to have their say. In recent weeks and months, we have had many people speaking here about our neutrality and participation in what is happening across the world. The Tánaiste only recently stated that as far as he is concerned, we need to spend a lot more money on our defence. I agree with him. It is hugely important that money is spent on improvements for people in the Defence Forces and on the equipment needed to bring us up to a standard. At present, we have no standards as things are. I have serious reservations about sending members of our Defence Forces to countries where there is conflict going on, even if there are peace talks.”
“Surely this would be a feasible solution or does the Government have a long-term strategy that is being considered to prevent such backlogs from occurring in the future? Immediate and effective measures are required to address this backlog and support our constituents in their daily lives.”
“My office has been inundated with requests from constituents seeking assistance in expediting their driving tests. These are mostly young people and they are waiting ten months or more for a driving test. Many of these have secured job offers but are unable to accept them due to the lack of transportation in rural Ireland. We do not have a frequent bus service, the Luas or regularly available taxis, as urban areas do. Our young people are effectively stranded without access to a car and their parents' work schedules often do not allow for logistical support. We were informed that additional testers would be deployed, yet I am not aware of any new testers in Skibbereen in west Cork. As a solution, we could consider temporarily converting driving instructors into testers.”
“I would love for the Minister to say I am dead right, that we are not going to be able to do Dunmanway, Shannonvale, Ballydehob, Goleen and Rosscarbery in the next 12 months but we can put a deadline on when it is going to happen. Is it going to happen in 2030, 2040 or 2050? Good God, these people deserve to know where they are going with their towns and villages while raw sewage is pouring down into a local play park in Shannonvale. It is astonishing. It is astonishing that the EPA and Uisce Éireann are turning a blind eye and the people are left with no homes. I cannot go back to Dunmanway this weekend and tell them that maybe in 2032 or maybe in 2040 they are guaranteed to have proper infrastructure in their towns so they can develop them further.”
“It may be 2030, 2035 or 2040. We will be at workshops every day of the week. I do not want to hear any more of that old palaver coming out of their mouths. The bottom line is the money is not there or is not going there. That is the problem with Dunmanway, Shannonvale, Rosscarbery, Goleen and Ballydehob. Uisce Éireann is walking away, scot free. I have called continually at the past five meetings of the Business committee, and will do so again tomorrow morning, for time to discuss Uisce Éireann and the problems that exist with Irish Water, including the fact there is no proper delivery of services. We have to really look into this matter to determine why the funding is not being made available. Why can we not consider getting a developer to deliver the wastewater treatment plants, seeing as Uisce Éireann cannot deliver them?”
“I said earlier today that the rural planning guidelines need to be changed. The planners are only going through what is before them. They cannot give permission if the guidelines tell them they cannot give it. There is this negative vibe in relation to housing and homes for people who are desperate to get a start in life, whether in a new house or not. I do not know about Deputy Browne but Deputy O'Sullivan knows and understands the situation that is going on in Dunmanway, Shannonvale, Ballydehob, Goleen and Rosscarbery. Some of those towns and villages are waiting 27 years for their wastewater treatment plants to be upgraded so they can build new houses. The Deputy was at a meeting I attended through Zoom in Dunmanway recently on the wastewater treatment plant. Houses cannot be built there and there is no future.”
“The Government is also failing rural tenants, with local councils in smaller towns needing the scheme but being underfunded. We need a Minister for housing who will act and not make excuses. The Minister must take responsibility and ensure there is adequate housing funding. The solution is simple: fund it, fix it and stop playing politics. The Government needs to provide proper funding and allow local councils to act. It is not just this problem alone, as I have been saying all day today. There are so many issues here that have not been tackled over recent years. This has led to people being very angry and frustrated. My last two phone calls, and I accept that it may be coincidental, were on planning permission. People were concerned about their planning, were worried about it and were getting negative vibes from the planners.”