Roderic O'Gorman
Dublin West · Green Party · Ireland
“These are men and women who served their working lives within the British civil service system but who, following unification, would be drawing their pensions in a united Ireland. The question of the funding of that will be extremely significant in any talks following a "Yes" vote on both parts of the island.”
“Some 100 extra staff have been hired to the public domain team to tackle waste and dumping and our councillors will continue to fight for a cleaner and greener Dublin.”
“These challenges are magnified by the continued failure of the current political institutions in Northern Ireland to operate for the best interests of the people rather than achieving best political advantage for the parties.”
“In the Dublin Central area, an average of 50 tonnes per month of illegally dumped waste is being removed by the council. It is a huge amount of waste, and this is more than is collected in an entire year from whole counties elsewhere in the country. Our current model of waste management is a direct contributor to this.”
“This means that in many areas, bags are the notional solution but these cause issues with seagulls or foxes or are intermingled with illegally dumped bags. The net result is our footpaths are strewn with waste. Dublin City Council recently rolled out a system of waste compactors in the core areas of the city centre.”
“The solution is to rationalise the current system, put local authorities back at the centre of waste management processes and use this to get a better handle on pricing and illegal dumping through contracts that are right for each specific area, instead of the one-size-fits-all model we have at the moment that is not actually working anyw…”
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“I saw the amount of work it took to put in the major investment that was able to reduce fees to a certain extent and to apply greater public control on early years in terms of fees and standards of services but that work has to begin early. There is no evidence from this budget that there is that intention to introduce a public model of childcare, a model that would allow the State to identify the geographic areas in which there is a shortage of childcare places and allow the State to step in. That work has not begun. I really urge the Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Government to start work now if they are determined to do this because, otherwise, this key commitment will not be delivered. Children will suffer from inadequate outcomes and parents will continue to struggle to find spaces for the childcare they desperately need.”
“I raised this matter with the Tánaiste in advance of the budget and I would like the Minister to confirm whether the budget is raising the daily expense allowance for children in the international protection system at the same amount that the child support payment is being raised. If not, could we get an explanation as to why children in the international protection system, who do not get child benefit, are not being supported in the same way that children outside of international protection are? In terms of the delivery of the public model of childcare, there was agreement among political parties during the general election that we needed to make that sea change. That is a massive change in our system and it requires work from year one of the Government. I was the Minister for children.”
“The amount of money we have forgone in the full year in the VAT increase would almost meet the full cost of what the ESRI has costed the second tier of child benefit at, a figure of €770 million. That would have the impact of lifting tens of thousands of children out of child poverty. While it is good to see that increase in the child support payment, it leaves some of the most vulnerable children in our system behind. Those are children in the international protection system. Children in the international protection system receive through the daily expenses allowance €29.80 per week on which to live.”
“I welcome the fact that overseas development aid is going up by €30 million - that is good - but is that money that has actually been redirected from the climate finance budget? I would welcome some clarity on that particular point from either the Tánaiste or the Minister for climate. I mentioned how important it is that when you have a reform agenda, you get to work quickly. When it comes to the big measures to improve the lives of children today and their outcomes in the future, it is particularly frustrating when you see progress start to stall. I welcome that the child support payment is going up but that is not-the game changer for addressing child poverty that a second tier of child benefit would be.”
“Will we just ignore the fact we signed up to that and hope it goes away? There is nothing to fill the gap left by the Government raiding the climate and nature fund earlier this summer so there is no money for the massive retrofit of the public buildings, schools or nursing homes that so desperately has to be undertaken. I have a question that maybe the Minister of State or another Minister can come back to me on about the State's commitment to global climate finance. There is no mention of this in the expenditure document. The Taoiseach committed he would get us to €225 million per year. We are reasonably close, at €190 million this year, but there is no mention of climate finance at all in the budget.”
“What it chooses to fund and what it chooses to prioritise in those circumstances tells a lot about what it intends to do as a Government and how it will help the country meet the challenges down the road. When we desperately need to broaden our tax base, we are gifting hundreds of millions of euro in foregone VAT income to profitable restaurant chains. When we are desperately in need of land for housing, we are creating new loopholes to permit land hoarders to defer payments of the land hoarding tax. When it could not be more timely for us to take a stronger approach to climate action, the foot is absolutely coming off the pedal in that area. There is nothing in this budget to help farmers meet the legal obligations they will have to undertake under the nature restoration law.”
“There is nothing about the second tier of child benefit, something that could lift thousands of children out of poverty, even though the Tánaiste said less than a month ago that he was a firm believer in that approach. There is nothing about the phase-out of the means test for the carer's allowance, an issue that was a central topic of debate during the general election in 2024. These are all big changes that would have really significant impacts and if this Government is to have any chance of actually delivering on them, it needs to start that work now. We know the Government has tough choices to make when trying to temper the desire for additional spending and the risks that come with that. We are facing a more uncertain outlook this year.”
“Fianna Fáil got its budget for big developers, Fine Gael got its budget for big business and the Independents were just happy to be there, to be honest. Everything else just trundles along. We would almost make allowances for that if the budget demonstrated some of the major commitments, or a start to some of the commitments, that are in the programme for Government. After almost a year now of a do-nothing Government, however, budget 2026 reveals what we have all suspected for a while: that this Government is quiet-quitting on the programme for Government and the big promises its members campaigned on and were elected on last November. Not one cent has been set aside for the introduction of the new public model of childcare, the approach that will finally ensure there is an early learning and childcare place for every child who needs one.”
“If you have that desire to make change, are really following a reform agenda and are lucky enough to be charged with doing that by the electorate, you need to begin that work in year one. The most important task in year one is ensuring you have the money and budget to back up the choices and priorities you wish to achieve. Doing a budget is incredibly difficult. Of course, some people will be disappointed, including some with really good causes. I understand that. I also understand the difficulties Ministers face when they are in that staring contest with the Department of public expenditure and reform. However, yesterday, we got a budget that said more about placating the constituencies Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael represent than it did about the kind of country we want to see in the next five or ten years.”
“Last December, when the Dáil first met after the election, in my contribution to the House, I asked what the point was in sitting in these seats and being granted the highest privilege our democracy can bestow, if it is not about seizing an opportunity to deliver real and meaningful change for the good of all people in our country. While I have absolutely no doubt that all of us in this Chamber, both the Government and Opposition, are motivated by a desire to do good both for the country and, through our country's impact, for the wider world, when I look at the budget presented to the House yesterday, I am left with some fundamental questions about what vision the Government has and what its appetite for reform is.”
“I will start my contribution on a constructive note, difficult as it is in the context of what was announced yesterday. I recognise the work the Minister, Deputy Foley, has done in keeping and growing the equal start programme and DEIS model for early years. This is a scheme I was proud to have initiated as Minister. It is already benefiting over 30,000 of the most vulnerable children in our country. I also welcome that the basic income for the arts scheme will be made permanent, although I would like to see some more details about how that will actually work. This is an innovative scheme introduced by my Green Party colleague, Catherine Martin. We have seen the benefit it has for artists' work and also for their mental health. We know about those benefits because research commissioned to scaffold the scheme demonstrated those benefits.”
“The previous Government put aside large amounts of money in the climate fund to deal with climate measures - this sort of measure - but, of course, the Government has now raided that fund and it is gone. By not having a plan in place, the Minister of State lost the opportunity to bid to fund this scale of retrofitting.”
“As a Minister of State with responsibility for housing, Deputy Cummins needs to put as much of his concern towards renters who are stuck in these cold, draughty homes as he is towards landlords. A challenge of this scale will only be addressed if a plan is actually in place. I am concerned that the Minister of State does not seem to have any sort of date or timeline for the delivery. I am also concerned about his use of the term "under active review". Will he clarify that the Department at least still plans to bring forward a roadmap on retrofitting? Maybe the Minister of State cannot give me a date today, but is he still going to undertake this roadmap? Having that roadmap would allow the Government to plan the scale of investment that is necessary. This will take a lot of money.”
“Is the Minister of State still going to bring forward a roadmap? Can he give us a date for when that roadmap will be published?”
“Hundreds of thousands of renters in Ireland face that double blow of rents that are too high and energy bills that are artificially high because they live in homes that are not energy-efficient. Their homes are cold, draughty and mouldy, which is a direct cause of energy poverty. It is also a contributing factor to our carbon emissions from the housing sector. The Minister of State has set out some research done by the ESRI. It is valuable research. It shows us the scale of the challenge. Some 240,000 to 260,000 homes will need to be retrofitted. The overall cost to retrofit them all will be between €7 billion and €8 billion. The Minister of State listed three measures, which is great, but at what point will we see a systematic approach to dealing with a challenge that is huge in its scale? We need a plan.”
“Somewhere between 240,000 and 260,000 rental homes in Ireland fall below the B standard for BER. Tenants renting those homes are hit with the double blow of rents that are too high and energy bills that are artificially high because the places they are renting are not energy-efficient. In Housing for All, there was a commitment to set out a roadmap on how these homes could be upgraded. Where is that roadmap?”
“Compared with neighbouring economies right now, such as the UK, France and Germany, our economic situation is favourable. If budget 2026 represents the best this Government can do and that, in the good times, this Government can fail to start making the big changes in year one and initiate change when we have big surpluses, it inspires absolutely no confidence in this Government’s ability to handle the more challenging economic times that it likes to warn us are on the way.”
“All of that €3.15 billion, a significant proportion of which was to be used to support farmers and organisations implementing the nature restoration law, has been spent filling the gaps in the State’s infrastructure bill. There was an expectation that this budget would contain a clear, ring-fenced fund that could be drawn down from so that we can protect our uplands areas and improve habitats, while at the same time guaranteeing farmers new sources of income. How will we persuade landowners to sign up to new commitments if there is no evidence that the Government has the money put aside to reward them? It is a wasted opportunity and it is a further signal of this Government’s lack of seriousness. The Government often celebrates our economic situation and the existence of the surpluses that we have.”
“Giving the State capacity to set up public childcare in areas where the spaces are not currently there is the only way the State is going to get to grips with the lack of capacity in the childcare sector. In our pre-budget submission, the Green Party estimated that €30 million in 2026 would allow the State to fund 50 new public childcare services, offering a total of 3,000 spaces in geographic areas where there is currently underprovision. While one year of investment will not solve the capacity challenge, it is about making a start and demonstrating that the Government is serious about making major change over its lifetime. This budget demonstrates no commitment to change in the area of nature. The Government raided the climate and nature fund earlier this summer.”
“Think of the items the Government told us were a priority for it in the general election and the programme for Government that it has not delivered. For example, there is no second tier of child benefit. In our budget submission, we costed this measure at €772 million. Not undertaking this costly VAT cut for big businesses could have almost entirely paid for that second tier of child benefit, which would raise 40,000 children out of poverty. The abolition of the means test for carers, which was a solemn pledge made by both Government parties during the general election, has been kicked down the road. There is also no start on a public model for childcare.”
“Instead of the Government recognising that its measure is untargeted and simply too expensive, it is pulling this accountancy trick and basically delaying the implementation of this cut for six months. It is asking small businesses, the ones it is justifying this whole measure on, to hold out for six more months before they get any help. We have welfare for big business but the small guy can wait. The Green Party put forward an alternative proposal, one that could have been rolled out from 1 January to provide help quickly, and it was targeted so that the biggest proportional benefit would go to those small businesses that actually need our help. Our proposal would have only cost €256 million in a full year, compared with the Government’s proposal. Think of the opportunity cost of the €681 million this VAT cut is costing.”
“Today’s budget demonstrates that there is no seriousness on behalf of this Government about the commitments it made not even one year ago. Looking at the VAT reduction, I am struck by the absolute lack of imagination on the Government’s part in how it has designed this proposal. All of us know of cafés and small businesses that are struggling in our communities. The VAT cut will shift vast sums towards big businesses that are already highly profitable. At the same time, the Government has decided to delay it so it does not immediately benefit the small businesses, such as cafés and restaurants, which are the very sector on which the Government has justified this entire VAT cut in the first place.”
“Any government’s first budget is so important. It is a map for how it is going to act over the next five years. It allows the Government to take the initial steps in areas it says it is going to prioritise. What today’s budget tells us is that this Government has no sense of direction. The untargeted VAT cut will benefit the biggest food businesses but is delayed for the small cafés that need it. There is no movement on the big commitments Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael made during the general election. There is no start on the public childcare model or the second tier of child benefit, nor is there an abolition of the means test for carers. When it comes to the environment, there is no ring-fenced funding for a national nature restoration plan. While these are long-term projects, the work needs to begin on them in year one.”
“When will the Government confirm if the Bill will include services? Can the Government also confirm that the Bill will be advanced irrespective of whether there is some sort of ceasefire applying in Gaza?”
“An alleged peace plan has been proposed by President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu. From what I have read, it offers very little to the people of Gaza. However, it is important for us to reiterate that even if, as we all want, a ceasefire is declared, the remaining hostages are returned and humanitarian aid is restored, these steps must not be used for a justification here in Ireland to stall the occupied territories Bill. That legislation must pass because, as we know, over the summer over 20,000 homes were given permission by the Israeli Government to be built in the occupied territories. In the wrap-up to these statements, there are three questions I seek answers to from the Government. Can the Government give a timeline for when the occupied territories Bill will be debated in this House?”
“Indeed, it is now a case that Ireland is not leading anymore; we are actually following in the legislative footsteps of other member states. Throughout this debate, Ministers have emphasised that Ireland should not be acting alone and isolated. It is clear that we are not now and that other member states are working alongside us and I am concerned that this process of finally passing the occupied territories Bill is taking so long. Both Spain and Slovenia acted rapidly as the situation in Gaza has deteriorated. My other concern is that we do not link the passage of the Bill solely with the genocide in Gaza. The Bill is about stopping the illegal settlements that are a threat to the two-state solution, which is a cornerstone of our foreign policy vis-à-vis the Middle East.”
“I will reiterate the importance of passing the occupied territories Bill in this Dáil as quickly as possible. It is important to acknowledge that the constant articulation of the need to sanction illegal Israeli settlements that are a direct threat to the possibility of a two-state solution in the Middle East is paying off. The work done by Ireland, advocacy groups, civil society, political parties and the Government has changed the debate across Europe on this issue. While the EU as an entity has completely failed, individual member states, working alongside Ireland and influenced by us, are taking a similar approach. Slovenia banned goods from the occupied territories in August and last month, Spain banned goods and services from the occupied territories.”
“The figures we both quoted here are concerning. They need to be addressed and I see this transport police force as a key element in doing so.”
“Will the existing private security go completely when the new transport police force comes in or is there a plan to run it concurrently? I am aware that the creation of something new like this requires legislation and a dedicated budgetary line. Nevertheless, the Minister took office in January 2025, and he is now talking about this service being operational in early 2027. That is a fair time but I do not think much beyond that would be. This is a doable proposition and something the Minister has been advocating for. It is important that timeline is stuck to closely. Due to the greater investment in public transport up to this point, at least, we have seen a very large increase in the number of people using our public transport network. If people feel unsafe, they will not continue to move in those numbers.”
“From talking to people in my constituency, especially people from the Indian and south Asian minority communities who have experienced an upsurge in racism, I know many have reported that this has happened when they have been trapped on public transport and cannot get away from the aggressor. This is why these measures are going to be so important. If legislation is passed by the end of 2026, would the Minister see this transport police force operating early in 2027?”
“I am a strong advocate and daily user of our public transport system, but the perception and reality on public transport is that people are feeling unsafe. The NTA's security survey shows 40% of people feeling unsafe on public transport. The "Prime Time" programme on RTÉ earlier this year revealed that reported incidents of antisocial behaviour on Dublin Bus specifically rose from 494 in 2019 to just over 1,000 last year. There are real issues there, and this is making public transport less attractive, and especially less attractive for some of the most vulnerable people.”
“Everyone in the House agrees it is important for commuters and people using public transport to feel safe. That is why I welcome the commitment in the programme for Government to the creation of a transport security force under the NTA. I am also aware this will require a legislative basis and funding. Could the Minister give us some indication of when this will be rolled out? When will we see the first officers of the force on our buses and trains?”
“Can I draw the attention of the Minister to actions 15 and 16, which state that the UAS sector, in conjunction with the Irish Aviation Authority, will establish and promote relevant test sites and the Irish Aviation Authority will promote processes that allow for the allocation of airspace for experimental and developing UAS operations? There is an experiment taking place in Dublin 15 without any regulatory structures. That is not acceptable and I will work to put in place the regulatory structures the Department is not delivering.”
“I know of no other innovative cutting-edge technology sector where that technology is just let loose without any regulatory structures being put in place. This is new and innovative. Maybe it is a good thing but it has been allowed to happen without regulation. There is no regulation or clarity on whether planning permission is required for a drone base. There is no way to deal with noise complaints. When representatives of Dublin City Council came before a committee, they were very clear. Section 108 of the EPA Act stops the council from dealing with noise pollution.”
“The document the Minister has produced does not give us any clarity on when that regulatory structure will be in place. That is not acceptable.”
“The Minister notes that this is the first framework of its type in Europe. I hope the rest of Europe is not going to be taking this document as inspiration because it is deeply disappointing. It fails to deal with the issues I and others have been raising throughout this time. People in my community in Dublin 15 are asking that four fundamental issues be addressed. These are privacy, noise, planning status and safety. There is no clarity in this document as to when these issues are going to be addressed. We are seeing a fundamental societal change in my neighbourhood right now. Thousands of journeys that take place on our roads have moved into the sky. It is not that they are going to move; they are in the sky right now. They are in the sky tonight. The regulatory structure that may well make that okay is not in place.”
“I have raised the issue of the lack of regulation for commercial delivery drones in the House on a number of occasions. Over the summer, the Minister published the National Policy Framework for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. Which of the 16 actions set out within that document fall directly within the remit of the Department of Transport? What is the Minister's action plan regarding the implementation of those actions?”
“That might not seem like a big deal but there are no public transport links that go across that particular direction from the Ongar area to the Tyrrelstown area. There are no public transport links at all. The kids live here, the school is over here, and there are absolutely no links and again, a bus has not been put in place. This would not need to be there forever; it would just need to be there while we are in this transitional phase and I ask that the Minister of State look at the situation with Ériu Community College. There are a lot of issues in Dublin 15. I know one often comes across these issues in rural constituencies but there has been a very significant number of issues in areas in my constituency this year and I ask the Minister of State to address the schools in question.”
“The parents and teachers asked for it. There will be more children next year and the following year having to make that journey. I again ask that we look at that situation with children travelling from Pelletstown to Coolmine Community School. I raise the issue of children who are living in the Tyrrelstown and Hollystown areas but having to travel to Ériu Community College. The reason they have to travel is that Ériu Community College is to be moved to their area. It is being moved right across my constituency from its current temporary location to a new permanent location. It is a mad idea. I think it is a bad idea. I have campaigned against it locally but nevertheless it is going ahead. Its new geographic location has now become its catchment area and kids are expected to travel right across Dublin 15 to achieve that.”
“Could we please look at halving that into two smaller buses and not have kids on buses for two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening? It is just not sustainable. These are young kids. Some of them need movement breaks or the toilet. It is a long time to make any young kid wait to go across the city. I ask that the Minister of State look at the situation with the Catherine McAuley National School. I want to flag two other situations where there is no prospect of a bus this year, the first relating to children from the Ashtown-Pelletstown area. That is a relatively new development in between Dublin's Fingal area and the Dublin City Council area along the Royal Canal. Many of the kids there cannot get a local school and are now attending Coolmine Community School in Blanchardstown. There is no provision for a bus there.”
“On the Catherine McAuley National School, it is a reading school. It is beside the Minister of State's own Department and I am sure he knows it. I am sorry - it is not, it is beside the Department of disability. That is a school that children travel towards from all over Dublin and there has been a major issue this week. There was no bus on Monday. On Tuesday, a bus was provided but there was quite a serious incident on that bus. This morning, children were travelling for about two or two and a quarter hours on that bus. These are primary school children. Traffic is bad in Dublin in the morning but it does not take two and a quarter hours to get from Dublin 15 to Baggot Street. This is a situation where we are trying to get 11 kids, all from different houses, onto the one route and it is just not sustainable.”
“I raised a number of local school transport issues in the Dublin West constituency on Tuesday. They were Gaelscoil Thulach na nÓg, Catherine McAuley National School and St. Peter's College, Dunboyne. I acknowledge that the Gaelscoil Thulach na nÓg issue has been resolved and the bus has been put in place. I appreciate that. On St. Peter's College, Dunboyne, we do not have a resolution there yet. We have children travelling from the Hollystown area to that school. It is in a different county and there is an issue because the children there attend a primary school that is also in a different county. It is in County Meath but it is the one closest to them and that is the only school they are in a catchment area for to get into secondary school. Then there is an issue of a bus crossing a boundary.”
“What he has read out to me is almost identical to what the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, read to me in February, other than acknowledging that the framework is now published. It is published but it is not in any way adequate. I am going to continue to work to make sure we get that regulatory structure in place so there are rules around how commercial drones are used in our country.”
“We have never had a conversation about how much of the traffic that currently is on our roads we want to move up into the sky because that is literally what is happening in Dublin 15 right now. Thousands of journeys that took place on our roads are now going over our roofs and going over our gardens. This represents a massive societal change. A change like that has to be done through a rules-based system. It cannot be done as an experiment as is actually proposed in the framework document the Government has put out. It requires a framework of rules. It requires public buy-in. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Collins, for coming in today. I know this is not the Minister of State's Department.”
“This document is not good enough. I will continue to work to ensure we have the correct rules and regulatory structures in place for the commercial drone development in this country.”
“I can understand why it was a soft launch because on each of those four grounds the policy framework entirely fails to deal with the issues of concern. There are no clear commitments to deal with the current regulatory gaps that exist in the system. Even the council acknowledges these gaps exist in the system. There is no timelines for when the issues that residents and Members of the Oireachtas have raised will be addressed. The document leans in to more experimental use of drones. Under action 16, it is stated that "the Irish Aviation Authority will promote processes that allow for the allocation of airspace for experimental and developing UAS operations to be established." Therefore, the scales are actually being weighed in favour of more drone activity around the country without the necessary regulations taking place.”
“In February of this year, at my request, the first debate on drones in this Dáil was held. In that debate I made the point that I am not against drones. The vast majority people are not against drones. They do play an important role in society but commercial drone activity must be regulated. It must be regulated on issues to do with noise pollution and privacy. These drones have cameras. There are also issues to do with the planning status of drone bases and issues to do with safety. At the time, the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, told me that these issues would be addressed in National Policy Framework for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. That national policy framework was launched - I would call it a soft launch - in August. It was quietly put out there.”
“It is not, therefore, about limiting free speech but about giving people freedom of choice in the content that arrives in their feed. I would hope that when we talk about this issue we can look at these recommender systems and at turning them off.”
“That represents a change in Irish society. There has always been racism in Ireland but I do not think 15 years ago people would have been as blatant as to just corner someone walking in the street and start this sort of racist abuse. There has been a change and the online space is a major driver of that change. The hateful rhetoric we see people being bombarded with is a key part of driving this change. A Cheann Comhairle, you opened the Dáil yesterday talking about what we need to do there and I welcome your initiative. We need to look strongly at the recommender systems these online platforms use. This is not about restricting free speech as this material will still be available online. People can still search for it and decide if they want to turn the algorithm on so they receive this material.”
“While they remain committed to Ireland, feel welcome and feel part of this society, everyone I spoke to reported increased levels of verbal abuse in terms of what they experienced themselves and what their children and family members experienced as they travel around. An email I received from a constituent particularly struck me. It was from a woman here from Pakistan. Her partner is Irish and the pair of them were walking to Coolmine train station one day, hand in hand, when a gang of young lads spotted them and started to use various racial slurs. She is from Pakistan and we can all guess what exactly was said. What struck me most about her email was she was not surprised. This has become normalised for her. She had baked this sort of experience in. Overt racism is now a regular experience for this woman.”