Ruairí Ó Murchú
Louth · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“It was hardly a shock to me and many others that he decided that the simplicity that was asked for by Sinn Féin last week, such that we would consider preparations for Irish unity, was not acceptable. Most people would see this as a possibility, even those who do not necessarily like the idea.”
“I welcome that. I have spoken previously to the Minister about the necessity of providing Mr. Delaney's report on the incident to Natasha and the wider family.”
“We will all be very interested to see what the new circular is. The Minister of State said it will be announced in September. A needs-based system is what we need. I would like to think the young boy I talked about would be able to avail of this. I will use him as an example. The correct assessments were carried out.”
“We just need to make sure that the circular is fit for purpose and that the young primary school child to whom I refer will be given the supports he requires. I will just finish reading from the communication to which I referred earlier.”
“We need to ensure that the engagement with Lebanon is ongoing. Are we happy with the interaction with the UN? There had been some issues relating to the coroner's court. Everyone needs to do everything that can be done to ensure truth and justice for the family of Private Seán Rooney.”
“I thank the Ceann Comhairle for all the flexibility she allows in this Chamber, and hopefully that will continue as we speak. I welcome an awful lot of what Deputy Devlin said.”
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“It is just making sure we do what we can now, and then make sure we assess everything and carry out the recommendations, but in a timely fashion.”
“All our thoughts go out to the families and friends of these children. We are talking about absolutely brutal circumstances, and we do not want to get into the ins and outs of it. I agree with the Minister on that. However, I think we need to find and ensure that we actually have a system that is fit for purpose. I welcome the fact that there is a review of each of these cases. Is it possible at this point to have a timeline for when we would see the outworkings of those reviews and when we would actually see recommendations? Has any work been done to date in relation to looking at our overall child protection protocols and the need for anything that needs to be done straight away even before any of these happen? Will the Minister give a timeline for when she believes the well-being checks will be done?”
“I wish to ask the Minister about her engagement with Tusla. I think we have all been absolutely shocked by the tragedies of Kyran Durnin, Daniel Aruebose, Vadym Davydenko and the really distressing case of the ten-year-old who was sexually assaulted and who had been in the care of Tusla. I accept that the Minister cannot get into the ins and outs of these very specific cases, but perhaps we could find out about the review mechanisms and what has been done and then ensure we have the proper protocols and protections in relation to a working child protection system because that is what people need, and that is what is demanded.”
“I welcome the fact that we are not talking about removing that one right parents have to the six months. I have no particular issue with looking at the best means of offering assessments and therapies - we have had that conversation before - but, as the Minister herself has stated, we have issues in the system itself as to where referrals are going onto the assessment of need list. I am back to the operation of the AON administrative hubs, the Cara's fund money and the use of private practitioners. Have we maxed out the number of private practitioners who are available or is there more capacity there? We are still looking at, as I said, 17,000 or 18,000, and at the end of the year I assume we will still be looking at 24,000 or 25,000 who will be over the six months in which they should have had an assessment. None of this is good enough.”
“The State is in breach of the law in this regard. We really cannot have this ongoing conversation. We need to find a real solution.”
“We all know the issue. The Minister is stating that the reason is the increase in population. We all accept that on some level. However, she is also stating that parents are trying to explore all options available to them. They are doing this out of frustration. I have heard that people who previously would have been able to get a service in primary care in other sets of circumstances are all being put on the assessment of need list. Therefore, can we have an assessment of the assessment of need list in relation to what needs to be done from a legislative point of view but also in relation to how we are actually going to deal with this issue? If we are still talking about it at the end of the year, I suggest that the number waiting over six months will have reached between 24,000 and 25,000.”
“Will the Minister provide the reasons her Department accredits with the lengthy waiting lists for assessment of need? There has been much discussion on this in the last while. There has also been talk of developing legislation in this area. Will the Minister make a statement on the matter? From my last parliamentary question, the number of people on the waiting list is somewhere between 17,000 and 18,000; therefore, there is a lot to be done.”
“I would say straight out that the cost of disability payment is the major thing that was missing from that budget. However, the Minister knows that the work and access programme needs a hell of a lot of work. On the wage subsidy scheme, there are huge issues for those who employ a number of disabled people. We also need to look at the wider issue. The likes of Intreo workers could probably play a vital role if we are talking about WorkAbility-type projects to ensure there is a route map for those with disabilities into good employment. We need to look at all of this. Mr. Eddie Hennessy spoke about the need for a fund in relation to entrepreneurship at the disability matters committee. The biggest issue was the absolute fear of losing disability allowance. We have seen some changes-----”
“They are getting different answers from every Department in relation to this, but at the end of the day, the State is what supplies the money. Whatever about the first year, it is 1.5% on a one-for-one basis and based on gross earnings, but that is years one to three. In years four to six, it jumps to 3%. In years seven and nine, it is 4.5%. After ten years, it goes to 6%. Therefore, there will be monetary issues straight away, but they can get significantly worse. There needs to be a greater level of communication. The Minister might engage with his own Department of rural and community development and those others to make contact with these organisations because they are very worried about this. We have dealt before with the cost of disability and work activation.”
“We have The House on Cox's Demesne, which does everything from breakfast clubs right through to probation services; the Redeemer Family Resource Centre, which does a huge amount of work; Mid Louth Youth Services; Outcomers, which deals with, and has for many years, LGBT citizens who have been impacted greatly; and places like Muirhevnamor Community Centre. We could probably rhyme off a whole pile of organisations. We are talking about those that are funded through Pobal, the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, UBU and organisations under the Department of Education and Youth. When we are talking about youth diversion and probation, we are talking about the Department of justice. There are organisations that are doing work funded through Tusla and the Department of children.”
“There has also been an extensive communication campaign to inform people that the scheme will commence on 1 January 2026. Therefore, employers have been given a substantial lead-in period to budget appropriately for its introduction, including through budget negotiation with a sponsor, where appropriate. We are talking about a number of organisations where it is the State that supplies the money, such as the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, which supplies money to Pobal. I will go through some of the organisations.”
“I will deal initially with auto-enrolment. In fairness, it has been said by a number of my colleagues that we are not against it in principle, but we do not agree with the methodology behind the operation of this particular auto-enrolment scheme. Obviously, the issue is that we believe the home of this money should have been the National Treasury Management Agency, NTMA, and it could have been put aside for infrastructural spending and whatever. However, I would like to deal very specifically with the issues that have been brought to me by a number of organisations in my constituency. I tabled a parliamentary question in relation to community organisations, not-for-profits, charities, etc. We all know the organisations we are talking about across the board. I can get rid of an awful lot of the fluff in this answer.”
“This relates to parking spaces and planning. It should be a very small piece of work to get this changed to account for the 45 staff and also enough bays for the minibuses. At this point, there is not space. It would be very cheap to get it changed at this point. A contractor is on for this. If not at this point, then we could be talking about something that could cost €100,000-plus.”
“I want to bring up the attempt by Darver National School in County Louth to have two autism classes sanctioned. The initial engagement between the principal, the SENO and the NCSE took place in June 2025. This was followed up throughout September and October, with no word back. It is absolutely supported by the patrons and the board of management and all have tried to make contact. We need to ensure that this happens but we also need to ensure that the school is contacted. I do not think this is okay. I am just giving the timeframe on this. I also need someone to light a fire under the Department of education in relation to Ardee Educate Together National School. Louth County Council is the agent but the Department -----”
“It is about Greentown and beyond, and it is a question of getting in there earlier. I do not think we are anywhere close to where we need to be in relation to delivering action in respect of what is at the heart of this scourge. I have mentioned before all the issues with Tusla, but it does not have the power. An Garda Síochána does not have powers. There are problems for local councils regarding people dealing drugs out of houses. We cannot look after the vulnerable or those who need addiction services, and we are failing communities.”
“I am very glad that the issue of drugs has been raised. I have said before that I do not think we are having a real conversation. I do not think we are asking the right questions, whether we are talking about drug gangs, young people who fall into crime or the chaos that is caused in communities where there is a crossover with poverty and intergenerational trauma. I spoke to the Garda Commissioner. I did not have time at the committee, so it ended up being a private conversation. I am talking about a lot more than community-saving partnerships. If we are serious about all of this, then it must be about multiagency interventions, family interventions and youth diversion projects. I have seen in my town where people have been able to intervene at an earlier stage, but it is a lot more than that.”
“We need the full information on the case of Vadym Davydenko. We also need to make sure not only that our residential care is fit for purpose and up to scratch but that we look after those people in our care holistically.”
“We have spoken many times about the fact we do not have a system that is fit for purpose in terms of the supports required by families and children. In some cases, we have left children in really difficult circumstances. It is not just about those who are in care; it is also about the fact that we have not put support structures in place. We need to consider this holistically. In many cases, we can carry out interventions at a very early stage when they would be a lot less nuclear than what is sometimes needed at a later stage. We can ensure that family units stay together. Beyond that, we could provide children with a far better life that could lead to worthwhile engagement with society, including education, employment and all of the rest. I hope we will not deal with such dreadful situations again.”
“The only thing we can say about Tusla in the past while is that, unfortunately, people who thought they could not be shocked have been absolutely shocked by the ongoing investigations into Kyran Durnin, Daniel Aruebose and the shocking case of the ten-year-old girl who was sexually assaulted while under the care of Tusla. I would add my voice to those of my colleagues in respect of the disgraceful language used by Tusla in talking about a child having absconded. This is an utterly vulnerable child who was under the protection of the State, and the State failed miserably. We need to make sure that there is follow-up and that we have a system that is fit for purpose and far more robust than what we are talking about at the minute.”
“Beyond that, we need to provide protection to people who, unfortunately, have found themselves in positions that are beyond vulnerable. We need to do everything to remove this issue from society as much as possible. Unfortunately, we will never be able to do all that we would like, but we need to make sure we have a far better and more robust system to look after those people. I do not think many here would not raise issues in respect of safeguarding. There are proposed changes to the Child Care Act and the Child and Family Agency Act.”
“Many of us, as constituency TDs, have had representations made to us regarding very brutal cases. I commend Deputy Carthy on the presentation in the audiovisual room earlier with victims and survivors of sexual violence. I would like to think there would be support across the House for the Bill and the simple idea of civil protection orders being provided to those who have been through absolute hell and need vital support. We are talking about those who are survivors and the victims of sexual and gender-based and domestic violence. There have been some improvements, but many will say it has been insufficient in terms of how the entire system deals with people, in particular from the point of view of protecting and believing them and ensuring that justice is delivered.”
“On some level, the Bill is fairly straightforward. Nobody will complain about a greater number of judges being delivered in our judicial system. As has been said by my colleagues, and it will be said by many others, the major issue is that the system is not fit for purpose in that court cases in the State can take at least one and a half times longer than the European average. Obviously, that should not be the case. As Deputy Carthy said, we need to make sure not only that we have more judges but also that we have all of the adequate staff to deliver something that is a bit more fit for purpose. We all know justice should be swift, and that is an absolute right. The Bill needs to be expedited insofar as possible. This has been an ongoing issue.”
“Go raibh maith agat. I ask the Minister if there is scope in the recently announced new technical and financial advisory support to help to develop a district heating system utilising the European Investment Bank, EIB. The Minister will not be shocked that I am wondering whether we can find a solution in relation to Carlinn Hall. I have spoken to him before about how stakeholders are trying to put together a solution. There are an awful lot of steps to go, but it is about ensuring we look after people in Carlinn Hall.”
“We should have a greater level of State-provided accommodation for those seeking international protection. We also need to make sure that the process is sped up. Decisions and appeals are taking too long. If someone has a right to stay here because they are fleeing war and persecution, that is fine. If they are not, they must leave. We need to ensure that our deportation system is conducted correctly. Outside of that we need to make sure we stand up against racism-----”
“We need anyone with any bit of information to provide it to the Garda. That is the only thing that is right. We need to make sure that the full power of the law is felt in this regard. Beyond that, we must ask what sort of world we are in. I also saw comments that this must be an inside job. Facts do not even matter any more in the commentary. There is just utter online hatred and online racism and beyond that there is an element of madness out there. At the end of the day what we saw was an attempt to take human life. We need to ensure that those people are prosecuted and give whatever resources the Garda require need to be provided. My thoughts go out to the families who have been through that. This does not take away from the fact that this State, like every other state, needs to have a system.”
“What we saw in the attack on the IPAS accommodation in Georges Street in Drogheda was nothing short of attempted murder. We saw somebody put flammable liquid on the stairs and five people had to be rescued - one adult and four children, one of them a very young infant. Somebody was willing to go in around 8.15 p.m. on Hallowe'en, break through the door and burn what could have been 28 people to death. That is the reality of what was done. It could have been the deaths of 28 human beings. The only escape for them was down the stairs. There are questions about the appropriateness of the building. My constituency colleague has brought up the issue of some of the people who have been involved in IPAS offering IPAS accommodation. Really and truly, I do not think any of this is good enough.”
“Again, however, it is a matter of streamlining and ensuring everything happens fast, because we know the issues that exist, particularly regarding electricity, water and other major infrastructural projects that need to be completed.”
“I hope it was not ominous that it was "Infrastructure" that was spelt incorrectly. I think it was missing an "r". I welcome what the Minister has said. There are many public servants doing really good work. Generally, what we are asking in here is that public procurement and planning work better and in a more streamlined way so we can see the delivery of more projects. I accept that checks and balances can sometimes slow things. We have heard what was said by Mr. Collison and others and we need a balance between having checks and balances and being able to deliver quickly. Sometimes when going through public procurement, suppliers take into account who is paying, and that needs to be pushed back on.”
“It cost €8,460 but there was no added cost because the mistake was at the supplier’s end. I suppose that answers the question. Obviously, there are wider questions on Government spending. These questions, concerning bike sheds, IT systems and the Revenue bill in the Minister’s Department, have almost been done to death here. We must spend public money wisely and have more checks and balances than existed in the past. I am very glad nobody in the Department was responsible for the signage error. I would not like to have been responsible myself. Obviously, we are talking about something that is costly. I can work on the basis that the Minister sent the printer the correct name and it printed it incorrectly. It was rather costly for it.”
“I wish to ask the Minister about the way in which the incorrectly spelled new sign outside his Department came to be put in place, what the total cost of the sign was and the estimated cost for its removal and replacement. I hope the cost is at the lower end. Nobody has made more mistakes than me, and I know a printer who often said, “I print what I am given”, but we would need to see checks and balances. We do not want to see issues like this arise in the future.”
“It is also about the chaos that impacts on people's lives, the deaths that have occurred, and the drug debt and intimidation that have impacted on a generation of drug addicts' families. We also have to deal with the chaos that is caused to communities. Whether we are talking about Tusla, the Garda, the local council or all those other powers, educational services and everything, the tools and the powers are not there to deal with what is needed in supporting the addict, supporting their family and those communities that are impacted. I ask that we get real and that we have a holistic conversation. We talk about whole-of-government approaches but we generally do not see them. This is just too costly to individuals and to society in general.”
“I welcome the work that has been done by the GAA and other sporting groups on it, but with all of that and the need to tackle the issue, the fact is that the biggest impact is still in disadvantaged, working class areas. We can walk up and down the streets and we will know who the drug dealers are and the houses they live in. It has gone on for far too long. That is with all the really good work that has been done at times by the Garda and the Criminal Assets Bureau, and we need to see more of that. We need to protect those who fall into addiction and give supports to those families who require them at an early stage. We need to make sure we invest in the likes of The Greentown Project and move people away from criminality in every way we possibly can. I have also said before that we need a real conversation.”
“It was said to me previously by someone in the Minister's position that until it is sufficiently important that this issue is at Cabinet, nothing is going to change. We can all mention the really good projects we have in our constituencies such as The Red Door Project, Turas, FASN and MQI. Even homelessness services have to deal with a huge cohort of people who have drug issues but the regional drugs task forces are just about keeping the system going; I would describe it as keeping the engine going with baling twine. We have not got real in any way on this issue. Drug addiction is everywhere. We all know there is not a bar in operation that does not have a well-functioning toilet facility, and cocaine is everywhere. You just cannot avoid it.”
“Once again we are going to have a lot of agreement in here. I welcome the Labour Party bringing this motion forward from the point of view of having an opportunity to speak, because we do not talk sufficiently about this issue and the impact drug addiction has on our communities. It is welcome that there is an element of people coming around to the health-led, trauma-led, harm reduction methodology that is required for dealing with drug addiction, that we accept it is based on poverty and intergenerational trauma, and that there is an understanding that if we continue doing what we are doing, it is not going to work. The war on drugs, whether carried out by Ronald Reagan or by Donald Trump today, is a failed enterprise. Show me your budget and I will tell you what you value.”
“We need to ensure that this is not a further downgrading of Louth County Hospital or the downgrading of the very important works that need to be done whether we are talking about the necessity of everything from ultrasounds through to X-rays, CT scanning and Dexa scanning. We need to make sure that this necessary facility is maintained. As much as we went to see Our Lady of Lourdes operating at full capacity, we do not need to lose this service in the Louth County Hospital. If the Minister of State can give me the answer - brilliant stuff. If he cannot, he needs to chase it up with the Minister. I will be doing the same because it is not good enough that we let down the people of Dundalk.”
“However, that does not necessarily answer where this position is going to be. I want and hope that surety can be provided that this specialist position will make its way to the Louth County Hospital where it is necessary from the point of view of the work that has to be done. It is also necessary from the point of view of ensuring that we have the correct level of supervision that is dictated by the Irish Institute of Radiography and Radiation Therapy. I am not sure that the Minister of State will be in the position to give that answer, but I will be chasing up the Minister of Health. I also ask that the Minister of State engages with the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Aire. I welcome some of what the Minister of State says but I am not sure it is going to give the answer we need. As I said, there is serious concern among the staff and the public that the position that I am talking about - the clinical specialist radiographer - will not be filled. We need to make sure this happens and I would like to think the Minister of State will come back to me. I welcome that he says the recruitment process is ongoing, that there will be disruption to patient care or service delivery and all clinical services continue to operate as normal. That is all fine. He also said that a recruitment process to fill this vacancy has commenced, a number of applications have been received and interviews for this position are due to take place later this month.”
“Everything that is needed in order to continue the great service that was being done before the retirement of the clinical specialist sonographer is there, except for the replacement sonographer. Ironically, Louth County Hospital was the first hospital in the State to get a clinical specialist in ultrasound when the service was established all those years ago. It cannot be the case that it does not get one now when it needs it more than ever.”
“Four years ago, a radiologist was on site at Louth County Hospital. Now, there is none. Instead, they are on the phone. It cannot be the case that a clinical specialist position at Louth County Hospital remains unfilled. The clinical specialist sonographer not only does the bulk of the ultrasound scanning but also does the organisation of the list, the management of the service to the public and the oversight and training of other scanning staff. As per guidance from the IIRRT, it is not best practice to run an ultrasound scanning service for Louth County Hospital without a clinical specialist sonographer being on site. There are real fears that the whole ultrasound service will be downgraded and frittered away until there is no service.”
“The total number of ultrasounds done in Louth County Hospital in 2024 was 7,825, up from 7,608 in 2023. The real scandal is that there has been considerable outsourcing of ultrasound scans happening in the north east of the State for many years, with 5,348 ultrasounds done in one private clinic in 2024 alone. Many of these scans are being recorded by HSE radiologists, which they are allowed to do under their HSE contracts. The public waiting list continues to grow and the outsourcing of ultrasounds to private clinics where the HSE is paying a huge amount of money grows also. Instead of putting in jeopardy the ultrasound service at Louth County Hospital, the HSE should be developing it. The best equipment is there but there are two rooms that are not being used to their full capacity due to lack of staff at the hospital.”
“Her retirement leaves vacant three-and-a-half posts, two of which also look after all other scanning such as general X-ray, CT and DXA. A fourth person is due to start at the Louth hospital in January but it will still mean that two of the four at the Louth hospital will be basic-grade radiographers. To put it in perspective, the HSE's own numbers are stark. The recently retired clinical specialist sonographer completed 2,000 ultrasounds herself at the Louth hospital in 2024. In the first ten months of this year until her retirement, she had completed 1,465. At the same time, the waiting list for ultrasounds in the hospital's group is the largest it has ever been, with 5,000 outpatient appointments needed at the moment and 35 referrals a day coming into the Louth hospital.”
“There is now serious concern among the staff and public that the position will not be filled at the hospital and that the service, which has been incredibly well used over the years and is growing in demand year on year, will be run without on-site management. This situation is not recommended by the Irish Institute of Radiography and Radiation Therapy, IIRRT, which recommends that there be a clinical specialist sonographer working on site, especially in a hospital the size of Louth County Hospital. This is because such staff play a vital role in managing and supervising the unit. The previous clinical specialist sonographer in ultrasound at the Louth hospital was the only full-time radiographer who worked in ultrasound at the hospital.”
“I thank everyone who facilitated me to do this. I have just made my way up from the civic reception in Dundalk to celebrate the Louth Ladies Gaelic Football Association, the Louth senior team and the under-20 team after a spectacular year. Hopefully, there will be more of that to come. I had to leave Jarlath Burns and Marty Morrissey, but this is obviously an incredibly important issue. This Topical Issue arises from the retirement of the clinical specialist sonographer in ultrasound at Louth County Hospital in Dundalk. The position was advertised in the summer and there were a number of applications, but there has been no progress in filling the position.”
“I ask that we proceed with a view to delivering a fit-for-purpose grid while also ensuring we look after those people who live and work in Ireland and need the supports that have not been provided by the Government.”
“We all understand the societal impact of that but, as well as the huge impact on families and individuals, we also know there is a huge impact on businesses and on our future growth. As we discuss almost every week in this House, without seeing any major plan in terms of delivery, a particular issue is that we have an energy grid that is not fit for purpose and has not received the resourcing required to ensure delivery of improvements. We all know this is happening in the same context as the issues in relation to our water infrastructure, which is not where it needs to be. Unfortunately, not only are we failing in regard to long-term delivery but we are doing so during a cost-of-living crisis in which we are failing miserably to look after those who have to pay, especially those at the lowest end.”
“I have just come from a meeting of the foreign affairs committee where we engaged with American Chamber of Commerce Ireland. We talked about geopolitical circumstances and the situation in Gaza. It is fair to say there was disagreement on the occupied territories Bill. I believe we, like many other states, are on the right side of that argument. We also spoke about the current uncertainty and all the other issues caused by the US Administration, the Trump tariffs and the question of where negotiations will go. However, the witnesses said the issues their members are dealing with at this time relate to the infrastructural deficits we still see. It is not a major shock that housing is a particular issue.”
“It also presents an opportunity to deliver on a better Ireland but we have seen no element of planning. When asked about Deputy Martin's position, Ben Collins said that, if everyone says we have to wait until everyone gets on and every other issue is sorted, there will never be unity. Those who are against it will just say we have not agreed. There is no conciliation and there is no reconciliation. It is an absolute failure of an argument. We need to deliver on Irish unity; it is as straight as that, but presidential voting rights for those in the North would be a first step.”
“Fine Gael still presents itself as the united Ireland party and, while I will admit that it has had a number of spokespersons in the last while who have done some heavy lifting in this regard, I have not seen it at governmental level. I do not know how Fianna Fáil can stand over calling itself the republican party as Deputy Micheál Martin shushes us and tells us that now is not the time. Many of us here would have been at the launch of former unionist Ben Collins's book, The Irish Unity Dividend , across the road. We all realise there is a financial dividend to be had from Irish unity. The scaremongering has been blown out of the water by the likes of John Doyle, Ulster University and DCU in one of many reports on the cost of Irish unity. Meeting that cost is well doable and will lead to economic gains for both North and South.”
“I accept that it cannot be made too easy but we need to facilitate as many people as possible. We have the means and time to do so. We can look at best practice across the world. If we are going to talk about presidential elections, we must talk about the major failure that people are going out to vote for the President of Ireland while those in the North, whether in Newry, Crossmaglen, Culloville, Jonesborough, Dromintee, Cullyhanna, Silverbridge or one of the other places in the vicinity of where I live or whether in Belfast, Derry or even Cullybackey and Ballymena, are removed from the process. Responsibility for that lies with Government. It should not be a major shock.”
“I am very glad to have an opportunity to speak on this motion. It is straightforward. We all know that we need to facilitate far more people in the democratic process. Anybody who has been involved in elections over many years will know the issues that exist when somebody has to go on holiday and the difficulty of getting a postal vote. It is one of those things that is a lot easier to get in the North. We need to look at the whole issue of proxy voting. The electoral register is a complete mess. At least we have a fully functioning Electoral Commission at this point. I have no difficulty with the commission looking at the means by which people get on the presidential ballot. We probably need to look at how people get onto ballots in general. In Louth, we had almost 25 candidates at one stage. That make voting difficult for people.”