Victor Boyhan
Agricultural Panel · Independent · Ireland
“It also mentions the agrifood sector and the importance of diversification in agriculture, the maritime sector, coastal communities and fishing communities in terms of rural policy.”
“I know from my engagement with both the Department and the Minister that over 900 submissions to the consultation process were received. No Member or parliamentarian will have had the opportunity to consider the anonymised version of these consultations, which contain many good suggestions in favour of the regulations and many concerns in…”
“I welcome the Minister and the official to the Seanad. This is particularly important Private Members' business. I thank Senators Collins and Tully for setting out the background and the rationale behind their Private Members' motion. I acknowledge the Minister's exceptional commitment to rural Ireland and his Ministry.”
“I am conscious of the Minister's public consultation, and I acknowledge it and thank them for it, in relation to the Our Rural Future work programme in 2025. In fairness to him, he did not stop at that. I received a further update when I requested it from his office very recently.”
“This will come about through that process. It is for the Minister to decide. Maybe he will do so tomorrow when the regulations are dealt with. However, when Senators are in this Chamber discussing these regulations tomorrow, they will have no sight of any constituent who made a submission. That is my first item.”
“I am pleased to see Senator Byrne in the Leader’s chair. I wish him well in that job. I also wish him well in his new position as Government Whip. There are three items I wish to discuss today. First is the exempt development regulations, which are being covered extensively in the media.”
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“I welcome the Minister of State and his team of staff to the House. I will take up on some of the points that Senator Higgins has made. I want to touch on them. I am conscious we are under a lot of time pressure. We are in the last week before the summer recess. There is an eagerness to complete a number of pieces of legislation over the next two days. Mindful of all of that, we are talking about section 3, amendment No. 1 in the name of Senator Higgins, and she has touched on a few issues in relation to the vacant sites levy. Yes, there are concerns about that. It has gone on from being this levy or tax - call it what you will. Clearly, we have to see everything in the context of the demand and the drive to produce more housing, and, indeed, more facilities for enterprise.”
“They offer a listening service and they are more than just a transactional service. They are there looking out for people. Members of communities like to go there and I have always been a strong advocate for the post office network, so I support anything that supports the post office network. There is potential for innovation and synergies and co-operation. I am always struck as to why the local credit unions cannot operate out of the same building as local post offices or information hubs or community hubs. There are potential synergies that could be looked at in terms of keeping the core service and that connection within communities. I wish the legislation well. It will have our whole support and I understand that we will be doing all Stages of the Bill today, so it will be put through today.”
“I wish the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, well and wish him a speedy recovery. I thank him for his input on this work. He has championed rural communities. He represents a constituency that has both urban and rural areas. The significance of the post offices is known to us all. Any of us who has contacts with post offices, be they urban or rural, knows the importance of them. They are an important point of contact. Most people who run post offices have been long established there. Many of them run them in combination with local enterprises or local businesses, be it shops, hardware or pubs. I can think of loads of rural post offices in Meath and Kildare alone that are run on the fringes with other successful businesses. What is most important is that they offer a confidential service.”
“I will make another call: that we have a briefing and direct timeline for the implementation of the local government task force. I will wrap up on a positive note by singling out the president of the Association of Irish Local Government, AILG, Councillor Mary Hanna Hourigan. I cannot thank her enough. I know I speak on behalf of many advocates in local government by referring to her exceptional work as the president of the Association of Irish Local Government. I wish her well on her successful tenure and I have great hopes for her for the future. I thank her, on behalf of our city and county councillors, for the amazing advocacy work she has done in Ireland, the UK, the islands and across the European Union in relation to local government. She has served local government well and with distinction.”
“Nobody has come back to me. There has been no discussion in this House about it despite numerous requests. As we end our time this term, it is very disappointing. To the 949 councillors, all I can say again when I communicate with them in my end-of-week letter is that there has been no progress. That is exceptionally disappointing in a House where the majority of people are elected through the franchise of our city and county councillors across 31 local authorities. It says something about our commitment to drive forward. We cannot predetermine the outcome of the task force but we can demonstrate on the floor of this House our determination to see it implemented, or at least published and its task force implemented.”
“I welcome the Canadian ambassador to the Upper House in this bicameral Parliament of ours. I particular welcome his delegation here. Canada is a beacon of light in many regards and the Irish people and Government very much value the very special relationship with Canada. I wish the delegation the very best of luck and every success in its visit to the Oireachtas. I will raise one issue with the Deputy Leader. We have exactly 949 city and county councillors in our country. Every week or two weeks I am up here on my feet asking the same question. Indeed, I asked the same question of the Deputy Leader the last time, which was that we would have a briefing in relation to the findings, outcome, recommendations and the plan for the implementation of the local government task force. There has been no progress that I am aware of.”
“There are some modifications at best but, given the timeframe on this legislation, I do not anticipate that he will be taking on board any amendments. We are all realists in this House. It is important that he listens, takes note of Members' concerns and, where possible, incorporates them into meaningful dialogue with the various authorities around planning.”
“I do not support one-size single-aspect apartments. The temperature in my south-facing office in Leinster House, which has no air conditioning, has been above 30°C for the past two weeks. It occurred to me that the same could be the case with a studio apartment. I am against the modification of apartment standards. I understand there can be smart moves taken in this regard but I am opposed to plans for single-aspect apartments. The Land Development Agency was the subject of some negative commentary in the Irish Independent this morning. I hold great hope and ambition for the agency. We need a Housing Agency that drives State housing programmes in partnership with the private sector. That very much must be part of a slicker, more efficient planning process. I wish the Minister of State well. I acknowledge what he is seeking to do.”
“A developer who is building houses told me recently that there is a fear on the part of an comisiún to engage with him. This is a person who has extant permission to build homes and has built numerous very successful complexes. The ability of An Comisiún Pleanála to disengage with developers and home builders is a bit of a problem. The Minister of State and his officials, outside the context of this legislation, might look at what is going on in terms of that type of break in engagement. I have some concerns about the judicial review process. I will not elaborate on them today because we will have an opportunity to discuss this on Committee Stage. It is really important that participation be at the very core of our approach. I signal now to the Minister of State that I will oppose the proposals in the Bill in relation to apartments.”
“Local administration, at best, is what it is at the moment but that will, I hope, change over time. As elected representatives in their communities, they need to be able to determine the outcome and a local response to a local need in respect of planning and housing, which is all central to this. I referred to the Office of the Planning Regulator. I have talked about An Coimisiún Pleanála. That body is up and running and it has had issues. We need fully to embrace technology and innovation. People all over the country should be able to engage in the planning process online, if they are able to do so. Certainly, there should be one-stop shops or hubs in public libraries and public buildings to assist people to avail of that technology if they wish to pursue it. There are still shortcomings in An Comisiún Pleanála.”
“I know the difference between a reserve function and an executive function, and where our members have reserve functions, they must be supported in doing them. As I have said time and again, councillors are not planners and engineers but they are clearly interested and focused on protecting the sustainable, progressive future of their communities. We also need to give our councillors and our planning and housing authorities locally, of which there are 31, the ability to take into account planning that is agile enough to have regard to the housing assessment. That is important. Subsidiarity is at the very core of the principle of planning, or it should be. It is certainly one espoused by the European Union and our Houses, so it is important that we give discretion to our planning authorities and local democracy.”
“We are conscious, as the Minister of State is, of the Aarhus Convention, the protocols and the strategic environmental assessment requirements. I ask that this be the centre of all of our planning going forward, with open engagement. When I talk about open engagement, I am talking about engagement that permits and is capable of allowing our citizens to influence policy and choice before decisions are effectively made and taken out of their hands. Predetermining outcomes in relation to proper planning and sustainable development is not and should not be the way we proceed. Local authority planning functions are important. The Minister of State knows, as I do, the importance of our elected members.”
“Public infrastructure is, of course, critical to the importance of delivering houses and I fully accept that. In relation to the rural housing guidelines, I am delighted that they have come about but the passage of time seems to be a bit long. There will be a requirement for an environmental impact assessment, EIA, and an environmental impact statement, EIS. All of that is important. I ask again, as I have always asked and argued, that there be a statutory public consultation because we need to get it right. I could paper the walls of this House with all the letters telling me that these guidelines will be published six weeks later. Failure to facilitate meaningful public participation is a great concern to me.”
“I fully support the accelerating infrastructure report and action plan. The definition of the material contravention was really important. I want to spend a little bit of time on public participation in environmental scrutiny and planning processes, which is not an enemy of progress. I think that is an important point to get across here. There needs to be a greater focus in government, as the Minister of State and everyone knows, on converting existing planning permissions and commencements into completed homes. Now, that is a loaded sentence. There needs to be a greater emphasis on the many thousands - it is estimated to be over 100,000 - empty or derelict properties across this country. It was covered extensively in the Sunday Independent last Sunday. Efforts are being made but a lot more has to be done.”
“One of the things that keeps coming back to me from city and county councillors and the Association of Irish Local Government, AILG, is the very positive engagement with the Planning Regulator in regard to the modular training and stuff it organises for councillors in conjunction with the AILG. It is very helpful for members. City and county councillors are not planners, architects or engineers but they are fiercely committed on the ground in regard to the delivery of proper planning and sustainable development for their communities. The Minister of State will understand that very well as someone who was a councillor for many years, and he will understand this process. I wanted to make that point to acknowledge the significance of the Office of the Planning Regulator and support it. I note the references in the legislation to the office.”
“Indeed, the Minister, Deputy Jack Chambers, has driven this whole area of infrastructure and all of that. I wish to raise a few issues, not necessarily in the order of how they come in the Bill, but they are issues that have come to my attention because I have engaged with our city and county councillors in relation to this process today. I have tried to ascertain from them some of their concerns because I see myself very much as a conduit for them on the floor of the Seanad. Regarding the Office of the Planning Regulator, a review was carried out. It has been completed, and it is important that we publish it as soon as possible. There were learnings. It was always anticipated that there would be learnings in the process of establishing a new Office of the Planning Regulator. I want to put on record my thanks to the Planning Regulator.”
“It is now after 12 noon but I want to say that, out of no discourtesy to the Minister of State, I will unfortunately have to leave after I make my contribution. However, I am committed to engaging with this process for as long as it goes on. We know that the main purpose of the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2026 is to support the transition of the remaining provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2024 and the introduction of ten-year county development plans. We had some debate about that. I had concerns at the time but I am not using the ten minutes I have to revisit those issues. That is in the legislation. At the very kernel of all of this is that we have the timely delivery of critical infrastructure. We know that progress has been made and subgroups have been dealing with it.”
“It occurs to me was that here we are tidying up or organising the elements of the Planning and Development Act 2024. I looked this morning at the record of the House and the debates on that Act as the Planning and Development Bill 2023. The Bill was guillotined in this House but we had a very long engagement on it. The Bill was approved in the Dáil, of course, despite all the setbacks and the debate about timing and processing, but that is not the substantive issue I am going to talk about here. The Bill was voted on by Seanad Éireann; there was a division on Wednesday, 25 September 2024. I think that is an important point. I want to give my apologies in advance. I have a meeting with the Bar Council at 12 noon.”
“I welcome the Minister of State and his officials. I thank his officials for arranging a briefing earlier in the week. I found it exceptionally helpful, particularly the clarity. I thank them for the memo I received this morning in relation to the material contravention of the development plan and the importance of the clarity around what factors determined when a material contravention process was invoked in assessing and determining a planning application. That was questioned by An Coimisiún Pleanála. It was an issue that was raised with the Office of the Planning Regulator. It was raised by a number of directors of planning across our 31 local authorities. That sort of clarity is to be welcomed and I reiterate my thanks to the officials for their engagement with the process.”
“I contacted both Ministers yesterday and informed them that if the public consultation in relation to these matters was not published today, I would submit to the Department a series of freedom of information requests that I drafted last week. The Ministers and their officials are aware of that. This is important. We have to be clear about what we are doing. We are referring this to the Oireachtas joint committee and that is important, but it is a pity it has taken so long and it is particularly important and significant that it is happening today.”
“Members will also be aware that this legislation was guillotined in the Dáil last night and of the limited amount of time we have to discuss this issue. It all might be very well at the moment because the odds are stacked against meaningful opposition and that is what we have to live with at the moment, but time moves and is cyclical in politics. There are people on one side of this House who will be on the other side after the next election, and there are others who may not be here at all. Time moves on, but planning is a long-term thing. I welcome the fact that the motions are being referred to the committee, albeit late. I will be revisiting this later during the debate on planning.”
“Listening to some of the contributions today on planning - I welcome that we will be discussing planning later with the Minister - I was reminded of a really good article published in The Irish Times during the week which had the subtitle, "Public participation and environmental scrutiny are not the enemies of progress [in the planning process]". I hope we will remember that today as we reflect on a number of issues. I wish to raise the issue of items Nos. 1 to 7, inclusive, on the Order of Business. They all relate to exempted development. One has to ask why they are being dealt with today. Why not three or four weeks ago? I support the referral of these motions to the committee for its consideration, but Members will or should be aware that these are a substantive part of the legislation we will be considering later today.”
“These nine pillars encompass 54 specific proposals aimed at improving the lives of people who need care and those who care for them. Family Carers Ireland, FCI, believes that most of the 54 specific proposals in its pre-budget 2027 submission can be achieved. I personally believe that the FCI proposals provide a roadmap for creating a more equitable, more sustainable and more responsive care system for family carers. I ask that my colleagues across all parts of this House would advocate for the measures outlined in the family carers budget 2027 submission and perhaps raise it this evening at their parliamentary party meetings. I do not doubt people's commitment. Behind all of this, of course, is resourcing. It is an important issue and I hope that we will articulate and advocate for these nine pillars for Family Carers Ireland.”
“There I met Councillor Richie Molloy, a colleague of mine and of the Leader's from Clonmel. That organisation has nine requests, as follows: a fair and adequate income for carers; the abolition of the carer’s allowance means test, which should not come as any surprise to those in government who committed themselves to doing something about it but nothing has happened yet; a right to respite; the full funding of the carer guarantee; the delivery of the statutory home support scheme; prioritisation of supports for children with additional needs; the delivery of housing, transport and climate justice; support for family carers in paid employment, which is an important point to make; and future planning and assisted decision-making.”
“I have to respond to Senator Clifford-Lee, who gave a great plug for the coastal swimming place in Rush. I am not quite sure how I would go or how I would recommend people to go, given the difficulties she outlined in relation to transport through the tunnel. Last week, she articulated concerns over the cap at Dublin Airport. Clearly, there is a bottleneck with transport out there. On a more serious note, I agree with her that the issue with the tunnel is a challenge, but there are also challenges with housing and transport. With the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2026 tomorrow, we will have an opportunity to discuss those issues. It is a valid point and I support her on it. On building a caring society, Family Carers Ireland has a presentation in Buswells Hotel this morning.”
“I will finish on this. Before I journeyed in here this morning, I went to that very school. Little did I think going from that gate to my own home and back again that I would travel from that gate this morning to here, 50 years on, and tell the story. I am glad I have been able to do so. I am glad to have had this opportunity to be an advocate, as I have been every day I have been here, because a key function of ours is to be advocates, voices, encouragers and supporters for people who wish to tell their stories and share their journeys.”
“I also thank the production company, Second Captains, which produced a ten-part podcast in conjunction with the BBC titled "Where is George Gibney?" We know where he is now but it has taken many years for him to get there. These individuals and organisations, including RTÉ, which I do not want to forget because it did remarkable work over all of those years, acted as a catalyst for people to come forward, share their stories and assist in bringing George Gibney to justice. I will conclude but, as I said before, there are many outstanding questions. There are many more issues to come to light. Much of that will now happen because of the justice process but we must allow that process to go forward. Everyone here in our Parliament brings their unique life experiences to their work. That is what motivates us. That is what politicises us.”
“The relentless investigation that Ms McCarthy conducted in her book to bring George Gibney, Derry O'Rourke, Ger Doyle and other abusers to justice played a very significant part in many coming forward to speak. To Justine McCarthy, we are truly indebted. I thank Gary O'Toole, a friend of mine, a doctor and a very successful person, who was also involved in swimming and subject to involvement on the periphery of many of these issues. I will finish in two seconds but I want to thank him for giving courage, voice, strength and support to so many people in their journeys. I thank Johnny Watterson of The Irish Times , whom many will know. He has been a constant champion for years, even when that was not easy. I thank him for his involvement in these issues.”
“What I can say today, however, is that swimming coach George Gibney will be sentenced in the Criminal Courts of Justice on 29 July 2026. I want to, first, acknowledge the very significant and brave people who went forward - it is never an easy thing to do - both privately and publicly, and gave agency and strength to make the events of yesterday eventually happen. It was a very emotional day for all involved. I want to say "Thank you" to a few people before I conclude. There will be another opportunity at a more appropriate place and time for me to give voice to some of these issues. I want to single out the remarkable Justine McCarthy of The Irish Times . Many Senators may have read her book, Deep Deception . If they have not, I suggest they do so.”
“Much has been said about the swimming coach, George Gibney, in the past 24 hours. It would not be appropriate for me to go into too much comment. Suffice to say, and to share with the House, that I went to school in Newpark, where George Gibney operated from. It is hard to believe that I am here today 50 years on, having shared my time in that school with boys and girls who were the subject of many of the allegations against George Gibney. There are many questions to be asked about Gibney and how he stayed outside this State and evaded justice for so long, and how it took so long for any bilateral negotiations or agreements in relation to his extradition from the US. I have discussed this privately with many senior people in various Governments as long as I have been in politics, and that is many a year.”
“The request is simple. I do not doubt the Government in this area but it is important to put on the record that we are agile, nimble and flexible in our responses, particularly for the agriculture, horticulture and food sectors, which are important. Agricultural contractors are also important.”
“Last night, at a meeting of the Committee on Agriculture and Food, attended by me and Senator Collins as members of the committee, we had a whole debate about hemp. Everybody there spoke about the ambition and the science of hemp in the context of insulating our homes. Oireachtas Members of all parties and none, and the Minister of State's party is well represented on the committee, were highly impressed at the possibilities and options for retrofitting our homes. We know that if our homes are properly retrofitted and the supports are put in place for that programme of retrofitting, we can reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and that has to be the ambition for all of us. There are many strands to this. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House today. I thank him for the clarity in the delivery of his message.”
“We must be responsive and the Government must be agile and flexible enough to be able to turn up or recalibrate the supports, particularly for the sector that I am speaking about. There is volatility out there. There is volatility and uncertainty in the world order and the impact on oil. That is important. What I am saying is that we must continue to be open to monitoring the situation and being responsive to the needs of this particular sector. People also want that in the private domestic home sector. That is important. The Minister of State mentioned retrofit, which is important. We need to expand our ambition for retrofitting, particularly in areas where there are carbon neutral alternatives.”
“It is also Government policy that we continue to expand the growth of salads, vegetables and fruit crops. We know that with our climate, there is a need to have a lot of this under cloches, tunnels and glass, etc. Energy is, therefore, critically important, particularly diesel, as it is to the forestry sector. That sector is reliant on it. We also have ambitious plans for forestry. We have ambitious plans for agriculture. Fuel is a critical component of that. The Minister of State will be aware of that significance. He will also be aware that the Irish Farmers Association, IFA, has issued a number of calls in recent days in commentary in relation to these supports. All I am saying is that we must keep our antennae up.”
“The Minister of State knows, as do I and everyone else in the Chamber, that the agricultural sector is heavily reliant on green diesel and other forms of energy and diesel. Energy has a very significant role and I acknowledge the Government's support and commitment to the horticultural sector. It brought in particular measures to support the sector, particularly around energy. I am thinking in particular of mushroom production. We have perhaps the finest production of mushrooms in Europe, if not the world. Our mushrooms are exported all over Europe. It is a time-sensitive fresh food product so it is critical there is no break or delay in the roll-over and turnover of production. We also have salad crops. We want to grow more food. It is part of the Bord Bia strategy, Food Vision 2030.”
“I welcome the Minister of State to the House and take on board everything that Senator Casey has clearly said. I welcome the clarity brought by the Bill. To be realistic, the Seanad is a revising Chamber but this Bill has been approved by Dáil Éireann and we know the arithmetic. The Government said there would be no cliff edge and that is clearly not going to happen, which is good. I welcome that. I do not want to take up all of my time. I flag agriculture. I sit on the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture and Food and am elected to the Agricultural Panel. I have an interest in the horticultural and forestry sectors, as well as the broader agricultural sector, but particularly the agrifood sector.”
“Finally, I will ask the Deputy Leader again, as it would be helpful before the summer recess, if we can have some indication about the local government task force because Members across the House have advocated strongly for it. It would be a pity to go into a recess for two months without having an opportunity at some point to discuss its recommendations.”
“It is always important when there is a task force that people clearly understand their functions. There are 62 elected members on Dublin City Council and I wish them and their chief executive well in the work. I just wanted to say "Well done" on all that. I am also highly impressed, from the bit I know and have seen, with the vision and plan for the GPO's transfer to the Office of Public Works, OPW. The OPW is an extraordinary organisation that sometimes comes in for a bit of bad press. However, I know a lot about its work. I have been to many of its sites. Many of us were at Dublin Castle, which is yet another site it beautifully maintains, so I wish it well.”
“I spoke this morning on a Commencement matter about the Dublin task force and the Taoiseach's Department responded through one of the Ministers of State. Again, I welcome the plans for the Dublin task force. My concern earlier was about the roles of the task force and its interim group of 16 members. It is great to see there are elected members on it. That is positive and augurs well for a model of collaboration between local and central government. We have seen initiatives in Limerick city. People are sometimes cautious when central government is involved with local government, but they are always happy when the money from central government comes to local government. I warmly welcome the Dublin city task force. I wish Mr. Watt well in the specific task he has been tasked with.”
“What is more important than anything the Minister of State said is that there is now a mechanism, which has been clearly stated today, whereby there will be regular reporting back to the Taoiseach's office in relation to progress. I wish all stakeholders and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, as it is called now, all the very best with this really exciting project. It is important that we are ambitious for our cities and towns. I believe this is the beginning of something great for Dublin city.”
“I thank the Minister of State very much. First, I want to thank the Taoiseach's office for preparing this speaking note. It is very comprehensive and deals with many of the issues. I thank the Minister of State for delivering it on behalf the Taoiseach's office. I acknowledge and thank the 63 elected members of Dublin City Council and its chief executive, Mr. Richard Shakespeare. This is an exciting time for the capital city of Ireland, Dublin city. I wish the project well. What is really interesting is the synergy and the importance of central government supporting local government, in this case for Dublin city, but there will be other similar possibilities for other parts of the country. It is a good model. It is clear now where the roadmap is. I wish Mr. Robert Watt well with the implementation of this task force.”
“It is important we understand the functions, the policies and the oversight of the work of the task force, the spending and the budgetary constraints. Out of this it is important we clearly understand there is no diminution or watering-down of the power and functions of the chief executive and elected members of Dublin City Council. I wish this project well, as I know everyone in the House does. The task force must get on with its work. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to share with us the response from the Taoiseach's office.”
“Robert Watt has now assumed the role of head of Dublin City Council's newly-formed project management unit and CEO-designate of the council's proposed special purpose vehicle which, when constituted, will oversee and implement the Taoiseach's task force report. It is important we are ambitious. It matters that this project has, as I know it does, the full support of central government. Central government is assisting local government to prioritise the work, vision and future of our capital city. I wish the project well. It is important we fully understand the purpose of the special purpose vehicle when that is constituted. There are a number of elected members on the interim advisory board. I think in total the board has about 16. I wish them well.”
“I commend the chief executive of Dublin City Council, Richard Shakespeare, and the 63 democratically elected councillors who have our capital at the very heart of their work. When we talk about a task force we need to understand how the work and the implementation is devolved. I am always conscious that our councillors, especially in Dublin city but all over the country, have a democratic mandate and any watering-down, attempted watering-down, or perceived watering-down of their powers and functions is something we must always guard against. I wish the task force well. It is important there is good collaboration on the task force and that it works. I understand the interim advisory board met in June. It is going to proceed with a special purpose vehicle to lead the Taoiseach's task force and that is important too. I understand Mr.”
“I thank the Cathaoirleach for accepting what I think is an exceptionally important Commencement matter, namely, the need for the Taoiseach to make a statement on progress on the implementation of the Dublin city centre task force and in particular the role Dublin City Council and its elected members will have over its functions, policies and spending. To set out why this was submitted to the Taoiseach's office, this is a task force established by the previous Taoiseach, who is currently Tánaiste. It did its work and deliberations and the driving of all that was kept very much central to the Taoiseach's office, which sent a very clear message about the importance and significance of this. Dublin is of course our capital city and sometimes people forget that. There is a lot of commentary on Dublin city which is not always fair or accurate.”
“I would like to think those on all sides of this House will fight hard to push for balanced regional development. We have leverage and opportunity. I look forward with great anticipation and excitement to reading the amendments in the coming days because this is the time. This is our opportunity. Let us bring our amendments before the House in relation to this legislation.”
“I read the explanatory memorandum completely in a few minutes. It is logical and sets out in a fair way processes and perhaps tighter timelines but there is discretion to extend some in certain circumstances which is all set out in the explanatory memorandum. I could not argue with the processes as set out in the legislation, which is important. I want to spend the last few seconds I have endorsing what other Members such as Senator Ryan have said about regional development. We have heard all these platitudes about regional development. The Minister of State is from Cork and Senator Joe Conway is from Waterford. The Cathaoirleach is a great champion of Kerry and everything that comes in and out of Kerry. Regional airports play a key role.”
“For this Bill to go through, it is open to Government Members of course to propose amendments or seek to negotiate amendments. The Minister may take them on himself. I do not care whose amendments they are. There is scope for it. We can be sure going out of here today, and the Minister of State can take it back to the Minister, that there will be amendments. We will discuss them and tease them out. That is particularly important. Getting back to the Bill itself, to be fair, it sets out the processes. The Minister of State set that out very well. We talk about environmental impact assessments, appropriate assessments, An Coimisiún Pleanála, its role, timeframes and timescale. There is great clarity in all of that. Whether we like it or not, the process is clear. I commend the people who drew up the process because it is very easy.”
“That is where we are coming from. We are talking about a very large number in government on that side of the House which has a simple majority. We have a record of a Government that has rarely accepted any amendments to any legislation in the past year and a half since it came into power. The facts speak for themselves. I am happy to share that spreadsheet with anybody. I ask the Minister of State to convey to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, who is responsible in this area, that I hope he will be genuinely open to dialogue, to listening and taking on board some of the amendments that come from all sides of the House, if both sides of the House are minded to table amendments. There is such a thing as leverage, be it in business or politics.”
“There is a long, protracted history and concern. For anyone to suggest that people who bought houses there in the sixties, seventies and eighties knew what they would be getting into today is grossly insulting. They did not know what they were getting into. I would not compliment the individual who is purported to have said it, to give him any more publicity than he has already had today. It is important as a public representative, if I were out there. I want to send a clear message to the councillors listening tonight who are aware of it. I have had a few phone calls today about it. We hear what they are saying but unfortunately the reality is the Dublin Airport (Passenger Capacity) Bill 2026 was passed by 118 votes to 28 in Dáil Éireann. We have to be realistic in this Chamber. We are a revising Chamber.”