I want to raise the fiction of new politics with the Taoiseach. A week ago, he was elected by 57 Deputies while 50 Deputies voted against him. Some 44 Fianna Fáil Deputies abstained in keeping with that party's supply and confidence agreement with Fine Gael, of which we have just seen lots of evidence. The Taoiseach represents 36% of the Dáil. He has no popular mandate. That is the new politics according to him and the Fianna Fáil leader.

Since his election, the Taoiseach has been at the centre of controversy over the appointment of former Attorney General, Máire Whelan, to the Court of Appeal. I cast no aspersions on the ability of the former Attorney General. My issue is with the process or lack thereof. Yet the Taoiseach has defended the appointment and the process. He stands over it and, indeed, pressed ahead and requested that the President ratify Ms Whelan's appointment yesterday morning. Now there are reports that he has decided to have the process of this appointment reviewed.

This controversy has overshadowed the Taoiseach's appointment of three super junior Ministers when he is permitted to appoint only two. This is more new politics. Super junior Ministers are paid an extra €15,829 for attendance at Cabinet meetings. In the past, a brand new allowance was invented to top up the salary of the former Chief Whip, Deputy Regina Doherty, to attend Cabinet meetings. When Deputy Paul Kehoe was Chief Whip he was paid a bonus for this privilege.

Clearly, where there is a will, there is a way, but it is hardly new politics. In his republic of opportunity, I am sure the Taoiseach will look after his new super-duper junior Minister, Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor. Meanwhile, last month there were 8,154 citizens on trolleys in our hospitals, which is a 25% increase on the figures for last year, 92,000 families languish on local authority waiting lists, there are almost 5,000 homeless adults and 2,708 children are in emergency accommodation. What is new about the politics that creates this inequality and stress in the lives of citizens? What is new about Fianna Fáil's fake outrage? What is new about the soldiers of destiny marching up to the top of the hill, their brass necks glistening in the sun?

I think the Deputy did that for a long a long time.

When it comes to the crunch, of course, they simply roll over. The hard undeniable reality is that this Government remains in power because of Fianna Fáil-----

Has the Deputy a question?

What is that all about? Is it not cynical and self-serving?

Thank you, Deputy.

It is not about ending poverty and homelessness, creating decent public services, uniting Ireland or facing up to the challenges of Brexit; it is about sustaining the status quo. Does the Taoiseach agree that these new politics are a sham?

I think we may need to amend Standing Orders to allow for an additional part to Leaders' Questions where the Deputy and the leader of Fianna Fáil can question each other. To answer the questions the Deputy put to me, the mandate I have comes first from the people in Dublin West, the people who voted for me and allowed me to be a Member of this House, then from my party and then from this Dáil. Every Taoiseach in the history of the State has been elected by the Dáil. That is the system we have in this country. In due course this Government will seek a popular mandate but for the foreseeable future we will focus on getting the business of Government done and improving people's lives.

The Deputy and his party also have a mandate. His party had very successful elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly and it elected seven MPs to Westminster. I would ask the Deputy to consider validating his mandate by doing all that he can to ensure the Northern Ireland Executive is back up and running and the assembly is sitting and to consider using the mandate he has at Westminster to influence the outcome of Brexit. It seems Sinn Féin is very keen on elections. There were elections in Northern Ireland, there were elections for Westminster and the Deputy's party wants elections here as well, but what it does not want is responsibility. It does not want to be in government. I appeal to the Deputy to honour the electoral mandate he has by ensuring his party members take up their positions in the Northern Ireland Assembly and in the Executive.

Let me be very frank about the controversy around the appointment of Máire Whelan to the Court of Appeal. This is definitely not the issue I would like to have dominated my first week as Taoiseach. I do not want there to be any further controversy while I am Taoiseach about any judicial appointments in future, so things will change.

The Taoiseach did more than enough about that.

First, we will prioritise the judicial appointments Bill. That Bill will be brought into the Dáil next week.

The Government will not have to comply with it.

If the Dáil and Seanad have to sit into July and into the recess-----

The Taoiseach is now saying he is allowed to ignore that.

-----we will do that in order to get this Bill passed so that-----

How many more Garda stations will be reopened-----

-----we change this process in order that any judge who wants to apply for a higher court will have to go through Judicial Appointments Advisory Board, JAAB, which is currently not the case.

So the Taoiseach got it wrong.

We will make these changes and make sure there are no future controversies about judicial appointments.

The Cabinet secretary will carry out a review of Cabinet procedure so that we minimise the number of occasions on which a memo is brought to Government at very short notice.

Minimise the number of strokes.

If I may say so, that is in some way an acknowledgment that the process that was used was inappropriate. It makes a change for a leader of Fine Gael to accuse Sinn Féin of being in favour of elections, a rather interesting turn of phrase. I want to find out more about these new politics. The Taoiseach said that the North and Brexit would be his Government's priorities. He went to Downing Street yesterday and I understand he was thrilled.

About sliding down the bannisters.

He informed us, as he and Theresa May spoke on the way in, that he told her that it reminded him of that scene in "Love Actually" where Hugh Grant did his dance down the stairs.

It is not exactly in keeping with the spirit of Michael Collins. The Taoiseach went on to tell us he was very reassured by Theresa May that any agreement between the Conservatives and the DUP would not impact on the Good Friday Agreement. That is not new politics, that is nothing but the same old story.

Thank you, Deputy.

The Taoiseach has no reason to believe any assurance from the British Prime Minister. A Taoiseach standing up to the British Government on all these issues on which it is currently in default - issues of equality, unity and rights, which the British Government is denying people - would really be new politics. Could the Taoiseach explain to the Dáil why he did not do this?

I know the Deputy does not like the fact that I made reference to "Love Actually" yesterday on my first visit to Downing Street.

I loved it.

I have not been there as often as Deputy Adams has. I follow him on Twitter and I am aware that he is more a fan of Richard Curtis's later works such as "About Time". If so, I suggest it is about time that power sharing was restored in Northern Ireland and that he went about making sure that was the case.

I had a very good meeting in Downing Street yesterday with the Prime Minister, Theresa May. We met tête-à-tête, just the two of us, and then we met in a group for almost an hour. We covered a large number of issues. One of the issues we covered in some detail was the agreement that she has not yet made with the DUP, but intends to make, around confidence and supply. She assured us that agreement would not impact on the impartiality or the co-guarantor arrangement as required.

I was not assured.

I have no reason not to believe her assurance.

She is in breach of guarantees now.

It is an assurance that we will have to hold the British Government to.