I want to ask the Taoiseach about the deal An Post is supposed to be offering to postmistresses and postmasters of post offices to buy them out of their business, thereby denying the people of many small villages and towns in rural Ireland a post office. We are told that as part of this deal, An Post seeks to gag the people who have signed the contract. They cannot talk about cuts to rural Ireland. They cannot talk about issues around rural broadband. They cannot ask about the waste of prefabs in rural schools. They cannot ask about anything. I thought the heavy gang had left with the former Minister, Patrick Cooney. Are we back in the 1970s in this Dáil? Is this an attempt to stop people from having any democratic right to go about their business? They cannot speak about all these issues. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, has been offered the chance to take the driving licence registration function away from the county councils and have it operated through post offices. He flatly refused. What is the Government trying to do - close down rural Ireland, and to hell or to Connacht with the people? Is it trying to gag them and buy their silence? This is outrageous.

That is news to me, but I certainly will ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Naughten, to reply to the Deputy on that matter. I should say that is not the intention of the Government to close down post offices.

But it is closing them down.

Where the postmaster or postmistress wants to retire-----

Buy him out.

-----a package will be put in place to allow him or her to retire on reasonably good terms. At that point, the contract for the post office will be offered to other people if they want to take it up, or potentially a nearby petrol station or shop, in order to retain-----

Why will the Government not give post offices responsibility for driving licences?