I want to return to the issue of potential energy disconnections this winter. I will put the question that I put to the Taoiseach earlier and I would appreciate a straight answer to the question. Will he move to ensure the ban on disconnection starts now and runs to the end of March? I seek a "Yes" or "No" answer. Will he ensure those on pay-as-you-go meters are not open to disconnection? Will he give a cast-iron guarantee that that will not happen? How will he achieve that?

I have already outlined to the Deputy measures we have taken that will prevent disconnections this winter. There are always exceptional situations for different reasons, but we are clear about what has brought about this energy crisis and the level of price increases. We want to keep the lights on and we want people to be able to have warm food and heat themselves over this winter. The Government will do everything it can-----

The Government has not done anything.

-----as will the CRU.

The Taoiseach has still not answered the question.

There are reports today that IBEC has raised concerns about the introduction of statutory domestic violence leave. Will the Government commit to moving forward swiftly with the adoption of such legislation? We believe most employers want to ensure supports are available to employees and workers experiencing domestic, sexual or gender-based violence. They want to offer them those supports. The legislation going through the House deserves cross-party support on that basis to ensure a compassionate workplace. Labour introduced a similar Bill in the Seanad to ensure that reproductive health-related leave would be available to employees enduring early miscarriage. We believe amendments to the Organisation of Working Time Act could be brought forward to ensure statutory leave for those suffering domestic violence and for those who need time off for reproductive health-related reasons, including early miscarriage. Will the Taoiseach commit to ensuring speedy passage of that legislation for employees' rights?

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. Since its formation, the Government has made it clear that tackling domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is a priority. The Government has approved the recommendations in the report prepared by the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, for the introduction of paid domestic violence leave. On its introduction, Ireland will be one of the first countries in Europe to adopt domestic violence paid leave. The provisions will be introduced by means of Committee Stage amendments to the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill which is before the Houses at present.

I believe the Deputy is aware of the six recommendations from the domestic violence leave report. Work is under way to implement that. We will work with all the organisations to ensure there is buy-in for it.

I was also absolutely appalled today to read that the business lobby group, IBEC, has objected to the Government's plan to bringing in legislation on paid leave for victims of domestic abuse. Asking people who have suffered domestic abuse to provide proof that they have actually suffered that abuse is retraumatising. This level of disbelief and distrust is exactly why victims do not come forward. I ask not only that the Government commit to the speedy implementation of this Bill, but also that it will never be the case that people will have to prove they have suffered domestic abuse to avail of that leave.

We need to be sensitive about this in the sense that it is a very difficult situation for people to find themselves in. It is not as if people are going to use this as some sort of excuse. That will not happen. It is very difficult for a person to have to come forward and say, "I need leave because of domestic abuse." The report recommends that we provide supports to employers so that they can develop their own domestic violence leave policy. This relates to policy and culture within an organisation. This will ensure that domestic violence victims will be dealt with appropriately in their workplaces and will ensure there is a pathway for domestic violence leave requests to be handled sensitively. A tender for the provision of these support services will issue in the coming days. That is one recommendation we are following up on. That domestic violence leave will be introduced-----

We are out of time.

It must be without the need for proof.

I think there needs to be a process. I am with the Deputy on that.

Over the weekend at the Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis, the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, claimed that health service waiting lists have been stabilised. The reality is very different. The reality is that more than 900,000 people at present are on some form of public health or hospital waiting list, which is completely unacceptable. Can the Taoiseach justify what the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, said given the reality of people waiting for simple medical procedures?

I commend the widespread interest in the Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis at the weekend from all sides of the House. It is very heartening indeed.

We will have another one tomorrow so.

The outpatient waiting list has increased and the inpatient list has stabilised. There are different performances in different categories. Many good innovations have worked such as access to diagnostics. GP-led diagnostic services have been quite innovative and impactful in providing greater access, greater throughput and greater activity on waiting lists more generally. That will continue. The waiting list action plan was published last February. Some €350 million was allocated with additional staff. For 2023, €443 million has now been allocated. It is ahead of target on scopes, a little bit behind target on inpatient day cases and significantly behind target on outpatient cases. That is what the Minister is telling me.

The blight of illegal dumping continues to be a major problem across the country, costing local authorities millions of euro to clean up each year. On many occasions I have raised the issue of illegal dumping in the Dáil, with both the Taoiseach and the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan. I have received assurances on every occasion that this issue will be addressed, but legislation has not been brought forward to deal with it yet.

One of the biggest problems is that CCTV footage cannot be used in court to bring the culprits to justice. This ongoing illegal dumping is destroying our countryside, our towns, our villages and, most importantly, our environment. When will legislation be brought before the Dáil to enable the local authorities and An Garda Síochána to use CCTV footage to prosecute those caught in the act of illegal dumping?

The Deputy has been a long-standing campaigner for this and has raised the matter before with me, I think in the bowels of the national convention centre. We still have recollections of the convention centre.

I have shown the Taoiseach pictures.

The Bill has been passed. The Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022 has been passed and the Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, tells me that measure has been included in it. There will need to be regulations to give effect to that. I will double-check that. They are being drawn up, allowing for the use of CCTV in respect of illegal dumping.

Last week I raised the issue of drug dealing and intimidation in Clonmel town centre. Clonmel is a fine town with fine people. There was an incident on Friday night when a young farmer who was going to his homeplace was confronted by a gang, beaten to the ground, kicked underneath his van and left. It could have been a fatality. Will the Taoiseach do something to support the Garda in Clonmel? The numbers are appalling. The ones who are there do their best but the management is leaving a lot to answer for. Gardaí are in danger as they go around in the squad car on their own in the middle of the night. I am glad the Minister for Justice is here. Will she set up a task force to deal with the problem in Clonmel and the outlying parishes? There are roving gangs intimidating farmers and all families under the auspices of lamping, which is illegal anyway, and hunting of rabbits and hares, which is illegal as well, unmuzzled. We do not hear anything about that. They are intimidating farmers and their wives and families. It is almost out of control and the Garda is going to lose control of it unless the Minister sends in resources immediately.

On the resourcing of An Garda Síochána, it is a matter for the Commissioner as to where they go. My role is to make sure the Commissioner has as many gardaí as possible to be able to allocate into the different regions. We have about 460 that will either come into or leave Templemore this year. With the new recruitment campaign, the intention and the funding that was allocated in this year's budget is for 1,000 additional gardaí next year and we hope to continue that number. That would see 200 gardaí every three months being sent out to the various towns, villages and rural and urban communities. That will help to bolster gardaí on the ground as well as those working in specialised teams. On rural crime, Operation Thor and a number of other specific, targeted operations look at these rural gangs and that type of activity in rural areas. They are being rolled out and will be rolled out right across the winter months.

Yesterday I asked the Taoiseach about the transfer of Shannon Heritage sites to Clare County Council. He said he had recently met the county manager. The Taoiseach continued:

... the manager basically identified that there was a funding gap from his perspective. I have spoken to the Minister about it and the Minister is working on this with all the stakeholders to try to get this resolved.

This morning Clare county councillors were told that on budget day last week, Clare County Council had been informed by a very senior official of the Minister that a decision had been arrived at on their funding application within the Department and that the funding was being refused. That is the end of the matter from Clare County Council's perspective. Does the Taoiseach want to take this opportunity to contradict that account given to Clare county councillors this morning, or does he want to correct the record of the Dáil?

I am not responsible for what officials may be saying to councillors. It is not the end of the matter.

At the weekend, Jim Gavin, the chairman of the Dublin Citizens' Assembly, indicated that he might have his report ready earlier than expected. It appears he is as good in the chair as he is on the field, although I am not sure anybody would be up for five citizens' assemblies in a row. Does the early delivery of that report give us the opportunity to establish a citizens' assembly on the legal framework for drugs? Will the Taoiseach examine that? Will he also examine if it is possible for the terms of reference to include not just the headline issues on the legal framework for drugs but also the issues around recovery and addiction? Will the Taoiseach join me in congratulating people in communities in Finglas and Ballymun who had a really successful recovery month in September? It is really a life-changing experience for people who are able to achieve recovery.

I thank the Deputy for raising this. I know it has been an issue of concern for him for quite some time. I pay tribute to those in Ballymun. I met them with the Deputy on different occasions on the issue of drug addiction and recovery. I pay tribute to Jim Gavin and the citizens' assembly for its efficiency. There is no need to elaborate on Dublin's success on the football field to the rest of us. We note that super-efficiency. I would be very disposed to the idea of a citizens' assembly on drugs and many Members, the Deputy included, have proposed that as the next priority for a citizens' assembly.

We would accept one in a row in Waterford if we could get it, never mind five.

I was very encouraged to hear Paula Hilman, the assistant commissioner for roads policing with the Garda traffic bureau, tell the justice committee yesterday that she and her colleagues are fully supportive of introducing an online portal for members of the public to upload evidence of road traffic infringements such as illegal parking on footpaths and in cycle lanes, bus lanes and so forth, with the intention that the portal will go live in 2024. In my mind it is essential that this should include the capacity to record close passes. As anyone who cycles regularly will tell us, this is a frightening and off-putting experience that is all too common on our roads and deters many people from getting onto their bikes. The portal works elsewhere and I am convinced it can work here as well. What legislative underpinning will be required to make this happen? Will it be included in the Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) Bill and, if so, when are we likely to see that Bill back on Second Stage?

I take on board what the Deputy says in respect of the comments that have been made. This would require legislative underpinning, it would seem to me, but I will certainly follow that up with the Minister and all stakeholders. I imagine the National Transport Authority and the Road Safety Authority would be involved as well.

We have discussed the cost-of-living issue and the increase in the cost of living countless times in the Chamber. I want to bring to the Taoiseach's attention an unexpected new bill that workers in Liffey Valley shopping centre are facing. Later this month, the owners of Liffey Valley plan to introduce paid car parking for customers and staff. Staff will be expected to pay up to €650 a year to park their car. Retail, security and cleaning staff are often poorly paid. There are up to 2,500 staff working in Liffey Valley. The line is often thrown out to use public transport but there is no Luas or train that services Liffey Valley. The bus service is not on everyone's route and some of the staff work through the night when there is no bus service available. The €600 energy credit the Government announced last week will be wiped out for these staff. Does the Government have any measures to support workers in this situation?

The Government cannot intervene in every given situation in terms of car parking facilities and so forth. That is a matter for the employer. I do not think the employer should be charging staff for car parking.

The programme for Government makes reference to supporting our healthcare workers, which is only right. In January of this year the Government announced a bonus payment for the healthcare workers who did Trojan work during the pandemic. I want to know when the workers will receive this payment and if the Taoiseach will ensure all healthcare workers are included in it.

My understanding is that the vast majority of those working in the HSE have received their payment. There are some groups that have not received it yet. The vast majority of those eligible who are employed by the HSE have now received a payment and this includes many section 38 staff. That amounts to approximately 123,000 staff who have received their payment. In terms of non-HSE healthcare workers, the HSE is working on getting capacity to assist with the payment process in respect of private sector nursing home staff, hospice staff, private voluntary staff, section 39 staff, eligible staff working on-site in section 39 long-term residential care facilities for people with disabilities, people in agency roles working in the HSE and healthcare support assistants contracted to the HSE. That work is under way now to get those sorted and we said to the HSE that we want this done as quickly as possible.

Would the Taoiseach give positive consideration to moving all matters relating to forestry applications to the realm of planning and development, thereby treating forestry as a land use? This would allow local authorities to deal with applications within an eight-week window no different from any other form of development or land use in Ireland. At the moment, the delays in forestry are injurious to the economy. They are slowing down development. Bringing it into land use would be a very streamlined way of dealing with this. It would also be far less contentious than data centres, wind turbines and all the other issues that come before planning authorities.

They have the competency to deal with this. It could be transformative if we made that change.

We need to be careful about such a fundamental change. There are major issues with forestry licensing. We knew that when the Government came in. We made legislative changes and there has been a huge investment, for example, in resources in the Department. Ecologists are key to this. Therefore, we have more ecologists and forestry inspectors, in addition to administrative staff, assigned to licensing. There has been huge investment in resources in the Department with all of this. About 35 ecologists have now been recruited. You do not want to undo all of that. They have just been recruited to deal with licensing.

Licensing in 2021 was 56% higher than in 2020, with 4,050 licences issued compared to 2,592 in 2020. We have to do far higher numbers of licensing. Some 2,877 felling licences were issued. Crucially, the availability of this volume of timber has improved the timber situation and stabilised supply to the processing sector in 2021. I will discuss the matter with the Deputy again and follow through. I am not sure the local authorities would have the capacity to do what is needed for forestry generally.

I arranged for the Irish Foster Care Association to meet with Deputies from Donegal the week before the budget to allow it to explain in detail the reasoning and need for the funding asked for in its pre-budget submission and to get a better idea of the service foster parents give to the State. I am sure those who attended will concur with the challenges laid out in very stark terms by board members, namely, Mr. Raymond Nolan, Dr. Helen Gogarty and CEO, Ms Catherine Bond. Primarily, they asked for an increase in the foster care allowance for the first time since 2009. In that context, these parents save the State money because residential care costs are 20 times higher. It is a minuscule ask.

However, to understand it fully, the Taoiseach needs to hear it first-hand. We are all very good in here at saying we understand issues that we only have a cursory knowledge of. I promise the Taoiseach that if he sits with these people for half an hour, he will gain true perspective. They would like to meet with him as well. Will he give a commitment to meet with representatives of the Irish Foster Care Association before the passage of the finance Bill?

I want to acknowledge that there are issues here that need to be addressed. The Minister and Tusla’s CEO have met and discussed the issues of supports to foster carers. The Minister recognises that foster carers, like many others, are experiencing cost-of-living pressures now. Both the Minister and Tusla want to respond to this in a positive and meaningful way. There is interaction going on now. The Minister is committed to pursuing all options and will work with Tusla in the coming months to do everything possible to make some support available on this, as has been done for other groups in society.

Separately, the Tusla board has considered a major improvement plan for foster care, covering a wide range of issues. The Minister is committed to working with Tusla to give certainty to implementing the steps set out in that review. There are immediate things we can do around access to child benefit, the back-to-school allowance and the once-off payments. I have discussed this with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform as well. We need to do something here. I would like perhaps for the Minister to meet with the group initially, but I will see what I can do.

I am aware the Taoiseach addressed the business supports on a macro level earlier this morning. It is clear the Government is backing business and helping companies to pay their energy bills this winter. An example of that in my own constituency is a retail food business that had a bill of €1,300 for two months last year and this year it is €6,932. It is an extraordinary increase for the same reference period.

Here is the point of difference. There is another business in Blackrock that is about to open a retail food business, an equivalent business, and because it does not have the equivalent reference period from last year, it looks like it will receive no support from the Government. The point of the whole scheme is to keep businesses open and employment going. They have made the investment and they are ready to rock and ready to open. However, it seems that because this administrative tag is missing, they will not get support under the business scheme. Is there a way of looking at either a differentiation within it or a separate sub-scheme for those businesses that are clearly in the process of opening? They have leases and they have made all of the investment. It is very clear that they are there already and are ready to rock, except for these sorts of bills.

The Minister will no doubt add more details to the design of the scheme. This has to go through the commission as well. The commission has already created a temporary state aid crisis framework. As we work through this scheme, obviously issues like this will arise and we will respond. This scheme will be responsive, basically. We want to have some degree of flexibility to cover legitimate cases that will arise. It is about job preservation and job protection. I will talk to the Minister about that, but I think he is aware of those.

There are 16,000 security officers in this country. They were recognised during Covid as being essential workers. However, they remain very low-paid workers involved in stressful work, in many cases working up to 60 hours a week. They were due to get a very small pay increase to €12.50 an hour under an employment regulation order, ERO. However, three security companies, namely, Top Security, Las and Morbury, took a case to seek and were granted, scandalously, an ex parte injunction to stop the ERO coming into effect. Top Security is a company that receives public contracts. These three companies are happy for their workers to remain in poverty conditions while they continue to make profits. So far, the Government has not responded to this. We have a press statement acknowledging it. Why does the Government not go to court and challenge the injunction so that workers get what they are owed?

I apologise. What is the key point?

The ERO was stopped by an injunction, but the Government so far has not challenged the injunction.

That will work its way through the courts.

But-----

We are not having an interaction. We will just have the response.

I was just trying to get the point that the Deputy was asking about, to be fair. I appreciate the clarity.

Instead of waiting for the substantial case, which appears to be the Government approach, the Government can go and challenge it. It was an ex parte injunction, so it can turn up and say that it is a party-----

We will take legal advice on all of that, as the Government ordinarily does.

Scoil Íosagáin in Buncrana is the largest primary school in County Donegal, with more than 750 pupils. For the past decade, it has been caught up in a myriad of bureaucratic issues. However, the most recent devastating news is that the planning permission has expired and it has to go back again and apply for it. That is another year lost. The school is not in good condition. It has black mould growing on classroom walls, leaking prefab roofs leaving puddles on floors, classroom walls being insulated with election posters, of all things, and sash windows in old classrooms that do not close. I could go on and on.

This is a fantastic school. It is a groundbreaker in terms of special needs. There is €20 million allocated for a brand new school. I cannot convey how desperately needed it is. Will the Taoiseach intervene with the Minister for Education to find out how this happened, why tenders were lost and why this continues to happen?

To be fair, if the money has already been allocated, there is a planning issue. I am not aware of the background detail in terms of the planning process, why the planning permission has expired or what bureaucratic issues gave rise to this.

The Taoiseach will raise it with the Minister for Education.

I am sure the Minister is very well aware of it already. I will talk to her about it.

The Taoiseach will raise the matter. I thank him.

I want to raise an issue I have raised a couple of times already in this House over recent weeks, which is the increasing reliance in the family law courts on very subjective section 47 reports. This has resulted in the removal of children from the custody of their mother in appalling circumstances. The Garda was ordered by the court to enter the classroom-----

The Deputy is referring to a specific case and making allegations about subjective reports. There is a division in relation to this House and the courts. I would ask the Deputy to reflect on what he is saying. He cannot proceed-----

If the Leas-Cheann Comhairle hears me out, she might understand why I am saying it.

We are tight for time.

Please stop.

It resulted in the removal of the children, in that callous fashion, and placed them in the custody of their-----

I am not allowing this. The Deputy is out of order.

-----other parent, who was previously-----

The Deputy is out of order.

I am sorry. There is only one move left for me now. I can only do one thing.

Deputy, I am standing up now. That is the ultimate-----

All right. I will table a motion in the House-----

Please sit down.

-----asking for the removal of the offending officer of the court-----

Deputy, resume your seat.

-----from the Bench.

Deputy, resume your seat. I ask reluctantly. Resume your seat.

A Leas-Cheann Comhairle-----

No.

I am sorry. There is precedent for this matter to be raised in the House.

The time is running. The Deputy is out of time and out of order.

No, I am forced to be out of time and out of order.

Deputy, resume your seat.

I want to resume my seat and I want to be in order. I ask that the Leas-Cheann Comhairle allow the Taoiseach to answer the question.

Deputy, resume your seat.

The issue is already in the public arena.

I will have to abandon the session if the Deputy does not resume his seat.

I ask the Leas-Cheann Comhairle to allow the Taoiseach to comment.

The Deputy is ignoring an order of the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. It is a very serious-----

I am sorry, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, but it is not out of order.

Unfortunately for the Deputies waiting to come in, I am going to now put an end to Questions on Policy and Legislation. I am sorry. I am going to move on.

The Taoiseach wants to answer.

No. Questions on Policy and Legislation are over.

I appeal to the Deputy to give way.

I have made a ruling. I ask Deputy Durkan to resume his seat. This is a really serious matter. I will not go into it again. If the Deputy is refusing to resume his seat, I will put a stop to this session.

I have resumed my seat and I want to be in order.

Thank you. That is not obvious to me. I am going to repeat generally that matters in the courts cannot be brought up in this manner. It is simply not on and it is not acceptable.

But they have been brought up before.

When the Ceann Comhairle or the Leas-Cheann Comhairle makes a ruling, whether Deputies like it or not, that is it.

They have been brought up before.

We have one minute and four seconds left and there are three speakers seeking to contribute. I will allow them 30 seconds each to put their questions and the Taoiseach, with his co-operation, will answer all three together.

While I welcome the extra €67 million allocated to the Department of Defence in budget 2023, on the day that PDFORRA delegates are meeting throughout the country, and acknowledging that they have lost 300 staff this year alone, I ask the Taoiseach to provide a timeframe for tangible increases in the pay of soldiers, airmen and seamen.

I have raised previously the matter of affordable housing. I want Part V to be in place as a condition of planning permission for all new estates from now on. It is currently the case that if land was bought before 31 July 2021 and planning permission for it granted before July 2021, there is no requirement to provide 10% affordable housing under Part V. I am not talking about luxury homes like the one in Cabra owned by the Sinn Féin leader, Deputy McDonald, about which Shane Ross has posed questions in his new book.

Ah stop.

I am talking about ordinary people who want to live in their communities.

Thank you, Deputy. You had 30 seconds.

There is a serious problem. Many new estates currently being built have no 10% affordable provision under Part V.

The Deputy is over time. I am trying to facilitate all Deputies.

The Taoiseach will be aware that the A5-N2 road artery has been raised on numerous occasions in all-Ireland discussions and has been included in several national development plans and other projects. This year, however, all funding for the section of the N2 from Clontibret to the Border was removed and works stalled. I ask the Taoiseach to assure the House that he will use his position to assure the people of the north-west and central Border regions, including my county of Monaghan, that funding will be allocated to the project in 2023.

On the issue raised by Deputy MacSharry, the Building Momentum pay agreement will certainly be allocated to defence staff, and the broader Commission on the Defence Forces report is about making sure that we both retain staff and attract new recruits in, over and above the number of people who may leave. That will be tangible. There have been changes to some of the allowances in respect of the Naval Service and so on that have improved the situation somewhat. It remains a work in progress but Building Momentum will certainly improve the situation. There is also the recruitment of a head of transformation and a head of strategic human resources at senior management level, which is crucial and a significant culture change. The budget also includes changes in respect of allocations to meet pay and allowance enhancements recommended by the commission. These will be tangible measures that will make a difference.

In terms of the point raised by Deputy O'Donnell, I will speak to the Minister regarding Part V.

As regards the issue raised by Deputy Carthy, the Government has allocated in the national development plan funding for the A5. I am repeatedly told it is-----

I asked about the section of the N2 from Clontibret to the Border.

I know that, but I am repeatedly told that the entire project is stuck in planning, more on the Northern side than in the Republic.

The road funding for the N2 from Clontibret to the Border was pulled this year.

Let the Taoiseach respond.

I will follow up on the matter.