I move:

Tuesday's business shall be:

- Motion re Ministerial Rota for Parliamentary Questions (without debate)

- Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023 (Second Stage) ((if not previously concluded, to stand adjourned either at 5.56 p.m. or after 2 hours, whichever is the later)

Private members' business shall be the Motion re Spring Bonus and Cost-of-Living Supports, selected by Sinn Féin.

Wednesday’s business shall be:

- Motions re Revised Estimates [Votes 12 to 15, 17 to 22, 24 to 28, 30 to 32, 35 to 37, 39 to 41, and 43 to 45] and Further Revised Estimates [Votes 11 and 42] for Public Services 2023 (to be moved together and decided by one question which shall be put from the Chair)

- Civil Defence Bill 2023 (Second Stage) (if not previously concluded, to stand adjourned either at 4.30 p.m. or after 1 hour and 40 minutes, whichever is the later)

- Patient Safety (Notifiable Patient Safety Incidents) Bill 2019 (Report Stage, resumed, and Final Stage) (to be taken no earlier than 4 p.m. and if not previously concluded, to stand adjourned either at 7.30 p.m. or after 3 hours, whichever is the later)

Private members' business shall be the Motion re Energy Costs and Windfall Taxes, selected by the Social Democrats.

Thursday’s business shall be:

- Statements on Co-ordination of Services for those Seeking Protection in Ireland (not to exceed 210 mins)

- Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023 (Second Stage) (if not previously concluded, to stand adjourned at 7 p.m.)

Thursday evening business shall be Second Stage of the Health (Amendment) (Dual Diagnosis: No Wrong Door) Bill 2021 (Deputy Mark Ward)

Announcement of proposed arrangements for this week's business:

In relation to Tuesday’s business, it is proposed that:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the extent that private members' business shall be taken on the adjournment or conclusion of Second Stage of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023, with consequential effect on the commencement time for Parliamentary Questions to the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and topical issues, and on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil;

2. the Motion re Ministerial Rota for Parliamentary Questions shall be taken without debate; and

3. the proceedings on the second reading motion on the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023 shall, if not previously concluded, be interrupted and stand adjourned either at 5.56 p.m. or after 2 hours, whichever is the later.

In relation to Wednesday’s business:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the extent that the weekly division time pursuant to Standing Order 80(2) shall be taken on the adjournment or conclusion of proceedings on the Patient Safety (Notifiable Patient Safety Incidents) Bill 2019;

2. the Motions re Revised Estimates [Votes 12 to 15, 17 to 22, 24 to 28, 30 to 32, 35 to 37, 39 to 41, and 43 to 45] and Further Revised Estimates [Votes 11 and 42] for Public Services 2023 shall be moved together and decided without debate by one question, which shall be put from the Chair;

3. the proceedings on the second reading motion on the Civil Defence Bill 2023 shall, if not previously concluded, be interrupted and stand adjourned either at 4.30 p.m. or after 1 hour and 40 minutes, whichever is the later; and

4. the proceedings on the resumed Report Stage and Final Stage of the Patient Safety (Notifiable Patient Safety Incidents) Bill 2019 shall be taken no earlier than 4 p.m. and shall, if not previously concluded, be interrupted and stand adjourned either at 7.30 p.m. or after 3 hours, whichever is the later.

In relation to Thursday’s business:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the extent that topical issues shall be taken on the adjournment of proceedings on the Second Stage of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023, or on the conclusion of Government business, whichever is the earlier, with consequential effect on the commencement time for Second Stage of the Health (Amendment) (Dual Diagnosis: No Wrong Door) Bill 2021, and on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil;

2. the Statements on Co-ordination of Services for those Seeking Protection in Ireland shall not exceed 210 minutes, with arrangements in accordance with those agreed by Order of the Dáil of 30th July, 2020, for 200 minutes, following which a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes, and members may share time; and

3. the resumed proceedings on the second reading motion on the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023 shall, if not previously concluded, be interrupted and stand adjourned at 7 p.m.

It would be nice to have the motion agreed but let us see. Is that agreed?

It is not agreed. I ask for an adjournment of the patient safety Bill to next week. We all know this is important legislation that we need to get right. On 7 December and following the death of campaigner Vicky Phelan, there was cross-party determination to get this legislation right.

I assume we all still share that ambition. We are nearly there but we are not quite there yet. We need an amendment to the legislation to provide for a legal obligation on screening service providers to inform patients at the point of diagnosis, and no later than three months following diagnosis, of their legal right to a review.

The 221+ group has written to the Minister advising that this amendment is absolutely necessary. I support that position. I understand the deadline has passed for the Minister to bring the amendment at this point. We need an adjournment for this amendment to be taken and to get the legislation right.

As the Taoiseach knows, we have worked thoroughly on this Bill and in fairness to the Minister, he has come a long way with us. I admired what he did before Christmas because he is one of few Ministers who has ever stopped legislation proceeding, saying we needed more time. He has made changes that I thoroughly respect. The Minister knows, however, that this amendment regarding the time at which women who are diagnosed with cancer are told about the patient safety review has to be instituted in law. Otherwise, the Bill will not pass the Vicky test and we will not be able to support it. I ask the Taoiseach to please give a week to put in the amendment to be able to achieve this.

A recent report by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, calling for a cull of 30% of cattle and sheep in Ireland is devastating. I ask for a debate in this Chamber. I also ask for a clear statement from the Taoiseach or Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, that this report will be binned and shredded, as it should be.

This is the Order of Business.

We need a debate on this proposal because it would have a devastating impact on rural Ireland. A quadrupling of afforestation is also proposed. Does the Government want to close the gates on rural Ireland altogether? This report does not even deserve to be debated. The EPA, which is a publicly funded organisation-----

I ask the Deputy-----

It cannot see the woods for the trees.

I thank the Deputy.

It has many issues. I ask the Taoiseach to condemn this report as scaremongering.

This is the Order of Business. I call the Taoiseach.

I am advised by the Minister for Health that he is still engaging on the issue of the Patient Safety (Notifiable Patient Safety Incidents) Bill 2019. He is engaging with the 221+ group and the Attorney General around its legal implications. The Minister still hopes to get the Bill done this week but there is a possibility that we will put it off for a week if that makes sense. He is still hoping that we can have an agreement and get the legislation done this week, if at all possible. We are all acting in good faith in that regard.

The EPA report is a research paper. As is the case with any research, it provides a useful contribution to the debate around land use. However, I can clarify for Deputy Mattie McGrath that it is not Government policy to quadruple the amount of forestry. It is Government policy to increase it from 11% to approximately 18%, which is not even double. It is also not Government policy to reduce the amount of livestock in Ireland by one third.

Tell that to the Green Party.

It is a research document produced by the EPA and it should not be dismissed. It is a useful scientific contribution to an important debate on land use but it is not Government policy.

Can we ask for some clarity-----

We seek clarification.

-----from the Taoiseach as to what is meant by the commitment he made? Does he mean the amendment, as described by me and Deputy Kelly, will be accepted and brought into the legislation? We need clarity on that.

The Taoiseach may respond.

I will ask the Minister to answer.

If someone could give clarification, it would be very helpful.

I will give the House a quick update. We got the proposed wording from the 221+ group, with which the Department has been engaged extensively. We have sought legal advice. There are legal issues with the wording that was proposed. We are now having an ongoing conversation about wording that will be legally robust and essentially fits the intent. It is, therefore, ongoing. My hope is that we can find wording by tomorrow evening and I propose that we proceed with tomorrow evening. If agreement cannot be found, obviously we can think again. We want to try to do this, insofar as possible, by consensus. There have been ongoing efforts through the weekend and today to try to find wording that will work.

If those efforts fail, the Minister will adjourn the matter.

We are not going back into this discussion. I have given great leeway on it. It is an important issue. At this point, the question is-----

In fairness, the Minister answered.

Yes, he answered.

I thank the Deputies very much. Are the proposed arrangements for this week's business hereby agreed? Agreed. Bogfaimid ar aghaidh anois go dtí reachtaíocht atá geallta nó beartais Rialtais. Deputies have up to a minute and I ask for their co-operation.