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Dáil
‹ Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation

Dublin city task force funding

Summary

Deputy Gannon said the Dublin city task force has gone 157 days without the promised funding and cited a school in his constituency facing an electricity crisis. The Minister defended the school and said he would follow up on the broader city funding issue.

To respond to the Minister's last comment, I would encourage him to go down to Rutland National School in his own constituency. It has just received an electricity bill that creates a risk it will have to close its doors. That is not the issue I intended to raise, however.

It has been 157 days since the report of the Dublin city task force was launched to great fanfare. We remember all the Ministers and all the press releases and yet, 157 days later, there is none of the funding. This is not a local issue for me. This is about how we respect the main thoroughfare of our capital city. A CSO report published yesterday captured once again the challenges for businesses in the city centre, highlighting a marked increase in crime and theft from 2023 to 2024. The Minister claimed to be a pro-business candidate. He understands the impact this is having on businesses in our capital city. When will funding be released for the Dublin city task force so we can get the capital city to the state it should be in?

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I know the Rutland Street school as well as the Deputy does. I am not denying the fact that bills have gone up but I go into the school and I see the degree of special and additional education that is made available. I stand over my point regarding the value of the work it does and how it is funded. I could go around the corner to the Rutland Street community centre which is now being built at a cost of many tens of millions of euro to support that community. I could go down Sheriff Street and look at the new St. Laurence O'Toole's National School building. I could go up to Parnell Square and see the new school that is being built there at the moment for Gaelscoil Choláiste Mhuire. The Deputy is making a charge regarding our support for schools in a constituency that both of us are lucky enough to represent. I will point to the work that is happening as well.

With regard to the question Deputy Gannon planned to ask me and what is happening at the moment with regard to the two points he Deputy raised, the Government will prioritise the city centre that the Deputy and I are lucky enough to represent for additional gardaí. We accept the Deputy's point that the city needs that Garda presence. With regard to additional funding that needs to be made available to support the Dublin city task force, the Government is aware of the need to respond to that, and I will certainly play my part in it.

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