In the week of COP30, I call out the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, for its utter failure to deliver the warmer homes scheme in a timely manner. This week I got confirmation from the SEAI that the average waiting time for initial assessment is 14 months, and a minimum of 26 months from application to completion. What really concerns me is the lack of urgency from the SEAI and the lack of an action plan to reduce waiting times for what are really vulnerable customers. They need these urgent heating upgrades. It is time we held the SEAI to account. I appeal to the Minister to reach out to the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and his Department to engage with the SEAI. If it cannot deliver the scheme in a timely manner, let us get somebody else to deliver it.

I share Deputy Murphy's objective of ensuring we accelerate the delivery of the warmer homes scheme, which has made a real difference for many families affected by energy poverty across our country. In recent years, the SEAI has received a significant increase in demand for the warmer homes scheme. The increased supports for the scheme have resulted in a significant increase in applications, with 45,000 received over the period from January 2022 to the end of September 2025 and a total of 24,000 homes upgraded under the scheme. The waiting times are too high and that certainly is something I will ask the Minister for the environment to reflect on. However, to be fair to the SEAI, it has significantly reduced its waiting times from what they were. I understand the average waiting time was significantly higher in previous years. There is work ongoing to reduce it.