Hear hear.

I want to raise the emergency affecting communities across this island as a result of the fallout from Storm Chandra. A friend sent a photo of a woman's car floating in her driveway in south Dublin. Enniscorthy looks like a lake and the M50 was closed due to flooding earlier. There are power cuts, battered homes, stalled commutes and flooded homes. It is nearly a week to the day since the Government voted down a Labour Party motion on flexible and remote work, one that put forward practical ways of addressing the real difficulties so many people face due to congestion on our roads. Those difficulties were absolutely exacerbated today due to weather. People who are sleeping rough and in tents due to failures in housing are particularly vulnerable in storms and, of course, it is a year since the devastation of Storm Éowyn. Our thanks go to front-line workers fixing the mess. What does the Government have to offer households which will be struggling to meet their bills and to cope with the storm’s impact? What urgent support can be given to restore amenities, being conscious that local authorities have seen staff numbers falling and therefore have a shortage of staff to deal with the fallout?

Storm Chandra has had very severe impacts. High winds and heavy rain are being experienced across the country, with very significant impacts in the areas the Deputy has outlined. That is fully understood. It is why the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's national directorate of fire and emergency management met with all of the local authorities and the other key response agencies in advance of Storm Chandra to ensure preparation ahead of the storm. Dublin, Wicklow, Wexford and Cork were significantly impacted, but it is fair to say that flooding impacts are across the country. Bunclody and Enniscorthy in particular have experienced severe flooding to homes and businesses. Local authority teams are on the ground assisting. The Department of Social Protection will assist on the ground with households affected by flooding and provide immediate needs payments and other supports, where required. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment will activate the business and community flooding support scheme.