I thank the Acting Leader for outlining the Order of Business, which I support. Last Friday, I attended a lovely event in Athy at the invitation of Eileen Doyle, who runs a choir, Athy Choral Fusion. Along with her choir, she brought the renowned tenor, Paul Linehan, Castlecomer Male Voice Choir, the Baldonnel Singers and the school choir of Scoil Phádraig Naofa along for the night. It was a beautiful night of harmonies, which was the title of the evening. It was a special night but, most importantly, the money raised will go towards cancer and functional neurological disorder, FND, causes. Cancer, as we all know, is a serious illness. No family has been left untouched by it, and funds are always needed for further education, research and treatment. However, FND is at the other end of the spectrum with regard to research, education and treatment. In Ireland, it is the second highest diagnosed neurological condition after migraines, but awareness and knowledge of it is extremely low. I committed to Eileen Doyle that I would raise this matter and seek a debate in the House on FND.

I raise local government funding allocations, particularly the 2027 allocation for Kildare. Kildare has been denied once again a vital uplift in funding. Members will all be aware of the various issues I have raised in the Seanad regarding Kildare for which funding is needed. We are one of the fastest growing counties in Ireland. Yet, we remain critically underfunded. Our budget expenditure per head is just €1,152, which is a massive €403 below the national average. This leaves a total funding gap of €100 million annually. It is completely unsustainable for a rapidly growing population. I ask the Minister to urgently review the local property tax allocations and provide extra Exchequer funding. I also seek a debate in this House on this matter.

I also seek a debate regarding public safety for our councillors and public representatives and raise the immediate need to amend our electoral legislation. Last month, Councillor Rachel Hartigan in Clare successfully passed a motion regarding an urgent issue facing public representatives. Under current rules, candidates are legally mandated to publish their precise private residential addresses on electoral documents. Some councils do not include that information on their website, while others do. In the interests of everyone’s safety, no council should publish that information. The danger of this requirement was brought into sharp focus during the summer when approximately 80 female councillors were contacted and had to face a level of severe intimidation. That is completely wrong. Every council should pass a similar motion. We should also have a debate with the Minister in this regard.