Peter 'Chap' Cleere
Question:1. Deputy Peter 'Chap' Cleere asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [16734/26]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Cabinet Committees
Darren O'Rourke
Question:2. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [46798/26]
Aindrias Moynihan
Question:3. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [16739/26]
Tony McCormack
Question:4. Deputy Tony McCormack asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [16740/26]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:5. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [34547/26]
John Connolly
Question:6. Deputy John Connolly asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [37325/26]
David Cullinane
Question:7. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [46893/26]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:8. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [41562/26]
Paul Murphy
Question:9. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [41565/26]
Liam Quaide
Question:10. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [44846/26]
Ruth Coppinger
Question:11. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [45030/26]
Johnny Guirke
Question:12. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet [45463/26]
Peadar Tóibín
Question:13. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [46909/26]
Louis O'Hara
Question:14. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [45466/26]
Rose Conway-Walsh
Question:15. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet Committee on Water Quality will next meet. [45629/26]
Roderic O'Gorman
Question:16. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [47341/26]
Jennifer Whitmore
Question:17. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [47364/26]
Barry Heneghan
Question:18. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [47401/26]
Conor D McGuinness
Question:19. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [47446/26]
Ivana Bacik
Question:20. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on water quality will next meet. [47750/26]
We have two groupings, the first is questions Nos. 1 to 20, inclusive. The Taoiseach will have three minutes and I propose that Deputies will have 30 seconds each in order to accommodate the 20 Deputies.
Are there 20 in the room?
I am afraid I have to prepare on the basis that they will turn up. That is my job.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 20, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on water quality oversees the implementation of programme for Government commitments in relation to issues affecting Ireland's water, including those related to agriculture, forestry, land-use change and wastewater treatment.
Water quality is vital to the well-being of our society, economy and environment. The programme for Government commits to improving water quality. The EPA recently published Water Quality in 2025: An Indicators Report, which signals annual changes and key indicators for water quality. In 2025, some improvements were recorded at a local level, although there had been no overall improvement in water quality nationally, with 54% of rivers recorded as having good or better biological quality. While the EPA analysis shows that significant challenges remain, it is important to recognise the progress that has been made. An example of positive improvement is the Ballyteigue-Bannow catchment in Wexford seeing the biological quality of a number of its rivers improve.
Last year's budget allocated almost €2.5 billion to the delivery of water services. That is an increase of €612 million on 2025. As part of this, €42 million in funding has been allocated to the 2026 water quality capital programme. Uisce Éireann is investing more than €2.3 billion in stand-alone projects at 108 wastewater treatment plans. This will deliver ten new wastewater treatment plant upgrades where current discharges place significant pressures on water bodies.
The water action plan published last year sets out over 150 actions to protect, improve and restore water quality. These include: the implementation and tracking of water action plan actions; the development of a stronger sixth nitrates action programme; the Farming for Water European Innovation Partnership project; and the national barrier mitigation programme, which will support fish migration and water quality.
The Minister, Deputy Browne, published the sixth nitrates action programme in December. It will run until 2028. This plan gives effect to the nitrates directive, which governs the management of nitrates loss from agriculture to water bodies. On foot of the measures included in this plan, in December 2025, the European Commission granted Ireland a three-year extension to its nitrates derogation. The Minister, Deputy Heydon, is working with his officials to address key conditions within the derogation decision. These include operationalising the environmental assessments to demonstrate enhanced compliance with respect to the nitrates derogation, the habitats directive and the water framework directive.
It will be important to safeguard the economic contribution of farmers in the areas most affected by the derogation while also implementing workable solutions for water quality. Last year, the Government published Water and Agriculture: A collaborative approach. This plan sets out a range of measures that address the twin objectives of improving water quality and building a convincing case for the maintenance of Ireland's derogation from certain aspects of the EU nitrates directive.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
The Environmental Protection Agency recently released its report, Domestic Waste Water Treatment System Inspections 2025. This details the findings of septic tank inspections by local authorities in 2025. A total of 1,466 septic tank inspections were carried out in 2025, targeting areas of greatest risk from an environmental and health perspective. Of these, 59% failed inspection, with many posing a risk to nearby rivers and drinking water wells. Since 2013, 7,212 septic tanks have failed inspections, with 84% fixed by the end of 2025. Improved resolution of faulty septic tanks by homeowners has been aided by increased Government grant support.
The water quality Cabinet committee provides a focus to drive the improvement of water quality. The Cabinet committee met most recently on 30 October and will meet again in July.
There are 20 questions and there are nine Members present. I will give them a minute each. They may risk not getting a fair answer if other Members join us.
I am happy enough because I am first.
You are still only getting a minute.
As someone who was born and reared in rural Ireland and who lives there, I will highlight the very real challenges facing communities in my constituency of Carlow-Kilkenny. In communities like those of Mullinavat and Inistioge, inadequate wastewater treatment capacity is becoming a serious barrier to future growth and future investment. People in these communities want to see homes delivered and young families supported. They want to see local businesses, sports clubs and schools given the opportunity to develop. However, without the necessary water and wastewater infrastructure, rural towns and villages around the country are being limited in their ability to reach their full potential. If this Government is serious about rural regeneration and balanced regional development, essential infrastructure must be delivered to deliver on those ambitions.
Last week, we read headlines such as "No improvement to water quality standards in 2025 - EPA" and "Ireland’s ‘best rivers’ continue to deteriorate in water quality". I will raise the specific issue of combined sewer systems. In many of our urban areas, these are a particular contributor to deterioration in water quality. In these systems, wastewater and surface water are combined. The EPA has a programme to address this issue but it is not ambitious enough. Significantly increased investment is needed in the town of Kells in County Meath to rehabilitate its sewers through this combined sewer programme.
I ask that the Cabinet consider expanding eligibility for the septic tank grant scheme so that every household with a defective system can access support regardless of geography. If we do not take that step, we are asking people to protect water quality without giving them the means to do so. There are close to 500,000 septic tanks in use across the State. The recent grant of €12,000 is welcome but the scheme remains far too narrowly focused. Most of the time, people fall outside the criteria. In practice, households can only access support if they fail an inspection or fall within specific priority areas. If we are really serious about protecting water quality, we cannot rely on this reactive scheme. We want to be proactive. We need to take a preventative approach that supports homeowners before pollution occurs.
I call on Deputy Ó Murchú. I am sorry; I did not see Deputy McCormack.
I am not that small. I welcome the progress being made on the Shannon water supply project, which is now before An Coimisiún Pleanála. This project is about much more than supplying Dublin with water. It is also about creating opportunities in the future to develop spurs leading to Tullamore and Mullingar, which would create a counterbalance to Dublin and drive balanced growth within the midlands region. We all know that, when projects get done, the second phase can sometimes be left on the long finger, which can push them 20, 30 or 40 years down the road. Will the Taoiseach work with me to put pressure on Irish Water to ensure this second phase happens? It should become part of the first phase to provide more opportunities in Offaly, Westmeath and right across the midlands.
I will again bring up the issue of water infrastructure in County Louth, particularly in Hackballscross and Sheelagh. With regard to the reservoir in Dunbin, there have been telemetric monitoring failures and an issue with pumps being unable to contact these monitoring systems. For a number of weeks, families have not had water for days. Farms have gone without water and schools have been closed early. It is not good enough. We need to solve this issue. Locally, Irish Water has told me that it has some of the issues resolved but I need a meeting with Uisce Éireann at a corporate level. I request that the Taoiseach's office help facilitate this because I am having an issue with it. It is absolutely necessary. We should also look at an alternative water supply in the short term.
I ask the Government to examine legislation and regulation in respect of the term "bathing season". The bathing season began on 1 June and will run until the end of September. The challenge is that local authorities will only sample water quality in bathing areas during the bathing season. This is despite the fact that people are now swimming outdoors throughout the year. This has developed in popularity since the Covid pandemic began. We do not know the quality of the water people are swimming in outside of what is considered the bathing season. Galway City Council only samples the water during the bathing season. Dublin City Council is the only local authority in the State that samples water outside of the bathing season. I know the Taoiseach himself enjoys a swim on Christmas Day. Everyone who enjoys swimming throughout the year needs to know the quality of the water they are swimming in.
I will raise an issue in respect of Woodlands, a housing estate in Portlaw, County Waterford. At the moment, water is provided through developer-provided infrastructure. This is costing the residents in this housing estate a lot of money. They obviously want to be connected to the public infrastructure. That will come at a cost. Catherine Burke, a councillor in the area, has been engaging with Irish Water on the issue for a long time. There does not seem to be a resolution. Will the Taoiseach make inquiries to Irish Water on my behalf? I have contacted it but I believe contact from the Taoiseach could make a difference.
Met Éireann is saying that we are facing tropical temperatures tonight.
It is absolutely baking out there and people want, and should be able, to swim. However, all across Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown there are warning notices saying people cannot swim. The reason - and I have raised this repeatedly - is because of the failure of Irish Water-Uisce Éireann to rehabilitate the water infrastructure and the fact that when heavy rains come down, rainwater mixes with sewage and it goes into Dublin Bay. The test results come three days later and there is a warning asking people not to swim. By the way, people are swimming despite this and endangering their health. I have raised this repeatedly. The only reason we have testing outside the bathing season, by the way, is because we fought for it in Dublin. We need same-day testing and the rehabilitation of this decrepit water infrastructure that is preventing people swimming.
There are thousands of people already at our coasts or on their way to our coasts to swim but there are swimming restrictions in place across all of the closest designated swimming spots south of the city centre. The Half Moon, Seapoint, Dún Laoghaire Baths, Sandycove and the Forty Foot have all been under an eight-day swim restriction notice since Thursday last. The notice warns of a possible increase in bacteria following heavy rainfall. In other words, there is a good chance you are swimming in faeces. The same notice goes up every time there is heavy rain, which means it happens a lot, because the sewage system is overloaded due to decades of underinvestment. The council is advising beach-goers to reduce the risk of illness by avoiding splashing or swallowing water. Tell that to the hundreds of kids swimming at beaches yesterday. Does the Taoiseach think it is acceptable for children to be swimming in faeces?
One of the most basic responsibilities of a Government is to keep water in the taps and keep the lights on, yet in County Meath our water infrastructure is that of a developing country. County Meath towns are regularly without water and new housing estates are being delayed as a result of the water infrastructure. I know of one housing estate that has to wait more than a year for Uisce Éireann to connect it to the water infrastructure. Last month, Ballivor was without water for so long that the school had to close. Today, they are trucking water to Ballivor. Tomorrow, Athboy and Kildalkey will be without water. Water supply is cut regularly and the water is regularly discoloured, and vulnerable people are hurting. Can the Taoiseach confirm that the people of County Meath will have clean and consistent water within the next 50 years?
Did the Deputy say 50 years?
Yes.
The people of Newport have waited decades for a wastewater treatment plant that is fit for purpose. This is absolutely critical infrastructure. For them to hear now that it may be 2031 before they get this critical infrastructure is absolutely not acceptable for families, businesses or community groups in the area. This is a beautiful town that has waited too long. I am asking the Taoiseach to intervene so that it does not have to wait until 2031 for something as basic as a wastewater treatment plant.
In 2024, 59% of Ireland’s existing treatment plants failed to consistently meet the standards set out in their EPA licence. Nearly half of these, that is approximately 120 instances, were due to poor operational management, things like pumps not working and maintenance not happening on equipment. In fact, the EPA has prosecuted Uisce Éireann 35 times for failing to properly treat wastewater. Can the Taoiseach tell me why Uisce Éireann gave 47 of its best-paid employees an average of €21,000 in bonus payments for good performance in 2024, while at the same time there were 120 instances of someone, somewhere not doing his or her job when it came to treating our water and ensuring and protecting our water supply?
I was swimming in Dún Laoghaire this morning, so I am very worried. I have raised this multiple times. In the north Dublin coastal communities of Clontarf, Bayside and Howth, swimmers constantly get swim warnings. Seán Dublin Bay Loftus, a former Independent TD in my constituency whose family endorsed me, fought to protect Dublin Bay from pollution. Other countries have cracked this. The Netherlands has restored millions of seagrass plants along its coasts, as well as oysters which can use natural means to clean the water. However, that is treating the problem. At the end of the day, we need to get to the root cause, which is more water treatment plants. The water treatment plant in north Dublin proposed under the greater Dublin drainage project needs to be brought in faster. The current overflow system in Poolbeg is not large enough and needs to be looked at for swimmers in my area.
I would love a swim now. I will not get one.
The Taoiseach cannot go to Dún Laoghaire, I am afraid.
I am working too hard all day and will not get the chance. The Deputies have all made me very envious. Everyone is going swimming and we are in here. We should reflect.
Deputy ‘Chap’ Cleere made a very valid point in terms of Mullinavat and Inistioge. I have been saying this to Irish Water. As the Deputy knows, one of the outcomes of our discussions has been developer-led treatment plants. There were some decisions made on that, but it is in terms of naturally based water treatment processes which would then enable developer-led waste treatment to be put in for villages and towns, because Irish Water has said it will never get to them. It will be doing the bigger stuff and it will not get out to the villages and towns around Ireland. That has been decided upon. We need to do more than that, if I am honest. I am not quite satisfied that is sufficient, but it is a start. We have many towns which have basic facilities in terms of additional housing contiguous to the village and so on. I am with the Deputy on that one.
Deputy O’Rourke spoke about Kells and the combined sewer investment. Again, I will talk to Irish Water. There is progress and work on that but I will certainly raise it with Irish Water.
Deputy McGreehan gave a very interesting presentation on septic tanks. She said the scheme is too narrowly focused. I will examine that. The EPA recently released a report on domestic wastewater treatment system inspections in 2025. It is interesting that 1,400 septic tank inspections were carried out and 59% failed inspection, with many posing a risk to nearby rivers and drinking water. Since 2013, 7,000 septic tanks failed inspections, with 84% fixed by the end of 2025. There is Government grant support, as the Deputy said. I will speak to the Minister. The Deputy is saying to broaden it out and have a more proactive approach. That is a very good idea and I will see if we can activate that as opposed to a reactive one.
I could not agree more with Deputy McCormack. It is the eastern midlands project. I did not realise that the midlands was the second phase. In my view, if we are going up along, we need to sort it out and do the midlands. By the way, it will be the best argument for the east as well. Some people are worried about it and opposing it but it is absolutely essential for the future of the country the that project gets off the ground and developed in terms of water supply and wastewater. It will have a negligible impact on the Shannon or ecology, in my view. It should have happened earlier. This Government has taken a decision in terms of a fundamental piece of infrastructure that simply has to happen. The midlands is a natural growth area that would take pressure off the east and whose time has come for a broader-based economic development prospect. Between the energy side and this project, that gives us the fundamentals to do that.
All politics is local but I note Deputy Ó Murchú wants a meeting at corporate level.
I have met locally. What I am looking for-----
My experience in life is that the engineer or person on the ground might know an awful lot more than the corporates in terms of specific pipes and so on. I will pursue it and I will raise the fact that the Deputy has raised it with me.
Deputy Connolly has a sensible proposal. The bathing season of June to September does not make sense any more. Particularly since Covid, an awful lot more people swim all 12 months round. I interviewed Professor Luke O'Neill some time back, before I became Taoiseach. Cold water is very good for you, apparently. It is very good for the immune system. People are swimming all year round. Deputy 'Chap' Cleere should try it some time.
(Interruptions).
It makes absolute sense to carry out testing, particularly in rural towns and villages, during the festive season and the winter when there are many swimming events, such as on Christmas Day, new year's eve and new year's day. A lot of people gather in those areas for those events.
It is a very good point. I will get the Minister to send a circular to the local authorities on that.
Deputy Cullinane said to inquire with Irish Water about Portlaw and Woodlands. I hope he does not mind but I better inquire with the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler as well. She is from Portlaw, as the Deputy knows. I will try to sort out what is happening and what the county council is doing.
Just to get a response from Irish Water.
We have a number of areas where things are not taken in charge. These things should be facilitated by the agencies.
I got the message from Deputy Boyd Barrett but he went from tropical weather to torrential rainfall within one minute.
It was within three days.
Within three days.
That is precisely what tropical weather is.
We have to be fair to everybody. The Taoiseach, please.
I am trying to work out when the torrential rainfall was but the point is well made. There is a fundamental issue there and that is why we are putting €2.5 billion into this to do some very substantial wastewater infrastructure. Dublin is one of the areas that is probably most impacted because of the access to the coast, the huge population and so on.
Deputy Paul Murphy essentially made the same point in terms of the impacts on swimmers. This is a public health issue and we cannot take it lightly. When warnings are given we have to take them on board because it can result in significant illness for people who could be immunosupressed or whatever, which would be doubly dangerous for them.
Deputy Tóibín-----
Fifty years.
In 50 years. I would like to commit, yes, but I think we will do it much sooner. There is huge investment going in. The delivery and upgrading continues apace.
On the issue raised by Deputy Conway-Walsh, I am not sure of the background as to why there are delays until 2031. The project is under way, I take it.
Could the Taoiseach tell them to hurry up?
No, Deputy.
I will examine it with Irish Water. They make a very good black pudding in Newport as well, by the way.
Taoiseach, there are two more Deputies and one minute.
I will certainly look into it and check with Irish Water as to why. It might be an operational or planning issue. I do not know but I will check with them.
Deputy Whitmore's question was next.
Deputy Whitmore referenced 59%. This is a very serious point which I have raised with Irish Water. In my view, there should not be operational errors or non-performance which then leads to poor water quality. The Irish water authority should be the personification of excellence in terms of clean water. There has been some pretty poor evidence in some areas where standards have dropped. In fairness to the 47 best-paid employees, I would say they were not involved.
Someone at the top has to be.
Deputy, we will be out of time.
Collectively, there is a question about ethos here. We have had presentations from the EPA and Irish Water and this is an issue.
We are out of time, Taoiseach.
Deputy Heneghan, too, raised the issue of water quality. You are looking okay but, that said-----
Thank you very much.
You are looking very well, actually. You are invigorated from your swim.
Time, Taoiseach. We have to move on.
However, at the same time, we will-----
We will report further.
British-Irish Co-operation
Darren O'Rourke
Question:21. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [46799/26]
Liam Quaide
Question:22. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [46800/26]
Peadar Tóibín
Question:23. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [46910/26]
Cormac Devlin
Question:24. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [21382/26]
Shane Moynihan
Question:25. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [21383/26]
Brendan Smith
Question:26. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [36905/26]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:27. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent Britain-Ireland summit. [37337/26]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:28. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [41563/26]
Paul Murphy
Question:29. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [41566/26]
Ruth Coppinger
Question:30. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [45029/26]
Mary Lou McDonald
Question:31. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [45329/26]
Erin McGreehan
Question:32. Deputy Erin McGreehan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [45333/26]
Johnny Guirke
Question:33. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [45464/26]
Roderic O'Gorman
Question:34. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [47342/26]
Jennifer Whitmore
Question:35. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [47365/26]
Barry Heneghan
Question:36. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [47400/26]
Conor D McGuinness
Question:37. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent UK-Ireland summit. [47447/26]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 21 to 37, inclusive, together.
I note the announcement of the resignation of the Uniter Kingdom Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, earlier this week, and acknowledge the very significant role he has played in resetting the Irish-British relationship, as well as relations between the United Kingdom and the European Union, during his time as Prime Minister. Since Prime Minister Starmer took office two years ago, he has worked with us to set a new direction and depth in the relationship between Ireland and the United Kingdom for the benefit of all our citizens, North-South and east-west. Our two Governments also took an important step forward in dealing with the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland, publishing a joint framework on addressing the legacy of the Troubles. As I said this week, Keir is a person of great ability, decency and honour and I want to wish him, his wife Victoria and their family the very best in the next chapter in their lives. I have no doubt that his successor as Prime Minister will wish to continue to deepen and strengthen the relationship between the United Kingdom and Ireland, and we will continue to work in furtherance of that objective.
I hosted a United Kingdom-Ireland summit in Cork on 12 and 13 March. This was the second summit in a series initiated in Liverpool last year, at which Prime Minister Keir Starmer and I agreed a new comprehensive programme of strategic co-operation: United Kingdom-Ireland 2030. This year’s summit was an opportunity to review progress on United Kingdom-Ireland 2030 and to identify further areas for co-operation and work to be taken forward across government in collaboration with United Kingdom counterparts.
The summit in Cork had an extensive programme over two days, reflecting the significant nature of this bilateral relationship. The opening engagement was a round-table event attended by businesses and business representative groups to explore issues related to trade and investment and what Ireland and the United Kingdom can do together to further our already substantial economic relationship.
The Prime Minister and I also had the opportunity to meet representatives of the Ireland-UK Youth Forum, established in January 2026 in fulfilment of a commitment made at last year’s summit. The aim of the forum is to ensure that a new generation is involved in the strengthening of relations across these islands.
The summit programme also included a civic and cultural reception in Cork City Hall and a research- and innovation-focused visit to the Tyndall National Institute. Prime Minister Starmer and I also met over dinner on 12 March.
The summit plenary, held in Fota House, saw a wide-ranging discussion on achievements to date under United Kingdom-Ireland 2030, and on shared ambitions to see co-operation deepen and deliver to 2030 across a range of areas, including energy security and the transition to clean energy, protection of subsea infrastructure, cybersecurity, cultural exchange and competitiveness. We also discussed wider international issues, including the Middle East, the Gulf region and Ukraine.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
We agreed a joint statement reflecting the overall theme of the summit, Shared Prosperity, Shared Seas, Shared Ties, which set out achievements over the past year and looked ahead to future work together to the mutual benefit of both countries.
I was accompanied at the summit by the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance, Deputy Simon Harris; the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence, Deputy Helen McEntee; the Minister for Climate, Environment, Energy, and Transport, Deputy Darragh O’Brien, and the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Deputy Jim O’ Callaghan. Accompanying Prime Minister Starmer were Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero; Emma Reynolds, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Business and Trade and Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
There are 17 Deputies and the best I can do is to give those here a minute each.
Now that we have the EU asylum and migration pact there needs to be particular recognition and consideration of the Border with the North and the common travel area. Has the Taoiseach discussed or considered how those asylum and migration systems will work North-South and east-west? Are there plans for improved co-operation?
Some 85% of asylum seekers who come into this State are coming from Britain through the North of Ireland. It is by far the biggest pathway for the movement of people in relation to the asylum process. We enjoy a common travel area with Britain but there have been significant problems over the past number of years. That is because there are three separate jurisdictions and not a lot of sharing of information. It means Ireland and Britain cannot control the movement of people and we do not have accurate records as to who is where. The Traditional Unionist Voice, TUV, has indicated recently there needs to be a hard border but that is simply impossible. There are 270 roads going north and south. I got information on Operation Sonnet last week. This is where Border checks are placed North and South. They happened on 30 days last year and there were 184 detections. It is window dressing, in reality. What we need is an Irish sea border for the movement of people. That has been accepted by the Taoiseach, Europe and Britain for the movement of goods as the only real way to be able to track the movement of goods.
Deputy Devlin is next.
It is possible to have an Irish sea border and still enjoy the common travel area-----
Deputy Devlin is on his feet.
-----just with the use of passports and driver's licences in relation to British and Irish citizens.
Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle.
Will the Taoiseach bring this up with the new British Administration, please?
Deputy Devlin.
I join the Taoiseach in his remarks about Prime Minister Starmer and all of the work he has done in rebuilding the relationship between Ireland and the UK, including through the UK-Ireland summits that have taken place in Liverpool and Cork.
I welcome the €377 million announced overnight for the shared island initiative, particularly the €193 million for the Dublin-Belfast-Derry line. That is real all-island progress and the Taoiseach deserves credit as well for starting that initiative. Much of this funding rightly is for large infrastructure but some of the most lasting reconciliation happens at community level. On that point, in my own constituency of Dún Laoghaire, local schools and sport links had been created between Shankill in Dún Laoghaire and Shankill in Belfast. That is practical community relations.
Will the Taoiseach consider whether the shared island fund can support more of these people-to-people connections, be it sporting or community organisations, on both sides of the Border, alongside its investment in roads and the rail network?
I associate myself with the Taoiseach's remarks about Prime Minister Starmer and I wish him and his family well.
One of the great things about our relationship with UK is the fact that we can still take advantage of the cross-border directive. However, constituents have been contacting me in recent weeks about significant delays in reimbursement under that directive. Some applicants are waiting five or six months despite indicative timelines of three months. In many cases, this is causing financial strain for patients who must pay upfront, including accumulating interest costs where loans are required. Will the Taoiseach intervene and see if clarity can be provided on whether these backlogs relate to staffing constraints and whether the additional interest that may be accrued will be reimbursed when processing times are exceeded? The cross-border directive is an excellent scheme and I would hate for it to lose public confidence due to operational issues.
I welcome the establishment of annual UK-Ireland summits. These have the potential to strengthen further bilateral relationships and intensify collaboration in areas such as trade, business, technology, investment, energy and environment. Alongside these annual summits, the Government must also ensure that the potential of the institutions established under the Good Friday Agreement across our jurisdictions are maximised to the best possible extent. As well as that important work, legacy issues must get priority attention in all Irish-British discussions. I refer again to the heinous crimes and loss of life inflicted on communities in my constituency, crimes for which nobody has been brought to justice. I instance again the murder of two young teenagers in my own home area when Geraldine O’Reilly and Patrick Stanley were killed in the bombing in Belturbet on 28 December 1972, and the dreadful loss of life in Monaghan and Dublin on 17 May 1974, when 34 innocent people, including an unborn child, were killed and 300 were seriously injured. Decade after decade has passed and families continue to grieve but there has been little if any progress on investigations into these murders. These must be addressed.
We have seen recently the Tánaiste's foray into united Ireland politics. I would like to think that would lead to a change in relation to Government policy. We all welcome that infrastructural deficits will be dealt with as a result of the shared island unit. We all want to see the likes of the Narrow Water Bridge and we also want to see whatever relationships can be built, but let us be clear, the one thing that we do need to see is movement towards constitutional change. This means preparation. It is sensible to do preparation. Sinn Féin wants to see a Green Paper and a citizens' assembly. It does not have to be citizens' assembly, it just needs to be any kind of forum to have those discussions on what this could look like. That would be the best means of dealing with the issue that we constantly talk about as regards reconciliation and whatever else. I would like to think that we would see movement on that.
Workers at Haldane Fisher in Newry, one of the biggest construction supply companies in the whole of Ireland, North and South, and in the UK, are on strike because Haldane Fisher, a very profitable company, is offering them pay increases that are significantly below the rate of inflation. The workers reckon that they have actually lost about 3% or 4% in real income terms over recent years. Haldane Fisher seems to be trying to break the strike and is refusing to negotiate with Unite the Union, which represents the workers.
I would say that one reason Keir Starmer is on his way out is because he failed working people on the cost-of-living crisis. That is something we should not do. It is important that a message be sent to Haldane Fisher. It should engage with these workers. These workers, and all workers, deserve pay increases that at least keep pace with inflation so that they are not losing income.
You would not know it from listening to the British commentariat, but a key factor in the downfall of Keir Starmer was his complicity in genocide and, in particular, that infamous clip where he says Israel does have the right to block water, block food and block electricity from Gaza while engaging in very blatant war crimes.
Another man entirely complicit in genocide is Peter Thiel, the founder of Palantir, which is deeply integrated into the Israeli military structure and has played a crucial role in the slaughter of huge numbers of Palestinians. Peter Thiel is planning a sinister event in Ireland, organised by Dialog. It is a secretive event involving 200 people, with high-powered people and others with connections to genocide, including US Senator Ted Cruz, Secretary Scott Bessent and the NATO Europe commander. The topics are bizarre and include bringing back nuclear, navigating a third world war and battlefield technologies. Does the Taoiseach think the Powerscourt Hotel should be facilitating this event?
The Taoiseach talked about Keir Starmer being decent and resetting relationships. If ever there was a Prime Minister who did moral bankruptcy, it is Keir Starmer. Here is somebody who got in with a huge Labour majority and proceeded to lean in to racism, anti-migrant sentiment, transphobia and every single thing you can think of. He inflicted austerity on pensioners and the disabled. Let us talk about Palestine. Deputies here are meant to be supporting Palestine and yet they are congratulating Starmer and wishing him well. What about the Palestinian families whose water he thought it was fine to cut off? What about the spy flights over Gaza which Starmer endorsed? He shared intelligence with the Israel Defense Forces, IDF, and exported military goods worth $169 million. He has jailed young people for committing non-violent crimes. He put them on a par with ISIS and jailed them as terrorists. That is not decent. It is absolutely reprehensible. To support a genocide is reprehensible. Good riddance to him.
There is a significant opportunity to place research, innovation, higher education and collaboration at the centre of any future conversations we have with regard to any UK-Ireland summits. The UK’s return to Horizon Europe is an important and welcome development. Restoring those research links will benefit both our islands. It should also encourage us to think more ambitiously about what additional bilateral initiatives could achieve. I propose that between now and the next UK-Ireland summit we consider the establishment of a dedicated UK-Ireland innovation and research partnership to complement Horizon Europe and deepen collaboration between our universities, researchers and industries. Such a partnership could support joint research projects, research and mobility, doctoral training programmes and innovation-led collaborations in areas where both our countries share strategic interests, such as healthcare, climate action, food security, AI and advanced technologies. The academic relationship between Ireland and the UK took a hit during Brexit and this an opportunity for us all.
Plug-in solar represents a huge opportunity to enable renters and those who live in apartments or in heritage homes to access the benefits of solar power and to make savings on their bills. The UK is powering ahead with this and I hope Ireland will follow suit. I have raised this repeatedly with the Minister and I know he is open to this. I understand the ESB is looking at it. I ask that the Taoiseach actually put a timeline on it because the Department has been looking at this for two years and we really cannot have any delays. This really needs to be fast-tracked. The benefits are huge and we are obviously in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. I ask that the Taoiseach speed up progress on this.
Any upcoming legislation on clerical institutional abuse must have a cross-Border dimension. Catholic dioceses like Clogher span the Border and so do their school networks. We have evidence of clergy being moved between jurisdictions because of abuse concerns. Survivors of abuse in this State who sought refuge in the North found that the abuse continued there, and they are now dealing with both An Garda Síochána and the PSNI. Will the Taoiseach commit to engage with the Executive in Belfast, or is he already doing so, to strengthen co-operation between the two criminal justice systems so that abusers cannot use jurisdictional gaps to escape accountability?
Deputy O'Rourke asked about the EU asylum pact and the common travel area. The European Union asylum pact creates a structure that is positive, firm and robust. It has critics on the left and it has critics on the right. One side is saying we are not going far enough and the other is saying that we are going too far in terms of the returns aspect. We need to protect the common travel area because it is of enormous value to our citizens. Equally, as others have said, it creates challenges in terms of migration flows, particularly with people coming from the UK into Northern Ireland and over the Border. That is reality. The Minister for justice has been in touch with the home secretary. There was a call last week. We discussed this during the UK summit.
I do also believe, in terms of Operation Sonnet and other operations, that there is strengthened monitoring of traffic and people coming across, and that there is checking of public transport and other areas. There will never be a hard Border. There cannot be a hard Border. Deputy Tóibín also raised this issue and made a claim of 85%. I do not have a precise figure on that.
Nobody has the precise figure because of the movement of people.
Everybody needs an answer, so do not interrupt.
Deputy Tóibín then went on to give a precise figure. I will just leave it-----
I am only telling the Taoiseach what the Minister said.
I do not care.
The point is I think it is high. I am not arguing the figure, but the point I would make is there is a need for data on this. There are also less and less coming in through airports because of controls and so on that have been implemented over the last two to three years. There is an issue, but I am not clear. Could the Deputy flesh out his proposals and send me a paper on the Irish Sea border, and how that would operate and could be implemented? That is challenging as well and we need to be honest with people when ideas like that are floated. We do need more monitoring and controls so that we understand what is happening in these flows, as well as to deal with traffickers. I came across some terrible cases when I met Women's Aid in Northern Ireland recently in terms of women who were trafficked and horrifically abused in the course of the trafficking. Trafficking is a significant driver of migration also, and that does not get captured enough in the debate and the narrative.
I appreciate Deputy Devlin's reference to what is a very significant allocation from the shared island fund. It is more than just infrastructure. It is about people and the shared island initiative has put more research into systems North and South, such as health and education, than anything that has been done since the foundation of the State. I also direct that to Deputy Ó Murchú. Under the shared island initiative, there is facilitation for people-to-people supports. The shared home place programme is one potential area, and the Department of foreign affairs, under the shared island initiative, has a community-based funding scheme and programme. We have a dialogue strand which is bringing people together and then we have a research strand. The funding strand deals with research between universities, collaboration on cancer and issues of mutual concern to communities. If the Deputy has particular ideas, please talk to us. The connectivity that is happening now-----
Nine Deputies.
-----is particularly important. In that respect, I would make the point that in terms of the Narrow Water Bridge project, a lot of people were talking about it for a long time and nothing was done-----
True.
-----both in the North as well as the South, including members of Deputy Ó Murchú's party, but the point is that this Government has done it and we have put a scheme in place to enable that.
Deputy Moynihan.
Deputy Moynihan raised the cross-Border directive. We are going to do more work on that. We have identified that as an area generally under the Labour Employer Economic Forum, LEEF, and also in terms of North-South relationships. We are asking Departments about tax, treatment of workers and so on. Have I picked up the Deputy's issue correctly?
It was in reference to health procedures and reimbursements.
That is not fair to other Members. There is no interaction. The Taoiseach has eight Members to respond to.
I am going to get everyone done.
The Taoiseach has three minutes.
Anything is possible. In response to Deputy Smith, I want to say that legacy issues remain a very top priority, particularly with a new Prime Minister coming in. The legislation is in the UK and they need to implement it. We will pursue the Monaghan and Dublin bombings, although we are waiting for Operation Denton to perhaps bring more clarity to that.
In response to Deputy Ó Murchú, the amount of research that has been done under the shared island initiative is revealing. It is extensive and it is pointing up issues that we are trying to deal with and are dealing with. Where is the Deputy's Green Paper? There is nothing stopping Sinn Féin from producing a Green Paper. It is my view that Sinn Féin-----
He is the Taoiseach. He has the power of the State.
We are working. We are working flat out. I am substance all the way. I am not about slogans.
Do something on unity.
I am not saying someone else give me the solution.
I am saying the State.
Deputy, please.
Sorry, the Deputy is always saying that Sinn Féin's view is that "Everybody else must do the Green Paper except ourselves". That is the bottom line.
Deputy Boyd Barrett.
In any event-----
Deputy Boyd Barrett.
In response to Deputy Boyd Barrett, again, I do not have the specifics on the strike. Industrial relations mechanisms are there to resolve issues between companies and workers and they should be utilised.
In response to the Deputy Murphy's comments on the British commentariat, to suggest that Prime Minister Starmer committed genocide, as Deputies Murphy and Coppinger did, is outrageous. He did not commit genocide. I do not know much about the event the Deputy is talking about. We are a democracy in this country. If people are meeting, so long as they are not doing any harm to anybody else-----
They are planning to do a lot of harm.
There are three Deputies, that is not fair.
There is a tendency on the far left and on the far right to say that no one else can meet but themselves. I have no truck with these people. I have no interest in whatever is going on there, but-----
Five deputies, Taoiseach.
-----citizens of different countries are entitled to come to Ireland. If they get visas, they are entitled to meet and organise. We have a very good democracy here. In the international transparency index, by all measures, we score very highly because of our approach to these issues. That is generally a positive, and we should not try to undermine that either.
I disagree with Deputy Coppinger's remarks on former Prime Minister Keir Starmer. I would not have agreed with all his views on Palestine and the Middle East, but I would not make the assertions and allegations that she has in respect of him.
In response to Deputy McGreehan's question on research and education, the idea of an innovation partnership with the UK is one that we will next pursue for the next summit. We endeavour to try to bring industry and businesses together more, but the idea of an academic collaboration, which has an enterprise dimension to it around new ideas, products and services, is definitely something we could and will pursue to see if can put flesh and bone on that in preparation for next year's summit. Again, the combination of universities, companies and State agencies, like Enterprise Ireland and InterTradeIreland, with their UK counterparts, is something that is very positive.
Taoiseach, please be quick.
We recently endowed a chair for history in Cambridge university to try to strengthen the academic partnership in the humanities between the UK and Ireland.
In response to Deputy Whitmore, I will actually go the Minister and ask him for a timeline. He is committed to plug-in solar. Deputy Heneghan has spoken about this quite a lot as well. The Minister is worried, and he is getting feedback that we have to make sure that domestic capacity exists and we do not unintended consequences like fires at particular houses and so on. He is concerned about that, and it is real concern. I will put it to him that we need a timeline, if he does not have one already.
In response to Deputy Heneghan, there is ongoing co-operation between the PSNI and the Garda, but also in terms of abuse North-South, we will work with the Executive on issues of that kind.
Questions Nos. 1 to 37, inclusive, answered orally.
Question No. 38 taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 39 to 47, inclusive, resubmitted.
Questions Nos. 48 to 51, inclusive, taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 52 to 54, inclusive, resubmitted.
Questions Nos. 55 and 56 taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 57 to 59, inclusive, resubmitted.
Question No. 60 taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 61 to 65, inclusive, resubmitted.
Questions Nos. 66 and 67 taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 68 and 69, resubmitted.
Question No. 70 taken with Written Answers.
Questions Nos. 71 to 74, inclusive, resubmitted.
Is féidir teacht ar Cheisteanna Scríofa ar www.oireachtas.ie.
Written Answers are published on the Oireachtas website.
Cuireadh an Dáil ar fionraí ar 2.08 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 3.10 p.m.
Sitting suspended at 2.08 p.m. and resumed at 3.10 p.m.