Huge thanks to the Irish Air Corps for facilitating the Oireachtas Foreign Affairs & Defence Committee’s visit to Baldonnel. Superb, but sobering briefings. Candour very much appreciated. Ireland’s lack of air capability is a major national strategic risk. We need to fix this.

A great honour to address the Remembrance Sunday commemoration in Christchurch Gorey this month. Important that those who have gone before us are remembered because today’s soldiers are tomorrow’s veterans…

Delighted to see that almost €4.3 million is to be allocated to the Athy Food, Drink and Skills Innovation Hub for development at the site of the former Athy Model School. This will be an excellent addition to Athy and will be a major jobs boost for the county of Kildare and other ...

Delighted to attend the launch of the 22nd Shackleton Autumn School in Athy last night. Lots of great events and lectures planned for the rest of the weekend. Best of luck to Athy Heritage Centre and Museum and all involved Check out their website for full information ...

Delighted to welcome a delegation from the Technical University Shannon (TUS) to Portarlington Enterprise Centre this week. Great to see a remote learning Higher Education hub being established in town to support students and adult learners in particular. State of the art facilities ...

The second public consultation process for the Curragh Plains has been launched and are looking to hear from as many people as possible to help shape the approach. The consultation on the draft policies and proposals is open from: 12th October until 16th November 2022 Full details and ...

Delighted to see so many of our Community Centres across the constituency benefitting from the new Community Centre Investment Fund today. Local volunteers and community centres play a massive role in bringing our communities together, so it’s great to see them getting some financial support ...

A very uplifting experience this week to celebrate the launch of the 21st course of the Kildare ‘Heads Up’ programme. Great atmosphere in the Community Development Centre in Kildare Town, particularly so as it’s World Mental Health Day. These 12-week courses are completely free and ...

Payment dates for the Lump-Sum payments announced as part of the Budget include: A doubling of Child Benefit on November 1st, which will support 639,000 families in respect of 1.2 million children. An Autumn Double Payment next week, benefitting 1.4 million people. A €500 ...

Statement on the 2023 Defence Budget Notwithstanding the wording of yesterday’s budget document, senior Government Ministers have since clarified that the stated €67m (6%) increase in the 2023 Defence budget does not include an allocation for the National Pay Deal “Building Momentum” currently ...

Budget 2023 - Key Points 𝐒𝐎𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐄 weekly social welfare rates will be increased by €12 for working age recipients. there will also be a €12 increase in weekly payments for pensioners. the Working Family Payment threshold will increase by €40. there will be a €2 ...

Great to welcome Minister Jack Chambers to Portarlington today to turn on the new floodlights in McCann Park and visit the Snooker Club. It’s fantastic to see the positive impact the sports capital funding is making in our sports clubs across the constituency. Looking forward to more ...