Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome that the Minister has his full team with him today. I also welcome the €463 million, which is a 16% increase in the overall budget. Services, particularly for children, are very important. The committee has frequently discussed difficulties with recruitment and retention. In community healthcare organisation, CHO, 5, there are difficulties with services, including occupational therapists and social workers. What is the Minister doing to try to alleviate this and ensure we are recruiting? I understand a recruitment drive is ongoing. What is the uptake on that?

The national childcare scheme projects a large increase in its spend. There were concerns about the scheme's ability to deliver for disadvantaged families who need it most. How has this been remedied? Does the Estimate include funds for targeted measures for these particular families? Is the Minister satisfied that all children with a disability can access the ECCE programme?

What measures is the Department taking to improve the lives of trans people? All of us have received representations on this matter. Is ample funding being made available for these initiatives? What initiatives are being taken to protect our LGBT community? What is needed to address once and for all the challenges faced by these communities? Does the Department have the tools it needs to make meaningful change for these cohorts, including the appropriate funding? Expertise is also very important here.

The committee has heard that people with disabilities have been left out of some legislative processes, perhaps through tight deadlines and our failure to provide speech-friendly text or plain English versions of legislation. Does the Minister believe meaningful engagement with disabled people is happening? I do not know if it is.

The White Paper promises to abolish direct provision, something the majority of people favour. How can the Department catch up with this important goal, given the challenges the war in Ukraine has presented? The Minister's opening statement referred to increased funding for Ukrainians. I believe there has been a failure there. People in Carlow have contacted me to say they have a home available. One owner of commercial premises contacted me in recent weeks and I know it is possible for people to go online. There seems to be a lack of communication here. People are showing friendship and are trying to help but we are being let down. The information is not readily available. It is necessary to keep ringing.

I now understand that the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, will it be working with local authorities. If, for example, somebody in Carlow contacted me offering premises, it would now go through the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, with the local authority. As the Minister knows, local authorities now have a director in charge of looking after Ukrainians, which is very important. However, when I ring, I cannot get information. There is a lack of communication and the system needs to be quicker. How will the Minister and his Department do that?

I will come back again on the second round.