Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minster and Minister of State for their attendance. I echo the Minister's final comments about the work of the Department of Social Protection. Since I have been elected, we have gone from global pandemic to war in Europe and a massive inflationary cycle. It has been an incredibly busy time for the Department. The staff have been extremely diligent and flexible in responding to the many competing demands put on the public purse.

I usually apply a fairly blunt instrument to how I approach the Estimates. I scan through it and I look for where there is the biggest percentage variation and ask the question why, so that is pretty much how I will approach the questions here. Are we still contracting private services in terms of employment supports such as JobPath at a time when we have historic high rates of employment in the economy? Is it not an opportunity to row back from that position of using private employment services and move back towards the public ones?

Working down through the Estimates, among the ones that jumped out at me, as it were, humanitarian aid increased by 1,451%, which is quite an increase. What did that relate to? I just have it as a bare line.

The massive repayment in terms of the Covid-19 employment wage subsidy scheme is about 2,500%. Why have we found ourselves in a position that so much of that money is being repaid? That is referred to as AZZ.

Disability activation and employment supports have decreased by 95%. I understand we are in a fairly full labour market and most people who want a job can find one, so I understand that rationale. However, we also know, and this would have been reiterated to us when Department officials presented the Green Paper on new proposals for disability allowance, that we have one of the lowest rates of employment in Europe for people with a disability. Why is that figure is falling away to next to nothing at a time when I would say we have an opportunity to identify and help people?

I have asked the question about the temporary wage subsidy scheme, TWSS, and the EWSS. I wanted to ask about the hot school meals programme. It is something that I am very much behind and something I know the Minister is very much behind. Is the Department modelling in terms of the anti-poverty impact there? I feel it in my bones that it is a great intervention in terms of anti-poverty, but I would like to be able to back that intuition up with some hard figures on whether the Department is doing that kind of work.

In terms of the climate action plan, and I am sorry that I am throwing quite a few things at the Minister here, the Department is the lead for a lot of actions, including around the just transition. What kind of employment supports are directly being provided in areas like the midlands, where fossil fuel production is being phased out? Is the Department keeping track of statistics or measurements in terms of driving forward those parts of the just transition that it is specifically tasked with? That will do in terms of specific questions. I have a couple of broader ones, but that will be in the waffly section, a Chathaoirleach.