Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to discuss the Revised Estimates for my Department for 2024, including that of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, IHREC. As members will have seen in the briefing provided for them last week, my Department is projected to spend €7.293 billion in current expenditure and €135 million in capital expenditure during 2024. This represents an increase of €244 million, or 3%, on the Supplementary Estimate for 2023.

The 2024 allocation covers financial provisions for a range of key services in respect of children and young people such as Tusla, early learning and childcare and youth services. The allocation also covers funding for disability services in 2024, the responsibility for this budget area having transferred to my Department from the Department of Health in March 2023. There are also allocations in other key work streams, including the provision of accommodation for international protection seekers and refugee resettlement and services for Ukrainian beneficiaries of temporary protection, BOTPs, and international protection applicants, respectively. Legacy issues in regard to mother and baby institutions are also funded. In addition, there are allocations towards the areas of equality, integration and inclusion. This includes funding towards gender equality, human rights, LGBT+ issues, Traveller and Roma issues, migrant integration and disability policy.

To outline my Department’s Vote in more detail, I have provided the select committee with details of the funding allocations across the various programme areas and a summary by main subhead and programme area, including details of changes over the 2023 figures as allocated following the two Supplementary Estimates that my Department received last year. In the 2024 Vote allocation, more than 96% of the Department’s funding is concentrated in six areas, namely, specialist community-based disability services at 39%, Ukraine-related spending at 20%, early learning and childcare at 15%, the Child and Family Agency at 14%, the international protection accommodation service at 6%, and the response to mother and baby institutions at 3%. Youth affairs is the next largest area, representing just over 1% of the overall allocation, with the administration budget for the Vote also accounting for just under 1%. The balance of 2% is spread across the remaining programmes and subheads of the Vote. I will now briefly address these areas in turn.

I take this opportunity to reiterate how the transfer of disability services to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth represents a unique opportunity not only for service improvement but also for better financial governance and oversight. I am committed to making the most of these opportunities. This year my Department has secured approximately €2.9 billion for disability services, including one-off funding for measures related to the legacy of the Covid response. This funding will allow us to support service providers to continue their crucial work in what is a challenging economic environment while also providing for service expansion to help support the progressive realisation of the aims of the Action Plan for Disability Services 2024-2026 and the Roadmap for Service Improvement 2023-2026 in children’s services. While there will undoubtedly be challenges in the year ahead, we have set out to be ambitious and make tangible changes for those who use community disability supports and their families. My colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, will speak in more detail about the disability budget and plan for the year ahead.

In early 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, my Department was tasked by the Government with providing short-term accommodation and other supports for Ukrainians fleeing the conflict in receipt of temporary protection. An allocation of €1.49 billion, or 20% of the Vote, is being provided in 2024 to meet the costs associated with the provision of accommodation for beneficiaries of temporary protection arriving from Ukraine. The allocation represents a slight reduction of €30 million, or 2%, on the 2023 Supplementary Estimates allocation, with capital spending on the modular housing programme pilot reducing in 2024 as the original planned project is completed and changes to the rules for the newly arriving Ukrainians impacting on the budget in 2024. The largest cost element is accommodation, both through commercial sources and pledged accommodation. Funding has also been provided for the cost of modular housing as well as for expenditure on early learning and childcare, Tusla and youth support services.

At €1.109 billion, the early learning and childcare area accounts for 15% of the Vote’s allocation. This represents an increase of €104 million, or 10%, over the 2023 Supplementary Estimate allocation for subheads B3, B4 and B5. This 2024 allocation provides for the continuation of the ECCE programme, which will benefit more than 103,000 children this year. It provides for the continued delivery of AIM supports so that children with disabilities can access this programme. Crucially, it also provides for an extension of AIM supports beyond time spent in the ECCE programme - in term and out - delivering on one of my stated commitments for this year.

Another 2024 commitment was to reach the affordability target for parents that I set in 2022 to reduce out-of-pocket costs for families by 50%. Since January 2023, with the increase in the minimum NCS subsidy to €1.40 per hour, out-of-pocket costs for families have fallen by 25% on average. From this September, the minimum subsidy will again increase, this time to €2.14 per hour, and the affordability target that I set in 2022 will be met. Approximately 150,000 children are expected to benefit from this NCS measure this year. Among these beneficiaries will be an estimated 2,000 children in childminding settings, with the 2024 allocation providing for the initial cohort of childminders expected to come forward for registration this year. This was another commitment I made going into budget 2024.

In 2024, I will deliver on a number of other key commitments in the area of early years services. Specifically, I will commence the roll-out of the equal participation model, providing services with a proportionate mix of universal and targeted supports for children and families accessing their services who are experiencing disadvantage. I will increase the allocation of core funding in year 3 of the scheme by 15% to €331 million to support improved affordability and accessibility for families, improved pay and conditions for the workforce and improved sustainability for providers. I will award funding under the building blocks capacity grant, which will help to address undersupply in areas of proven need. The 2024 allocation under B3, B4 and B5 is a clear demonstration of the value the Government continues to place on early learning and childcare, given the benefits it confers to children, their families, society and the economy.

My Department’s Estimate contains provision of €1.011 billion for Tusla, which is broadly in line with the 2023 Supplementary allocation, which was significantly increased during 2023. This funding will allow Tusla to improve support for foster carers through an increase in the weekly foster care allowance rate for the first time since 2009. This year, the rate for under-12s will increase by €75 per week and the rate for over-12s will increase by €73 per week. These increases will be achieved over two phases. A €25 increase was implemented on 1 January and the remainder will be implemented on 1 November. These increases mean that foster carers will receive more than €1,700 in additional funding per child over the course of 2024 and, in 2025, each foster family will receive an additional €3,900 over the course of the year. I am dedicated to achieving the best outcomes for children in care, and the Department and I see foster care as the central plank of our response to children at risk.

The funding provided to Tusla will allow it to provide existing levels of care and support to children and families referred to it for help. At the same time, the funding will allow Tusla to begin addressing some of the increasing demand in areas of residential care through investing and increasing capacity in both State residential care provision in line with its residential care strategy and in Tusla’s residential care provided by private and NGO organisations. It will allow Tusla to support unaccompanied children arriving in Ireland who require care, housing and international protection. Additional funding for this is separately contained in subhead E4.

The allocation for costs associated with the provision of accommodation for international protection seekers is €409 million in 2024, representing a decrease over the 2023 Supplementary Estimate allocation. The allocation also includes funding directed towards the implementation of the recommendations of the White Paper on Ending Direct Provision and establishing a new international protection support service. International protection seekers’ accommodation is a demand-led service, with requirements for accommodation and services increasing as numbers of new international protection applicants increase. In recent times, there have been record increases in the number of new arrivals seeking international protection accommodation, with total numbers accommodated increasing from 7,244 in December 2021 to 18,534 in December 2022 and reaching 26,000 by the end of December 2023. The issue of immigration policy touches on more than my Department, with the allocation recognising the need for a whole-of-government approach to application processing, housing of international protection seekers while their applications are being progressed, and supporting those with status to move on from IPAS accommodation. This is important in the context of a potential further additional 12,000 to 15,000 individuals seeking international protection in 2024. A shared approach between the relevant Departments is required, as the Departments of Justice and Housing, Local Government and Heritage may be required to help address certain costs while maintaining the State’s legal obligations to IP applicants. However, if supply constraints within the residential property market hamper movement out of IP accommodation and if processing times and volumes in respect of finalisation of cases for international protection applicants do not keep pace with application numbers, the expenditure in 2024 could be significantly higher than allocated. I am continuing to progress the implementation of the White Paper through supporting the implementation of measures to address poverty among under-18s in international protection, continuing the roll-out of local authority integration teams across the country, rolling out the international protection integration fund for 2024, providing increased supports for NGOs focusing on supports for IP applicants, and providing accommodation for particularly vulnerable applicants.

In responding to the final report of the mother and baby homes commission of investigation, the Government has approved a suite of 22 specific measures. Action 20, the mother and baby institutions payment scheme, is a key element of the Government’s response to the findings of the commission. This is a demand-led statutory scheme that is anticipated to provide a financial payment to 34,000 survivors and former residents, of whom approximately 19,000 will also receive an enhanced medical card. Of the €800 million allocation agreed by the Government for the scheme, €225 million is being made available in 2024, representing an increase of €215 million on the original allocation provided in 2023.

This allocation has been provided to meet the initial costs of opening the scheme and commencement of financial payments under the scheme, along with providing medical cards for survivors and former residents during 2024.

As regards the rest of the Vote, there are, of course, other policy areas that will be progressed in 2024. The 2024 Estimate will allow me to continue to provide funding in the important areas of equality, disability, inclusion and integration. These are significant and challenging areas, and the Vote contains funding streams for areas such as the National Disability Authority, refugee and migrant integration, gender equality, LGBTI+, and Traveller and Roma initiatives. This funding will allow for a range of equality initiatives, including the finalisation of new strategies as regards Travellers and Roma, women and girls and LGBTI+ people. As I mentioned earlier, these areas are in receipt of additional funding in 2024 compared with the final 2023 allocation following the Supplementary Estimate.

The 2024 Estimate has seen an increase of €5 million on current expenditure for youth services to just under €78 million. This level of funding will support the delivery by the voluntary youth work sector of a range of youth work programmes and services for all young people, including those from disadvantaged communities. Of that funding, €1 million is allocated to the mainstreaming of the targeted youth employability scheme, which provides intensive supports to young people who are not in education, work or training to help them get into employment or education. In addition to this €78 million, a further €2 million is being allocated to youth services to support the integration of young Ukrainians in our local communities. Youth services are essential to the well-being of young people, providing spaces, supports and opportunities for young people of all backgrounds to develop their personal capacity and to connect with and positively shape their communities and wider society.

The significant increase in resources under my Department's Vote for 2024 allows for the continuation of vital services to some of our most disadvantaged communities, while providing for a number of important opportunities for a targeted development and improvement of services. Deputies can rest assured that I will continue to work closely with all sectors and stakeholders as we strive to maximise outcomes from the resources being considered today. I thank Members for their attention and look forward to addressing any questions they have.