Results 3,901-3,920 of 11,744 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am not in a position to accept the amendment as presented but that is not to say that I do not understand the intention behind it. That intention of acknowledgement lies behind the wider Government approach to mother and baby and county home institutions, as outlined in the steps we set out in the action plan. Central to that was the apology the Taoiseach made on behalf of the State. It...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I hear Senator Black’s frustration about the ruling of these amendments out of order. That decision was not made by me. The issue of the waiver has been raised by the Senator, her colleague and colleagues from Sinn Féin and across the House. I am to come back to the House in writing on it. I had a meeting with officials in the Office of the Attorney General today to discuss...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: Shameless vote-buying by the Cathaoirleach there. I will make a point on what we are providing payments for. The Long Title of the legislation refers to “An Act to provide, in recognition of the circumstances experienced by certain persons while resident in certain institutions in the State ...” I respectfully disagree with Senator Higgins, who said the scheme was solely...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: It is to enable me to provide as comprehensive an answer as I can to the points Senator Higgins raised on the waiver and what it covers. I wanted to explore that with the Office of the Attorney General.

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Senator. Speaking to section 32, again the approach that is being adopted with the payment scheme is one of a single payment recognising the circumstances experienced by former residents of these institutions.The decision - it is one we went through in some detail during our hearings last week - was based on the fact that to start to individualise the experiences of applicants...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: This is reflective of the fact the Government has this year abolished statutory inpatient charges in hospitals. These were one of the categories covered by the enhanced medical card. As those charges do not exist anymore, there is no point in listing them as one of the benefits of the enhanced medical card.

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Senators for their contributions. I have put it on the record previously, but it is worth reiterating, that when the Taoiseach made his State apology, he recognised how the suffering of people in mother and baby homes and county home institutions was often compounded by racial discrimination. That is recognised. I turn to the specific amendments brought forward by Senator...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: If a negative decision is made by an Irish court in the context of a judicial review about this scheme, the Government has to respond. I am talking entirely hypothetically, but if something was found to be ultra viresor unconstitutional, of course the Government has to respond. We do not have a choice in that situation. If an international treaty body makes a finding about something that...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I have spoken at some length about the purpose of the Act and, in particular, the purpose of the reporting, both in the initial report and the final report. In light of that, I am not in a position to accept these amendments. While it is not explicitly stated in the Bill, the information that is referred to in amendment No. 110 will be gathered by the scheme as a matter of course as...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Senator knows at this stage that I am always happy to engage. I cannot make any commitment in terms of outcome but I am certainly happy to engage. It is an important matter. As the Senator recognised, it is something on which I have engaged already. He is right that this was not with any great success. However, I am happy to engage further with him and others.

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am not in a position to support this amendment. As the Senator will be aware, the purpose of the Bill is to provide for the establishment of the payment scheme, the making of payments, and the provision of health benefits under the scheme. As stated in response to previous amendments, the Bill provides for reports to be made, but these are appropriately related to performance of the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: Last week I announced the appointment of Mr Daniel Mac Sweeney as Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam. Mr Mac Sweeney will head up the independent Office that has been established under the Institutional Burials Act 2022 to oversee the important and highly sensitive work of ensuring the children’s remains at the site of the former Mother and Baby Institution in Tuam are recovered...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: On 29th March 2022, Government accepted the findings of an Independent Review of the Early Learning and Childcare Operating Model in Ireland that a dedicated state agency is the optimal operating model for the early learning and childcare sector for the years ahead. A dedicated state agency will assist in the development of a more streamlined structure to better support the delivery of early...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Community Development Projects (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: Earlier this year, I was pleased to have the opportunity to meet with representatives from Carlow County Council to discuss this matter. As the Deputy may be aware, the organisation which is due to be the main tenant of this facility is Carlow Regional Youth Services. This service receives €128,726 in annual funding from Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, to provide a range of...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child Protection (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 49 and 91 together. To ask the Minister for Children; Equality; Disability; Integration and Youth the number of children reported to his Department as being at risk or under threat of becoming at risk depending on individual circumstances; the action proposed or taken in response; and if he will make a statement on the matter. In January 2023, Tusla...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: As the Deputy will be aware, in September 2022, I launched Together for Better, the new funding model for early learning and childcare. Together for Better brings together three major programmes, the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, including the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) and the Core Funding scheme. A fourth programme –...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Rights of the Child (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: In January this year I led the Irish delegation to the UN Committee Hearing on the Rights of the Child in Geneva. Their concluding observations welcomed the legislative, institutional and policy measures Ireland has already taken to implement the Convention. However, they also raised concerns and gave recommendations on where we need to do better. The UN observations, along with the available...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: International Protection (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: The accommodation of international protection applicants (IPAs) is a demand-led process with applicants arriving in the country and seeking accommodation spontaneously. Ireland is now accommodating over 85,400 people between those fleeing Ukraine and international protection applicants (IPAs). This compares with over 8,500 at the end of February 2022. In terms of the Ukraine Crisis,...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 56 and 75 together. Record levels of investment is been made by my Department to, inter alia, support parents with the costs of early learning and childcare In September 2022, I launched Together for Better, the new funding model for early learning and childcare. Together for Better brings together three major programmes, the Early Childhood Care and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (30 May 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: As outlined in my previous reply to the Deputy on 30 March 2023, consultation with survivors and relative groups was an important part of the development of the Institutional Burials Act 2022. After taking Office, I visited the site of the former Mother and Baby Institution in Tuam, Co. Galway, and met with survivors and relatives of those who died while resident there. I carefully considered...