Results 41-60 of 14,473 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizens Information Services (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Citizens Information Board (CIB) is the statutory body under my Department’s aegis, that funds and supports eight independent regional Citizen Information Service (CIS) companies, which in turn operate a national network of Citizens Information Centres. Each CIS is a limited company governed by a Board of Directors which make decisions independently on the delivery of services in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The new Programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce the Automatic Enrolment (AE) Retirement Savings System. The aim of introducing AE is to address the pension coverage gap that exists in Ireland and to provide workers with greater comfort and security regarding their retirement savings. The new system will be called 'My Future Fund'. It will automatically enrol all...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Costs (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme provides a once-off payment to eligible families to assist with the costs of clothing and footwear when children start or return to school each autumn. The scheme operates from June to September each year. The allowance is payable in respect of eligible children between the ages of 4 and 17 in respect of whom a Child Support Payment...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Ministerial Responsibilities (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: Minister Buttimer was appointed as Minister of State at my Department and at the Department of Transport. With regard to functions in this Department the formal delegation of functions to the Minister of State will be concluded in the coming weeks, and once it is finalised and signed the relevant Order will be published on the Irish Statute book.

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Schemes (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department supports a wide range of projects which provide essential and accessible facilities in towns and villages all across Ireland. The Department places a strong focus on ensuring that our schemes benefit all members of our communities including people who are neurodivergent. Details of the thousands of projects supported by my Department are available at Funding allocated by the...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) supports improving non-public rural roads and laneways not usually maintained by local authorities. Since its establishment in 2017, almost €170 million has been provided by Government to local authorities for LIS and this includes funding allocations which have been provided to each local authority for the period 2024/2025. I have engaged with my...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Cycling Facilities (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department is keen to continue to support the use of the Cycle to Work Scheme as a means of promoting a healthy lifestyle under our Health and Wellbeing Programme. The scheme is run within the parameters set out by Revenue. I've listed the number of applications processed each year from 2020 to 2024 in the table below. These figures are the combined figures for the Department of Rural...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Rural Schemes (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The CLÁR programme provides funding under a number of different measures for small-scale infrastructural projects in designated rural areas. Maps of CLÁR designated areas, including in County Laois, are available on my Departments website. I have attached a copy of the CLÁR map showing designated areas in Co Laois. The Programme for Government makes a commitment to carry out a...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Bodies (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 612 and 613 together. Details of payments made under the prompt payment legislation are published on a quarterly basis on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/organisation-information/294dc7-financial-info rmation/. This includes information for one agency, the Charities Regulator, as their payments are processed through the...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Heritage Projects (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) is a capital investment fund that is key to the delivery of Ireland's rural development policy, Our Rural Future 2021-2025. RRDF provides funding for the development and construction of capital projects in towns and villages in rural areas across Ireland. Funding is allocated to local authorities and other State-funded bodies, who take the...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (7 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The development and enhancement of community centres across the country is a priority for me and this Government. Full details of the supports available within my Department, including those for community centres, can be accessed at This information also outlines the eligibility criteria for each scheme, including the type of organisations who can apply for funds, be they a sporting or...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Meals Programme (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I agree with the Deputy entirely. We want this scheme to work. We will do the final roll-out in September so that every primary school pupil in the country will have had the opportunity to have hot school meals within their school. At that time I intend to stand back and examine at the scheme to see where it has been working and where it has not. I will be very focused on DEIS secondary...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Meals Programme (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I totally agree with the Deputy that a five-year-old should not receive the same portion as a 13-year-old and we get that feedback a lot. I suspect there are Members who have seen food come home with schoolbags and probably found it a few days later. Every school has the flexibility, within procurement rules, to choose the provider of the food. There is not some massive corporate...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Meals Programme (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: The review will absolutely capture all of that. It is very important. There are a lot of local companies involved in this that otherwise would not be providing quality employment and service without this programme.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Meals Programme (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: As I said in reply to Deputy O'Reilly, the hot school meals review was announced when we expanded programme just ahead of the Easter school holidays. With regard to nutrition, the specific standard was set under the nutritional standards for school meals and nutritional standards for hot school meals. A technical nutrition subgroup comprised of dietitians from the Irish Nutrition and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Pension Provisions (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I agree with the Deputy. In our preparation for responding to his question, I have asked that we do more work in terms of reaching out to people who may qualify but who may not know. Those figures strike me as low. The Department has been doing a lot of work in this space in terms of trying to bring the scheme to people's attention. Maybe with the support of colleagues across the House,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Rural Schemes (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I thank Deputies Cahill and Conway-Walsh for their remarks. Regarding the review, we have fully implemented five recommendations. Actually, I had a meeting yesterday with officials on the remaining ones, including extending eligibility to people not directly engaged in farming or fishing but who have a connection to a rural community and the issue of two people accessing it. I have asked...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Rural Schemes (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I thank Deputy Cahill for his question. As he said, the rural social scheme plays an important role in the life of rural communities. I wish to highlight and thank every participant, supervisor and sponsoring company for their work in this space. The RSS provides an income support and part-time employment opportunities for farmers and fishers who are in receipt of certain social welfare...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Benefits (1 May 2025)

Dara Calleary: I endorse the Deputy's comments, particularly regarding rural poverty. I will keep a laser-like focus on it during my time in the Department. I commend the work done by organisations such as Local Link, which is expanding its footprint to address the exact kind of loneliness the Deputy has just referred to. The living alone allowance, or the living alone increase as it is formerly...