Results 7,081-7,100 of 11,754 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Seanad: Birth Information and Tracing Bill 2022: Committee Stage (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: We discussed a similar issue earlier. Amendment No. 55 seeks to amend the definition of "early life information" from what it currently is, "information on any medical treatments, procedures or vaccinations administered to him or her", to read "medical information, including information on any medical treatments, procedures or vaccinations administered to him or her". I cannot support this...

Seanad: Birth Information and Tracing Bill 2022: Committee Stage (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I cannot support amendment No. 65, which seeks to provide for an adoptive parent to apply for medical information for his or her adoptive child where that child is under 16 years of age. It seeks to alter the process through which the release of third-party medical information is provided. This issue is one that was subject to detailed consultations between us, the Office of the...

Seanad: Birth Information and Tracing Bill 2022: Committee Stage (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Senator Boyhan raised the important point of the information about vaccine trials that were done and, as we know now, done without consent and often in breach of what were the medical guidelines of the time, which I believe were the Nuremberg guidelines. It is a source of great concern for many people who were in mother and baby or county home institutions or other institutions. As Senator...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The availability of high-quality early learning and childcare that is affordable and accessible is a key Government priority. Since 2015, significant increases in State investment in early learning and childcare has given rise to a substantial growth in the numbers of children participating in these services. More than 100,000 children now participate on the universal pre-school programme on...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Officials in my Department have recently engaged with the Dublin City Childcare Committee to identify vacant places for early learning and childcare in their catchment area. At present, there are 8,263 children enrolled in early learing and childcare services in Dublin City and 1,662 vacant places. Update data is currently being captured as part of the Annual Early Years Sector Profile....

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department’s main funding schemes to support families with the cost of early learning and childcare are the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme and the National Childcare Scheme (NCS). The main eligibility requirements for these schemes are that the family must be resident in Ireland and the parent(s) and child must have a PPS number. Families living in Northern...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: International Protection (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Thank you for your question, Deputy. Please find the requested information in tabular form below concerning the contracts rather than leases that the Department has for the provision of accommodation or related services. State-owned accommodation Number County Location Management Company 1 Clare Knockalisheen Aramark ...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Data (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Work to examine the needs of bereaved parents coping with pregnancy loss is being advanced within my Department and officials are currently in the process of commissioning research to explore the workplace experiences of parents coping with pregnancy loss. The study will examine whether policy interventions are required at a national level to better support bereaved parents in the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 148 and 149 together. On 4th May I met with a delegation for the Federation of Early Childhood Providers (FECP) to discuss their position in relation to the new Core Funding stream following a survey of their members. The FECP shared extremely detailed materials at this meeting, including case studies and extensive data on provider costs. This was followed...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: In December 2021, Government adopted the 25 recommendations contained in an Expert Group report, Partnership for the Public Good: A New Funding Model for Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School-Age Childcare (SAC). The new funding model will support delivery of ELC and SAC for the public good, for quality and affordability for children, parents and families. To achieve this, there is a need...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The term ‘reasonable profit’ has a particular meaning within European legislation on State Aid, and particularly the conditions under which State Aid rules do not apply whereby investment in considered to be a Service of General Economic Interest. Advice received on this issue points to reasonable profit consisting of the level of return from risk-free investment (swap rates)...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: On 7December 2021, I launched Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare, 2022-2028. Nurturing Skills aims to strengthen the ongoing process of professionalisation for those working in early learning and care (ELC) and school-age childcare (SAC). Early years educators, school-age childcare practitioners and childminders play a key role in...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (18 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Core Funding was first announced in the context of Budget 2022 in October of last year. Initial information about the scheme was made available as part of the Budget FAQ: at www.gov.ie/en/publication/b3e97-budget-2022-overview-and-faq s-for-early-learning-and-care-elc-and-school-age-childcare-s ac-providers-and-parents/. This was followed in December with the publication of the report of an...

Seanad: Childcare Provision: Statements (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I welcome this opportunity to discuss the important issue of early learning and childcare. It would be difficult to overstate the importance of early learning and childcare to society, the economy, parents, but most importantly, to children. Recent years have seen an unprecedented growth in the level of State investment in early learning and childcare, and in the numbers of children in...

Seanad: Childcare Provision: Statements (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank all the Senators for their detailed contributions. Senator Garvey made the point that I had the opportunity to visit the childcare centre in Inagh when I was down in County Clare recently.It is a community service in a rural area. It has a baby room, an ECCE service, school-age childcare and general childcare. These services are all small but all elements are offered. Those...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Funding (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) Regulations, 1995 and the Child Care (Placement of Children with Relatives) Regulations, 1995, stipulates that the allowance payable to foster carers and relatives shall not be less than an amount specified by the Minister. The foster care allowance was last increased on January 1st 2009. Foster carers are paid a weekly allowance,...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child Poverty (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme is an area-based prevention and early intervention initiative which is delivered in 12 areas of significant socioeconomic disadvantage across the country through Tusla’s Prevention Partnership and Family Support (PPFS) services. The ABC Programme aims to work in partnership with families, practitioners, communities and national stakeholders...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Family Resource Centres (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Ukraine War (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine on February 24, and the invoking of the Temporary Protection Directive shortly thereafter, my Department has been working intensively as part of the cross-Government response to the Ukraine crisis. My Department is focused on providing short term accommodation to people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. Approximately 20 000 people have been...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Equal Opportunities Employment (17 May 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Section 47(1)(a) of the Disability Act 2005 requires public bodies to take all reasonable measures to promote and support the employment by it of persons with disabilities. The Department has a dedicated Disability Liaison Officer (DLO), part of whose role is to provide advice, support and assistance to staff with disabilities. The DLO consults with staff with disabilities on an...