Results 8,441-8,460 of 11,754 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Residential Institutions (3 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: In developing the proposals for the Government, extensive thought was given to how best to structure a fair and sensitive payment scheme for survivors of mother and baby institutions. I asked an interdepartmental group to develop proposals for a scheme and to make recommendations for the overall approach to the payments as well as potential payment rates. With regard to the payment...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Child Abuse (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. Reports of historical sexual abuse in St. John Ambulance in the 1990s have been highlighted over recent years. Initially the case concerned three men who made allegations against one named adult. Two of these individuals were under 18 at the time of the abuse. All three people and the accused were volunteers with St. John Ambulance. A...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Child Abuse (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I want the record to be clear. My Department provides no funding to St. John Ambulance as a youth organisation. I met a survivor who explained his experience. I subsequently met the board of St. John Ambulance to discuss both its current child protection procedures, which Tusla has assured me are in compliance with Children First, and a review of the historical cases. I encouraged and...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Road Network (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy very much. I am taking this issue for the Minister, Deputy Ryan. Obviously, as Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding in respect of the national roads programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the national...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Road Network (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I take the Deputy's point with regard to clarity on what is meant by the first half of the year. I cannot deliver that clarity right now. I will engage with the Minister, Deputy Ryan, and ask him to come back with some more clarity on that particular point. It is important to note that the route selection element is being progressed. TII is actively progressing it and is engaging with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Strategies (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: National action in respect of autism is a commitment in the Programme for Government. Earlier this year, Minister Rabbitte announced an intention to develop an Autism Innovation Strategy with the aim of launching it in 2022. In Budget 2022, Minister Rabbitte and I secured €100,000 for the design and implementation of the Autism Innovation Strategy, and for awareness raising...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Since the publication of Commission's report, I have engaged extensively with survivors.  This engagement has informed the wide-ranging Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions.  The Plan is fully inclusive and responds to the diverse needs and priority concerns of all survivors. The actions are designed to support survivors...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Asylum Seekers (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Ireland has, to date, offered over 500 Letters of Waiver in lieu of visas to enable those wishing to leave Afghanistan to exit the country. To date, 353 Afghans have arrived in Ireland. The current IRPP priority is to ensure the integration of new arrivals and to link these with accommodation and services.  Requests for further places in the IRPP programme will be considered as...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Citizens' Assembly (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality, which submitted its report to the Oireachtas on 2 June, has made 45 recommendations towards gender equality in Ireland. The Programme for Government “Our Shared Future” includes a commitment that the Government will respond to each recommendation of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality. As the Minister with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Citizens' Assembly (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality, which submitted its report to the Oireachtas on 2 June, has made 45 recommendations towards gender equality in Ireland. The Programme for Government “Our Shared Future” includes a commitment that the Government will respond to each recommendation of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality. As the Minister with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Earlier this year, I published A White Paper to End Direct Provision and to Establish a New International Protection Support Service. Since then my Department has taken a series of steps to implement these reforms, with a view to completing them by the end of 2024.  A staff team has been established in my Department to lead the transition to the new model. Ending Direct...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: First 5, a whole-of-Government strategy for babies, young children and their families commits to increasing investment in early learning and childcare to up to €1 billion by 2028. A new funding model will be a key vehicle to ensure that such significant additional investment delivers for children, families and the State. An Expert Group was established in September 2019 to develop...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I have established a Programme Board, which is chaired by my Department, to oversee the implementation of the new system of supports and accommodation that will be offered to international protection applicants, as was outlined in A White Paper to End Direct Provision and to Establish a New International Protection Support Service and which I published in February of this year. This...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Strategies (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: National action in respect of autism is a commitment in the Programme for Government. Earlier this year, Minister Rabbitte announced an intention to develop an Autism Innovation Strategy with the aim of launching it in 2022. In Budget 2022, Minister Rabbitte and I secured €100,000 for the design and implementation of the Autism Innovation Strategy, and for awareness raising...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Legislative Measures (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The General Scheme of a Certain Institutional Burials (Authorised Interventions) Bill was developed to provide the required legal basis for intervention at the Tuam site and at other locations should similar circumstances come to light.  The Bill, which covers a range of complex issues, was published in December 2019. I referred the Bill to the Oireachtas for Pre-Legislative Scrutiny in...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am pleased to confirm the Government’s decision that the accommodation centres operated by the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) are to be independently monitored by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) for compliance with the National Standards for accommodation offered to people in the protection process. These standards were adopted by Government...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I was pleased to announce in Budget 2022 that Tusla will be allocated €899m for 2022, which is an increase of €41m over the amount allocated in Budget 2021. My allocation to Tusla for 2021 included €28m in core funding for DSGBV services and an additional €2m in contingency funding to support challenges of DSGBV service providers arising from...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child Protection (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Following publication of the Independent Review into illegal birth registrations, published in March 2021, I asked Professor Conor O'Mahony, the Special Rapporteur on Child Protection, to consider the very significant complexities and challenges, including the deep ethical issues, which arise in relation to the issue of illegal birth registrations, and to propose an appropriate course of...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Wards of Court (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I wish to advise the Deputy that I am not in a position to comment on these matters which are more appropriate for the attention of my Cabinet colleague, the Minister for Justice.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Assisted Decision-Making (2 Dec 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 (the 2015 Act) is an important piece of legislation that represents significant legal reform. It changes the existing law on capacity from the status approach of the wardship system to a flexible functional approach, whereby capacity is assessed on an issue and time-specific basis.  The Decision Support Service (DSS) is the organisation...