Results 81-100 of 12,956 for speaker:Louise O'Reilly

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Code (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 97. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he is aware of the fact that when custody is split between two separated or divorced co-parents, there is no mechanism by which both co-parents may each receive half of the children's allowance and the children's allowance instead universally goes to the mother regardless of circumstances; if he is aware of the financial...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Code (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: I want it to be clear before I put this question that I understand completely why the default is that child benefit goes to the mother. I absolutely respect that. I appreciate where it comes from. However, increasingly I have people coming into my office and contacting my office here in the Dáil to say that they are co-parents, children are not cheap, they split the bills 50:50 and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Code (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: I think so. I respect the reply that the Minister has given and I do not disagree necessarily. However, there are instances increasingly where parents can demonstrate, either with a mandate from the court or, indeed, with an informal arrangement, that they split the custody, the care and, more importantly, the bills - as I said, children are not cheap - 50:50. There is an unfairness there....

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Code (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: That is a sensible suggestion and one that I will take on board. I welcome the fact that the Minister is not opposed or hostile to the notion that we can look at it. I am not sure exactly what can be done but a conversation on this would be worthwhile at committee. I will engage with the committee Chair and with the Department.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Meals Programme (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: On a related note, in the context of waste within the hot school meals programme, I understand the relationship is between the school and the provider but the Minister's Department issues guidelines and those guidelines refer to things like portion size and calories. Will the Minister issue some guidelines regarding age appropriateness? A child of four does not eat the same portion size as...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: School Meals Programme (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: We have known for months that at least one in five parents skip meals or reduce their own portions to ensure their children have enough to eat. That underlines the importance of this programme. The Minister's colleague, An Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, has said he will personally intervene in the case of one school in Cork. I have just read a newspaper article in which he confirms...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: School Meals Programme (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: I will give the Minister another chance to tell me what the timeline was regarding when the Department knew about the service withdrawal and when the parents knew. This came as a bolt out of the blue. When you are living on a low income or a fixed income and you are trying to feed kids, you plan ahead. Parents had planned ahead on the basis that their kids would be getting a hot meal in...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Poverty Data (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: Is that the dashboard that will be published in early 2026?

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Poverty Data (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: Maybe when he comes back in, the Minister can tell me when the dashboard, which will allegedly contain a number of child poverty measurements, will be available. I know it will come from the child poverty unit so is not, strictly speaking, the Minister's Department, but I am sure it will be involved in it. Here is my difficulty. The consistent poverty rate for children is running at 8.5%,...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: School Meals Programme (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 84. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of schools under contract to a supplier (details supplied) under the hot school meals programme; the number of these schools that exclusively cater to additional educational needs; the number that are DEIS schools; the number that are DEIS+ schools; his plan to provide parents of children affected by the cessation...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: School Meals Programme (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: The question relates to the sudden cessation of an element of the hot school meals programme. I am specifically interested in the number of schools impacted that are DEIS schools or that exclusively cater for children with additional educational needs. The Minister has to be aware that this news came as a bolt out of the blue for parents. It seemed there was no contingency in place when it...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Poverty Data (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 82. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he is aware that the measurement 'consistent poverty' obscures the full number of people both at risk of poverty and in material deprivation; if he is aware that 'consistent poverty' fails to account for housing costs; if he will consider using both 'material deprivation' and 'at risk of poverty after housing costs' as...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Poverty Data (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: In keeping with my form, this question is fairly straightforward. It is to do with the use of the measurement of consistent poverty, which obscures the full number of people both at risk of poverty and in material deprivation. I hope the Minister tells me he will do what I am asking, which is to consider alternative measures. We all have an interest in tackling poverty but we cannot do...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Poverty Data (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: The problem is that the level of children in consistent poverty is currently 8.5%, that figure having doubled since 2024. However, the consistent poverty measure, in and of itself, does not account for housing costs. The Minister and I both know that for reasons of Government policy, housing costs are out of control. People who are at risk of poverty or living in consistent poverty are not...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 137. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if there is any process by which former partners who were divorced or separated from the bereaved ie, widows; widowers; surviving civil partners and surviving cohabitants, who are not covered by the bereaved partners pension may access compensation or financial assistance for funeral costs; the costs of raising the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Child Poverty (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 151. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he is aware of the ESRI's recent findings from their report on 'Poverty, Income Inequality and Living Standards in Ireland' that almost one in five children are at risk of poverty after housing costs; if he is aware of the ESRI's recent finding that almost half of lone parent families are at risk of poverty after housing...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 168. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he will consider removing means-testing for access to social protection supports e.g. fuel allowance and the household energy package, for people with an end-of-life cancer diagnosis; if he is aware that an organisation (details supplied) funded research in which people reported energy hardship in households where people...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Dublin Airport Authority (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 193. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department has received any complaints, disclosures, or internal correspondence regarding governance concerns, conflicts of interest, or procedural irregularities regarding the recent appointment of a chief executive at a company (details supplied); if he will confirm whether the advertised eligibility requirements were met and...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Dublin Airport Authority (25 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: 194. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will set out whether the recent appointment of a chief executive at a company (details supplied) was conducted in full compliance with statutory and advertised criteria; if his Department received or reviewed any complaints, disclosures, or governance evaluations indicating conflicts of interest, procedural irregularities, or...

Auto-Enrolment: Statements (24 Sep 2025)

Louise O'Reilly: That is fine. I did not want to take any time from my colleagues. That is all.