Results 2,201-2,220 of 11,744 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Officials in my Department regularly use new and existing data to forecast the supply of, and demand for ELC and SAC. For the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, my Department prepares an annual forecast of demand for ECCE places. Estimates are derived using a range of administrative and survey data sources. The total eligible cohort is derived from birth data provided by...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Qualifications (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am committed to the further development of career pathways for those working in early learning and care and school-age childcare services. Establishing clear and supported career pathways is important both in improving recruitment and retention of staff, and in enhancing practitioners' continuing professional development, both of which support better outcomes for children. First 5, the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Funding (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: In line with the commitments in the National LGBTI+ Inclusion Strategy, my Department continues work on mapping of LGBTI+ community services. In November 2020, 29 projects around the country received funding to a total amount of €700,000 under the 2020 LGBTI+ Communities Services Fund. The fund comprises two schemes – one dealing with community services, and the other with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I understand the distress which development proposals associated with the Bessborough site have caused for those most centrally connected to this issue. I share the concerns raised by survivor groups associated with in Bessborough in relation to the risks associated with this proposed development. As the Deputy will be aware, I do not have statutory powers under the Planning and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Domestic Violence (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Since its formation, this Government has made clear that tackling domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is a key priority. The Programme for Government contains a commitment to investigate the provision of paid leave and social protection provision to victims of domestic violence with a view to establishing a statutory entitlement to paid domestic violence leave. My Department is...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) of my Department has embarked upon a series of actions, planned for the short to medium term which will build upon existing work to ensure the recommendations of the OCO will be implemented as quickly as possible. The key priority will be to move all remaining children and families still residing in congregated hotel style...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 86 and 225 together. I am very conscious of the need for significant improvement in pay and working conditions for practitioners in early learning and childcare services. The level of pay they receive does not reflect the value of the work they do for children, for families and for the wider society and economy. As the State does not employ early...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Carer's Leave (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Section 6 of the Carer's Leave Act 2001 provides that employees with at least one year's continuous service are entitled to take up to 104 weeks of carer's leave to enable them to provide full-time care and attention to a person who is in need of such care. Carer's Leave is unpaid but an employee may also qualify for Carer's Benefit or Carer's Allowance, the payment of which is a matter for...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Ministerial Responsibilities (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Following the RTÉ Prime Time report which aired on the 25th February 2021, I undertook to meet with those who shared their stories and experiences on the programme. These meetings took place on the week of the 29th March 2021. A range of issues were discussed at the meetings, including access to information and the Inter Departmental Group on Restorative Recognition, setup to report on...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) of my Department maintains statistics on the number of residents housed in each centre on a weekly basis. However, as I am sure you will appreciate, the configuration of each centre and the room makeup is constantly changing as new applicants are placed in accommodation, people with a protection status or permission to remain move to...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: United Nations (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international treaty that establishes two procedures aimed at strengthening the implementation and monitoring of the Convention. The first is an individual communications procedure allowing individuals to bring petitions to the Committee claiming breaches of their rights; the second is an...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Emergency Accommodation (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The response to Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (DSGBV) is a cross Departmental and multi-agency issue with overall policy coordinated by the Department of Justice. Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of DSGBV. Tusla is scheduled to publish its Strategic Review of Emergency Domestic Violence Accommodation...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mental Health Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Young people and their mental health have been severely affected by the restrictions to protect public health during this pandemic. This has been borne out by multiple mental health research reports including, a recent national consultation commissioned by my Department, called How's Your Head. In recognition of the vital role played by youth work in providing such support to young...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: It is important to note that public health advice in relation to Covid-19 and pregnancy is provided by the HSE. This advice is based on the latest evidence available and is continuously reviewed. At this point in time, the HSE has not categorised pregnant women as falling within the High Risk or Very High Risk groups in relation to Covid-19. My Department does not have an employer role in...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Probation and Welfare Service (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: As the Deputy will be aware from a previous parliamentary question on this topic, Tusla does not collate national information about the number of children with an active case with the probation service who are also subject to a care order. This information will be known at a local area level by the child’s social worker and the Principal Social Worker. Tusla staff and Probation Staff...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: In the Programme for Government we committed to establishing a dedicated agency, Childcare Ireland. The Programme specifies that Childcare Ireland's role will be to assist in expanding high quality early learning and care (ELC) and school age childcare (SAC), best practice and innovation in community and private settings, along with developing career paths for ELC and SAC staff, and for...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Disability Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I wish to advise the Deputy that I am not in a position to comment as responsibility for disability services has not yet transferred to my Department. These matters are more appropriate for the attention of my Cabinet colleague, the Minister for Health. The recent cyber attack on the Department of Health has rendered them unable to access their IT systems.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The ECCE Programme was established in 2010 to provide children with their first formal experience of early learning prior to commencing primary school. When first introduced, the ECCE Programme was delivered over 38 weeks in a given ECCE Programme Year and children were required to be between the ages of 3 years and 2 months and 4 years and 7 months in September in the year they enrolled. In...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am assuming that the Deputy is referring to the supporting documentation required as part of the re-registration process for early years services, which, for most services, was due to take place at the end of 2019. Services were required to provide Fire Safety Certificates as part of the re-registration process. Many services have already re-registered and submitted a Fire Safety...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Immigration Policy (27 May 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 230 and 231 together. The Migrant Integration Strategy is the central policy framework adopted by Government to promote the integration of all migrants who are legally in the State. It contains 76 targeted actions aimed at promoting diversity and inclusion across all aspects of Irish society, including increased focus on social inclusion measures and...