Results 2,221-2,240 of 2,723 for speaker:Barry Andrews

Written Answers — Children in Care: Children in Care (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: Foster care is the main form of alternative care provided by the Health Service Executive for children in need of care and protection who cannot remain in their own homes. The provision of foster care is central to child welfare and protection. The HSE works closely with foster /relative carers and places a very high value on the role they play in the provision of care in a secure and...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: Funding for the provision of youth services is provided under Vote 41. I can confirm that this organisation is not funded under youth services programmes under my remit. As regards funding under the Comhairle na nÓg Development fund (also under Vote 41), this is allocated to the County/City Development Boards via the Local Authorities on an annual basis to enhance the development of...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoption: Inter-Country Adoption (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Adoption Bill, 2009, is designed to give force of law to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption. The new legislation, which incorporates the provisions of the Hague Convention, is designed to provide a framework to ensure that appropriate procedures have been followed and that all adoptions are effected in the best...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: It remains my intention to assist 20 named applicants to complete intercountry adoptions in respect of children from Vietnam on an exceptional basis and insofar as it is practicable in law. In communicating the decision to suspend the bilateral negotiations the Irish Government asked the Vietnamese Government whether it will be possible to proceed with these adoptions. The Vietnamese response...

Written Answers — Pre-school Services: Pre-school Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: I have responsibility for implementation of the free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which was introduced in January of this year. The objective of the ECCE scheme is to provide appropriate age related activities and programmes in a formal setting to children, in the year before they commence primary school. Targeting the pre-school year at a particular...

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.

Written Answers — Adoption Services: Adoption Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Information and Tracing Unit in the Adoption Board provides an advice and referral service for those seeking to trace or to obtain medical or personal information. This unit provides services directly to adoptees, natural mothers and birth families. It also works closely with the registered adoption societies and the HSE nationwide information and tracing services. Improvements to this...

Written Answers — Legislative Programme: Legislative Programme (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Office of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, in conjunction with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, is drafting the Heads for the National Vetting Bureau Bill. It is expected that the Heads of Bill will be submitted to Government in the coming weeks. Formal consultations have taken place with the Health Service Executive, An Garda Síochána and colleagues in...

Written Answers — Legislative Programme: Legislative Programme (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Final Report of the Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children deals with the rights of children under the Constitution, and the statute and case law concerning adoption, guardianship, care proceedings, custody and access to children. The issues raised in the Final Report are being carefully considered by the Government. The Government decided that the matter should be...

Written Answers — Children in Care: Children in Care (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The HSE seeks to implement an equity of care policy in relation to all service provision to ensure that all children and young people receive the same level of care as that afforded to children who are citizens of this country. Appropriate care services at local and national level are being developed, working in partnership with NGO's, private agencies and HSE staff. The immediate and the...

Written Answers — Children in Care: Children in Care (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Government's Implementation Plan on the Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, 2009 recommended that the Health Act 2007 be commenced to allow the Social Services Inspectorate in HIQA to undertake independent inspection of all children's residential centres and foster care. The Department is currently reviewing the existing regulations relating to inspections in order to...

Written Answers — Foreign Adoptions: Foreign Adoptions (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Adoption Bill, 2009, is designed to give force of law to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption. The new legislation, which incorporates the provisions of the Hague Convention, is designed to provide a framework to ensure that appropriate procedures have been followed and that all adoptions are effected in the best...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The National Child Care Information System (NCCIS) is a Health Service Executive project which has been included in the National Service Plan for 2010. I share the view of the Ombudsman for Children that access to improved information based on standardised business processes across the child welfare and protection service within the HSE is essential in terms of improving the monitoring,...

Written Answers — Adoption Services: Adoption Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The matters raised by the Deputy relate to an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Adoption Board which is an independent quasi judicial statutory body. I have asked the Board to consider these issues with a view to providing the information requested directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (1 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: I have discussed the proposal to put in place a hot-line for missing children that is operational in some EU Member States with members of charitable organisations and non-governmental organisations with a view to providing some level of service. I will keep the Deputy informed of developments in this regard.

Adoption Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: One of criteria regarding eligibility for adoption is that the person to be adopted must be under 18 years of age. The issue of the adoption of persons aged over 18 years of age originally arose in the context of children who remain in long-term foster care, as the Deputy has said, with the same family for a considerable period of time but who, for one reason or another, are not eligible to...

Adoption Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The Deputy is right that we are dealing with a blockage in regard to children who would be otherwise adoptable but are in long-term foster care. The categories for which the Deputy is seeking to provide additional rights would normally be adoptable but for the 1988 interpretation. I remember the Deputy raising this issue at the all-party meetings of the Joint Committee on the Constitutional...

Adoption Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The adoption authority will not be involved in the appointment of guardians and this Bill does not provide for the appointment of a guardian to a child. Section 17, which deals with placement, provides that the appointment of a guardian is done by way of an application under section 6A or section 11(4) of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1964. Otherwise, as set out in section 3 of this Bill,...

Adoption Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The circumstance Deputy Shatter has raised is not adoption. It is described in the various annual reports of the Adoption Board and is a situation in which the rights of the natural father are not extinguished, which is how we understand adoption in this country. The Deputy is seeking another legal mechanism and while I do not disagree with the view of the Adoption Board in this matter,...

Adoption Bill 2009 [Seanad]: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jun 2010)

Barry Andrews: The proposed amendment suggests inserting "in the English language" into the definition of Hague Convention in section 3 of the Bill. This is considered unnecessary as it is considered a given that the text of the Hague Convention referred to in the Bill is the English language version. For that reason, I do not accept the amendment.