Results 7,281-7,300 of 11,763 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: International Protection (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department has engaged over 750 properties to provide accommodation for Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection. In line with the Department’s commitment to substantially clear the backlog at the end of 2022, I temporarily re-assigned staff from other parts of the Department in December, doubling the size of the payments unit. The enlarged team approved more than 100 million...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Legislative Measures (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 532 and 533 together. Officials from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth have been in contact with the Department of Justice regarding section 19 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act. The issue is being considered as part of the ongoing review of the Equality Acts. Officials have been working on the report of the submissions to...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: Thank you for your correspondence. Further to your query regarding the contracted capacity of each individual centre, this information has been collated and will be forwarded to you through email.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department successfully secured €70 million under the revised National Development Plan (NDP) allocation for the Building Blocks Capital Programme, designed to meet current and long-term Early Learning and Childcare infrastructure needs. The Building Blocks Capital Programme includes three Pillars: - An Improvement Grant to improve energy efficiency standards, while also supporting...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: International Protection (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: As at 19 March 2023, there are 20,190 people accommodated in the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) system as a whole, compared with 10,000 at this time last year. The response to the ongoing migration crisis has entered an extremely difficult phase; with no apparent accommodation for International protection applicants (IPAs) at scale available into the short term to...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme will provide financial payments and a form of enhanced medical card to people who spent time as mothers or children in Mother and Baby or County Home Institutions. The institutions covered by the Scheme are those identified by the Commission of Investigation as having had a main function of providing sheltered and supervised ante and post-natal...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Bus Éireann (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: This is a matter for my cabinet colleague, the Minister for Transport.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: The National Childcare Scheme is designed to be flexible and acknowledge that childcare needs differ widely across different families. NCS subsidies are awarded as an hourly rate, along with a maximum number of weekly hours that the subsidy will be paid for. This means that if an applicant receives an award for 20 hours, the subsidy could be used for four half-day sessions (8am – 1pm)....

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am very conscious of the hurt that continues to be felt by survivors and family members of the people who died while resident in Mother and Baby institutions. One of the most tragic aspects of what happened in the former institution in Bessborough is the uncertainty regarding the burial place of many children who were resident there. The investigation of burial arrangements in Mother...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (28 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department provides some €73 million in current funding to support a range of youth services and opportunities which are delivered by youth organisations. This includes €46.3m for UBU Your Place Your Space which is a single youth funding scheme that targets disadvantaged young people with evidence informed interventions and services that will secure good outcomes. This...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am happy to be back in the House for a final debate on this important legislation, the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022. The Bill will improve workers' rights in five key ways. It introduces the right to request flexible working for carers and parents, so that mothers, fathers and carers can better balance their family life, work and caring responsibilities. It...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: Bearing in mind the warnings of the Ceann Comhairle, I will not respond to some of the general points, particularly about women in the workplace. I was going to outline the measures the Government has taken but I recognise we are only speaking about amendments, so I will control those remarks. Regarding Deputy Sherlock's question, that issue is dealt with in amendment grouping two, but...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: The process is set out in section 7 of the Bill. There is consultation, following which the Minister makes a determination on the rate, bearing in mind various criteria and amendments to the criteria we have just discussed. Another criterion is examining international comparisons. Deputy Sherlock referenced several international comparisons but there are not many because Ireland will be...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: These amendments revise the proposals in section 7 of the Bill and, in particular, the new section 13AA(7), which provides for the regulation-making power for the Minister in setting the level of pay for domestic violence leave. Amendment No. 2 proposes to amend section 13AA(1), which provides for the circumstances in which an employee is entitled to domestic violence leave. The amendment...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: It is important to note the proposals we are bringing forward and, it is hoped, will be passed into legislation after today's debate, have been welcomed. They have been welcomed by NGOs and organisations working in this sector and by the trade unions, some of which have campaigned for this for a long time. Thus, there is a strong welcome for the proposals. A number of the Deputies have...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy.

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: I do not feel I am being cagey at all. A number of important rights have to be initiated through this legislation. There is DSGBV leave. We have to make the changes to the availability to access breast-feeding breaks. We have to do significant work on the right to request remote working. A code of conduct has to be drawn up by the WRC. We have to do some work on flexible working and...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: These are amendments to ensure clarity and harmonised language in the drafting of the Bill. They ensure that the provisions can be clearly understood and there is continuity of language in the relevant provisions. These amendments do not substantively change any of the provisions referenced but merely ensure that the policy intention is clear. I recommend that these amendments be accepted.

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: A new subsection 13H inserts a review clause for the provisions under the new Part IIA of the Parental Leave Act 1998. These amendments make it explicit in the legislation that the review will include a consideration of whether the right to request flexible working should be extended to all employees. This has always been the intention in bringing forward these proposals but the provision...

Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: From the Seanad (29 Mar 2023)

Roderic O'Gorman: 7 o’clock Section 15 of the Bill amends section 27 of the Parental Leave Act which provides for the retention of records to be held by an employer in respect of the forms of leave and entitlements under the Act. Section 15 provides that those records relating to leave for medical care purposes and the right to request a flexible working arrangement be held for three years only....