Results 1,481-1,500 of 2,723 for speaker:Barry Andrews

Written Answers — Adoption Services: Adoption Services (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: I acknowledge that persons applying for inter-country adoption are experiencing delays as regards waiting times for assessment. Requests for assessment for inter-country adoption are continuously increasing and Ireland currently has one of the highest rates for inter-country adoption in Europe. When an enquiry is received by the Health Service Executive regarding an application for...

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (9 Jul 2009)

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

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (9 Jul 2009)

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

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware I have responsibility for the implementation of the new scheme to provide a free Pre-School year of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) which was announced recently by the Minister of Finance. The ECCE is being introduced from January 2010 as a free scheme to benefit children in the key developmental period prior to commencing school. To enable the maximum...

Written Answers — Adoption Services: Adoption Services (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy is aware, the Adoption Bill, 2009, which will give force of law to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption, was published on 23 January, 2009. The Bill, which recently passed all the stages in the Seanad, will continue to be prioritised by the Government for its passage through the Oireachtas. Under the proposed...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: My Office has been allocated €750,000 from Dormant Accounts for the development of a structured programme of youth cafes in 2009. Final decisions on the operation in 2009 of the programme, including those regarding the level and priority of financial supports, are still under consideration. At this stage, the focus of my Office is to bring greater coherence to the approach taken to date,...

Written Answers — Child Protection: Child Protection (9 Jul 2009)

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

Seanad: Defamation Bill 2006 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] : Report and Final Stages (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: I heard it in my office. Everyone is listening to the Senator.

Seanad: Defamation Bill 2006 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] : Report and Final Stages (9 Jul 2009)

Barry Andrews: I think it was meant as a compliment.

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which provides a free Pre-School year to eligible children and which will be introduced in January 2010. Children will qualify for the free pre-school year where they are age between 3 years 3 months and 4 years 6 months in September each year. The...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: I propose to take Questions Nos. 303, 304, 308, 311, 312, 347, 348, 378, 398, 405, 412, 424, 439, 447, 449, 461, 462, 463 and 465 together. The issue of intercountry adoption and, in particular, the negotiation of a new bilateral agreement with Vietnam has been given considerable priority by my officials over the last year. I have advised the House and parent/prospective adoptive parent...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which is being introduced in January 2010. Services participating in the scheme in January 2010 will accept enrolments over the coming months. The ECCE scheme is a general one and services participating will be required to make reasonable...

Written Answers — Teaching Qualifications: Teaching Qualifications (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which provides a free Pre-School year to eligible children and which will be introduced in January 2010. It is a requirement of the ECCE scheme that pre-school leaders in services participating in the scheme hold a qualification in childcare which is...

Written Answers — Child Abuse: Child Abuse (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: I have seen a copy of the correspondence to which the Deputy has referred. Guidance on the reporting to the HSE of an allegation of abuse in a school or elsewhere is set out under the Children First National Guidelines for the Protection and Welfare of Children. In 2001 and 2004 the Department of Education and Science issued Child Protection Guidelines and Procedures to all primary and...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the National Childcare Investment Programme (NCIP) 2006 - 2010 under which capital grant funding is made available to community and commercial childcare providers for the development of childcare facilities. Applications for capital grant funding under the NCIP were processed, in the first instance, by the City and County Childcare...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy is aware I have responsibility for the National Childcare Investment Programme (NCIP) 2006 - 2010 under which the Community Childcare Subvention Scheme (CCSS) is implemented. I understand that an application for CCSS funding for the service in question has been approved, subject to sufficient funding being available to the Scheme in 2010. A letter issued to the group on the...

Written Answers — Child Abuse: Child Abuse (16 Sep 2009)

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

Written Answers — Sexual Offences: Sexual Offences (16 Sep 2009)

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

Written Answers — Child Care: Child Care (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new Early Childhood Care and Education scheme (ECCE) which provides a free Pre-School year to eligible children and which will be introduced in January 2010. It is also a condition of the pre-school year that services who wish to participate will be required to provide an appropriate educational programme for...

Written Answers — Rights of the Child: Rights of the Child (16 Sep 2009)

Barry Andrews: I propose to answer Questions Nos. 392 and 413 together. Planned expenditure levels for my Department will be considered as part of the Estimates and Budgetary process for 2010. This will include consideration of the report of the Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes, and the decisions on all of the issues arising will be a matter for the Government. It would...