Results 1,621-1,640 of 2,335 for speaker:Joe O'Brien

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Community Development Projects (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, the Government's five-year strategy to support the community and voluntary sector, was published in 2019. It is a whole-of-government strategy led by my Department and implemented collaboratively with the sector by means of the cross-sectoral group on local and community development. The strategy is important in seeking to strengthen the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Community Development Projects (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: When we refer to community and voluntary organisations, we are referring to a variety of groups that get some, if not all, of their funding from different Departments. That is what makes it difficult from our point of view. No one Department can offer any kind of overarching guarantee. We have been working to improve conditions for the programmes over which we have direct control. As...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Community Development Projects (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I will mention two things that might be useful in this space. For a couple of years, we have funded an all-Ireland standards body on community development work. That body is grappling with the issue I mentioned, namely, different understandings of community work. Community development is a very particular kind of work and that body is trying to get a little consistency across the board in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Drugs Strategy (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: My officials have regular engagement with the Department of Health regarding the national drugs strategy. My Department is represented on the strategic implementation group 4, SIG 4, reducing harm and supporting recovery. This group comprises sectoral, agency and departmental officials. The strategy is relevant to my Department's work in the community and voluntary sectors as it is vital in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Drugs Strategy (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I am aware that some drugs task forces, which do not sit fully in our Department, have vacancies in the community seats. It is vitally important that the community perspective is represented on the drugs task forces. The community side is particularly important because community engagement can play a huge preventative role in stopping people from falling in the wrong direction. It also...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Drugs Strategy (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I encourage community representative involvement in the task forces. I mentioned this earlier but I think it is relevant to what the Deputy is describing now too. The values and principles document is for every level of government too. It is agreed at a national level but it is relevant here too. That is an agreed document for engagement between the statutory, community and voluntary...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Medicinal Products (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I thank Deputy Colm Burke. I am taking this issue on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelley. The State spends substantial sums on medicines yearly with the goal of keeping people in Ireland healthy. This expense has grown to more €2.5 billion per year. Considering the financial consequences of funding medicines, it is important we have the best possible...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Medicinal Products (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I do not have an exact publication date but the Minister will publish the Mazars report imminently. The Government is committed to providing access to as many medicines as possible in as timely a fashion as possible from the resources available to it. The Minister and his Department have given careful consideration to the recommendations of the report and will work on the recommendations...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Health Services (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for raising the matter of the provision of Gallium scans in Cork. Gallium scans are a type of nuclear medicine and are used to find cancer, inflammation and infection in the body. Cancer services in Ireland are provided in line with the national cancer strategy 2017-26, which is overseen by the Department of Health and the HSE. Effective prevention, early...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Health Services (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I thank the Deputy. I have no additional information in my closing statement but I take his point in regard to the delays. That is certainly something I can feed back, as well as the specific question in regard to an application for one of the scanners. I will follow up on that.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Asylum Seekers (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: At the outset, I appreciate that the Deputy has been in contact with me about this. She asked a similar question earlier today. I will endeavour to find additional information rather than giving her the same answer she received today. Ireland has faced enormous challenges in the past year with the arrival of so many people seeking refuge here. The State and the people of Ireland have...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Asylum Seekers (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I look forward to reading the needs analysis when it has been completed. It could be of great use to us. I have travelled around the country a lot in the past 12 months to look at the various community responses to what has been going on. Healthcare comes up pretty much everywhere in terms of a pressing need. There have been additional resources provided to the local development company...

Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2021: Second Stage [Private Members] (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "That" and substitute the following: “Dáil Éireann resolves that the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2021 be deemed to be read a second time this day 18 months, to allow for time to further examine the introduction of 'disadvantaged socio-economic status' as an additional ground in the Equality Acts in the context...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: My Department's mission is to promote rural and community development and to support vibrant, inclusive and sustainable communities throughout Ireland. My Department's Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), is our country’s primary social inclusion programme. The current programme began on 1 January 2018 and will run until the end of 2023. The programme...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: My Department's mission is to promote rural and community development and to support vibrant, inclusive and sustainable communities throughout Ireland. The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), is our country’s primary social inclusion programme. The current programme began on 1 January 2018 and will run until the end of 2023. The programme provides...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Environmental Policy (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: A vibrant circular economy should be seen as an essential part of developing a sustainable, climate neutral, resource efficient and competitive economy. The Department of Environment, Climate and Communications recently published the first whole-of-Government Circular Economy Strategy and my Department has been playing its part in promoting the opportunities available in the circular economy....

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Policies (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: In 2019, my Department launched Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, the Strategy to support the community and voluntary sector in Ireland. The Strategy seeks to create a vibrant and active civil society, developing opportunities for all communities to contribute, engage and participate in decision-making and policy implementation. As part of the strategy implementation, in...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Schemes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 26 and 56 together. On 28 April 2021, my department, in collaboration with the Department of Transport, announced the introduction of a three-year pilot initiative to develop a scheme for the provision of high quality up-cycled bicycles and e-bikes as an alternative to the Cycle to Work Scheme model, for those on low incomes and/or those who are most...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), is our country’s primary social inclusion programme. It provides funding to tackle poverty and social exclusion at a local level through local engagement and partnerships between disadvantaged individuals, community organisations and public sector agencies. The funding for SICAP is subject to the annual budgetary...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Policies (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: My Department's mission is to promote rural and community development and to support vibrant, inclusive and sustainable communities throughout Ireland. My Department's Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), is our country’s primary social inclusion programme. SICAP seeks to tackle poverty and social exclusion at a local level through local engagement and...