Results 1,681-1,700 of 11,729 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Maternity Leave (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Maternity Protection Acts provide for up to 26 weeks paid maternity leave, and a further 16 weeks unpaid leave. Where a child is born prematurely, additional weeks may be available. There are currently no plans to extend this form of leave. There have been a number of developments in terms of leave for working parents in recent years, notably, in 2019, the extension of parental...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 630 and 639 together. The experiences of persons whose births were illegally registered, incorrectly registered or who were illegally adopted, were not excluded from the Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters). The Terms of Reference for the Commission were developed in accordance with the legislative...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Foster Care (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The National Treasury Management Agency (Delegation of Claims Management Functions) Order (S.I No. 571 of 2019) was made in November 2019. This order was made under section 9 of the National Treasury Management Agency (Amendment) Act 2000. This order means that there is state indemnity for all foster carers in respect of any claims for personal injury and/or third party property damage...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Public health advice in relation to Covid-19 and pregnancy is provided by the HSE at . This advice is based on the latest evidence available and is kept under review. It is important to note that, 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...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme is a universal pre-school programme available to all children within the eligible age range. A child must have reached 2 years and 8 months of age on or prior to 31 August of the relevant programme year to be eligible for the September start date and a child cannot turn 5 years and 6 months of age during the course of the ECCE programme...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child Protection (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I would like to highlight that I consider the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to be a central point of reference for the work of my Department. As we have just embarked upon a new reporting cycle, I am cognisant of the importance of examining the implementation of the UN Convention with due consideration of the last Concluding Observations. The State is obliged to submit regular...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: As part of its response to the Final Report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and Certain Related Matters, the Government has committed to establishing an ex-gratia Restorative Recognition Scheme to provide financial recognition to specific groups. An Interdepartmental Group (IDG) has been established to develop detailed proposals to bring back to Government. This...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Registration of Births (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 636 and 637 together. The review to which the deputy refers was commenced by my predecessor following Tusla’s discovery of evidence of illegal birth registrations in the files of the now defunct St. Patrick’s Guild Adoption Society. This review was commissioned to investigate whether there is sufficient reliable evidence of that practice in...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Commissions of Inquiry (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The recently published report of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation makes it clear that unmarried mothers and their children lived in a hostile and uncaring environment in the period the report examined. As a result, many mothers effectively had little to no choice other than to put their baby up for adoption. I am conscious that the Commission reviewed a major body...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am aware of discussions between Tusla and the organisation to which the Deputy refers, with regard to the agreed level of funding in 2021. The organisation is commissioned by Tusla to provide a service, for a specified funding allocation, covered by an annual Service Level Agreement (SLA). The details of any funding arrangement between Tusla and a third party, covered by an annual Service...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Domestic Violence Policy (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The response to Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (DSGBV) is a cross Departmental and multi-agency issue. Policy in this area is coordinated by the Department of Justice. Under the Child and Family Agency Act, 2013, Tusla, the Child and Family Agency has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of DSGBV. The Tusla review of emergency accommodation...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: My officials are currently working through the large volume of requests received for hard copies of the Commission's final report. I can confirm that the person whose details have been supplied by the Deputy will receive a copy of the report this week. It is likely that the report will have been delivered by the time the Deputy receives this reply.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Parental Leave (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019 introduced two weeks of paid Parents' Leave for each parent to be taken in the first year after the birth or adoptive placement of a child. Under proposals approved by Government in December 2020, each parent will be given an additional three weeks of paid Parents' Leave, and the period in which it can be taken will be extended to the first two...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme is a universal pre-school programme available to all children within the eligible age range. A child must have reached 2 years and 8 months of age on or prior to 31 August of the relevant programme year to be eligible for the September start date and a child cannot turn 5 years and 6 months of age during the course of the ECCE programme...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Internships (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I wish to inform the Deputy that my officials have asked the agencies under the aegis of my Department to respond directly to you on this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Parental Leave (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019 introduced two weeks of paid Parents' Leave for each parent to be taken in the first year after the birth or adoptive placement of a child. Under proposals approved by Government in December 2020, each parent will be given an additional three weeks of paid Parents' Leave, and the period in which it can be taken will be extended to the first two...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: In January, early learning and childcare services were restricted to children of essential workers and vulnerable children only, and the ECCE Programme was closed. As part of a careful and cautious reopening of priority sectors of society and the economy, these services will open for other groups of children throughout March on a phased basis. The ECCE Programme resumed for all participating...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: I wish to advise the Deputy that it would be inappropriate for me as Minister to comment on individual cases. I can confirm that the matter has been referred to Tusla, the Child and Family agency for appropriate attention. I have requested that Tusla provide the Deputy with confirmation that the matter is receiving attention. I have also requested that Tusla provide the Deputy with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Costs (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: Among the range of commitments in the Programme for Government, addressing affordability in early learning and care and school-age childcare is a priority. Annual investment in early learning and childcare has increased by 141% since 2015. This funding has been directed towards improving accessibility, quality and affordability. It has, for example, funded a second year of the free pre-school...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Parental Leave (10 Mar 2021)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019 introduced two weeks of paid Parents' Leave for each parent to be taken in the first year after the birth or adoptive placement of a child. Under proposals approved by Government in December 2020, each parent will be given an additional three weeks of paid Parents' Leave, and the period in which it can be taken will be extended to the first two...