Results 1,721-1,740 of 2,723 for speaker:Barry Andrews

Child Abuse. (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: A Garda inquiry concerns criminal justice. The Deputy asked whether all dioceses should be referred to the commission, if I am clear on his question. The Deputy must remember the Dublin commission looked at only a sample of cases, so it was not an effort to try to bring perpetrators to book. Rather, it was an exercise to try to find out what went wrong, who was responsible and what we can...

Child Abuse. (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: On the second issue, it is a matter for the DPP and the Garda and I do not have a role in that regard. With regard to the social workers, while there have been 100 appointments this year, some of these are temporary staff who have been made permanent and some staff have taken retirement, so the net additional position is approximately 50. Therefore, there is a further number to be gained and...

Child Abuse. (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: I wish to be clear that while an out-of-hours service was the key recommendation, the conclusion of the report was that it would not have saved those lives. We have to be clear about the context in which this recommendation was made. Nevertheless, as a result of that, in June 2009, the HSE with the Garda began operating a protocol for a place of safety under section 12 of the Child Care...

Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: The report on the study of Children as Carers being undertaken by the Child and Family Research Centre at NUI, Galway has not yet been completed. A final draft is expected in early 2010.

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: The Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children (JCCAC) submitted an interim report to the Oireachtas on 11 September, 2009 which recommended that the Government establish a statutory scheme for Garda vetting, for the regulation of the collation, exchange and deployment of hard and soft information for the purpose of child protection. This legislation is a priority for the...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: Responsibility for Youth Affairs transferred from the Department of Education and Science to the Office of Minister for Children and Youth Affairs with effect from 1 January 2009. The integration of Youth Affairs Unit into my Office is providing continuity of service and operational experience as well as opening up greater opportunities for a more integrated, cohesive and effective approach...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (8 Dec 2009)

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

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: The Office of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs became aware of concerns around aspects of the operation of the mediation agency in question upon receipt of the 'draft Final Report' of the 'Assessment of the Adoption System in Vietnam' by International Social Service (ISS) in mid August this year. The Adoption Board were contacted immediately upon receipt of the draft report. The...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (8 Dec 2009)

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 (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: There are currently no bilateral agreements in place between Ireland and other countries for the purpose of intercountry adoptions. 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...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (8 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: The arts have a valuable role to play in the lives of young people as a means of expression in the development of the individual. To support the engagement of young people in the arts in Ireland, the Youth Affairs Unit of my Office grant-aids a number of initiatives including the National Youth Arts Programme (NYAP) which it co-funds with the Arts Council and which is delivered by the...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (8 Dec 2009)

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 — Health Services: Health Services (8 Dec 2009)

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

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (8 Dec 2009)

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

Written Answers — Preschool Services: Preschool Services (9 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: I have responsibility for the implementation of the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which is being introduced in January 2010. Children will qualify for the free pre-school year where they are aged between 3 years 3 months and 4 years 6 months at the start of each academic year. The application of the age range is being interpreted as generously as possible, to include...

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

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

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (9 Dec 2009)

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 — Juvenile Offenders: Juvenile Offenders (10 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: I presume the Deputy is referring to the Garda Public Attitudes Survey 2008 which was published over a year ago in October 2008. The full survey is available on the website of An Garda Síochána (www.garda.ie). While 76% of respondents said they regarded juvenile/teenage crime as a major problem in the country as a whole, it is interesting to note that only 27% of the respondents saw...

Written Answers — Child Protection: Child Protection (10 Dec 2009)

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

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (10 Dec 2009)

Barry Andrews: The National Youth Work Advisory Committee met on five occasions in 2009. The current Committee was appointed by the Minister for Education and Science in 2007 for a period of five years under Sections 17 and 18 of the Youth Work Act, 2001 and comprises 32 members with equal representation from the voluntary youth work sector and statutory agencies. In addition, a Chairperson was appointed by...