Results 18,741-18,760 of 21,128 for speaker:James Reilly

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Preschool Services (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The provision of pre-school services is regulated the Child Care (Pre-School Services) (No 2) Regulations. These Regulations require that a person carrying on a pre-school service shall ensure appropriate vetting of all staff, students and volunteers who have access to a child. The Department of Justice and Equality has responsibility for the vetting legislation which sets out the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I am pleased to have the opportunity to update the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children in its quarterly review of my Department’s work. The last occasion on which I met the committee for this purpose was 13 November 2014. Of course, I met a number of members on 3 February at a meeting of the select committee that considered the 2015 Revised Estimate for Vote 40 -...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Hear, hear.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I thank the Chairman. I will begin with Deputy Troy's questions. He mentioned the Association of Childhood Professionals and the recent rally, to which I alluded in my opening remarks. He specifically mentioned a reduction in the early childhood care education, ECCE, programme of €2 million. This is directly due to the reduction in the numbers who are availing of it because of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Sorry, if I may, nobody interrupted the Deputy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I will defend myself too.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Well done. The low pay commission is looking at the minimum wage, not sectoral pay, so that is not appropriate. Deputy Troy mentioned the Children First legislation and the sanctions therein. That is currently being progressed and will come back very shortly. In regard to the adoption and information tracing Bill, I reiterate what I said in the Seanad yesterday which, I am sure, Senator...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Just to clarify something for Senator Burke, the Senator has made these points on numerous occasions about the particular facility he mentioned. Where people who have fallen out of school are being encouraged back into an educational setting using volunteers, he asks why the schools are getting the capitation fees when these children are not attending school, and why that money cannot be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I have given my response. I am perfectly happy to approach the Department of Education and Skills in the context of the school completion programme. It may be that we should join with the Irish Youth Justice Service too in terms of Garda diversion and so forth and gather its views on it. We will pursue it. Deputy Ó Caoláin spoke about having a single inspection service for the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Children and Youth Issues: Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (19 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I have met with Geoffrey Shannon on a number of occasions and I think the Secretary General has too. We will be meeting him again in respect of this specific issue.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Early Child Care Education (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The Government provides €260 million - in excess of quarter of a billion euro - annually to a number of child care support programmes that assist parents with the cost of child care. This figure includes €175 million provided annually to support the universal free preschool provision under the early childhood care and education programme. These programmes are, of course, in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Early Child Care Education (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I do not wish to be overly-confrontational but Deputy Troy has some neck talking about this Government having taken four years to do this work given the net effect of Fianna Fáil in government for 14 years was a reduction from €480 million to €175 million in child supports. This Government has successfully maintained this level of support despite the now well-known fiscal...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Early Child Care Education (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Deputy Troy pointed out that the child care providers have to pay rates. They always had to pay rates. Nothing has changed in that regard except that not-for-profit child care providers have been afforded some relief by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. He pointed out some of the measures that were put in place as other things were taken away, which I pointed out.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Early Child Care Education (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Then the party ran away and left no money in the coffers to sustain them. It is all very well to allude to services being put in place that were put in place with money the party knew it would not have, did not have and could not sustain, and then try to blame others who come after who try to fix the economy for all the ills in the service. This group is a very important one. I believe...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Preschool Services (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The early childhood care and education programme is a free and universal programme to which all children, including children with special needs, have access. The objective of the programme is to make early learning in a formal setting available to eligible children before they commence primary school. Participating child care services are, therefore, expected to provide age-appropriate...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Preschool Services (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: Having read out the answer I do not believe the Government is dragging its heels. It has made this service universally available to children in the eligible age category. It makes particular allowance for those with special needs through the mechanisms I have outlined, by allowing them to split the year over two years and by not having an upper age limit for children with special needs,...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Preschool Services (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The interdepartmental group seeks to clarify the goals for public investment, including ensuring that services are of a high standard. It will review current investment in light of these goals to ensure any gaps and duplication are addressed and programmes are a good fit to achieve policy goals. The issue of workforce sustainability is also important in this regard. The group will analyse...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Child Care Services Funding (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The Department supports the provision of early childhood care and education by providing in the region of €260 million annually to provide for three child care support programmes that make child care services more affordable and ensure that more than 100,000 children have access to quality child care. This high level of support has been maintained despite the difficult budgetary...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Child Care Services Funding (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: I thank the Deputy for his comments. I believe we are all on the same page on this issue. All the international and national evidence we have indicates clearly that investment in this area yields the greatest financial return. More important, it adds a value that is incalculable to children and society in general. The Deputy is quite right. It has a major influence on educational...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Child Care Services Funding (24 Feb 2015)

James Reilly: The second free preschool year is accommodated and planned in the document produced by Government, "Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures", to be delivered on fully by 2020. It is not in the programme for Government. That does not mean we are not committed to it but it is a question of the timeframe around which it can be delivered. The second preschool year would cost €175 million, at...