Results 521-540 of 20,908 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Funding (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: I want to thank you for bringing this correspondence and request to my attention. As you may be aware, while this Department provides funding to the HSE to deliver specialist disability services either directly or via Section 38 and Section 39 Voluntary Organisations, it does not have any funding or governance relationship with individual organisations. While the strategy, policy...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Mother and Baby Homes (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: In October 2022 the Government made an Order under the Institutional Burials Act 2022 to direct an intervention at the site of the former Mother and Baby institution in Tuam, Co. Galway. In March 2023 the Office of Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam (ODAIT) was formally established and, in May 2023 the Director was appointed to oversee the excavation, recovery, analysis, identification...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Childcare Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: The Core Funding Scheme is designed to maximise the participation rates of services in the Scheme. The substantial level of investment offered through the Scheme includes a range of measures to:reduce costs for families,deliver improved wages for staff,improve service quality; andprotect the investment of taxpayers’ money so that the State can be assured it is being used for its...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Residential Institutions (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Employment Rights (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: I recognise the essential work carried out by staff in community and voluntary health and social care organisations, and the reliance of the State on these organisations to deliver supports and services. The agreement reached in March between Government Departments and unions, acknowledges that staff in section 39 funded organisations should be fairly paid for the vital work they do. ...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Maternity Leave (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1888 and 1900 together. I wish to acknowledge the challenges faced by couples pursuing surrogacy arrangements and reaffirm Government's commitment to recognising and supporting Irish families in all their diversity. The Programme for Government 2025 - Securing Ireland's Future commits to introducing paid surrogacy leave and my officials are examining...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Mental Health Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Mental Health Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Mental Health Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Data (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Monthly Childcare Costs Each year Pobal compiles data from Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Age Childcare (SAC) providers as part of the Early Years Sector Profile. Early Learning and Care The most recently published fee data for the 2023/24 programme year indicates that the average (median) weekly fee per child before any government subsidies was €190.00 for full day...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Child and Family Agency (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Thank you, Deputy, for your question. Tulsa’s role is to support and promote the development, welfare, education, and protection of children and young people. It is an organisation that operates in a very challenging and demand led environment. As an example, Tusla saw 96,666 child protection and welfare referrals in 2024: a 5% increase (4,742) since 2023 (91,924). My...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Childcare Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Budget 2026 is currently being considered by Government in the context of the annual estimates process, which officials in this Department are actively engaging in. Therefore, the Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to comment further at this stage.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Budget 2026 (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Budget 2026 is currently being considered by Government in the context of the annual estimates process, which officials in this Department are actively engaging in. Therefore, the Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to comment further at this stage.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Child and Family Agency (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Thank you, Deputy, for your question. Tulsa’s role is to support and promote the development, welfare, education, and protection of children and young people. It is an organisation that operates in a very challenging and demand led environment. As an example, Tusla saw 96,666 child protection and welfare referrals in 2024: a 5% increase (4,742) since 2023 (91,924). My...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Childcare Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare is a key priority of Government. This includes reviewing deposit rules across each early learning and childcare scheme. Under Core Funding, in which over 92% of the sector participate, providers agree that all deposits relating to the 2024/2025 Programme Year must be returned to the parent/ guardian once the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Parental Leave (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1899, 1925 and 1926 together. Significant improvements have been made in the entitlements to both paid and unpaid leaves in recent years, including by extending paid parent's leave for parents to allow them to spend more time with their baby during their earliest years. The Maternity Protection Act 1994 and the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Childcare Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Core Funding has seen consistent increased State investment to the sector year on year, and is set in year 4 to be worth over €390 million contingent on the establishment of new minimum rates of pay in the sector through updated Employment Regulation Orders. This is an increase of over 50% since the scheme began in September 2022 with an allocation of €259 million. In June,...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Data (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: In the interest of clarity, transparency and consistent reporting, I have defined a service that left Core Funding as any service that had a gap between contracts for Core Funding of 4 or more weeks. There are a number of reasons that a service might fall into this definition, for example a service could have withdrawn from the scheme, been removed from the scheme for breach or rules, or...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Data (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: Prior to the introduction of Core Funding, there was a wide variance of fees in the sector, with some services charging much lower fees than others while being held to the same fee freeze. To address this, and in addition to the 15% increase in Core Funding in year 3, a new Fee Increase Assessment process was introduced, whereby services could apply to increase their fees up to an approved...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Childcare Services (8 Sep 2025)

Norma Foley: The new maximum fee caps, applicable to all Partner Services from September 2025, will place a limit on the maximum fees that can be charged across all types of provision. Under these new fee caps, the fee for a full day place – of between 40-50 hours per week, the most common full day care operating hours – will be no more than €295 per week (before State subsidies...