Results 8,041-8,060 of 11,729 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Direct Provision System (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Please note that the November 2021 figure of 1,640 people provided for the Parliamentary Question 466 of 14 December 2021 was provisional. It was given as an overall estimate for November and the full figure for November had not been finalised. The final figure for November 2021 was 1,636 people with a status or a permission to remain in IPAS accommodation. The Deputy will find a break down...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I propose to take Questions Nos. 489 and 495 together. The Department of Education Guidelines on the use of School Buildings Outside of School Hours, see www.assets.gov.ie/24484/ca5b1787db1b47f98de31f57e977dad0.pdf relate to the use of school facilities mainly for outside of school hours but which includes pre-schools. In line with these guidelines, the issue is a matter for the property...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am acutely aware of the sense of urgency in relation to the establishment of the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme. I have been given Government approval to bring forward legislation on the basis of the agreed proposals for the Scheme and my officials are working on drafting a General Scheme of a Bill as a matter of a priority. Once it is complete, I will bring the General...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy for bringing this poll to my attention. I am conscious of the need to deliver reforms to the Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School-Age Childcare (SAC) sector so that it meets the needs of parents, providers, those working in the sector, and, most importantly, children. The Programme for Government commits to reforming the early learning and childcare system to create one...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department contracts with early learning and childcare (ELC) services to provide ELC and provides a range of subsidy schemes which partly or totally cover the cost of the ELC provided to families. These schemes include ECCE, the free pre-school scheme and the NCS and CCSP which provide partial or full subsidies to family for ELC fees. Currently over 60% of funding for ELC is provided by...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: The matter of rates payments for early learning and care service providers does not fall under the remit of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth; my Department has no role in determining which properties are rateable. This is the responsibility of the Commissioner of Valuation. The Valuation Office falls under the aegis of the Department of Housing, Local...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency's Review of the Provision of Accommodation to Victims of Domestic Violence is complete. I intend to submit a joint Memorandum for the Information of the Government with my colleague Minister Mc Entee on the matter shortly, at which time Tusla will publish the Review. Tusla’s Accommodation Review has examined the current level of refuge...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I have not been notified of this case due to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, being independent in the performance of its functions. This independence is required by law as set out in Section 8(11) of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013, that 'the Agency shall be independent in the performance of its functions'. However, I have referred the question to Tusla for direct response to the...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Chair. I am grateful to my colleagues here for their assistance in compiling the detailed briefing for both myself and the committee. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the Revised Estimates for my Department for 2022, including that of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. As members will have seen from the briefing material provided to them last week, my...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: A significant additional investment overall in Tusla this year of more than €41 million extra follows on from the largest ever increase Tusla received last year of €66 million. Much of that focused on the recruitment of additional staff. As the Deputy said, there will be more than 280 new staff recruited to Tusla in 2022, with 100 of them front-line staff and 48 of them related...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I share the Deputy's concern about the very significant reliance by Tusla on private services, both for private residential and foster services. I think there is a role for them, but it should be to deal with sudden spikes in demand rather than being a central element of provision. Over the years, the private sector has had to become too great an element of the central provision of Tusla...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: On the cost of childcare, the Deputy is absolutely right that childcare is too expensive in this country. Parents pay too much and staff in childcare are not paid enough. That is something we are seeking to resolve. We are taking a step-by-step approach to the issue. We made the call that this year we would focus on supporting services to better pay their staff because we are seeing a...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy. The ability for the decision support service to be up and running in June is partly reliant on the committee and its good work in terms of getting pre-legislative scrutiny done quickly. I appreciate its support in that regard. I am absolutely committed to getting it up and running for June. The Deputy cited the 2021 figure for 2022. We have significantly increased...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: With regard to the allocation for actions under the institutional burials Bill, that legislation is clear in setting up a format of how to identify an area that will be subject to an agency created under the Bill to undertake the recovery and identification of remains. It is accepted by everybody that Tuam will be the first site where such an agency will investigate and the budget exists to...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy. On the medical card, the key issue with the enhanced medical card we will provide to 19,000 former residents is that it requires a legislative basis. That has been the case in terms of survivors of the Magdalen institutions and survivors of the industrial schools as well. We need a legislative basis for the provision of a large volume of medical cards. That is why we...

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: No, Chairman. I thank the Deputies for their questions. I also thank my officials for the support in terms of the briefing material.

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Under the current allocation, I do not have a budgetary line for interim payments right now. I will still continue to work with the committee and Deputies as we bring this legislation through.

European Union Regulation: Motion (3 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank all the Deputies for their contributions. To respond to Deputy Connolly on the breakdown, under the 2014-2020 scheme, Ireland had €55.5 million allocated. I have to hand a copy of the percentages for each of the areas. A total of 30% of the national allocation was spent on asylum, 32% on integration, 22% on return, 5.8% on solidarity and 10% on technical assistance. Under...

European Union Regulation: Motion (3 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the exercise by the State of the option or discretion under Protocol No. 21 on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, to accept the following measure: Regulation (EU) 2021/1147 of...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Disability Services (3 Feb 2022)

Roderic O'Gorman: Yes, happily.