Results 121-140 of 330 for children speaker:Michael McNamara

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Infection Rate among Healthcare Workers (Resumed) (21 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...robust immunisation campaign, Mr. McCallion came before the committee last Friday and he told us there is to be a ramping up of the immunisation campaign, and that there will be free immunisation of children aged between two and 12 years. Earlier, Dr. Kelleher mentioned children being super spreaders. In any event, there will be free vaccinations for children aged between two and 12...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: People with Disabilities (17 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I refer to Deputy Moynihan's suggestion that we bring in the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. We do not really know what we will be doing in September. Obviously, anything we propose is subject to the agreement of the Business Committee but it does make sense to bring in the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and the Minister for Health to deal with the broader issues of the response to...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Waiting Lists and Screening (17 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Is Dr. McCauley referring to children presenting with Covid or children presenting with influenza?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Waiting Lists and Screening (Resumed) (17 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...plans to introduce a vaccination programme for ordinary people who are not healthcare workers, do not have an underlying condition, are not normally recommended to take the flu vaccine and are not children?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Waiting Lists and Screening (Resumed) (17 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: In fairness, Mr. McCallion is saying that the public health advice that he and the HSE have received is that it is necessary to vaccinate children between the ages of two and 12 as well as other people who are deemed to be at high risk, namely, healthcare workers, the elderly, people with underlying conditions, etc. He said the necessary percentage equated to 1.5 million doses.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (10 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...Mr. Ó Foghlú. At a recent meeting, Mr. Alan Mongey of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals said something that surprised me slightly. He said that, if parents took their children abroad during the summer, they should not expect the school gates to be open to them in September. Will Mr. Ó Foghlú confirm that, if children go on holidays in...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (10 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...in my understanding of what was said to Deputy Costello earlier, it is enrolment at a particular time that determines the number of teachers. That is an acute issue in smaller schools. It is not how many children are in the school at the beginning of September that counts, but the number that were enrolled previously. Is that correct?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (10 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Is the number of teachers every school will have in September next already set, regardless of whether parents send their children or whether they decide to hold them back for a year?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I thank Mr. Clerkin for coming in. In his opening presentation, he referred to the need to balance the safety of those who work in the school environment and the right to education of children. Does he think that balance has been properly struck up to now in this debate in considering the issue of reopening schools?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ..., vulnerable communities and Hispanic and black communities falling further behind in achievement in the US. We have immigrant communities, new Irish communities and, in the past couple of decades, children coming to school unable to speak English and being at a disadvantage because of that, as well as being at a cultural disadvantage because they come from a very different background and...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: The American Academy of Paediatrics recently produced a report, stating: This, in turn, places children and adolescents at considerable risk of morbidity and, in some cases, mortality. Beyond the educational impact and social impact of school closures, there has been substantial impact on food security and physical activity for children and families. That is a report based on the...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Turning to children with special education needs, one of the main steps that is taken by the State to provide for their needs is the provision of special needs assistants. The State has struggled historically to provide sufficient SNAs and to sufficiently incentivise people to become SNAs. Notwithstanding the fact that we are facing a return to school now, they will not be able to distance...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: It has been a while since I went to primary school. I was an only child, so I learned to socialise there. Patterns have changed considerably since Mr. Clerkin or I was in primary school. Children are typically dropped off earlier and stay much later in primary schools in after-hours homework clubs, etc., because of changing work patterns in society. What is going to happen with early...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (Resumed) (7 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...not a criticism of Mr. Clerkin, because it is not the IPPN's sole responsibility in any way. Many parents, however, are worried about what the situation will be like at the end of August when their children return to school and whether they will then be able to return to the workforce. I am not saying it is for schools to adapt to the workplace but there will have to be a lot of...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Impact of Covid-19: Education – Return to School and School Transport (2 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...is not clear what the priority will be for who will be connected first. Inevitably, some people will be connected first and some will be connected last. Is there a case to be made for the homes of children who may need to be schooled at home or who may need access to good quality Internet for an educational purpose that was not anticipated 12 months ago?

Taoiseach a Ainmniú (Atógáil) - Nomination of Taoiseach (Resumed) (27 Jun 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...what is in the programme for Government and what is not, I ask that he govern in the republican tradition, pursue the prosperity of the whole nation and all its parts and, especially, cherish all the children of the nation equally, especially those whose special needs have been relegated and who have been left to their own devices in recent weeks.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Special Needs Education: Impact of Covid-19 (25 Jun 2020)

Michael McNamara: I completely agree with where the Deputy is going but I remind him that this session is specifically about the response to Covid-19, rather than the broader issue of services for children with additional needs.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Special Needs Education: Impact of Covid-19 (25 Jun 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...very difficult for everybody. Businesses have lost money, but they will be able to make that money back in the future. People have put on weight, but they will be able to lose it. However, some children are not just failing to develop - they are regressing. My daughter was born recently and it is amazing to watch her develop. I cannot imagine what it must be like to watch one's child...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Special Educational Needs: Impact of Covid-19 (Resumed) (25 Jun 2020)

Michael McNamara: What constitutes adequate PPE? Can children safely be in the one space at the one time? We should know now where we are going on these issues. There is a significant amount of PPE in the country, with a sizeable stock warehoused very close to where I come from in east Clare. Availability of hand sanitiser should not be a difficulty. I am sure it would not be beyond the capability of a...

Climate Action and Low Carbon Development: Statements (17 Jun 2020)

Michael McNamara: ...Ireland, including the mid-west, who may have spent more time in one another's company over the past three months than they had envisaged. There are parents who are desperate for some place to bring their children for a day. I say to the Minister, who is tasked with preserving and presenting Ireland's heritage, where better for those parents to bring their children than a heritage...