Results 18,101-18,120 of 18,496 for speaker:Brendan Smith

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (6 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme 2000-2006 (EOCP) and the National Childcare Investment Programme 2006-2010 (NCIP), which are being implemented by the Office of the Minister for Children. The Group in question has recently been approved an interim NCIP staffing grant of €31,200 for the period to 31 December 2007. I...

Written Answers — Adoption Services: Adoption Services (6 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: The Adoption Board approved the guidelines for determining the eligibility and suitability of sole applicants in September, 2007. These guidelines were developed by the Adoption Board in co-operation with the HSE to guide its decision making when considering whether a sole applicant is eligible and suitable to adopt in accordance with Section 10 of the Adoption Act 1991 and Section 13 of the...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (6 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: The Department of Health and Children is currently drafting legislation to ratify the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. Considerable progress has been made in drafting this legislation and it is expected that the Bill will be published around the end of this year. Once the new legislation has been enacted it will be possible...

Written Answers — Inter-Country Adoptions: Inter-Country Adoptions (6 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: Adoption in Ireland is regulated by the Adoption Board, which is an independent, statutory body. The Board must make decisions regarding adoptions in line with its assessment of the situation in each country, and its responsibility to ensure that all activities are undertaken with the best interests of the child as a paramount consideration. The Adoption Board has discontinued the issuing of...

Written Answers — Departmental Correspondence: Departmental Correspondence (6 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: I am making arrangements for a reply to the letter in question to be issued in the near future.

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (1 Nov 2007)

Brendan Smith: The main supports the Government makes available to parents to assist them with their childcare costs are Child Benefit and the Early Childcare Supplement. The latter payment, which is in recognition of the higher childcare costs of pre-school children, is the responsibility of my Office, and it alone amounts to expenditure of over €400m in a full year. These payments are universal and...

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and social services which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Office has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: The National Childcare Census which was carried out in 1999/2000 reported that 2,027 paid staff, of which 732 were full time and 1,295 were part time, were employed by community services at that time. A further 1,235 trainee staff were employed in community services under the Community Employment and Jobs Initiative Schemes. To put these figures in context the Census also reported that...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: People who can afford to pay for places must pay. We must have a tiered payment system. It is our business to ensure that child care is available throughout rural parishes, towns and villages. The equal opportunities childcare programme has been phenomenally successful. The funding available to the Department next year for the child care subvention scheme, as part of the overall national...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: I welcome that.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: I have notes of Deputy Reilly's questions so may I respond to them?

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: I will deal with Deputy Ó Caoláin's last question first. I have indicated in Adjournment debates and in discussions with my Oireachtas colleagues that 2 November is not an absolute deadline, but we do not want this matter going on. We want to have the information in as soon as possible because the Department is anxious to analyse the material from different community groups around the...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: The Ceann Comhairle must be pleased to see that the equal opportunities childcare programme, which he introduced some years ago as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, has been acclaimed on all sides of the House. I have been in the House many times when people on the Opposition were less fulsome in their praise of that programme. I am glad that they now realise its value and the...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: Deputy Penrose rightly pointed out the success of the Ballynacargy one. I was there.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (31 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: Yes, the centre did, but unfortunately that is not uniform practice throughout the country. I want to have the data in the office for analysis. We organised regional seminars to ensure that the officials could outline the proposed scheme, saying that we sought the feedback of the practitioners, whether participants, managers or people in representative bodies. We said we wanted the data...

Written Answers — Child Care Services: Child Care Services (25 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme 2000-2006 (EOCP) and the National Childcare Investment Programme 2006-2010 (NCIP), which are being implemented by the Office of the Minister for Children (OMC). Under the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme 2000-2006 (EOCP), which is co-funded under the EU Social Fund (ESF), targeted support...

Hospital Services. (24 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: I thank Deputy Perry for raising this important issue. I am taking this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Harney, who is unavoidably absent.

Hospital Services. (24 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: Ministers have Government commitments. I welcome this opportunity to set out the current position on the restructuring of cancer services with particular reference to Sligo General Hospital. The HSE has appointed Professor Tom Keane as national cancer control director to lead and manage the establishment of the national cancer control programme. The delivery of cancer services on a...

Regional Airports. (24 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: I thank Deputy Michael D. Higgins for raising this issue. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Noel Dempsey, is unavoidably absent. The EU regulation to which the Deputy refers is of no relevance to the decision of Aer Lingus to discontinue its Shannon to Heathrow service. The regulation in question is Council Regulation (EEC) No. 95/93, as amended, on common rules for the allocation of...

Regional Airports. (24 Oct 2007)

Brendan Smith: The Minister for Transport, Deputy Dempsey, made it clear to the company that the decision ran counter to public policy in several respects, including the national spatial strategy, regional development and aviation policy——