Results 18,781-18,800 of 20,459 for speaker:Frances Fitzgerald

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: Senator Alex White made a really good point that we have the opportunity to change the language used. I urge the Minister of State to consider this. We all know how much courts have to learn about how they treat different groups of people, whether children, women, sexual assault victims or otherwise. The courts must learn and change. This is an opportunity to change the language we use...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: What agencies are supplying a service under section 38 of the 1994 Act and how many children are being cared for by agencies other than the Health Service Executive? The Minister of State is correct that a clear line of accountability and responsibility from an outside care provider to the HSE is required in the circumstances set out.

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: The reason I raised my earlier question is that care services have been privatised in other countries. Care services could also be provided by a voluntary organisation or private company here and the idea of using private companies to provide such services has been discussed. I welcome clarification that children are not being cared for by organisations other than the HSE. If, however,...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I move amendment No. 8: In page 24, to delete lines 22 to 32. Questions arise about the importance of consultation with a child in special care or his or her parents and-or guardians. The amendment relates to the determination by the HSE that a child requires special care. Section 23F(4) allows the HSE to bypass consultation with the child, a parent and-or guardian and a person acting in...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I understand what Senator O'Malley means. We all accept that the family can be a very dangerous place for a child. There is no doubt about that. Equally, information we have received on foot of recent scandals has highlighted that care situations can be dangerous as well. That is the reality. Sometimes the resources are not there. We have seen injustices. In effect, children in care...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: There is some protection. I ask the Minister of State to see if it would be possible to build in a consultation with somebody acting in loco parentis, if such a person is available. It would be worth changing the Minister of State's proposal, whereby the HSE will not have to consult with any person at all, so that it is not so total. I accept that there may well be circumstances in which...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: Yes.

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: Yes.

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: This section deals with the functions of the HSE when providing special care. Once a special care order has been made, it gives the HSE far-reaching powers to carry out various medical or psychiatric assessments, while it also deals with the issue of the passport. There is no requirement on the HSE to apply to the court to dispense with parental consent. These powers would appear to exclude...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I move amendment No. 16: In page 44, line 47, to delete "detained" and substitute "housed". I am not going to go over the ground we have already covered about language. It is the same point. I support what my colleagues have said and ask the Minister of State and his officials to examine this matter to see if we can use terminology that is more appropriate than "detained".

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: Part of this section deals with the right to representation and the appointment of a guardian ad litem. We have already raised the point about the voice of the child being heard as regards making a special care order. There is no automatic right to any representation for the child, either through the guardian ad litem or a solicitor. The question is whether the child should be provided...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I thank the Minister of State for his comments. Clearly, he will consider this issue again when he has had a chance to examine the implications of the report about which he has spoken. The issue is automatic representation. I am heartened by the Minister of State's statement that a guardian ad litem is appointed in all special care cases, but the point with regard to the amendment is that...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: We are talking about a serious situation in which a care order is made against a child. If this issue is not dealt with pending the resolution of disputes about expenses or other issues that arise, perhaps it should be clarified in advance of the passing of the Bill in order that the Minister of State can make a decision in the legislation about the role of a guardian ad litem. Perhaps the...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I understand.

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I move amendment No. 24: In page 63, to delete lines 5 to 9. Which section are we discussing?

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: My apologies. This is tied in with the previous discussion. The Minister of State mentioned the fact that there were some issues with regard to guardians ad litem and their expenses. I tabled this amendment in order that I could ask him to clarify the matter. The Bill introduces a new subsection (3A) in section 26 of the Child Care Act which allows the HSE to apply for an order for costs...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: The key question is whether aftercare for young people who have been in care should be provided for on a statutory basis. Obviously, there are responsibilities in this regard but too often in the past, once a young person had reached 18 years, that was the end of the responsibility. We know there has been significant informal contact between children who, for example, left children's homes...

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: I welcome the Minister of State's extremely positive attitude towards this issue. I hope he will be able to amend the legislation in order to bring it into line with his thinking on the matter.

Seanad: Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: Senator Alex White was opposing section 35.

Seanad: Lost at Scheme: Motion. (31 Mar 2010)

Frances Fitzgerald: That is a bit convoluted.