Written answers

Wednesday, 24 October 2012

Department of Children and Youth Affairs

Departmental Bodies

Photo of Gerry AdamsGerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if there is a North South Co-operation unit in her Department; the number of staff working in the North South Co-operation unit; the number of staff who have worked in the North South Co-operation unit in each year since 2007. [46612/12]

Photo of Frances FitzgeraldFrances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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While there is no dedicated North South Co-operation Unit in my Department, officials engage with their counter-parts in Northern Ireland on issues of mutual concern and importance. For example, there is a very positive engagement, both at Ministerial and at official level, in developing co-operation in the area of child welfare and protection services.Work in this area to-date has concentrated on five areas:

(i) the establishment of the North South Child Protection Hub, a dedicated on-line child protection resource;

(ii) the development of an "Inter-Jurisdictional Protocol for the Transfer of Child Care cases between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland";

(iii) a review of vetting and barring arrangements in both jurisdictions;

(iv) the development of a joint communication strategy to promote awareness of child welfare and protection; and

(v) promoting internet safety in the area of child welfare and protection.

The new Child and Family Support Agency will also have a very important role to play in advancing practical co-operation with our colleagues in Northern Ireland in this important area.

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