Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs when the necessary legislation will be published for the establishment of the child and family support agency; if it is still her intention that this agency will be functioning from 1 January 2013 and will it be necessary for the appropriate legislation to be enacted before the agency can be set up. [51228/12]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The Government has approved the Heads of the Child and Family Support Agency Bill and has also agreed to the priority drafting of this Bill. The necessary legislative and organisational preparations are being prioritised so that the Agency can be established early in 2013. Drafting of the Child and Family Support Agency Bill is under way, in line with the policy decisions of Government. This legislation will be published and debated by the Oireachtas at the earliest opportunity. A precise target date will be set when consideration of the legislation is advanced.

While the legislative process is under way all necessary organisational preparations are continuing in parallel so that there is no delay in the establishment of the Agency as soon as this has been authorised by the Oireachtas. These processes are been overseen by a interdepartmental/cross agency group chaired by the Secretary General and involving representatives of the Departments of Health and Public Expenditure and Reform, the HSE and the incoming management team of the new Agency.

I am firmly committed to the transformation of Ireland’s child protection and welfare services, and confident that the establishment of the Agency will bring a dedicated focus to child protection, family support and other key children’s services for the first time in the history of the State. The new Agency and the wider transformation of children's services represents the largest, and most ambitious, areas of public sector of reform embarked upon by this Government.