Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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1249. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of young persons who have been taken into wardship in each of the years 2018 to 2020 and to date in 2021 for oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder and emotional behaviour disorder; the number of these young persons that have been sent for specialist treatment to a hospital (details supplied) in each of the years 2018 to 2020 and to date in 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19978/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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My colleague, the Minister for Justice, has provided the below information for this response.

The High Court has jurisdiction in wards of court matters and management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions under the Courts Service Act 1998.

However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made to the Courts Service who have responded that the Wards of Court Office does not maintain information in relation to specific disorders. The following wards of court had orders transferring them to the specific hospital referred to in the question. The Courts Service further inform that no minors have been sent to the hospital since early 2019 as the hospital is in the process of closing its children's unit.