Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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767. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the measures his Department is taking to encourage civil servants in his Department to take or avail of special leave or career breaks, or other forms of leave to encourage and facilitate Ireland's 2026 EU Presidency, the Government "Career for EU" jobs strategy, and the Department's Gaeilge-Irish language policy and promotion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3946/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Special leave for civil servants is a policy matter for my colleague, Jack Chambers TD, Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services Reform and Digitalisation.

The Department of Social Protection is actively preparing for Ireland's Presidency of the EU next year and has a long tradition of supporting the secondments of 'national experts' to the EU institutions as well as ensuring Departmental representation in Ireland's Permanent Representation in Brussels.

The Department of Social Protection takes its responsibilities under the Official Languages Act seriously. It has a dedicated unit staffed by Gaeilgeoirí, that seeks to promote and support the use of Gaeilge in the Department in accordance with the Department's responsibilities. This unit supports over 290 staff in the Department of Social Protection who are willing and able to conduct business through Irish. Last year an Oireachtas na Roinne was organised to acknowledge and thank these staff for their service.

The Department encourages staff to undertake Gaelchultúr courses, there is a ciorcal comhrá within the Department as well as various events to promote Gaeilge around Seachtain na Gaeilge.

Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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768. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of requests to his Department that have granted for various matters (details supplied); the number of such requests that have been refused; and the grounds on which they have been refused. [2499/25]

Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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851. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the measures his Department is taking to encourage civil servants in his Department to take or avail of special leave or career breaks, or other forms of leave to encourage and facilitate Ireland's 2026 EU presidency, the Government "Career for EU" jobs strategy, and the Department's Gaeilge/Irish-language policy and promotion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3938/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 768 and 851 together.

I can inform the Deputy that my Department deploys a range of measures to encourage suitably qualified and experienced staff to take up roles in the EU institutions. In line with the Career for EU Strategy, my Department regularly circulates vacancy notices for Seconded National Expert (SNE) posts with a strategic relevance to the Department of Justice and encourages the ongoing placement of such Experts in the Institutions through both the Centrally Funded and Commission Funded Schemes. My Department currently has four

Experts posted to various EU Institutions.

can also inform the Deputy that my Department currently has seven civil servants seconded to the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the EU in Brussels, and one civil servant seconded to the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

My Department is committed to ensuring a successful Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2026. To assist with that, a significant number of additional civil servants will be seconded from my Department to the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the EU, beginning from August 2025. Any civil servant in my Department who requires Special Leave to accompany a spouse to take up a role for the Presidency will be supported to do so.

I can further inform the Deputy that while no requests for Special EU Leave or Accompany Spouse Abroad leave were submitted in 2024, there are currently two civil servants in my Department on EU Special Leave and there are three civil servants on leave to accompany their spouse to serve in roles in the Permanent Representation to the EU. There have been no refusals of EU special leave, Accompany Spouse Abroad leave or a career break to facilitate a civil servant, or their spouse, taking up a role in the EU.

I am pleased to inform the Deputy that since 2006, with the commencement of its inaugural Irish Language Scheme, my Department has run 23 in-house Irish courses, both written and oral, tailored for members of staff of the Department. Those courses were run, concurrently in some cases, by Gaeleagras, Gaelchultúr and the Institute of Public Administration, in the Department’s offices in both Dublin and Killarney.

Furthermore, my Department has supported members of staff who wished to do Irish courses outside of the Department, and officials who participated in on-line written Irish courses with Gaelchultúr. Officials who attended courses outside of the Department have achieved qualifications ranging from the Irish European Certificate (TEG) to Master’s Degree qualifications. In 2023 and 2024, 48 members of staff have been supported to complete Irish language training.

My Department actively fosters a positive attitude to the Irish language among its staff, in particular through a ciorcal comhrá / Irish language conversation group, a piece each week in its in-house newsletter and a major event each year during Seachtain na Gaeilge which is always well attended, with participation from both members of staff and guest speakers.

In addition to having the benefit of a full time Irish language translator, there is a cohort of officers on a list of staff from various areas of my Department who are available to provide services in Irish.