Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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315. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the breakdown of staffing at Cavan CDNT to include overall established staffing WTE allocation, current WTE positions filled and current WTE positions vacant; the breakdown to include staffing WTE allocations, current WTE positions filled and vacant in respect to physiotherapy, speech and language, occupational therapy, psychologists, clinical nurse specialists and administration and other relevant roles, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6908/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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316. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the breakdown of staffing at Monaghan CDNT to include overall established staffing WTE allocation, current WTE positions filled and current WTE positions vacant; the breakdown to include staffing WTE allocations, current WTE positions filled and vacant in respect to physiotherapy, speech and language, occupational therapy, psychologists, clinical nurse specialists and administration and other relevant roles, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6909/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Marie Sherlock (Dublin Central, Labour)
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317. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of enduring power of attorney arrangements that have been registered here for each of the years 2015 to 2024. [6948/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, along with the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Act 2022, commenced on the 26th of April 2023. The Acts provide a modern statutory framework to support decision-making by adults with capacity difficulties, and represent a crucial shift away from a ‘best interests’ approach to a rights-based approach to capacity, with the privileging of a person’s will and preferences.

Part 7 of the 2015 Act provides for a new "enduring powers of attorney" (EPAs) system which enables an individual to plan ahead by appointing someone they trust to act as their attorney and to make certain decisions on their behalf if they lose capacity in the future. The Decision Support Service (DSS) has statutory responsibility for the operation of many of the provisions of the 2015 Act, including processing and registering EPAs made under the Act.

The following shows the number of EPAs which have been registered by the DSS since 26th April 2023:

These figures indicate an uptake in processing times for EPAs as well as a growing awareness and understanding of the new system.

Of the 1,762 EPAs that have been registered, 43 have been activated, meaning that since making the Power the donor has subsequently unfortunately lost capacity since the EPA was made and registered with the DSS, and the EPA is therefore now in effect.

The 2015 Act provides that EPAs can no longer be made under the Enduring Powers of Attorney Act, 1996. However EPAs which were created under the 1996 Act and prior to the commencement of the 2015 Act can still be registered and activated in the advent of the loss the donor’s capacity. EPAs made under the 1996 Act lie outside my Department’s remit and fall instead under the remit of the Department of Justice and the Courts Service.