Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 3 Jul 2013

Vol. 809 No. 3

Topical Issue Debate

Ambulance Services

Deputy Catherine Murphy

Clearly, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, is not the Minister for Health. I accept that this week is an extraordinary one in that there is a Committee Stage debate so I ask the Minister of State to pass on my comments to the Minister and I would welcome a response if there is a further one. I have tabled this Topical Issues matter on a number of occasions, possibly eight or ten, and it has now been selected. What prompted me to do so was the fact that on 19 May 2013, a 46 year old man died in Naas. This individual may well not have survived but there was a very long delay in the ambulance arriving at the scene. He was with his 14 year old daughter, which makes the situation even more tragic. Gardaí were on the scene quite quickly and were able to revive him but the delay in the ambulance getting there certainly did not give him the chance he needed. I am told by people working in the ambulance service that one must get to somebody within the first eight minutes or get them to a hospital within eight minutes for them to stand the best possible chance of surviving.

There have been some modifications to the ambulance services in Kildare. On this occasion, there were two ambulances available. The hospital is only a kilometre from where this happened. One ambulance was out on a call while the paramedic in the second one had to go home ill so that second ambulance was not available. The delay happened because there was no back up ambulance.

People might not understand how large County Kildare is but it is the fourth most populated county in the country with a population of 210,000. I fully accept that developments like the call centre and other examples of centralising services can produce efficiencies but one must have an ambulance and a back up ambulance within a realistic distance and properly staffed to make sure this scenario does not happen.

Is there a modelling system for the changes in ambulance cover which have taken place? I have no doubt an inquiry will take place into this tragedy and we will await the report.

I certainly do not want to give any indication I am criticising the ambulance workers. They can only drive and staff what is in front of them. If there is no ambulance they cannot magic it up. I wonder whether they are being put at risk when they try to arrive within the designated call-out time.

There is little point in us developing our hospital services when there is a question as to whether the ancillary services are capable of getting people to the hospital in time in an emergency. Some of the cover in Kildare has been withdrawn and it is quite difficult to figure out what ambulance cover is now available. Some of it comes from hospitals in Blanchardstown and the fire brigade service. We need to know what is the cover. We must examine the call-out times and receive assurance there is backup if someone is out sick. People are being put at risk.

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (Deputy Fergus O'Dowd)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter and I ask her to accept the apologies of the Minister for Health and the Ministers of State at that Department. Like her, I extend our deepest sympathies to the family of the deceased. The loss of a loved one is hard for family and friends at any time, but a sudden and unexpected death is particularly difficult.

The response of the HSE national ambulance service to the incident was incorrectly reported. In addition, claims have been made, based on this incorrect information, which can, unfortunately, only deepen the distress of this poor person's family. I will outline the facts. The ambulance service received a 999 emergency call at 7.47 a.m. on 19 May 2013, concerning an incident on the ring road between Naas and Newbridge, near a Garda station. Local gardaí, as the first personnel on scene, provided first response treatment. An emergency ambulance was available and was dispatched to the incident. The ambulance arrived at 8.03 a.m. which was within 16 minutes of receipt of the call. A second emergency ambulance, with an advanced paramedic, was also dispatched, arriving within 19 minutes of the call at 8.06 a.m.

The response time of the first emergency ambulance was within the national response time target of 18 minutes and 59 seconds for a patient-carrying vehicle, as set by the Health Information and Quality Authority. The newspaper involved subsequently printed an apology and retraction, admitting its claims on the ambulance response time, staffing levels at the time of the incident, staff management and plans for coverage in the area were incorrect. Similarly, inaccurate claims have been made in the media in a number of recent tragic incidents, contributing further to the distress of the families and staff involved. In one of these other cases, a national newspaper published a retraction and an apology to the ambulance service.

A significant reform programme is under way to reconfigure the way the HSE manages and delivers pre-hospital care services, to ensure a clinically driven, nationally co-ordinated system, supported by improved technology. This includes progressing a number of efficiencies arising from Labour Court recommendations on rostering arrangements. The ambulance service and trade unions have concluded discussions on roster changes at 30 ambulance stations throughout the country, including 11 stations in Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow. The new rostering arrangements have been implemented in a large number of stations, including Tallaght, Swords, Maynooth, Kildare and Wicklow, and these are operating successfully.

These changes mean resources can be deployed dynamically, based on need and demand patterns, rather than simply by station location. The greater flexibility and responsiveness will produce better response times, and help to ensure a clinically driven, nationally co-ordinated system to support all pre-hospital emergency care activity in the State, as set out under Future Health: A Strategic Framework for Health Reform in Ireland 2012-2015.

I assure the Deputy the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, will receive her comments and I fully acknowledge she is not criticising the service with regard to the facts as she saw them and as she raised them here.

Deputy Catherine Murphy

I accept the information delivered by the HSE on the time the call was made and the time the ambulance arrived. I do not dispute this information but having to wait 16 minutes when one is 1 km away from a hospital, which one can almost see, while a number of gardaí are at the scene trying to revive somebody knowing they do not have the equipment which would be in an ambulance does not give a person the best possible chance. I am using this tragic case to question whether this could happen again.

There seems to have been a failure with regard to the backup. I wish to know about the backup provided in general and not just in this particular case. It is all very well to speak about dynamic rostering but if extra ambulance cover for Naas needs to be provided from the far side of Dublin or Athy then the system is failing. How is this modelled? Must we wait and see whether tragic outcomes arise and then state it is a failure? This is the wrong way to go about it. I would like reassurance on how the process works with regard to the deployment of people to cover sick leave because this will happen.

The ambulance service in Maynooth has been taken off each Thursday and instead a paramedic on a motorbike is deployed. This is better than nothing but it is not the same level of cover and it may be inappropriate cover in some situations. The ambulance service is a critical part of the health service and if we do not get it right it does not matter how high-tech the hospital is because if one does not arrive at the hospital one does not have a chance. I ask the Minister of State to come back to me on the process for deploying people where the backup service ceases to be available.

Deputy Fergus O'Dowd

I again acknowledge what the Deputy has stated and assure her the questions she has asked will be brought to the attention of the Minister for Health. I do not have the expertise or the specific knowledge she requests but I have no doubt it will be made available to her as soon as possible. I will ask immediately whether it is possible and I appreciate the Deputy accepting this explanation.

Fisheries Protection

Acting Chairman (Deputy Robert Troy)

The next issue is in the names of Deputy Gerald Nash and Dominic Hannigan who have four minutes in total and a minute each for supplementary questions.

Deputy Gerald Nash

As the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, knows only too well since September 2006, angling on the River Boyne has all but ceased with the exception of some sea trout fishing by a small number of anglers in mid-summer. This is a sad development for those who traditionally fished on the River Boyne and the many young people who wish to engage in salmon fishing and experience what angling has to offer.

The Castletown river in Louth and the Dee and Glyde rivers are also subject to strict salmon catch-and-release policy. Recently Deputy Hannigan and I met representatives of the north east federation of salmon anglers to discuss their legitimate concerns about the implementation of the catch-and-release policy and some of the assumptions underlying it. Clubs such as the Drogheda and District Anglers Club, the Rossin, Slane and District Angling Club and the Dee and Glyde club and others see themselves as responsible custodians of the river.

They have been raising concerns for some time about the methodology applied to many rivers in Louth and Meath which have, essentially, copperfastened the catch-and-release policy since 2006. As the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, is aware, the fishermen want to work in partnership with Inland Fisheries Ireland. They have asked questions about the methodology applied that in their view have yet to be adequately addressed by the authorities. It is my firm opinion from speaking with those involved that a review of the policy is timely, taking on board the relevant and experienced views and evidence supplied by local anglers, fishing clubs and federations in the area.

Deputy Dominic Hannigan

I concur with what Deputy Nash said. The Minister of State, Deputy O’Dowd, met the group on many occasions. I go fishing as often as I can, but not often enough. As the Minister of State is aware, fishing is an important past time in this country and it is also a source of revenue to the Exchequer because many tourists, in particular from the Continent, come to this country to fish in our waters. It is very important that we get the catch-and-release system right. As Deputy Nash said, there is currently contention as to whether we are correctly measuring the amount of fish in the rivers.

I wrote to the Minister of State on the matter last April and I received a reply from him. He referred to the forecast model used to identify the number of fish in the rivers. In the Glyde river the forecast is approximately 19% of the conservation limit for salmon and it is 27% for the River Dee. From speaking to fishermen locally who know the rivers in question, they think the figures are very low. All we seek is that the officials would speak again to local fishermen and try to come up with a revised methodology and that both sides can agree on the exact number of fish in the rivers based on as close an estimate as possible. At the moment we contend that we are underestimating the amount of fish and that it would be okay to end the catch-and-release scheme.

Deputy Fergus O'Dowd

I thank the Deputies for bringing this matter to my attention. As they pointed out, I am very happy to meet them at any stage, in particular as we are from the same town. I have met all of the angling organisations in the county of Louth in Ardee and Drogheda on Friday afternoons and Wednesday nights.

Deputy Gerald Nash

The Minister of State has met anglers on Saturday mornings.

Deputy Fergus O'Dowd

I wish to be perfectly clear because I wish to be specific on the matter. Mr. Ciaran Byrne, chief executive officer of Inland Fisheries Ireland, IFI, has always made himself available to everyone concerned. He has visited on Friday afternoons and on Wednesdays. He has gone to Dundalk. His senior management team has met on a number of occasions with interested parties. The first point is very clear, the IFI and I are very happy to meet and to look at all the facts. However, we must deal with the facts and they are as I will outline.

First, it is not true to say, as Deputy Nash said, that there is no fishing on the Boyne. There is fishing on the Boyne on a catch-and-release basis. That allows people to fish and to catch but it does not allow them to keep. The Deputy is probably misinformed in that respect.

The standing scientific committee for salmon has identified 143 rivers throughout the country which contain 152 fisheries, as some rivers have other tributaries. In 2013, a total of 94 fisheries were open for angling. Of these, 62 fisheries are open because there was a surplus of fish. A total of 32 fisheries are classified as open for angling on a catch-and-release basis only and 58 fisheries are closed as they have no surplus of fish.

In 2006, the Government committed to alignment with the scientific advice and moved to restrict the harvest of fish to those which meet the conservation limits. The effect of this advice was that the mixed stock fisheries were closed. Indiscriminate mixed stock salmon fishing at sea was ceased, that is, drift netting at sea was effectively stopped.

There are five salmon rivers in the Dundalk district which are scientifically assessed on an annual basis, the River Flurry, the River Fane, the Castletown River, the River Dee and the River Glyde. Only one salmon river in the Drogheda district is scientifically assessed on an annual basis and that is the River Boyne. In 2013, one of these six rivers, the River Fane, is open for the harvesting of salmon. Of the remainder, the River Flurry is closed to all angling, and the remainder, the River Boyne, the River Glyde, the Castletown river and the River Dee are open for catch-and-release angling.

This country manages salmon stocks on an individual river basis due to the fact that each river contains a genetically unique stock, which migrates to sea as juveniles and returns to the same river in adulthood to spawn. The conservation imperative means that exploitation of salmon in each river is only permitted where the independent standing scientific committee for salmon, SSCS, which includes expertise from the National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, the Loughs Agency, LA, the ESB, and the Marine Institute, MI, determine that the stock in that river is above the conservation limit. The decision is not a political or administrative decision; it is based on science. The conservation limits are set out in the reply.

Significant analysis has been carried out by Inland Fisheries Ireland through the use of catchment wide electro-fishing to determine salmon fry abundance. In other words, it is not just based on conservation figures, as experts carry out tests in the fisheries to establish whether some fish were not identified. Further research is carried out to establish that. The goal of IFI is to protect the stock and to make it available for the future. If the conservation limit is exceeded, it is possible to catch and keep fish.

Acting Chairman (Deputy Seán Kenny)

The Minister of State must conclude now.

Deputy Fergus O'Dowd

I will respond in more detail as I am entitled to a further two minutes following the supplementary questions. I do not know whether the Deputies have my reply but it contains facts and figures. We must be clear on the issue.

Deputy Gerald Nash

I wish to be clear as well about what I said. I did not say that fishing on the River Boyne had ceased; I said that the objective evidence from what I have seen and heard from local fishermen in many respects indicates that fishing on the River Boyne has all but ceased in recent years. The level of activity is certainly not the same as it used to be. That is understandable given the catch-and-release policy.

Essentially, what Deputy Hannigan and I suggest is that the policy would be further reviewed and that IFI would continue to work on a partnership basis with local anglers to try to achieve the best possible outcome from a conservation point of view, which is extremely important, and also from the point of view of fishermen, current and future, who wish to engage in angling and to see a situation where they can at least aspire to having a catch-and-keep system.

Deputy Dominic Hannigan

I thank the Minister of State for his comments and the fact that he is happy to meet anglers. I recognise, as do the fishermen, that he has been very willing to meet them on many occasions. I also thank him for the additional updated information contained within his reply. To date, the fishermen have received no formal response from the IFI to the submission they made in May 2012. Some information has come back informally but I urge that a formal response would be made to their submission of that date.

Deputy Fergus O'Dowd

I would be very happy to ensure a formal response is made. The clarity is in the figures. In terms of opening a river for catch-and-keep fishing, the Flurry river is at 23% of its conservation limit, which is well below the required level. Even if only every second fish was being counted, the level would only be at 46%, which is not even half the level required to catch and keep fish. We must deal with the facts. I would be very happy to meet with the Deputies concerned and to arrange for the provision of any data they or the fishermen have not received.

In summary, 32 fisheries in this country operate on a catch-and-release basis and to unilaterally open the four rivers in the Drogheda and Dundalk districts to harvesting would set a dangerous precedent that would ultimately compromise the entire scientific process to which the Government agreed to commit in 2006. In short, the rivers are open for catch-and-release angling and therefore there are angling opportunities for all anglers. A small minority believe they should be able to take fish and they do not wish to engage in the conservation-focused practice of releasing fish. I accept the majority of people are not in that category. I would be happy to meet the fishermen in question. I meet fishermen around the country all the time. To be honest, I am surprised the Deputies tabled this Topical Issue debate instead of asking to meet me so that I could go through all the facts rather than giving them in this public place.

I would do so at any time, but I would prefer to meet the Deputies to go through the details by river, by visit or however they want. I will get the facts for them.

Child Care Reports

Deputy Denis Naughten

I thank the Minister, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, for attending. As she recalls, she informed me at an Oireachtas committee meeting last July that the audit had been completed and that the report was being prepared, yet the report had been completed three months previously by the consultant, Ms Lynne Peyton. Frustratingly, Ms Peyton discussed the audit's conclusions at a conference in Belfast whereas it took 14 months for the HSE to publish the report.

Since 2005, there have been warnings about inadequate resources and calls for additional social workers in Roscommon to deal with child protection and neglect cases. It was a time of affluence and there appeared to be no shortage of money in some quarters, yet child protection referrals in Roscommon trebled between 2005 and 2009. The case in Waterford was roughly the same. The number of neglect cases increased fourfold, but it was 2010 before additional staff were recruited. At one point, Roscommon was said to be dangerously understaffed. In Castlerea, the staffing arrangement was described as unsafe. Social workers in Roscommon had an average caseload of approximately double the national recommended level at 35 versus 17.5. The National Standards Authority of Ireland, NSAI, threatened to withdraw registration unless staffing issues were addressed.

This situation was reflected to some extent in all three of the areas focused on in the report, showing a historical lack of suitably qualified social work staff and resources. In County Roscommon, 180 children have been on a waiting list for psychological services for two years. Nationally, the report highlighted inadequate provision of protection in the case of one in every five families in the neglect category. In County Roscommon, that figure was seven out of 30 families. Nationally, the audit identified 17 families as having been failed miserably by the State. It is important to remember that the audit only represents a small snapshot of the numbers throughout the country. That it took 20 to 30 referrals from a number of agencies for a social worker to be appointed is a damning indictment of the national services in terms of the level of priority they give to the issue of neglect.

Deputy Robert Troy

Unfortunately, we once again find ourselves discussing a report on the welfare of children and the inadequacy of the HSE's response. The most recent report cited cases in which up to 30 referrals had been made before the HSE took action. Is the Minister satisfied that a report that was finalised and given to the HSE in April 2012 took 14 months to be published? What happened to the promise of openness and transparency? Anyone listening to "Morning Ireland" yesterday would have had his or her confidence shattered. After five minutes of repeated questioning, a national specialist was unable to give an explanation for the delay in the report's publication.

Why was the report's publication delayed? When was the Minister made aware of the report's findings? I have continually raised the issue of the number of social workers, but the Minister has always maintained that she was satisfied with current levels. Given Ms Catherine Ghent's statement on RTE news yesterday that 17 social workers were looking after 670 cases, does the Minister remain satisfied?

The neglect of children continues to be a major concern despite being a common feature of previous reports, in particular the child death report. Have we learned nothing from these reports? What does it take for neglect to be recognised? HSE reports that clearly do not convey the severity of situations - words such as "dirty" and "unhygienic" do not adequately describe children with lice-ridden hair, beds saturated in urine, dog excrement on living room floors and mouldy food adhered to kitchen counters - are not good enough. It is a sickening and disgusting practice for a modern, progressive society. What immediate actions will the Minister take to renew confidence in a system that clearly continues to be deficient?

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald)

I welcome the publication by the HSE of the report entitled A Review of Practice and Audit of the Management of Cases of Neglect. The report was received by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in May 2013 and was published on the HSE website two weeks ago.

The report follows the publication in October 2010 of the report of the Roscommon child care inquiry, which catalogued a number of concerns arising from the examination of the management of serious neglect in a family known to the HSE's child protection services. The findings of that inquiry raised the concern, as Deputy Naughten well knows, that this might not have been an isolated case and that there might be more widespread practice and governance issues in the management of cases of neglect in Roscommon and throughout the country. That report led to work on a national audit of neglect cases.

From the outset, it was the intention of the HSE that the neglect audit would comprise a number of phases. Therefore, the audit was not simply a one-off exercise, but constituted one element of a wider process to improve practice in respect of such cases throughout the country. For phase 1, which is the report in question, the HSE commissioned the services of Ms Lynne Peyton, an independent consultant in child protection, to complete an initial pilot audit of the Roscommon case. This pilot was extended to two other areas, those being, Waterford and Dublin south-east, was conducted in early 2012 and was worked on subsequent to completion. Since completion, the report has acted as an important working document informing preparations for the second and third parts of the process, namely, the workshops and training for staff and the national audit of neglect files that will follow on from this.

Last August, the attention of HSE social work staff was drawn to the ongoing and systemic impact of neglect as identified in the three audits. I welcome the report, from which we see that, in practice, neglect and the terrible damage that it can do to children has not been sufficiently identified. Given the fact that physical and sexual abuse cases have been responded to quickly, it may be a broader societal issue that neglect has not been taken as seriously. The Roscommon case has sensitised us to the situation, as has this initial audit. We need to do the rest of the work. An implementation plan to address the report's recommendations has been developed. I have details of that plan.

The report is well worth reading in detail, as it identifies improvements, changes in practice and instances of more attention being paid to neglect. It is important that these aspects are recognised. I will provide a number of examples of some of the changes that have occurred. In Roscommon, there have been developments with respect to the implementation of monthly child care meetings chaired by the general manager, a restructuring of social work teams and the streamlining of family support services to include a single point of entry for referrals. This is important. In addition, more than 50 staff in all of the relevant disciplines - Deputy Naughten mentioned psychology - have participated in training on the identification of neglect. One of the points the report repeatedly made was that it was critical for all disciplines - doctors, social workers and public health nurses - to take neglect more seriously than had been the case traditionally and to realise the damage that it does to children.

In Dublin south-east the social work department has been restructured and the new arrangements are working more effectively. There has been a blitz on the waiting list there and unallocated cases have been significantly reduced. There are quite a number of other points concerning each area, which are identified in the report. I want to reassure both Deputies that there has been a follow-up implementation plan.

The audit found that parental alcohol misuse was a factor in 62% of families in the overall sample. It states that family dysfunction, which ended up with the kind of neglect that both Deputies have described so graphically, was often associated with chronic alcohol and drug abuse. The audit also found that domestic violence was a key issue, parental mental health issues featured in two thirds of the Dublin cases, and standards of hygiene and physical conditions were unacceptable in more than half the cases.

There is a need to identify neglect at an earlier stage and intervene more effectively. The report makes the point that many children were left in family settings for too long. That is a similar finding to the report on child deaths. The new national approach to managing social work cases involves more streamlined procedures, a national risk-assessment and national standards. It will make a huge difference to the disturbing findings that were outlined in this report.

In addition, we are currently undertaking the recruitment of new social workers. Some 84 were recruited recently and the recruitment of a further 90 is under way.

Deputy Denis Naughten

We owe it to the children at the centre of the Roscommon case to ensure that their courage and bravery is recognised. No other family should be failed by the State again to the extent that they were.

When will the national audit of neglect files commence? What steps are being taken to develop a national training programme, which was identified in this report, not just within child care services but also in An Garda Síochána, the courts system and the Judiciary? Will a review of other neglect cases take place in light of the inadequate protections that are in place? I refer specifically to Roscommon. Based on the number of neglect files in Roscommon, 50 more families are potentially under threat in circumstances similar to the seven identified in this audit. Will a full audit of all the files take place now?

Deputy Robert Troy

Having read this and other reports, we are aware that alcohol and drug abuse is one of the main factors in child care and welfare issues. Is the Minister happy that this report, which was finalised over 14 months ago, only came to her Department in May of this year? Did the Minister receive notification of the report before May?

Given that her Department is hiring additional social workers, I take it that the Minister is no longer satisfied with the current staffing levels. She says that 80 new social workers are being employed with a further 90 coming on stream, but when will they come on stream? Will they be deployed to the relevant areas that are so badly in need of them?

What is being done to ensure that this area is being prioritised? It was clear that children were being neglected and nothing was being done about it. What immediate actions will the Minister take to ensure that in instances where the HSE is aware of neglect concerning child protection and welfare issues, but is not doing its job, a safety net will be put in place to protect children's welfare?

Deputy Frances Fitzgerald

There is at least a 30-year legacy concerning Ireland not dealing as effectively as it should have with vulnerable children. My Department's goal is to ensure that children do not fall through the cracks. That is why we are changing the way these services are being delivered. We are developing a focused management team and national leadership which was not there before. I would point out that during the previous ten years, as Deputy Naughten rightly observed, these children were being dealt with like this during the so-called Celtic tiger period. We must now focus on ensuring that these children and their families get the kind of services they have not received previously.

The development of the new child and family agency, together with a more structured approach with national standards and greater risk assessment at an earlier stage, will ensure that children will receive a much better service. The recruitment of social workers is an important part of that. The 270 social worker posts, which were recommended by the Ryan report to bring social work teams to an appropriate level, have been recruited. We do have high levels of maternity leave and some sick leave, but recruitment is going on as we speak. Some 84 social workers have been recruited which has to make a difference to the quality of work that is being done.

Major efforts are being made by front-line staff. Training has already started and there is a new awareness of neglect as a result of this report. The work that is being done in each area will make a difference to standards. Each area will commence a review and audit of all child neglect cases. This phase will be implemented in line with the recommendations of the Roscommon report. It will also use the methodology applied to complete the national audit of child neglect cases, which will commence in August 2013.

A lot of work has already been done by the HSE as a result of this report. It complements the work the HSE is doing nationally to ensure that we have services that are fit for purpose and which will meet children's needs. As the report outlined, their needs were clearly not met hitherto.

Private Residential Tenancies Board Remit

Acting Chairman (Deputy Seán Kenny)

The next matter is in the name of Deputy Derek Keating. The Deputy has four minutes.

Deputy Derek Keating

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, for attending. I also thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to discuss this issue, which is of national importance.

Many Deputies on both sides of the House can relate in some way to the services of the Private Residential Tenancies Board. This arises from the increased dependency over the years by people needing to occupy rented accommodation. As a consequence, they depend on the services of the PRTB when required.

On many occasions in recent years, I have received representations not only from my own constituents but also from others throughout the country who are dissatisfied with the outcome of the PRTB's deliberations. I wish to bring one recent case to the Minister of State's attention. It concerns a young family which is now living in my constituency, but which previously lived elsewhere up to 2008. It vacated rented accommodation and was distressed because it could not recoup a deposit of €2,000 that was due to it from the landlord. It took great heart when three years ago a determination was made by the PRTB that the deposit should be refunded. It could not believe, however, that the landlord did not turn up or engage in the process at all. As a result, it lost heart. The family's opinion of the PRTB is that it is powerless and useless. Five years later, that young family still has not recouped its deposit.

The landlord has not engaged with the Private Residential Tenancies Board.

I am conscious that the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012 is proceeding through the Houses. I hope that following its enactment the Private Residential Tenancies Board will have greater powers to enable it bring about the result that families, including the one to which I referred, need and deserve. I would be grateful if the Minister of State could provide me with some comfort on this particular issue.

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (Deputy Jan O'Sullivan)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The Private Residential Tenancies Board, PRTB, was established on 1 September 2004 as an independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Act 2004. The principal activities of the PRTB include the registration of private residential tenancies and the resolution of disputes between tenants and landlords, as well as the provision of information, assistance and advice to the Minister on the private residential rented sector.

The mandate of the Private Residential Tenancies Board is defined in section 151 of the Act and can be summarised as follows: the resolution of disputes between tenants and landlords; the registration of particulars in respect of tenancies in the private residential rented sector; the provision to the Minister of advice concerning policy in relation to the private rented sector; the development and publication of guidelines for good practice by those involved in the private rented sector; the collection and provision of information relating to the private rented sector, including information concerning prevailing rent levels; the conduct of research into the private rented sector and monitoring the operation of various aspects of the sector where the board considers it appropriate; the review of the operation of the Act and any related enactments, and the making of recommendations to the Minister for amendments to same and the performance of any additional functions conferred on the board.

The PRTB received 2,272 adjudication-mediation applications in 2012 and 268 appeals to tribunal. Deposit retention continued to be the single biggest category of dispute and accounted for 37% of all applications in 2012. The case referred to by the Deputy is one of those cases. A tenancy deposit is the property of the tenant. A landlord is only entitled to retain a deposit where there is damage in excess of normal wear and tear or where there are rent arrears or utility bills outstanding. In determinations by the PRTB on deposit retention disputes in 2012, 43% of deposits were partially returned to the tenant, 33% were refunded in full and 24% were retained in full by the landlord. As such, in 76% of cases some or all of the deposit was wrongfully retained by the landlord.

The commitment in the programme for Government 2011 to establish a tenancy deposit protection scheme is to address the problem raised by the Deputy. On foot of this commitment, I asked the PRTB to commission research on such a scheme. The research contract was awarded to Indecon economic consultants. I received the final report on the topic from Indecon in November last year. The report presents a comprehensive analysis of the range of options for delivery of the programme for Government commitment. I am engaging with the Office of the Attorney General with regard to the drafting of proposals to establish a deposit protection scheme with a view to bringing proposals to Government and introducing these provisions on Committee Stage of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012 in the Seanad, which Bill the Deputy will be aware was debated in this House earlier on this term.

The unjustified retention of deposits by landlords is an issue that concerns me greatly and I am very much committed to the establishment of a deposit protection scheme in this jurisdiction. The establishment of such a scheme was a priority I identified when I was appointed as Minister of State. I am fully committed to delivering on deposit protection in the context of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012. As I said earlier, it is proposed to introduce the amendment in the Seanad. Following enactment of that Bill there will be a deposit protection scheme in place, which means large numbers of cases, including that referred to by the Deputy, will no longer be required to go directly for arbitration. The deposit will be held by the scheme, which means a much more simplified system of ensuring deposits are returned unless there is a justified reason for a landlord retaining it.

Deputy Derek Keating

I thank the Minister of State for her reply and proposed solution to the problem. While nothing in life is perfect, particularly in Ireland today, the Minister of State has gone a long way towards reassuring me that the measures being considered will help to deal with the 37% of cases in which deposits were not returned.

I would like to put on the record that in the case to which I referred there was no claim on the part of the landlord for utility bills, damages and so on. The landlord simply did not engage on the issue. I will monitor the proposed deposit protection scheme. It is clear that the Minister of State and her Department have focused on a real need in this area. I hope the resident involved in the case I mentioned and all others being treated meanly by landlords will have their cases resolved. I await the introduction of the scheme.

Deputy Jan O'Sullivan

We all want to ensure the amendment is introduced as quickly as possible in order that the scheme can be established. I believe it will provide relief for the large number of families for whom deposits are crucial, in particular when moving home. It is hard to come up with lump sums at that time. To be deprived of one's deposit when one is entitled to it is a real difficulty for families such as the one mentioned by the Deputy.