Bernard Durkan
Question:1. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [11562/23]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Cabinet Committees
Aindrias Moynihan
Question:2. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on health will next meet. [13067/23]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:3. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [12864/23]
Bríd Smith
Question:4. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [12867/23]
Gino Kenny
Question:5. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [12869/23]
Ivana Bacik
Question:6. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [13431/23]
Mary Lou McDonald
Question:7. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on health will next meet. [14827/23]
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Question:8. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [14832/23]
Mick Barry
Question:9. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [14880/23]
Gary Gannon
Question:10. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on health will next meet. [14890/23]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:11. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place; and when the next one is scheduled. [15096/23]
Tógfaidh mé Ceisteanna Uimh. 1 go 11, go huile, le chéile.
The Cabinet committee on health met yesterday and is due to meet again soon. In addition to the meetings of the full Cabinet and of Cabinet committees, I meet Ministers individually to focus on different issues. I meet regularly with the Minister for Health to discuss progress and challenges in the area of health, including the Sláintecare reform programme.
The primary aim in 2023 is to improve access, outcomes and affordability for patients in line with Sláintecare principles. We are committed to expanding the core capacity of our acute hospitals with more health professionals and more acute hospital beds. Over the past three years we have added almost 1,000 additional hospital beds to the system and more than 360 community beds, with further additional beds planned for 2023 and 2024. We have increased the total public health sector workforce by approximately 18,000 including approximately 7,000 more doctors, nurses, midwives, therapists and physiotherapists and we aim to increase the workforce by an additional 6,000 this year.
There is a strong pipeline of capital projects, including several new hospitals and significant new facilities at existing hospitals. Our multi-annual approach to reducing and reforming waiting lists resulted in an overall reduction in the number of patients exceeding the maximum Sláintecare waiting time, which is approximately three months, by 11% in 2022 at a time when waiting lists are increasing in almost every other developed country in the world. The 2023 waiting list action plan was published on 7 March. For 2023, the Government has allocated €443 million to build on the work already done, with a projected reduction of slightly more than 10% in waiting lists by the end of the year. This includes €123 million on a recurrent basis for the HSE to introduce modernised care pathways, and €80 million has been allocated to various primary care and community care initiatives. Enhanced community care programmes continue at a more local level. This programme, which is investing €240 million in community health services, is easing pressure in hospitals and in more acute settings. In the first full year post implementation, it is projected that community healthcare networks and community specialist teams will enable between 16,000 and 21,000 patients to avoid attending an emergency department.
Work is ongoing on the establishment of six new regional health areas and elective care centres in Dublin, Cork and Galway, as well as surgical hubs in the interim, including in Limerick. We are also facilitating better access to affordable, high-quality healthcare for people at a time when the cost-of-living crisis is affecting everyone. Among other actions to increase eligibility and reduce costs, last year we removed inpatient charges for children and this year we are removing them for adults. We are also widening the eligibility for the GP card which will allow many thousands more people to attend their GP without incurring fees. The drug payment scheme threshold was reduced to €80 from 1 March 2022, which means no household has to pay more than €80 per month for its medicines. Additional eligibility initiatives include access to IVF treatments, the expansion of the entitlement to free contraception to women aged 26 to 30, a €5 million fund for oral healthcare, and free home sexually transmitted infection, STI, testing.
Our health service has its challenges - all health services do - and this was particularly evident during the winter period. However, our health system has responded and expanded dramatically in recent years. We are treating more people with better outcomes than ever before. Our life expectancy is continuing to rise and is now estimated to be the highest in the European Union. We continue to reduce mortality rates for stroke and certain cancers and report positive trends in preventative health. We will continue to advance these reforms under Sláintecare in 2023.
To what extent was time given to the isolation of the issues that cause the greatest concern in the course of the past year, especially to areas such as logjams, lack of capacity, lack of GPs, lack of access to emergency departments and so on? Was enough time given to ensuring they will not recur in the future and that a renewed effort will be made to introduce the elements of Sláintecare that are most likely to impact positively on those issues?
The Cabinet committee discussed Sláintecare and there was quite a bit of emphasis on community services. Were day centres for older people discussed?
They are important services that give people the opportunity to live independently and remain in their own homes with dignity. They are fundamental to the health and well-being of our older population. Having access is key in enabling older people to live independently in their own communities, providing invaluable support to them and their carers. In Macroom, there has been talk over a number of years about providing the service in the old hospital grounds. While there has been talk about it, there has not been any visible progress for some time. Can a day centre be prioritised for Macroom with specialist services, such as for dementia and Alzheimer's?
Frankie is nearly four years old. A year ago, as he was non-verbal, he was referred for an assessment of need to the HSE on 3 February 2022. On 4 February 2022, he got a letter saying his assessment would be on or before 4 May. His parents rang the HSE at the end of May because he still had not got his assessment and were told it would be two years before he got an assessment. Nearly a year later, there are no services for this child, who remains non-verbal. His parents made an official complaint via a solicitor, which was upheld. The HSE still did not carry out the assessment. The parents then went to court to compel a report, which they finally received, but it was not done to a high standard and has to be done again. A year later, the child still has no services or supports. This is just one child, but this is repeated across the country. A year on, his life chances are being massively impacted by this failure. What can be done about it?
I want to return to the question of community healthcare services and the teams in our community which, as the Taoiseach said, will allow people to access care without being hospitalised. Less than a week ago, along with my constituency colleagues, I asked a Topical Issue Matter, to which there was a very unsatisfactory response from the Government. In fact, on this issue of community healthcare in Drimnagh, the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, responded instead of any representative from the Department of Health. Deputy Noonan is a Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The issue of the removal of public health nursing services from the Drimnagh area due to staff shortages has created huge upset in the area. It relates specifically to what previous Deputies spoke about in terms of needing to keep local services local. In Drimnagh, the population is expanding rapidly and will continue to. Not only have nursing services been removed from the area, the community has also been massively disappointed to be waiting since 2013 for a healthcare service to be built in the area. It is not going to happen until the end of next year. Will the Government please address some of those problems?
There are over 900,000 people on some form of public hospital waiting list. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association, IHCA, stated it would take up to a decade to address that legacy issue. Its main thesis regarding the national treatment purchase fund, NTPF, and the figures was capacity in all forms around acute situations and all forms of the hospital environment. This is a legacy issue that goes back decades, particularly to when Fianna Fáil was in government and slashed thousands of beds out of public hospitals. What is this Government doing to address the underlying issues of 900,000 people on some form of waiting list?
Speaking at the Labour Party conference this weekend, Phil Ni Sheaghdha said the health service is excellent but only for those who can access it and pointed to the trolley crisis, which is now a permanent trolley crisis. A key concern and issue in dealing with this is how the housing crisis is impacting the ability to recruit nurses, midwives, doctors and other medical staff because they have seen so much of their salaries going on rent. Are the Taoiseach, the HSE and the Department of Health considering enabling hospitals to provide dedicated housing for healthcare staff or support for accessing housing, particularly for healthcare staff recruited from abroad?
I recently raised the point with the Taoiseach about the need for regulation of counsellors. We need to remove barriers to entry for counselling, psychology and educational psychology. This has been raised with us by a number of people engaged in these programmes.
I raised the following issue with the previous Taoiseach, Deputy Martin, last year. I refer to Geraldine Lavelle, who, as a result of a collision when out cycling nine years ago, suffered a spinal fracture that left her paralysed from the chest down. After her rehabilitation, Geraldine moved into a congregated setting where she thought she would be for a number of months to adjust to life with her injury. Nine years later, she has finally secured adapted social housing from Mayo County Council, which is nearing completion. Despite all of her efforts and determination, she faces a final hurdle with the HSE, which has decided, without explanation, to reduce the number of personal assistance hours Geraldine currently receives in her congregated setting, which is less than that required in the most-recent care plan. Despite repeated efforts by my colleague, Deputy McDonald, and Geraldine, the head of the HSE West disability services and the Minister for Health and the Minister responsible for disabilities have failed to engage with Geraldine. Will the Taoiseach intervene to ensure the Government's policy commitments on decongregation are being delivered?
I have spoken to the Taoiseach on a private basis about this issue in the past, which relates to the reimbursement process. The Government has done some good work of late by publishing the Mazars report and commencing the successor to the National Rare Disease Plan. Of course, we have invested more than €100 million in the last three years in orphan drugs. Last Thursday, I raised this issue again with the Tánaiste and gave the example of Luxturna, which has now been before the drugs group for assessment for reimbursement for 1,280 days. There could be a multitude of reasons why it has taken that long for the drug to go through the process. Whether we blame industry or the drugs group, the bottom line is the process is not working when it takes 1,282 days, and counting, for assessment for reimbursement. I ask the Taoiseach to engage with all partners in government to ensure proper review of the reimbursement process.
The Department of Health signed up to the Safe Staffing Framework, a data-driven, evidence-based system which can pinpoint the staffing levels needed to provide safe staffing in every hospital ward in the State. Cork University Hospital is one of the State's flagship hospitals, yet, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, only four of the 21 wards at that hospital meet Safe Staffing Framework guidelines. How can the Taoiseach defend the fact that more than 80% of the wards at one of the State's flagship hospitals are operating at unsafe staffing levels? The INMO has commenced balloting for industrial action at the hospital's coronary care unit. What steps does the Taoiseach intend to take to address its concerns to avoid the possibility of industrial action and to ensure safe staffing levels at Cork University Hospital?
We await an inquiry into the State's response to Covid-19. I have spoken to the Taoiseach previously about the 23 people who died in Dealgan House and that the families met with the Minister for Health, Deputy Donnelly, and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. They were promised a mechanism to provide them with answers, justice and closure. They are still awaiting a response. I want to know if there is any further information about the timeline. Is it going to be set up for the summer? Will there be engagement with the families? Will there be modules? Will we get to grips with what happened in nursing homes?
Concerning individual queries, I am sure these are very difficult cases and if Deputies want to pass on the details to my office or the relevant Minister, we will try to provide a reply. It is not possible in this forum to respond to individual cases because there is always much more to it than can be put across in a minute or two by a Deputy and we need to know all the facts.
Regarding the Sláintecare programme, our programme to bring about universal healthcare, it has three principles: affordable healthcare for everyone, good patient outcomes and timely access. We are making a lot of progress around making healthcare more affordable, of which I mentioned some examples in my reply earlier. Patient outcomes in Ireland are good and much better than in the NHS, for example, which is often used as a model to follow.
It definitely is not. Where we are not doing well is on timely access. That is where we need to make much more progress in the next year or so.
Sláintecare has the support and oversight of the Department of the Taoiseach. That is being enhanced currently. When it comes to the Sláintecare programme, there is now a report to me every two months, as chairman of the Cabinet committee on health. One of my advisors and one of my officials now sit on the Sláintecare delivery board.
With regard to community care, which was raised by Deputies, we are working very closely with the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. The problem we would have had five or ten years ago was that we had the staff, but not the money. It is now the reverse: we have the money, but not the staff, in large part due to full employment. We are working on means to increase the number of people we can get working in home care and community services and that includes increased pay and terms and conditions; payment of the living wage; payment of people during travelling time, as they travel from client to client, and 1,000 new work permits to bring care staff into the State.
I do not have any information on Macroom, but I will take it up with the Deputy and come back to him with a reply, once I have one.
From talking to professionals in the area, in particular, the assessment of need process has become a real difficulty. When the right to an assessment of need was introduced by the Oireachtas, it was done for all the right reasons, but it has now become a barrier, because children cannot get the therapies they need until they have had their assessment of need completed. I am told a full assessment of need takes 20 or 30 hours. It has become a barrier. An abridged system was brought in, that would do shorter or rolling assessments of needs, which meant children were getting the therapies much quicker and waiting lists were coming down, but the court struck that down and said that everyone has to have a full assessment of need. It has created an enormous problem, unfortunately. We need to look at that and revisit it to see how best we can sort it out. It should not be the case that someone who clearly needs speech and language therapy, and a one-hour assessment can determine that, cannot get it until they have gone through a 20- or 30-hour full assessment. It is an example of how rights-based legislation can backfire. An honest attempt to give people a right has now put us in a situation where that right has become a barrier to the treatment they need.
With regard to the 900,000 people on hospital waiting lists, that is true, but it is not the full truth. Many of those people are waiting a few weeks; maybe six or ten weeks. It also includes people awaiting annual checks. One can wait up to a year for an annual check, in fact one has to wait at least a year for an annual check. It includes duplicates, people who have been treated already and people who are suspended from waiting lists for various reasons. In the Sláintecare programme, we agreed good criteria around waiting lists, whereby nobody should have to wait more than ten weeks to see a specialist and no more than 12 weeks for a procedure that they need. When one uses that figure, there are approximately 450,000 people waiting longer than they should have to, but that figure has come down. It was lower at the end of last year than it was the year before. Very few jurisdictions have seen their waiting times go down. Ours have and we have a target to bring them down further this year. It is great to see some progress on it. They are far too high and too long, but we are one of the very few countries that is seeing its waiting times fall, that is, waiting times at end-2022, versus end-2021. They will fall again this year. We are doing it both through expanding capacity and by using the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, as a source of additional capacity.
Everyone knows that recruitment in the health service is an enormous challenge. We have full employment. We have enormous international competition. Canada, America, Australia and New Zealand are short too. That is why they are bringing in staff from abroad, including from Ireland. The housing crisis does not help, but we should put into a factual context that since this Government came to office, we have hired an extra 7,000 nurses, midwives, doctors and dentists. We have never had more GPs with HSE contracts. We have never had more nurses or consultants working in our public health service. That is, of course, against a backdrop of a rising population and increasing medical need, but we should not give in to this false narrative which would have people believe that we have fewer nurses and doctors, because they are all leaving. The facts are otherwise. There are people coming and going and, in the round, we have never had more staff in our health service and the numbers are increasing every day. We will hire an extra 6,000 this year.
I met with the new HSE CEO for the first time yesterday. We discussed reimbursements. The Deputy was on my mind at the time. He said to me that only in the past couple of weeks, a considerable number of additional medicines have been approved, that is, new molecules and indications. However, we agreed we would make it a specific item for discussion at the next sub-committee meeting or the one after, because we acknowledge we need to speed up the reimbursement process for medicines in Ireland. One thing that was said back to me and I think it is a fair point is that we always hear about the ones that are approved abroad, but not in Ireland. We rarely hear about the ones that are approved in Ireland and not abroad. That was a fair point.
Ukraine War
Bernard Durkan
Question:12. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet Committee on a Humanitarian Response to Ukraine took place. [11563/23]
Mick Barry
Question:13. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet Committee on a Humanitarian Response to Ukraine took place. [14881/23]
Gary Gannon
Question:14. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Taoiseach when the most recent meeting of the Cabinet Committee on a Humanitarian Response to Ukraine took place. [14891/23]
Ivana Bacik
Question:15. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet Committee on a Humanitarian Response to Ukraine will next meet. [15091/23]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 12 to 15, inclusive, together. The Cabinet committee on the humanitarian response to Ukraine last met on Thursday, 23 February and the next meeting is scheduled for this Thursday. The committee which I chair works to ensure a co-ordinated approach to the State's humanitarian response for people arriving from Ukraine, who sought temporary protection here. The Government's co-ordinated response to the humanitarian crisis is extensive. Ireland has never seen so many people arrive in such a short timeframe.
Since the start of the war, almost 80,000 people have arrived from Ukraine and availed of temporary protection in Ireland. This is a refugee crisis, the scale of which we have never seen in our lifetime and perhaps, in our history. To date, Ireland has accommodated more than 80,000 people in State-sourced accommodation. This includes people who have fled here from Ukraine and people from outside of Europe and other parts of Europe seeking international protection.
In light of the acute and growing pressures in the face of continuing arrivals, the Government is stepping up action to maximise the pace and scale of sourcing suitable accommodation. An accommodation working group has been established to assist with the sourcing of State accommodation and to accelerate the refurbishment of suitable buildings. We are also expanding and advancing a programme of work recently agreed by Government. This will allow consideration of commercial properties and sites for development, refurbishment or purchase and the use of alternative modular buildings. In addition to meetings of the committee, I have regular engagement with Ministers, at Cabinet and individually, to discuss matters of concern for their Departments. Work is ongoing across Government to intensify communications and community engagement on the humanitarian response. Government is keeping our response to all aspects of this humanitarian crisis, in particular accommodation options, under continuous review.
I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. I ask the extent to which consideration was given to ensuring refugees were accommodated in as short a time as possible and that we do not have a situation whereby refugees have to sleep in the open or in the unsafe, insecure, unfortunate and difficult conditions that have been outlined in recent days and whether it is likely to be possible to make sufficient provision in the shorter space of time and, at the same time, filter the number of incoming refugees to measure them against the availability of accommodation because, otherwise, there is a grave danger that the whole situation may fall into disrepute. I ask that special effort be made to ensure the availability of that accommodation.
Teaching English as a second language is a key task and challenge for our infant and primary schools, given the increased levels of immigration, but the policy of the Department of Education - the Taoiseach's Government policy - is making the task of the schools far more difficult and has the potential to prove very divisive. Until recently, the norm has been for children to be entitled to two years of teaching of English as a second language. However, the policy has been changed. A child is now only entitled to this support for the two years immediately after their family has moved to this State. The result is that children born in this country, Irish citizens, whose families speak their native language at home, are now being denied this support. More recent arrivals, such as Ukrainian children, are being provided with this support, as they rightly should be. However, it is a divisive and, in some cases, racist policy.
I put it to the Taoiseach that it should be reversed immediately in favour of the original position, backed up with the necessary resources.
I thank the Taoiseach for responding to my letter in which I sought information on the co-ordination of services for those who have come here from Ukraine fleeing the brutal war being waged by Russia on their country. Further to that letter, can the Taoiseach give me more information on capacity in the education system for those children who have come here from Ukraine? A Labour Party motion addressing education matters will be before the Dáil tomorrow. We are hearing from schools across the country that they are at or near capacity, with nearly 15,000 pupils enrolled. They express specific concerns about the need for supports for those children in respect of trauma and other issues.
Has the Government approved the construction of the modular homes that were promised to house those Ukrainian refugees who do not yet have homes of their own, particularly those in family units? I understand it was the aim that accommodation for 2,800 individuals and family units would be provided in rapid-build homes to be managed by the OPW. The Taoiseach might let me know if he has a timeline as to when those sites will be ready.
I want to conclude by commending all those involved on the front line in providing supports to people who have come here from Ukraine. At the weekend, the Labour Party was proud to give its Jim Kemmy Thirst for Justice award to Ukrainian Action in Ireland and the Ukraine Civic Forum. Both groups have been to the fore in offering support and practical help to those who have come here from Ukraine.
It is absolutely shocking that hundreds of people coming here, whether from Ukraine or elsewhere, are not being given accommodation. The Government needs to seriously step up its efforts to provide emergency accommodation and repurpose empty buildings, of which there are very many. When we look at the nuclear poker being played by Putin, which raises the very real prospect of another Chernobyl, does it not give the Taoiseach a bit of pause for thought about the essentially "victory or death" response that the western powers seem to have to this terrifying situation and maybe about the role Ireland could play in arguing for de-escalation, some sort of ceasefire and peace negotiations? Does the Taoiseach see this going anywhere other than in a terrifying direction that could lead to disaster?
On accommodation, it is utterly shameful that there are over 400 people sleeping on the streets, and that will probably increase, at the same time as the obscenity of what has been going on in Mullingar. People ask me many questions, and I cannot answer them. How was what occurred in Mullingar allowed happen? That is the first question. How is it that a tiny group of people can deprive others of their human rights and civil rights? Why is it that we have so many empty buildings? I refer here to Baggot Street hospital, the old Jury's Hotel site in Ballsbridge and a plethora of religious buildings, including a big church in the city centre. It seems we cannot take these on, refurbish them and use them for accommodation for those unfortunates who have to sleep on our streets. Those are two simple questions that I am asked daily. I cannot answer them. Can the Taoiseach answer them?
On the war in Ukraine, it is obvious that appeasement has not worked. I have stated my view on that, and I explained it earlier. Of course Ireland argues for de-escalation, but de-escalation requires the aggressor to de-escalate. Ukraine was attacked. Ukraine is partially occupied. There cannot be a de-escalation until the aggressor de-escalates. Ukraine cannot de-escalate. What would that even look like? Would it mean Ukraine stopping the defence of its own cities and citizens? De-escalation has to involve the willingness of the aggressor to de-escalate. We had a very good engagement with the UN Secretary General in Brussels only last week and teased out with him the point at which it might be appropriate to have a UN intervention, for example, an independent intervention into the war in Ukraine. He was very clear that he would not be calling for a ceasefire at this point because he did not think that would be the right approach in light of the current situation on the ground and Russia's position of victory or death. That is the greatest difficulty. I do not think President Putin cares how many million young Russians die in that war. President Zelenskyy does care about how many Ukrainians die in it. He does not want to see Ukrainians left behind enemy lines. He does not want to see the Ukrainian children who have been deported to Russia not returned. That could happen in a ceasefire scenario. All of this needs to be borne in mind.
On refurbishment, we have about 700 buildings we are using at the moment to accommodate people from Ukraine and other parts of the world. We were not using those buildings this time last year. We are refurbishing dozens if not hundreds more buildings, but they cannot all be done at the same time. There will always be some building that is not refurbished, but 700 buildings have been refurbished and 80,000 people were accommodated in the past year. It has been a Herculean effort. I thank everyone who has been involved in it. Had we had the amazing foresight two years ago to know that the war in Ukraine was going to happen and to build a city the size of Waterford that incorporated 20,000 accommodation units, that city would already be full. That is what we have actually achieved - 700 different sites and 80,000 people accommodated. We are going to refurbish more buildings and provide more in the year ahead.
The rapid builds have been approved. We approved between 500 and 700 in the first phase. They should be ready for occupation in the next few weeks. As we learned in the past with modular and rapid builds, they are not so cheap and not so rapid as many of the advocates say. We have to have a site serviced, it has to be ready, we cannot just drop them in a field. We have to order the units, they have to arrive and then we have to get them from the factory to the site. We have to make sure there are no low bridges along the way. If there are, we cannot even get them to the site. As somebody who has been actively involved in making modular builds happen, and they are going to happen, they are not as rapid as people would hope. That is just the reality.
On education, I may need to come back to Deputy Barry with a more detailed reply. I will speak to the Minister for Education about the matter. There are 15,000 children and young people from Ukraine who have been enrolled in 2,000 Irish schools. I thank the teachers, principals, school boards and school communities involved in this regard. They have been phenomenal. It is not a small thing to take in 15,000 children, with very little English in most cases, welcome them into a school and integrate them in the way they have been. I could not admire teachers, principals and school communities more for what they have done to respond to this crisis in the past year. As Deputies will know, through the regional education and language teams, REALT, we are doing the best possible to support children and young people from Ukraine. Teams work with schools, local educational assistance services and national assistance structures. Additional resources have been provided to REALT for the enrolment of Ukrainian pupils and additional REALT resources have been appointed to areas under pressure. REALT has been extended to provide assistance to children under the Irish refugee protection programme to find school places as well. In terms of capacity, the situation is very tight in particular parts of the country. We are continuously assessing the need for additional capacity in schools across the country. The REALT teams are developing an integrated approach to maximising utilisation of existing capacity for mainstream Ukrainian and special needs classroom requirements such as additional accommodation through school building projects and modular accommodation solutions.
On English language provision in schools, there are 960 English and additional language posts. They have been allocated to just under 2,000 primary and post-primary schools that have enrolled children from Ukraine. There are 187 special education teachers and 233 special needs assistants who have also been allocated to schools to help with the response.
Departmental Offices
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:16. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach to report on the international division of his Department. [11604/23]
Bríd Smith
Question:17. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [11607/23]
Gino Kenny
Question:18. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [11609/23]
Seán Haughey
Question:19. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [12707/23]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:20. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [13882/23]
Mary Lou McDonald
Question:21. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the work of the international and EU division within his Department. [14828/23]
Mick Barry
Question:22. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [14882/23]
Gary Gannon
Question:23. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [14892/23]
Marc Ó Cathasaigh
Question:24. Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [15077/23]
Ivana Bacik
Question:25. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the international division of his Department. [15089/23]
I propose to take questions Nos. 16 to 25, inclusive, together.
The EU and international division works on all aspects of EU and national policy within the Department. It helps me to promote Ireland's foreign and economic policy objectives and to develop and maintain strong bilateral and multilateral relations. Working closely with other Departments, especially the Department of Foreign Affairs, the division assists me in my role as a member of the European Council and in my other EU engagements. It provides advice and briefings for meetings of the European Council and for other EU and UN summits.
The division gives me advice and briefings on bilateral relations and works to ensure a strategic and coherent whole-of-government approach to crosscutting EU policies and on international issues generally, including global peace and security, overseas development assistance, international human rights and the external dimensions of climate action. The division also oversees the implementation of the Government's Global Ireland 2025 strategy and chairs a senior officials group on the implementation of the sustainable development goals, in close collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. The division co-ordinates my international travel and my engagements with visiting Heads of State and Government and other international figures and organisations. It also prepares the work of the Cabinet committee on EU and international affairs.
Deputies have one minute for each question.
Enormous protests over the attempt by the far-right Netanyahu Government to interfere with the judicial process have rocked Israel. For Palestinians, there is a pretty grim irony in all of this. While it might be legitimate to worry about political interference with independent judicial workings, for the Palestinians there is absolutely no recourse to justice whatsoever because, as many human rights organisations have reported, they are victims of an apartheid system, crimes against humanity, war crimes and ethnic cleansing, and have been for decades. Their rights are never vindicated. The western powers who are so keen to impose sanctions on, for example, Russia for doing similar things in Ukraine, refused point-blank to impose sanctions on Israel for doing the same thing to the Palestinians. How does the Taoiseach square that inconsistency in the refusal of the European Union to impose sanctions on Israel?
In his engagement with international Heads of State and Government, has the Taoiseach met or does he intend to meet President Macron of France any time soon? When he does meet Mr. Macron, will he condemn the shameful police violence that has been perpetrated on citizens throughout France who are protesting the elongation of their working lives? To be clear, their working lives are not increasing from 62 to 64 years of age. There is also a clause contained in the pension extension that will force most workers to have 44 years of continuous service in order to receive a full pension. For French people, who leave school much later than we do, that will mean working until they are 67 or 68 years of age. That is a possibility for workers in this country. Perhaps we need some French lessons to show us how we need to resist this kind of thuggery against older people and workers. I ask the Taoiseach to condemn the violence of the French police against workers across the country and indicate this to President Macron.
I wish to ask the Taoiseach about the advice given to him on bilateral relations with China and whether its role with regard to international peace and security is being revised following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is important to have good relations with China. Trade is particularly significant in this context. For example, our food and drinks exports to China exceeded in 2021 €700 million. In recent times, some concerns have been expressed. There have been human rights issues, including the suppression of protests in Hong Kong and the treatment of minorities. There was the case of Richard O'Halloran. There are concerns about the future of Taiwan. Questions are being asked about how China uses technology. China is not at all supportive of the sanctions on Russia. Did Ireland raise its concerns in this regard? Is the EU concerned about these matters? Relations between the US and China have deteriorated dramatically. In the Taoiseach's view, do the closer ties between Russia and China pose a threat to international peace and security?
A right-wing Israeli Government is involved in racist and apartheid policies and is escalating the illegal annexation of Palestinian land. The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, a State entity, is a shareholder in nine companies, including four banks, that are operating in illegal Israeli settlements. Will the Government support Deputy John Brady's legislation to make this illegal? We have to take action. We owe this to the Palestinian people.
Earlier, the Office of the European Union Representative (West Bank and Gaza Strip) published its one-year report on demolitions and seizures in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, for the period 1 January to 31 December 2022. A total of 953 Palestinian homes and structures were demolished or seized in the occupied Palestinian territories in 2022. This represents the highest number recorded since 2016. In total, 1,031 individuals were displaced and 28,446 were affected as a consequence of the demolitions. The six-year high in demolitions recorded in 2022 was also accompanied by a spike in the scale and severity of settler violence. Of the structures targeted in the 12-month reporting period, 101 were funded by the EU or EU member states and were valued at over €337,000. What actions is the Government taking to oblige Israel to offer compensation? What actions are we taking to ensure that Israel is held accountable for these heinous crimes?
The Taoiseach mentioned overseas development aid, climate action and the sustainable development goals. Ireland's voice on the international stage far outweighs the country's size. It is vital that we use that voice for the right purposes. There are a number of set pieces coming here in regard to the sustainable development goals. In July, we will make our voluntary national report to the UN to update our progress on sustainable development goals. Perhaps more significantly, in September heads of state, of which I hope one will be the Taoiseach, will gather in New York to review the implementation of the 2030 agenda. Just as we shared a chair with Kenya when these goals were first negotiated and agreed upon, we will share the chair with Qatar during the review. It is a significant and important role. What preparations is the Department of the Taoiseach making to get ready for it?
Two weeks ago, Ministers scattered to the four corners of the earth for St. Patrick's Day. We all saw the pictures from New York and Washington, but I want to refer to some visits that received rather less media attention. I am interested in, for example, the visit of the Minister of State, Deputy Josepha Madigan, to Qatar, a country where homosexuality is illegal under threat of sentence of death. I am interested in the same Minister of State's trip to the United Arab Emirates, a country in which the United Nations has warned that torture is being used. I am interested in Hong Kong, which was visited by the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, in the very week when some of the 10,000 people arrested two years ago for protesting to defend democratic rights were being tried. I could make a strong argument as to why none of those visits to countries run by dictatorial regimes should have gone ahead, but I would hope, at the very minimum, that strong protests were registered by the representatives of the Irish people. Can the Taoiseach tell us where I can obtain a report on these visits, including a report on who Ministers met and what was said?
I raise the case of Bernard Phelan, an Irish citizen who has been held hostage in Iran since last October and who has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison. In late February, he was sentenced to three and a half years for providing information to an enemy country, a charge he denies. He was then pardoned on humanitarian grounds, but was brought back and the pardon was revoked. His sentence is now a dreadful length. His family have highlighted his serious health condition. His 97-year-old father Vincent intends to hand in a petition to the Iranian embassy this Thursday. What action is the Government taking to ensure Bernard's release or, at a minimum, that he gets the health care he needs? Is the Government going to insist on proceeding with opening an embassy in Teheran? Can the Government push for Bernard's release on humanitarian grounds?
In response to Deputy Barry, I am sure the line Ministers would be happy to provide reports on their meetings and what was and was not said. It is standard for Ministers abroad to raise human rights concerns and issues if they are meeting another politician, but not necessarily if they are meeting somebody who is not a politician or representative of a Government.
I am aware of the Phelan case. We are working on it. Suffice to say, relations between Ireland and Iran are not very close for many different reasons. I am not sure if threatening not to open an embassy would be helpful to Mr. Phelan's case. These are sensitive issues; we are trying to deal with it as sensitively as we can. We have a chargé d'affaires in the German embassy who is working with the Iranian authorities to do anything we can to secure Mr. Phelan's release. That is what we will do. Ultimately, we are in the hands of the Iranians in that regard.
Deputy Ó Cathasaigh raised the sustainable development goals. Ireland holds the pen, with Qatar, on this issue. It will be a priority for the Government, and for me as the Head of Government, in the coming months. I will be in New York in September for the UN General Assembly. We made some very good progress when the sustainable development goals were first agreed, but for lots of reasons, including wars, pandemics, and hyperinflation, the world has fallen backwards in terms of achieving those goals and I would like us to get back on track again. That is something we are going to prioritise in our UN-related work, in particular between now and September and then beyond.
I very much welcome the fact that the government in Israel has suspended its plans to reduce the independence of its judiciary. When it comes to Palestine, as I have always said, we support Palestinian statehood and independence. We oppose the occupation, the settlements, and the poor treatment of Palestinian people and the second-class citizen status of Arabs within Israel. Israel is a democracy, at least in the sense that its citizens get to elect its government. It has LGBT rights. It has trade-union rights. Trade unions were at the forefront in standing up to the attempts-----
They are Jewish-only trade unions.
-----in Israel to change the judicial process. It has equality for women. It very often has Arabs represented in government and business in senior positions. It is very different from the countries in its neighbourhood where all the Jews have either left or been expelled. In Palestine, for example, there have not been elections for a very long time. In my view, there should be. In my view also, the anti-gay laws in Gaza should be repealed. It is not just in Qatar; it is also in Palestine. There should be women's rights and women's equality in Palestine too. Palestine should also have an independent judiciary in the Palestinian Authority areas.
There are no sanctions.
What about the ISIF?
I met President Macron last week in Brussels. We did not have a bilateral meeting but we were attending the European Council and we spoke en marge of that. We discussed the pension reforms. I understand in France they are trying to bring the pension age to 64. It is 66 here, and perhaps heading for 66 in Northern Ireland, with a 43-year rule. I explained to him that we have adopted a different approach in Ireland whereby people are able to choose to retire between the ages of 66 and 70 and that the amount of pension they receive will depend on their contributions based on 40 years over a possible 56 years, and also taking into account periods of caring. We had a good discussion on that.
I thank the Taoiseach.
Of course I condemn any violence, provided it is not lawful, and provided that it is not in self-defence.
Is violence ever lawful?
It can be, certainly in self-defence.
The police were not self-defending. The Taoiseach can see the footage himself.
I would encourage the Deputy to condemn any violence by protestors, or any attacks on police as well.