Paul Murphy
Question:1. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent meeting with the president of Poland. [42883/24]
Ceisteanna - Questions
Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements
I met the Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, in Poland on Thursday, 5 September following my visit to Kyiv in Ukraine. I took the opportunity to thank the President, as the former President of the European Council, for his enormous solidarity, personal commitment and support to Ireland during the process of Brexit. We discussed bilateral relations between Ireland and Poland as well as current EU and international issues. The relationship between Poland and Ireland has never been more positive, especially through our shared membership of the European Union and our very strong and well-established people-to-people ties. I took the opportunity to highlight to Prime Minister Tusk the enormous contribution the strong and vibrant Polish community makes to our country. I acknowledge that again today on the record of this House. Prime Minister Tusk and I also discussed various current issues on the European Union’s agenda, including the nomination of the new Commission, the forthcoming Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of next year and improving Europe’s competitiveness and deepening the Single Market. Much of our discussion focused on the current situation on the ground in Ukraine and what more the EU can do to support the Government there and people of Ukraine. We also spoke about developments in the wider region, including Belarus, which borders Poland, and Moldova.
On the Middle East I stressed to Prime Minister Tusk the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, an increase in humanitarian support and progress working toward a just and lasting peace based on a two-state solution. Ireland and Poland work closely together through the United Nations, and I expressed my appreciation for the joint work of the Irish-Polish contingent working in Lebanon. I also met with Prime Minister Tusk at last week’s European Council meeting, where we discussed the serious escalation of violence in the Middle East and the obligations on all sides to protect our peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, and agreed a strong signal of support from the EU for UNIFIL.
The Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has likened the German-led European Sky Shield Initiative, ESSI, to Israel's iron dome. The comparison is not simply that it is an attempt to form some sort of iron dome, but at the heart of the ESSI is Arrow 3, an Israeli-American missile system used by and supplied to Europe by the genocidal state of Israel to the tune of billions of euro. It is further evidence of complicity of the arms supply chain between the EU and Israel. In addition, a stated aim of the initiative is to "strengthen NATO's integrated air and missile defence". Just a few weeks ago, Micheál Martin wrote to Leo Varadkar, saying "I wish to assure the Deputy, however, that Department officials are considering ESSI and other European developments". It was also reported - I think on Saturday - that the Irish Government is considering joining the ESSI, despite the links with Israel. Will the Taoiseach commit today not to enter the ESSI, which would clearly be a blatant breach of our neutrality? It would be a tightening of the noose of our further integration into NATO and provide more backhanded support to Israel.
I think all of those who believe in liberal democratic values breathed a sigh of relief when Donald Tusk's centre-right Civic Platform came to power last year. Prime Minister Tusk is a former President of the European Council and was a friend of Ireland during the Brexit talks, as the Taoiseach said. He has since set about restoring constructive relations with the EU. He is reversing restrictions on media freedoms and restoring the independence of the judiciary. As a result, the EU has dropped legal proceedings against Poland. It is clear, however, that the President of Poland, President Duda, of the Law and Justice party, is hindering the implementation of Tusk's reform agenda. I am not clear from the Taoiseach's reply if he actually met with the President of Poland as well.
I met with the Prime Minister.
The Taoiseach did not meet with the President of Poland, but he met with the Prime Minister, Donald Tusk. Did the Taoiseach discuss rule-of-law issues with the Prime Minister and the need to uphold European values in these very uncertain times?
I think we are all glad when meeting with any world leaders that the issue of the ongoing genocide is brought up. When we talk to colleagues across the EU, there is nobody in Ireland who is going to say they can understand in any way, shape or form their views regarding the maintenance and continuity of the EU-Israel association agreement as it exists. We need to see, in whatever way possible, any moves with regard to looking at those humanitarian conditions on the basis of what is an absolutely unfathomable ongoing genocide. We have to make our own moves with regard to the occupied territories Bill, the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill and the small parts we can play.
The Taoiseach mentioned UNIFIL. Both Poland and Ireland have troops there at the minute. I, like many others, have been contacted by incredibly worried families. When I spoke to the Tánaiste, he spoke about engagement with the UN, because an awful lot of families said it is difficult to follow through on the mandate in the sense that a huge amount of the Lebanese have fled on the basis of the Israeli invasion. We stand by the huge work that is being done by our peacekeepers. It is also about ensuring their safety is assured. I have no doubt the Polish Government would be doing the same thing. Will the Taoiseach provide an update regarding these interactions, particularly with the UN, on the ongoing missions?
Did the Taoiseach discuss with Donald Tusk the fact the European Union's credibility is in absolute shreds because of the blatant double standards that are being displayed between its attitude toward legitimate resistance by the Ukrainian people against the brutal Russian invasion and the wholly different attitude to Palestinian people resisting a brutal, genocidal assault on Gaza and decades of apartheid, ethnic cleansing and illegal occupation? Did he discuss that it is tearing apart any credibility the European Union has in the eyes of a whole generation of people when they see the shocking blatant double standards, and the fact that major European powers are arming this genocide and justifying and legitimising Israel's crimes and providing it with impunity? That is the big political picture, and anybody as committed as the Taoiseach and Donald Tusk are to the European project should seriously ask how it is going to sustain any credibility in the tooth of that.
On a humanitarian level, there are paediatricians outside the House, who are trying to get children out of Gaza. They have the children and their names. Some of them are already in Cairo. Their request is whether we can talk to the Egyptian Government to get the ten children out of Cairo. Is there a possibility these paediatricians can get into Gaza to access other children who have visas and supports waiting for them but who cannot physically get out of Gaza?
I will start with Deputy Boyd Barrett's questions as it is a very important issue. We decided at Government a couple of weeks ago that Ireland would opt in to this initiative to try to help get some of the very sickest children out of Gaza to receive life-altering, and often life-saving, medical procedures. I thank the Deputy for bringing the case of the paediatricians to my attention. I will certainly take some details from the Deputy and ask that there is a follow-up with them from the Government. I know it is extraordinarily difficult, to state the blindingly obvious, to get these children out safely. I have raised this on a number of occasions. I raised it at the European Council last week and I raised it with President Biden. I have raised with President Herzog of Israel. I will continue to raise it, but I am very happy to take that. I will be very happy to do anything we can diplomatically to assist those doctors in their work. I did genuinely raise that issue with Prime Minister Tusk in Poland, but I have also raised at every single opportunity I have had at European level. The inconsistent application of international law is a real issue. It is not an issue for Ireland; we understand that international law matters and should be upheld, no matter who breaks it. Unfortunately, I do think there is an inconsistent application and approach taken by others. We will continue to make that point.
Deputy Ó Murchú raised the humanitarian conditions in Gaza and in Palestine more broadly. The Deputy is right to highlight this. This could not be worse. The World Food Programme is telling us it has not been able to get in at all. I heard the update from the UN on RTÉ radio this morning that it has not seen a worse situation in terms of the humanitarian situation during a conflict. I spoke to the King and Queen of Jordan recently, who I know are looking at some innovative initiatives to try, in desperation, to get some aid in.
Ireland will continue to what we can to help in that. We will continue on a broader level to call for de-escalation and a ceasefire.
On UNIFIL, the Deputy is right to highlight the issue of the families. I join everyone in this House in thanking the men and women - our Irish peacekeepers - who make up part of the UNIFIL contingent. There are 379 people. They are the best of us. We thank them for their service. Their safety is of paramount concern to us. I want to assure their families of that. That is why I have spoken to the UN Secretary General specifically on that and why I receive at least a daily update on their situation, and often more than that. It is why I decided to ring the President of Israel directly. We raised it at the European Council last week and I spoke to the Prime Minister of Italy, Ms Meloni and the Prime Minister of Spain, Mr. Sánchez, both of whom have significant numbers of troops as part of that mission too. I know there are efforts to make sure there is good communications with and updates for the families, but if ever the Deputy comes across ones where there are not, then I ask that he please keep directly in touch with my office. I can only imagine how worrying and stressful a time it must be for families who have people abroad in southern Lebanon at the moment.
On Deputy Haughey’s question, I met the Prime Minister; he is my counterpart. I think I misspoke and said president. In fairness to Prime Minister Tusk, he embodies, as the Deputy acknowledged, the upholding of European values. He is a former President of the European Council and a very committed European. We have seen a marked shift in Poland’s stance toward Europe and European values and a positive response from the European Commission as a result of that. I do not think, from memory, we specifically discussed that issue on this occasion but I would say Prime Minister Tusk is very dedicated to it, as is his Government. I am also very pleased that the responsibilities of the new Irish Commissioner-designate, Michael McGrath, will include the rule of law, and bringing the Irish perspective and values to that portfolio will be advantageous not only to Ireland but to the European Union and the work of the likes of Prime Minister Tusk and others. We must be acutely aware that there are growing elements in European politics who do not respect the rule of law and who do not have that shared understanding of European values.
On Deputy Paul Murphy’s question, from memory, I do not believe that Prime Minister Tusk and I discussed the issue of the air dome but I have been in meetings before where he has discussed it and I think he has written a joint letter with the Prime Minister of Greece to European leaders on this in the past six months or so. It is his view. Ireland is proudly militarily neutral. We do not intend to do anything to change our military neutrality. I know the Deputy and I have debates on this, but any assessment of any initiative Ireland ever partakes in has to fully respect our military neutrality, and I am not aware of any initiative to join such an initiative.
Climate Action Plan
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:2. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the 2024 climate action plan progress report published by his Department on 3 September 2024. [37661/24]
Mick Barry
Question:3. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the 2024 climate action plan progress report published by his Department on 3 September 2024. [41448/24]
Jennifer Whitmore
Question:4. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on the environment and climate action will meet next. [41638/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:5. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the 2024 climate action plan progress report published by his Department on 3 September 2024. [42882/24]
Paul Murphy
Question:6. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the 2024 climate action plan progress report published by his Department on 3 September 2024. [42884/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 to 6, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on the environment and climate action oversees implementation of the ambitious programme for Government commitments in environment and climate change, including the implementation of the climate action plan. The committee has met on 22 occasions since July 2020, most recently on 10 June.
The Department of the Taoiseach prepares progress reports on the delivery of measures committed to under the climate action plan. The latest progress report for the 2024 climate action plan, CAP24, was published on 3 September. It provides detail on actions that were due to be completed in quarter 1 and quarter 2 of this year, along with progress on delayed high impact actions from the climate action plan 2023.
This latest progress report shows that 20 of the 33 actions set out for the first half of the year were completed by the end of quarter 2. Actions reported as delayed will continue to be pursued and will be reported on in the upcoming quarter 3 progress report. Examples of high impact actions completed and detailed in the progress report for the first and second quarters include publishing the national biomethane strategy, publishing the high-powered EV charging strategy, developing the strategic rail review implementation plan, reducing the minimum number of large fossil-fuel electricity generators, delivering low-cost finance options for home retrofit, publishing a decarbonisation roadmap for industrial heat, establishing the national agricultural soil carbon observatory, updating the shadow price of carbon, publishing a new green public procurement strategy, adopting 31 local authority climate action plans, and finalising a new national adaptation framework. The quarter 3 progress report is currently being compiled and will be published following consideration by the Government.
While much progress has been achieved, we know we need to increase efforts and up our pace on climate action delivery. The challenge before us is profound. We need to continue to respond resolutely and practically to the climate threat before us, working together to achieve the best possible outcomes for current and future generations.
Before we continue, I welcome to the Gallery Coachford Active Retirement who are here today. Muintir ó Achadh Bolg, Réileán agus Áth an Chóiste atá tagtha chuig an Dáil inniu chun bualadh leis na Teachtaí agus na proceedings a fheiceáil. Tá fáilte rompu.
I made an oversight in my last interaction with the Taoiseach. While dealing with the UN, I should have also have raised the case of Private Seán Rooney. We have seen what is in the public domain. The family is concerned and frustrated with the lack of communication from the UN following requests from the coroner. This is something that needs to be addressed.
I have spoken to the Taoiseach before about Carlinn Hall in Dundalk and I have also raised it with the Minister. Whoever is in government really needs to look at the support scheme for renewable heat from the perspective of putting in place a solution to move away from this gas-fed communal system to something that is more environmentally and financially sustainable.
In talking about retrofitting, I wish to raise briefly the following issue. Louth County Council was ahead of itself at some level. In 2023, it had a target of 105 but was able to draw down money from other places and was able to deliver 205 houses. The target for this year is 140, however, so the Taoiseach can see the issue. We need to deliver on the basis of the capacity it has. It has a stock of 4,200, and at the end of last year only 424 had been retrofitted. As good as the work is, we need to be able to deliver more to deal with the 2030 target.
At the start of this term the public was promised a Government that would be green and would be environmentally ambitious. Despite all the talk we are not seeing when it comes to implementing change. Setting targets was important but it was the easy bit. Meeting the targets is the more difficult bit. We heard both today and yesterday repeated warnings from the Climate Change Advisory Council and the EPA that this Government and Ireland are not on target to meet our 2030 targets. That will result in an €8 billion fine for this country. Will the Taoiseach start investing in communities now? We have seen under this Government reductions in the solar and EV grants and measures for homes that are far too expensive. It is completely out of the grasp of most people to do their piece for climate action. As we look down the barrel of this election and €8 billion in fines, will the Taoiseach please consider ensuring the grants that are available are suitable and that we are investing in people and the environment now and not just wasting that money paying fines in a few years' time? The Social Democrats in government would not have cut those grants. In fact, we would have ramped them up to make sure everybody can play their part when it comes to the climate and that we bring everybody along. It is not okay that, as we move to a more carbon-neutral society, we are leaving people behind, not only people in poverty but also people who are struggling to keep a roof over their heads or pay their mortgage. They cannot afford to do things like solar panels or heat pumps. We need to help those people. It is much better use of public money to invest in those people now and invest in grants rather than just handing it over to Europe in 2030.
A new international team of researchers has just established that 2023 was the hottest year ever recorded and critically that land-based carbon absorption has collapsed completely, going way beyond the worst case scenarios of previous research.
Forests, lakes, soils and so on that are supposed to be absorbing carbon are not doing it anymore, such is the level of deforestation, the poor quality of a certain type of forestry, wildfires and so on. This research is terrifying because it means all the models are out the window and that the scenario is far worse and will accelerate.
When the land is not absorbing carbon, what is left is the ocean. Some 50% to 60% of oxygen is produced by the ocean and through carbon absorption by the ocean forests and plankton. If we have already destroyed, to a huge degree, the ability of the land to absorb carbon, we had better not do the same to the sea. The way development of our marine environment is being planned could do to the sea what we have done to the land. I ask the Government once again to not allow industrialisation, even in the name of climate change, of sensitive marine environments which could destroy the ability of sandbanks around the country, which are rich in plankton and absorb carbon. Do not destroy them with industrialisation until they have been properly assessed as to whether they should be protected environments.
The Climate Change Advisory Council says we face €8 billion in fines for missing our emissions reductions targets. The Taoiseach's predecessor, Leo Varadkar, told the Business Post at the weekend the targets will not be met. About 10% of emissions are from heating and using electricity in residential homes. Housing for All commits to bringing in minimum BER standards for the private rental sector by 2025. There is no sign of that target being achieved and we are a couple of months away from 2025. Half of all private rented accommodation owned by individual landlords has a BER of D or lower. That is about 150,000 homes that are cold, damp and poorly insulated. It is much worse than the figure for owner-occupied housing. The reason for that is landlords do not suffer from the cold and damp; it is the tenants who suffer. Badly insulated homes cost around €2,500 extra to heat per year compared with B2-rated homes. That is a cost that is borne by the tenants, not the landlords. Tenants cannot avail of any of the schemes or grants for retrofitting. That is why on Monday I launched a Bill with Friends of the Earth to legislate for minimum BER standards in the private rented sector, prohibiting landlords from using retrofitting as a pretext for evicting tenants or raising rents. Will the Taoiseach bring in minimum BER standards for private rental accommodation?
What is the balance sheet of the Government, which includes the Green Party, on environmental issues? The Taoiseach will, no doubt, tell me greenhouse gas emissions fell in most sectors last year, but the Climate Change Advisory Council says the fall is not nearly big enough to meet our modest climate obligations. The target for reduced emissions for 2030 is 51%. What is the Government headed for? It is 29%. How does the Environmental Protection Agency rate Government performance? On nature, very poorly; on water, poorly; on climate, poorly; on waste, poorly; on air quality and pollution, only moderately.
As the Government heads for the door, it is building fossil fuel infrastructure for liquified natural gas. At a time when real urgency is called for, the Green Party has failed to deliver the changes we need. A far more radical approach is necessary. Central to this will be building a movement of tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands on the streets to demand action and identifying a capitalist system which puts profit before the environment as part of the problem, not part of the solution.
I thank colleagues. To Deputy Ó Murchú, I will seek an update on our ongoing engagement on the case of Private Seán Rooney. It is a case we take an active interest in and on which we continue to keep in close contact with the UN and the Lebanese Government. I also take the Deputy's point, which he has made before in the House, on the need for support schemes for renewable heat to be more innovative or agile in terms of responding to issues for people. I will bring that to the attention of the Minister.
Similarly, it is a fair point that if a county council is overperforming or has capacity to do more in the retrofitting system, and there is a lot of stock that needs it, we should look to reward those moving faster rather than have people move at the pace of the slowest. I will come back to the Deputy on that.
When Deputy Whitmore was raising those issues, I thought she was gearing up to raise the issue of the Glen of the Downs, which is something we will work on together.
You can answer that as well if you want.
I will answer that as well because the Deputy gave me a petition on it from many of our constituents, and it is an important issue. I acknowledge the Deputy's good work on it and the meeting we had with the Delgany community council. I will work with the Deputy and the National Parks and Wildlife Service to see if we can make progress on that issue. While it is a local Wicklow issue, it is also a climate issue and an important community amenity we would like to see utilised for that.
Deputy Whitmore and other colleagues made a broader point on where we are at, and she is right to say setting targets is the easy bit and delivering them is harder. That is a statement of fact. She is also right to say it was important to set the targets and put them in law. We now need to put our shoulder to the wheel collectively to make sure we achieve the targets and do not end up paying fines.
The Government is committed to addressing greenhouse gas emissions. That is why we passed one of the most ambitious climate laws in the world and are trying to mobilise the public and private sectors to reduce climate emissions. As Deputy Barry predicted I would say, we saw a decrease of 6.8% in Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions compared with 2022, which had seen a 1.9% reduction on the previous year. Encouragingly, we have seen decreases in emissions across key sectors: electricity, 21.6%; industry, 5.8%; agriculture, 4.6%; and residential, 7.1%, while overall emissions fell below the 1990 baseline for the first time in three decades, and at a time when our economy grew by around 5%, which points to decoupling of economic growth and emissions.
I say that while fully accepting we will have to do more and raise the scale of the ambition. However, we cannot get fatalistic when it comes to climate change. We need businesses and people in all sectors of our economy to buy into the national and international effort. This is proof we can make progress. Recent modelling calculations from UCC's MaREI institute shows we are on track to stay within our first carbon budget if we achieve an annual 8% reduction in 2024 and 2025. There are other encouraging signs around public transport usage, falling nitrogen fertiliser use and retrofitting numbers up 80% in one year. There is more to do and that is why we have established this fund for climate adaptation and are putting billions of euro into it each year, which will be available to the next government for the uplift in the scale of ambition and action that will be required.
I take Deputy Boyd Barrett's point on needing to get offshore developments right. I would argue there is a comprehensive process already in place in terms of the mapping exercise and planning process. We also need to develop and build them at some point too. That is important.
I will look at Deputy Murphy's Bill, which has been published but which I have yet to read. I thank him for bringing it to my attention.
Did I answer Deputy Barry's question? I think I did.
What about the balance sheet?
Our report card, was it?
Yes.
I have outlined the progress we have made on climate change, accepting there is a lot more we need to do in the time ahead.
Cabinet Committees
Peadar Tóibín
Question:7. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will next meet [37628/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:8. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [37662/24]
Mick Barry
Question:9. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [38046/24]
Bernard Durkan
Question:10. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [39168/24]
Ruairí Ó Murchú
Question:11. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [41193/24]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Question:12. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [43248/24]
Cian O'Callaghan
Question:13. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on children and education and disability will meet next. [43254/24]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 13, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on children and education and disability oversees programme for Government commitments relating to children, education and disability and receives detailed reports on identified policy areas such as child poverty and well-being, education and the reform of disability services. Disability services are a key focus for the Government, and that is why I established this Cabinet committee.
The membership of the Cabinet committee comprises me, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and for Defence, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and for Transport, the Minister for Health, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, the Minister for Education, the Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Social Protection and for Rural and Community Development, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. The Minister of State with special responsibility for special education and inclusion and the Minister of State with responsibility for disability also participate in all of the Cabinet committee meetings.
Other Ministers or Ministers of State are invited to participate as required. To date, since I established the committee in May, four meetings of it have taken place.
Care in this country is met with rhetoric rather than resources. At the start of this year we had the care referendum, when the Government promised a new era, but when we look at the delivery of care, including children in State care which I mentioned earlier, nursing home care and childcare, we see that resources are not nearly enough to deliver what should be a decent level of care in these sectors. The provision of childcare is a public good but it is more than this. It is a necessity for many families who simply cannot get off the economic treadmill that necessitates them paying their mortgages. If they did, the whole world would come tumbling down.
There is a parallel universe on the issue of childcare. For sure the Government will speak about increased investment in childcare and the fact it has reduced fees in the sector. The truth is that when we speak to providers and parents in the sector, they will say it is far harder for providers to exist and far harder for parents to access childcare. The reason is that many of these providers have had their incomes and fees frozen but they have increased input costs. This is making it less viable for them to function. In the second quarter of this year, 31 childcare services in Dublin closed down. This is mirrored throughout the country. It is a trend that has been happening for years. Every time I raise this with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, it is very frustrating because there is a straitjacket instinct that the Government is providing money, more money is going in, it is less costly on parents and this is where the issue stops. It should not stop there. The Taoiseach mentioned he wants to be a Taoiseach for small businesses. He should realise that small businesses are being hammered with increased input costs. Only childcare seems to have the fees frozen also, which is a double whammy for the sector. I ask the Taoiseach to take this issue seriously and to make sure we have a system whereby the providers of childcare and workers in childcare are properly compensated for the service they deliver so there are more services and families can access them.
I spoke to Taoiseach recently about autism units in Louth and Dundalk, and the fact there are 18 secondary schools in Louth and only half of them provide units. We could decide to hammer the schools but when we speak to schools such as the Marist, it will speak about going over and back with the NCSE and the Department and say that it has been far from perfect. With regard to primary schools, I have told the Taoiseach about Sheelagh National School which wanted to speak to somebody in the building unit in the Department so the agreed units could be built and put in place. I have also spoken previously about De La Salle College and other schools and the need for the work to happen. This is all absolutely necessary. My Education (Amendment) Bill would allow for parents of kids with disabilities to apply two years early. We need to look at this type of solution. In the schools it is about the school inclusion model so we get the best bang for our buck with regard to occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, physiotherapists and others, not just in special schools but also in regular schools with a shared service. This is what needs to happen.
I will take 20 seconds on an issue regarding a paramedic in Dundalk. I have not found any other method to deal with it. This is someone in the defence forces who was trained by the National Ambulance Service. Sonya Larrigan has retired from the Defence Forces and has gone into the National Ambulance Service but it is not accepting her credentials for increments.
You should not name people.
There has been an over and back. I will finish on this.
We are moving on to the next speaker.
She is an advanced paramedic and the National Ambulance Service is not accepting this. She is not able to carry out life-saving operations and this is not good enough.
The importance of children and their education and care in all circumstances, in respect of access to primary and second level education for children with or without disabilities, and with regard to the security of children who might be in the care of the State, has special focus at the present time and is likely to have special focus in the time ahead. This has come into focus in recent times, particularly with regard to children who may have gone missing and who have been missing for a considerable amount of time. We need to put a particular and special emphasis on the way in which this is managed. In another area, where the family law courts are correctly being reviewed and revised, it is important that children's interests are protected in the course of family law. This is not necessarily the same in all cases. There are circumstances where the proceedings are biased against children and biased against their parents. This eventually comes back on the children and puts them in a vulnerable position.
Earlier I made the point to the Taoiseach that I think games or deceptions are being played with regard to what is happening to recruit the staff we need in various areas of the health service. The Taoiseach did not like it when I spoke about deception. This question is about children. I want to refer the Taoiseach to the figures, which are the HSE's figures and not mine. If we ask detailed questions, we get some of the detailed information. This is with regard to children's disability network teams. It is a very serious issue. There are 110,000 children waiting for therapies and not getting them. They are waiting years to get them. They are getting a tiny fraction of what they need. I was just looking at the recruitment report, which is a month-by-month report over a three-year period. In April 2022 in my area of CHO 6, 170 posts were allocated and there were 114 staff. At that time 1,000 people were wait-listed. By the time we got to March 2023, there were 184 posts allocated but only 120 people were in posts. This was massively short of what was needed. There were 1,217 people in total waiting across all of the CDNTs. There was a significant increase in the number of people waiting but, incredibly, there were fewer staff. I apologise; the figure I gave is for October 2022. In October 2022, 129 staff were working and by March 2023 there were only 120 staff. The number of staff was dropping. All of the staff numbers are well below what is supposed to be on those teams. How can the Taoiseach say that recruitment is happening if we are seeing the numbers falling?
I want to raise a particular case which illustrates the horrendous situation facing parents looking for childcare in this country and how unstable and insecure it can be. More than 130 families lost their crèche places last Friday. It is an incredible situation where a particular crèche, Krafty Kids, was evicted from St. Mary's GAA club in Saggart. On 6 October one of the crèche owners received a message from auctioneer and vice chairman of the club's committee, Ray Cooke, to inform them that their property in the upstairs rooms, including children's playthings, was being removed, their access to the upstairs rooms was being removed and they had to be completely off the premises by last Friday, 18 October. This then came to pass and they have been evicted. One parent of a child in the crèche said that Krafty Kids is a huge part of the local community, serving more than 130 families, and does a superb job of caring for the little ones. This person said that St. Mary's GAA club, by failing to engage with Krafty Kids and forcing it out, has put an amazing group of ladies out of work and has left hard-working parents with no childcare and the children without their community of friends to play with.
In the long run-----
A Theachta, very quickly please. Tá an t-am caite-----
Sure.
-----and we need to give the Taoiseach time to reply.
In the long run, the answer is a public childcare system.
We need to give the Taoiseach an opportunity to answer.
In the short term, can there be an intervention here in terms of either mediation with the GAA club to allow a reopening or the provision of an alternative location?
I call Deputy Conway-Walsh for the final supplementary question.
Go raibh maith agat. I wish to raise the lack of classes for autistic children in County Mayo. I have one case where a parent is looking for a school place for next year and she has been told it is not possible. This parent and other parents will be forced to take cases in the High Court to try to get places for their children. I ask the Taoiseach to please look at what is happening in County Mayo in respect of the unavailability of school places for autistic children for next year and to please have this issue fixed. It is shameful that this Government is ending and we are in a situation like this.
Go raibh maith agat. The Taoiseach has a lot to answer i dtrí nóiméad.
I will do my best. Starting with the question from Deputy Conway-Walsh, I thank her for raising this issue concerning the lack of autism places in County Mayo. The Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, meets weekly with the National Council for Special Education and I will ask her to raise at the next meeting the specific issue of the situation in County Mayo and revert to Deputy Conway-Walsh directly.
Moving to Deputy Murphy and his query in relation to childcare places, I am sorry to hear about the situation with Krafty Kidz and St. Mary's GAA club in Saggart, and the very difficult impact it has had on people. I am sure this includes the children, who make friends and get used to going to places, etc. I wonder if this is something we could discuss with the county childcare committee. By the way, I too favour moving to a new model of childcare and I will talk lots about this in the weeks ahead. I think our model is overly reliant on private providers. There will always be a need for some private provision, but when we look at international comparisons, we can see that our system is overly reliant on private provision rather than public provision. Perhaps this is a matter for another day. I will follow up on this issue with the county childcare committee.
Regarding Deputy Boyd Barrett's question, there is validity to his point. To give the truth again, there has been no recruitment freeze in relation to the CDNTs. In fact, when there was the embargo on recruitment or the recruitment pause - call it what you wish - CDNTs were exempt from it. Recruitment campaigns were run. The Deputy's figures, though, are right. It has been extremely hard to attract and recruit people into the sector at a time of full employment. We have seen numbers in the sector grow somewhat. I do not have the figures to hand, but I will send them to the Deputy. He is highlighting the scale of the challenge we face in trying to fully staff the CDNTs. I can tell the Deputy that we have the money to start more of them, but the challenge in recruitment belies that reality. I will ask that a specific look is taken at that CDNT and I will come back to the Deputy with a note on what I think can happen in recruitment in the months ahead.
I acknowledge Deputy Durkan's advocacy of the voice of the child in general, but specifically the voice of the child in family law cases and our courts system. The Deputy and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, have had many detailed discussions in this regard. The Minister has brought forward several proposals concerning this matter, including reform of the family law courts. She has also published an overview that she did of international comparisons and best practices. I believe this paves the way forward. We will keep in touch with the Deputy on this matter.
On Deputy Ó Murchú's question, I think he is right. It is too easy to hammer the schools and he is right to suggest we should not. What we need to do is to have a better way of looking at how we can bring schools together with communities to plan ahead in terms of the need for autism classes. I believe schools have an obligation to do more, absolutely, but we also have an obligation to listen to them in terms of what they need. It is often quite practical things. The D15 task force that has been established is having its first meeting today. This could very much be a model that could be rolled out right across the country, should it work, in respect of how we can bring people around the table and try to forward plan. I say this because when I talk to the parents of kids with special needs, I find there is a sense of anxiety that everything is always last minute. They might get a place but it would be at the last minute. We can do that better. If the Deputy wants to send me the details of the particular case he endeavoured to raise, I will be happy to follow up on it for him.
Turning to the question from Deputy Tóibín on the issue of childcare, he is right. I accept it is not just an issue of fees; there is also an issue of access and the model we want to build. I will point out that while it is true that some preschool services have closed, it is also true that some preschool services have opened. The numbers available to me show there has been an overall increase of 161 in the number of services in the sector this year. We have also made some changes in relation to the issue of the freeze and trying to respond to some of the issues raised by the sector. Maybe I can send the Deputy a note on this issue. Go raibh maith agat.
Is féidir teacht ar Cheisteanna Scríofa ar www.oireachtas.ie.
Written Answers are published on the Oireachtas website.
Cuireadh an Dáil ar fionraí ar 1.54 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 2.54 p.m.
Sitting suspended at 1.54 p.m. and resumed at 2.54 p.m.