Seanad Éireann debate -
Thursday, 9 Feb 2017

Vol. 249 No. 17

Commencement Matters

Schools Building Projects Status

Senator Jennifer Murnane O'Connor

The issue I raise is the building project at Knockbeg College, a boys' secondary school located approximately three miles from Carlow town and Graiguecullen. Its origins can be traced back to 1793. The school has 30 staff and approximately 420 pupils. In 1991 it was announced that a new school would be built, but 25 years later the project has not started. While I am aware that funding for the project has been provided, having met parents of students at the college, I am calling for the issue to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

I have received a note from a parent in which she paints a picture of the school her two boys attend. It describes an inadequate heating system and very damp walls that are covered in mould and can be seen throughout the school. It states the windows are single glazed, with window frames rotting away and most windows stuffed with paper. Plaster is falling off most of the ceilings and some of the ceilings have fallen down. The note refers to buckets being placed in certain rooms to collect rainwater leaking through the roof. It adds that as a result of these leaks, floors are wet and slippery, making it dangerous for both pupils and staff to walk on them. This has led to many injuries. The sanitary areas are described as being outdated, damp and cold; the locker rooms are a health hazard owing to the wet floors, while rodents have been spotted. In addition, a lack of modern equipment is preventing students from carrying out their scientific experiments. The note describes bannisters on the main stairway as unstable and highly dangerous and refers to extremely cold temperatures in the school throughout the winter months, sometimes not higher than 2° Celsius. This, the note continues, is unfair to both students and staff who have to work and teach in such appalling conditions and the matter needs to be addressed.

I acknowledge that the building project at Knockbeg College has been put out to tender.

It has been ongoing for 25 years, but the building is unfit for purpose and is actually unsafe. I ask again today the question which was asked before the funding came through, namely, whether the Minister can give the school some prefabs until the building is up and running. The build is taking place in three stages. As the Minister knows, when a building starts, one is talking a year if not more. This building is unsuitable. It is not right to have students and teachers in conditions like this in schools in 2017. Can the Minister look at providing prefabs in the short term and until the school is built? It is a priority 1 project and the Minister must ensure the funding is provided as soon as possible and that the school is built.

It should be recorded that Knockbeg school is an excellent one with excellent standards. As such, it is sad to see that it has been left for 25 years until it is in such a state of disrepair that it is unfit for purpose. The board of management wants to meet the Minister for Education and Skills next week. As such, I ask now for a pre-meeting. If the Minister of State could come back to me on that, I would really appreciate it. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to address this issue for me.

Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (Deputy Eoghan Murphy)

The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Richard Bruton, asked me to thank the Senator for raising this matter as it provides an opportunity to clarify the current position on the project for St. Mary's College in Knockbeg, Carlow. I thank the Senator for passing on the list from the parent setting out exactly what the situation is in the school.

St. Mary's College, Knockbeg, is an all-boys, non-fee-paying, voluntary Catholic secondary school owned by the Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin. It is one of the oldest secondary schools in the country, dating back to 1793. The college itself comprises four main buildings, all protected structures, and the current major school building project aims to create an exciting and modern educational facility for the future while preserving the beauty and best qualities of the protected elements from the past. There are inherent design challenges in extending such buildings, but the Minister is pleased to report that this has not overly affected the progression of the project through the various stages of architectural planning. The project entails the construction of an extension to the existing school of approximately 3,350 sq. m, together with associated refurbishment and external works. The project brief looks to extend the four main buildings to create a cloister, thus forming a courtyard to the centre which will act as a focal point for the school. The innovative design includes single-storey, two-storey and three-storey structures incorporating facilities such as a study hall, PE hall, which can also be used for extra curricular activity, and a science laboratory.

The project was announced as part of the five-year construction programme in 2012. The project progressed quickly through the early stages of architectural design, although during stage 2b two replacement consultants had to be appointed which added some months to the completion of that particular process. The Minister has asked me to report that the project is now progressing through stage 3, the tender stage. The board of management of the school is the client for the building project and, as such, is responsible for directing the design team. In October 2016, the board authorised the design team to proceed to tender. The closing date for receipt of tenders was 12 January 2017. The design team is currently preparing a tender report which is due to be submitted to the Department by the middle of February 2017. Subject to no issues arising, it is envisaged that construction will commence in the second quarter of 2017. Once the project is on site, it will take approximately 24 months to carry out the work.

The project will provide school accommodation for up to 450 pupils. Enrolments in September 2016 stood at 423 pupils, which is over 50 pupils more than five years ago. On completion in 2019, the lives of these pupils will be enriched by a state-of-the-art learning environment for the future built with a significant nod to the past. As the Senator has requested that I raise the matter with the Minister, I will ask him about the possibility of prefabs on site in advance of completion in 2019. I will also ask him if he can facilitate a meeting with the Senator before the board meets him next week.

Senator Jennifer Murnane O'Connor

It is great to see that Knockbeg is getting a new school, but the building it is in now is simply unfit. It is a health and safety issue at this stage. The school is simply asking for some prefabs to ensure nothing happens to any of the students. I believe they sometimes have to go home because there is no heating, which is unacceptable. In those circumstances, I ask the Minister of State to ask the Minister to arrange a meeting with me for next week. I would really appreciate it.

Agriculture Scheme Payments

Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill

I welcome the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Michael Creed, and note my appreciation that he has attended to hear this Commencement debate. It is an issue on which he has probably received many representations and which he is dealing with as well as possible within the Department. It relates to two very important schemes, in particular for smaller farmers. These are GLAS and the AEOS. Payments under the schemes have been delayed this year. I understand there are complications in processing the applications but as of 2 February, the situation as set out in a reply the Minister delivered in the Dáil was that 24% of all GLAS payments remained outstanding. Of the 37,492 applications made, 8,967 had not resulted in payments. That comprised GLAS 1 and GLAS 2 applications. On the other environmental scheme, the AEOS, 30% of applications for payment remained outstanding. According to the figures the Minister released last week, 2,625 payments remained outstanding out of a total application set of 8,640.

There is concern among farming organisations and, in particular, small farmers about this issue. I appreciate that a lot of applications have been processed and paid. It is understandable that there will be delays in processing payments every year. In that context, I understand that there are new computerised systems within the Department. However, can the Minister put a system in place whereby these applications can be processed more speedily? I met with farmers last weekend who have not received these payments and whose feed bills at this time of year are increasing. They are under financial pressure. Is there a way to release the payments sooner? Perhaps the Minister will update the House in relation to the current state of payments and state whether any additional staff have been sanctioned to allow the relevant section of the Department to process these payments more promptly.

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Deputy Michael Creed)

I thank the Senator for raising this matter on the Commencement and welcome the opportunity to outline the current position on the 2016 payments under the green low carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS, and the previous agri-environment scheme, the agri-environment options scheme, AEOS.

GLAS provides support for farmers under the rural development programme 2014 to 2020 to deliver environmental benefits and public goods which will enhance Ireland's agricultural sustainability credentials into the future. The scheme plays a critical role in enhancing Ireland's efforts to deliver sustainable agricultural production. It provides support to Irish farmers aimed at the enhancement of biodiversity, water quality and the mitigation of the future impacts of climate change while allowing Irish farmers to improve their agricultural productivity and practices in a sustainable manner. It is critical that we protect the Irish countryside for the benefit of all and GLAS provides support for Irish producers to do this, while enhancing their ability to deliver sustainable food production. That food production is making a critical contribution to growth in the economy.

GLAS involves a maximum annual payment of €5,000 under the general scheme, with provision for payment up to €7,000, known as GLAS+, where the farmer is required to give exceptional environmental commitments in a limited number of cases. Applications under the first two tranches of the GLAS scheme resulted in almost 38,000 farmers being approved into the scheme in its first year of implementation. This represents an unprecedented level of participation in the first year of an agri-environment scheme in Ireland. I recently indicated that all qualifying applicants under the third tranche of GLAS will be accepted into the scheme. With just under 14,000 applicants for GLAS 3, this will bring overall participation levels above the targeted participation level of 50,000 farmers. As all participants in the second tranche of the previous agri-environment scheme, AEOS Il, completed their five-year contracts at the end of December 2016, a full check of all payments made must be carried out before their final payment issues. This final check is an EU requirement and has been completed in many cases.

I note that 2016 payments in the amount of over €19 million have been paid to over 6,000 participants remaining in this scheme. Payments are issuing in outstanding cases as soon as the final check has been completed and officials in my Department are working to ensure payment issues in all cases as soon as possible. The 2016 payments represent the first full year of payment under GLAS.

At the end of December 2016, there were approximately 37,500 active participants in the GLAS scheme, of which 27,400 received 85% of their 2016 payment in December. These payments were valued at over €97 million. As the accredited paying agency, the Department has a duty to ensure that, in making payments, everything in an application that can be checked is checked as required under the regulations. As a result, payments can only issue where all the required validation checks have been successfully passed. As issues with outstanding cases are resolved, they are paid in weekly payment runs. Further payments, valued at €5.3 million, issued to just under 1,500 participants over the past couple of weeks and payments to a further 750 farmers are expected to issue before the end of this week.

To facilitate divergent farming practices, GLAS has a range of over 30 actions available for selection by applicants for GLAS. Under EU regulations, compliance with each action must be verified; therefore, there are validations associated with each of these actions. As a result, there are a number of reasons that payment may not have issued. Many of these issues, given their complexity, require review on a case by case basis and this work is ongoing. To suggest these cases could be processed manually is unrealistic as the full suite of checks would remain to be carried out and recorded on each individual application which would, most likely, lead to audit risks and further delays. As issues are resolved, payments will continue to issue on an ongoing basis. I am very keenly aware of the need to process these payments without delay and recognise that these payments are overdue. I am ensuring all resources required, both on the lT and administrative side, are directed towards resolving the outstanding queries on these cases.

In relation to the online application system for GLAS, it is clear from the governing regulations that not only is it desirable that member states move to electronic processing of area-based aid and support applications, but it is, in fact, a mandatory regulatory requirement from the 2018 claim year onward. In that context, my Department launched a tremendously ambitious development programme to move to an online application and payment processing system for GLAS. Compared to Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, where farmer interest in agri-environment schemes is also very strong, this is an extraordinary achievement as these areas remain in the early stages of approving applications. In the context of the recently launched consultation process on the future of the CAP, it is in Ireland's interests that we have a fully developed, robust electronic processing and payment system that will give the necessary assurances that disbursement of EU funds is managed to the highest standards. Not only will this act as a protection against disallowances in this programming period but it will also serve to strengthen our position in negotiating funding for a future agri-environment scheme in the next programming period.

Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill

I appreciate the fact that the Department is doing everything possible to get these payments issued and note that 750 payments will be issued this week, in addition to what has been issued in the past couple of weeks. With an average of 750 per week, it would take ten weeks to clear the backlog of payments. I appreciate that it is a new system but the Department needs to set a realistic timeframe and start to put the processes in place. We are looking for efficiencies within the Department budget but also effectiveness in delivering payments to farmers. I know that the Minister is on the side of farmers and thank him for his response.

Deputy Michael Creed

I thank the Senator for raising the matter. I am acutely conscious of the hardship it is causing in terms of cashflow management for individual farmers. According to the charter, agreed between farmers and my Department, we are behind the curve in getting the payments out and they are overdue. I assure all Senators and the farming community that every effort is being made in the Department to make the payments as quickly as possible. Every single application from the cohort that remain to be paid has to be eyeballed to identify and resolve the issues in respect of the individual application. I am not pointing a finger outside the Department as it has to be resolved within the Department so that, when we press the pay button next year for all 38,000 applicants, it will all issue smoothly. We are in a similar situation to the one we were in at this time last year but every effort is being made in terms of IT resources, personnel and overtime availability. It is a logistical issue that needs time to resolve but, extrapolating from what we have paid in recent weeks, I would be very disappointed if it took the length of the time the Senator suggested.

Deaths of Irish Citizens Abroad

Senator Catherine Noone

I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Leo Varadkar, who is unavoidably unavailable. This issue was brought to my attention by councillor Ted Leddy in Dublin west who has been working on it for some time and has asked me to look into it further with the Minister, although I have a feeling we will not get it resolved today.

I welcome Mrs. Bernadette Goodwin to the Visitors Gallery. She tragically lost her five year old son, Keith Charles Goodwin, in a drowning accident in the north of Spain on 25 July 1972. She has received what is supposed to be a death certificate for Keith from the Spanish authorities but she is not entirely happy with what she has received. Keith was brought home to be buried in Malahide cemetery. Mrs. Goodwin has spent decades trying to get Keith's death registered in the Dublin register and to get a certificate of his death as an Irish citizen. For insurance, legal and perhaps industrial reasons a death cannot be registered twice in the European Union, or in two countries. I have not really got to the bottom of the issue and was hoping the Minister would be able to enlighten me.

There are additional details and nuances to Mrs. Goodwin's case which I would like to explore on a different date but, in the interim, we owe it to people like Mrs. Goodwin to expedite the provision in the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 which provides for a record of deaths abroad to be maintained by the General Register Office. As it stands, this section of the legislation has not commenced and I understand there may be administrative or staffing reasons for this situation. It is three years since the legislation was brought forward and this situation is unsatisfactory. I accept that the record will not be a legal document but it will provide some comfort to Irish families such as Mrs. Goodwin's who have tragically lost a loved one abroad. I call for this provision to be expedited.

Deputy Eoghan Murphy

I thank the Senator for giving the opportunity to address this very important matter. I welcome Mrs. Goodwin and Councillor Leddy to the House and apologise on behalf of the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Leo Varadkar, who has to be abroad with the President.

The Civil Registration Act 2004 provides for a register of deaths which occur in Ireland. Any death which occurs in the State must be registered, irrespective of the nationality or country of permanent residence of the deceased. Where a death occurs in the State, it is the duty of a qualified informant, normally a relative of the deceased, to attend at a registrar's office and register the death on foot of a certificate of cause of death supplied by a registered medical practitioner. Where a death is referred to a coroner, the death is registered by a registrar on foot of a coroner's certificate. These processes ensure the integrity, reliability and credibility of our registers, which is of the utmost importance.

When an Irish resident dies abroad, the death is registered in the country where the death occurs. A death certificate, issued by the civil authorities of that country and translated, if necessary, is normally sufficient for all legal and administrative purposes. There is no legal requirement to register such deaths here. Not having the death of a loved one registered in Ireland is a very emotive issue for some of the parents and relatives involved, and it was considered that provisions for the establishment of a record of foreign deaths would provide them with some comfort.

Section 13 of the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 provides for a record of deaths abroad to record the deaths of Irish citizens who die abroad while on holiday, on temporary work contracts or during short-term absences from the State. The use of a record, rather than a register, to record the deaths is based on the fact that the certificates which will be issued from the record will have no legal standing and will not be used to replace the death certificate received from the country of death. This is necessary to provide a clear distinction from certificates which are issued from the register of deaths in Ireland, which have a legal standing. It would not be possible for the Oireachtas to impose statutory obligations on foreign doctors or coroners to certify a death.

The entry will record as many facts as are available on the death certificate received from the authorities in the place of death, other than the cause of death. The registration of such deaths on the register shall be voluntary and non-mandatory. The provision does not place a time limit on when the death occurred in order that no person is inadvertently excluded from applying to record a death of a deceased loved one. The creation of a separate record ensures the current death register would not be compromised by the inclusion of deaths that take place outside the State. It also ensures statistics used by the Central Statistics Office, CSO, for medical planning will not be compromised by the addition of foreign deaths to the main register of deaths. While the Department has responsibility for the commencement of this provision, the operation of the provision comes within the remit of the civil registration service in the HSE. Industrial relations issues within the civil registration service are being addressed and the provision will be commenced when they have concluded.

Senator Catherine Noone

It is clear that what I am asking for is straightforward, intended by law, in place and has not been activated. I am frustrated that it has not been put in place because of industrial relations issues. I have no idea what that means or what all that is about. I appreciate that the Minister of State is obliging me and the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar, by coming here to give me this response, which is for the most part what I know. The last paragraph is frustrating for me and means that I have to go and further investigate this matter. I will not leave it at this. This is the first that I have heard of whatever issues there are. I would really like to know what is going on and what other legal and service issues have not been put in place because of such disputes which, as I said, are news to me. I appreciate that the Minister of State most likely cannot go into detail because there are industrial relations issues and is most likely unaware of what the details are. I will be taking up the matter with the Minister as soon as I see him.

Deputy Eoghan Murphy

I understand the Senator's frustration, the request and the importance of this issue. The Senator is right to raise it. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity to speak to the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar, before taking this matter this morning. I will speak to him as soon as I can about the Senator's frustrations and the issues that she raised, to see if he can give her any further information on his return.

Rape Crisis Network Funding

Senator Martin Conway

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Eoghan Murphy. It is my first opportunity since he was appointed Minister of State to formally congratulate him. He has already hit the ground running with his very important junior ministerial role, in which I wish him well and continued success.

I tabled this Commencement matter following a Clare FM "Morning Focus" investigation into domestic violence and abuse in County Clare. For a week after Christmas, Clare FM carried interviews with people involved in the Rape Crisis Midwest, specifically people involved in the services in County Clare, and spoke to victims of sexual abuse. I take the opportunity to commend the two victims who went on the record and shared their stories with Ms Fiona McGarry and Mr. Gavin Grace on Clare FM. Their bravery is going to give other people encouragement to come forward and speak out.

During the week long Clare FM investigation into sexual abuse in Clare, the issue of funding for the Rape Crisis Midwest was starkly illustrated. There is a service in County Clare and I would like to commend the people involved for that. Unfortunately, in 2016 there were a number of weeks when the service being provided in Ennis had to be suspended due to funding issues. The private sector came on board to provide funding to redevelop the office and ensure there were adequate office facilities and rooms where people who had been abused could have counselling and where people working with Rape Crisis Midwest could do the very important work they do in a comfortable and safe environment.

The Rape Crisis Midwest has to do extensive fundraising to bridge a gap between the funding that it is getting from the State and the funding required to run the service. Unfortunately, in 2016, there were pressures on the service and there was an unfortunate period of time where the service could not be provided owing to a lack of resources. This should not happen again and the service should be available in Ennis all the time. That should be guaranteed. Funding should not be an issue for providing the service in Ennis, County Clare.

Rape Crisis Midwest has also identified the need to provide counselling services and supports in other parts of Clare, specifically in west Clare. It has proposals to establish an outreach service in the Kilrush area of County Clare, which would serve all west Clare, as a starting point for expanding the service and ensuring more people who have been the victims of sexual abuse will come forward and seek the necessary counselling to help in the healing process.

There are many victims who have not spoken to anybody and who are suffering in silence on a daily basis. I encourage victims all over the country but, in particular, in County Clare, about which we are speaking, to go to the Rape Crisis Network, seek its services and engage with it, and life will begin to improve.

I appeal to the Minister to provide the necessary funding in order that the Rape Crisis Midwest can keep its facility in Ennis open all year round and also provide the very important outreach services that it has identified a need for in west Clare.

Deputy Eoghan Murphy

I welcome the opportunity to respond to the issue raised by the Senator on behalf on my colleague, the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Katherine Zappone.

Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence whether in the context of the family or otherwise. At all times, Tusla’s key priority is to ensure the needs of victims of violence are being met in the best way possible. A network of 60 organisations provide services for victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in Ireland, including 20 services providing emergency refuge accommodation for women and children, 24 community-based domestic violence services and 16 rape crisis centres.

The Child and Family Agency has developed a more co-ordinated approach to the provision of these services with a single line of accountability and greater support and oversight of service provision by a dedicated national team. In 2016 TusIa had available to it a budget of €20.6 million to support the provision of services in this area. Last year the 16 rape crisis centres around the country received just over €4 million in funding from Tusla. Additional funding of over €100,000 was made available to rape crisis and sexual violence services in 2016 to address sustainability issues and enhance access with provision of additional outreach services.

Rape Crisis Midwest is based in Limerick city and has centres in Ennis, County Clare and Nenagh, County Tipperary. It provides counselling services for survivors of sexual violence throughout the mid-west and also provides information, helpline and advocacy services. Tusla allocated €346,000 in funding to Rape Crisis Midwest in 2016. The level of funding available to Tusla in 2017 for domestic, sexual and gender based violence services is being further increased. This is to be welcomed. Tusla is finalising arrangements for the publication of its 2017 business plan. The business plan will confirm details of the funding allocation for these important services in 2017. Tusla is engaging with organisations in the sexual violence services sector regarding funding and service arrangements for 2017, and will be confirming funding to individual organisations, including Rape Crisis Midwest, in due course.

As part of its commissioning approach to developing services, Tusla is identifying priority developments and undertaking work to match needs with services for victims and survivors of sexual violence across the country. Access to support services for victims and survivors of rape and sexual violence will be considered as part of commissioning processes, with a particular focus on equitable responses to those who experience sexual violence. The Minister has emphasised to Tusla the priority that she attaches to the provision of services for those impacted on by sexual violence. She has communicated this priority as part of the annual performance statement which issues to Tusla and which informs the preparation and content of its business plan.

The Minister has asked me to assure the House that the Government and Tusla are strongly committed to providing effective responses for victims of sexual violence.

Senator Martin Conway

That is a very positive statement on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Katherine Zappone, on her direction to Tusla and what she sees as the priority. I agree with the Minister on the need to provide support to people who have been abused and encouraging them to come forward and to ensure the mechanisms are there to provide support for victims in rural areas, as well as urban areas. There are myriad challenges facing rural people, particularly in respect of transportation, rural isolation and not having the necessary support to come forward and seek help. The service Rape Crisis Midwest is proposing in terms of an outreach facility in Kilrush is critical. Will the Minister of State, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, reiterate to the Minister the importance of providing this facility and this service and that she should direct Tusla that they be included as part of its business plan and negotiations for its service level agreements with the Rape Crisis Midwest? This should be stipulated and the funds should be made available to provide for it.

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to respond to what has become a vocal campaign for the service in County Clare. It is important we acknowledge the people who are doing great work, particularly the counsellors, and the victims who have come forward. We should also acknowledge the very important work Clare FM has done in highlighting this issue.

Deputy Eoghan Murphy

I thank the Senator for bringing the important matter of funding and services in the mid-west to the Minister's attention. I did not hear the radio programme which he has referred to but clearly it was a very important programme in County Clare. I hope the bravery of the people who went on air and told their stories will result in better, and enhanced provision of, services in the area. The Senator has made it very clear that there is case for this. I will convey what he has said directly to the Minister. I commend him for raising this issue and for being a strong advocate for these services, which are so important for the mid-west.

Sitting suspended at 11.15 a.m. and resumed at 11.30 a.m.