Written Answers Nos. 172 - 181
172. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the annual saving to her Department and the bodies under its aegis if all the fees for all State agency, non-commercial State-sponsored bodies and commercial semi-State board members were reduced by 25%; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26981/15]
View answerAs the terms 'State agencies', 'State-sponsored bodies' and 'semi-State board' may include bodies with a wide range of functions, the Deputy's question has been interpreted as encompassing all bodies with the title "Board", irrespective of their functions, as well as other bodies with a governance remit whose title does not include the term “Board”.
I can advise the Deputy that the total cost at present for the type of fees referred to in her question is €652,376. A reduction of 25 per cent in this figure would result in a saving of €163,094.
The Deputy should be aware that Board fees are not payable in certain circumstances where Board members are appointed in their capacity as a staff representative or officer of the Minister; where a Board member opts to waive his/her fee or part thereof; or where the principle of "One person, one salary" (OPOS) is deemed to apply. The aforementioned figures are based on the current circumstances of existing Board members and could be subject to change if, for example, the OPOS principle was no longer applicable or if Board members changed their decision to waive fees in future.
173. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the annual saving to his Department if spending on professional fees, including but not limited to legal, IT-related, accountancy and other advisory and consultancy work, was reduced by 10%; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26944/15]
View answerI would like to inform the Deputy at the outset that it is the policy of my Department to minimise to the greatest extent possible, professional fees.
For the purposes of this response I have taken professional fees to refer to accountable persons from whom Professional Services Withholding Tax is deductible in respect of professional services provided. Based on the spend in 2014 a reduction in spend of 10% would lead to a potential saving of €30795.00.
174. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the annual saving to the Exchequer if the Minister's special advisers' salaries were capped at the first point of the principal officer grade, that is, €75,647; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26958/15]
View answerI currently have two Special Advisers appointed to me in accordance with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Instructions for Ministerial Appointments. The Principal Officer standard scale applies to these appointments and provides for annual increments, subject to satisfactory performance and attendance. In accordance with the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013, and the provisions of the Haddington Road Agreement, the relevant adjustments to pay have been made to the Principal Officer standard, modified and PPC scales.
A combined annualised amount of €14,777 would be saved if both salaries were capped at the first point of the scale instead of being paid at their current rates.
175. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the annual saving to his Department and the bodies under its aegis if all the fees for all State agency, non-commercial State-sponsored bodies and commercial semi-State board members were reduced by 25%; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26973/15]
View answerI am responsible for appointment of members to the boards of the Adoption Authority of Ireland, the Child and Family Agency (Tusla), Gaisce and the Board of Management for the Children Detention Schools in Oberstown, Co. Dublin. The following table sets out the total cost of fees for the current year. This takes account of members who have waived a fee or would otherwise not receive a fee. A 25% reduction in board fees would result in an annual saving of €45,828.75.
|
Board |
Totals Fees paid per annum |
|
Children Detention Schools |
0 |
|
Adoption Authority of Ireland |
€102,945.00 |
|
Child and Family Agency |
€80,370.00 |
|
Gaisce |
No Fees |
176. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the number of times since the current Government took office that he has met the Minister of State with responsibility in the area of drugs to discuss the national drugs strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26483/15]
View answerAs Minister for Health, I meet regularly with the Ministers of State in my Department to discuss matters of mutual interest. Such arrangements may be either formal or informal, as the circumstances require. Since the appointment in April 2015 of Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin as Minister of State with responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy, the Minister of State and I have been in frequent communication regarding the important issues which fall within his remit. I am confident that the Minister of State, Deputy Ó Ríordáin, will make a strong and lasting contribution in this role and am committed to working with him to ensure an integrated policy approach to substance misuse, including a broad public health approach to tobacco and alcohol as well as other substances which are subject to control or prohibition.
177. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health when a new misuse of drugs Bill will be enacted; the measures that will be included in this legislation to combat the illicit drug trade and facilitate addiction treatment services; if he is satisfied with the time being taken to introduce this legislation; if he is in a position to fast-track this legislation to ensure it is enacted by the end of 2015, in view of the urgency needed to combat drug-related criminality; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26484/15]
View answerI intend to bring forward a Bill by the end of the year to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so as to allow the Government to declare substances to be controlled, thereby meeting our EU and international obligations to control substances that are dangerous and have the potential for abuse. Furthermore, the Bill will clarify the provisions under which Ministerial orders and regulations are made. This will once again allow regulations to be made and, if necessary and appropriate, allow the introduction of stricter or less strict controls on substances which are already covered under the legislation.
As Minister with responsibility for the national drugs strategy, I will also be leading the development of a new strategy for the period after 2016. My intention over the coming months is to lay the groundwork for a concise and focused policy, placing a clear emphasis on the practical implementation of actions. The preparatory work will include an assessment of the extent to which the current strategy has provided an effective policy response to the drug problem. An examination of the approach to drugs policy and practice in other jurisdictions will also help to identify any additional evidence-based approaches that might be considered in an Irish context.
178. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if he is aware of the issue of the diversion of methadone provided under the methadone maintenance programme to the illicit drugs trade; if his Department has tracked or analysed the extent of the problem; if he will provide an estimate of the cost to the Exchequer as a result of this diversion; the measures his Department has implemented to tackle this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26485/15]
View answer190. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if he will provide a detailed breakdown, in tabular form, of the amounts spent on the methadone maintenance programme, including medicine costs, general practitioner fees, pharmacy fees and the costs of other ancillary and-or related services in each of the years from 2009 to 2014; the estimated spend for 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26473/15]
View answer191. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the number of general practitioners suitably qualified and currently engaged by the Health Service Executive to administer the methadone maintenance programme; if he will provide a breakdown of the location and number of each such general practitioner by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26474/15]
View answer194. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if specific details or data are kept and-or reviewed for the numbers of heroin addicts who enter, leave and subsequently rejoin the methadone maintenance programme; if not, the reason; if any analysis has been undertaken of the reason patients drop out of the programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26477/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 178, 190, 191 and 194 together.
As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.
179. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Health the annual saving to the Exchequer if all hospital consultants' full-year pay was capped at €150,000, gross and net pay. [26608/15]
View answerI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on the matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
180. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Health the annual saving to the Exchequer if the salaries of all hospital consultants earning more than €150,000, gross and net, per year were reduced as follows: 15% where the full year amount of remuneration is more than €150,000 but not more than €200,000; and 30% where the full year amount of remuneration is more than €200,000. [26610/15]
View answerI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on the matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
181. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the serious issues arising in the recruitment and retention of nurses in the nursing home sector; if he has made any efforts to eliminate the delays in nurse registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26790/15]
View answer211. Deputy Pat Deering asked the Minister for Health if he is aware of the lack of qualified nursing staff available in the nursing home sector; if so, the action he will take to alleviate the difficulty; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26564/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 181 and 211 together.
Delays in processing nurse registration applications are directly connected to the volume of requests arising from the current initiatives to attract and retain nurses in the Irish health services. The Department of Health and the HSE are collaborating in sourcing several solutions to meeting the issues arising in relation to nurse recruitment and retention.
The background to this issue is that nurses who trained in a country outside of Ireland and wish to work in Ireland are required to apply to register as a nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI). In assessing an applicant for registration, to protect the public, the NMBI seeks evidence from applicants of comparable standards of education and practice. According to the NMBI the timeframe for the completion of the assessment of qualifications for registration takes up to a maximum of 90 days provided all necessary documentation has been supplied by the applicant.
The main difficulty to expediting timely applications as reported by the NMBI is that of delay or failure by the applicant or third parties to furnish the necessary documentation required to assess eligibility for registration. The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, following assessment of qualifications by an applicant, may require an applicant to undertake a six to twelve week period of adaptation and assessment. A period of adaptation is designed to make up for differences in education and ensure competence for working in the Irish health service. If this adaptation is required it must be successfully completed as a pre-requisite to registration.
It is important to note that the NMBI are dealing with very significant volumes of applications at present. The NMBI are processing all applications as quickly as possible, while ensuring appropriate procedures and checks which are designed around protection of the public.
I wish to advise the Deputies that officials of the Department met with the President and the Chief Executive Officer of the NMBI last week to discuss a range of operational issues including the current delays in Registration. The NMBI are keeping the current situation under review and the Deputies may wish to note that the NMBI have been allocated additional resources to address the issues.
