Written Answers Nos. 550-569
550. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if a decision has been made on a work permit for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18333/16]
View answerThe application in question was refused on 15 March as the occupation is on the List of Ineligible Categories of Employment for Employment Permits. Furthermore, the remuneration on offer was less than the minimum annual remuneration specified in Regulations for this employment permit type.
In addition, the Labour Market Needs Test was not satisfied in that the applicant did not provide evidence that an advertisement relating to the proposed employment had run in a local newspaper or on a jobs website for three days during the 90 days preceding this application, as is required in the Regulations. Also, the manner in which the advertisement was published did not meet the requirements set out in the Regulations.
An unsuccessful applicant for an employment permit may seek a review of the decision to refuse the permit. All reviews are based on the information provided at time of application or information valid at the time of application but not provided until review stage. Any such submission must be made on the prescribed form which is available on the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation's website. Whilst further correspondence was received from the applicant, no request for review in line with the requirements was received. The applicant sought a refund of the employment permit fee and this issued in May.
551. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation when Enterprise Ireland will consider an application by a company in the United Kingdom (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18410/16]
View answerI am informed by Enterprise Ireland that they made contact with this company regarding their application. This company does not meet the Enterprise Ireland remit and they have been advised to make contact with IDA Ireland as they are a Chinese Manufacturer wishing to set up a European base. I would encourage the company to continue their interaction with IDA Ireland and hope that this interaction will be of assistance to the company in developing the enterprise concerned.
553. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if there has been a change to the manner in which special needs assistants can be recruited to preschools from September 2016 and the qualifications they must hold; the nature of any change; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18003/16]
View answerPolicy on Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) is the responsibility of my colleague, Richard Bruton, T.D., Minister for Education and Skills. I understand that the SNA model operates in primary and secondary schools.
For the pre-school sector, I am delighted to provide details of a new model of supports, funded by my Department, which I recently unveiled and which will support children with a disability to access the free pre-school programme. A new Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) is now available to enable children with disabilities to access and fully participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme. The model will deliver seven levels of progressive support, moving from the universal to the targeted, to enable the full inclusion and meaningful participation of children with disabilities in the ECCE Programme. The new model focuses on the developmental level of children with disabilities, their functional ability, their strengths and their needs. It is not an SNA model, but is much more comprehensive, and will not focus on diagnosis, recognising that many children may not have a formal diagnosis at the time of presenting to pre-school.
The main supports offered under the model include:
- A new higher education programme to upskill early years practitioners in inclusive early years care and education. My Department will fund a small capitation increase where service providers employ a graduate from the programme;
- A dedicated website containing comprehensive information resources for parents and providers. Information can be accessed at www.preschoolaccess.ie;
- Advice and support from a team of 50 experts in early years education for children with disabilities;
- A scheme for the provision of specialised equipment, appliances and minor building alterations;
- Therapeutic intervention where this is needed to allow a child enrol, and fully participate in, pre-school; and
- Additional capitation to enable the pre-school leader to buy-in additional support or reduce the staff to child ratio where this is critical to ensuring a child’s participation.
Service providers, in partnership with parents, can now submit applications to Pobal for supports under the AIM model to allow them to plan for pre-school enrolment in September 2016.
It will take some time for the model to be fully embedded and to build capacity across the system. In the meantime, there is a commitment that all supports currently available through the HSE and various agencies will remain in place until the model is fully operational.
Further information on this new pre-school model is available at www.preschoolaccess.ie.
554. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to widen the scope, in terms of qualifying age for the child, of the second free preschool early childhood care and education year; if a person (details supplied) qualifies for the second year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18011/16]
View answerWhile changes to the age criteria for the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme were announced in Budget 2016 last October, they do not come into effect until this coming September. From September 2016, children will be eligible to start the ECCE Programme when they turn age 3, and can continue in the ECCE Programme until they start primary school (once the child is not older than 5½ years at the end of the relevant pre-school year i.e. end June). This extension of the ECCE Programme will increase the number of children benefitting from about 67,000 to around 127,000 in a given programme year. From September 2016 children will be able to enrol in the ECCE Programme at three different points in the year namely September, January and April. This means that parents can enrol their child in the ECCE Programme as soon as possible after their child reaches age 3.
Children born on 1 January 2012 and who are currently availing of the ECCE Programme may apply again from September for a further 38 weeks of the ECCE programme as they will meet the criteria of not being older than 5½ years at the end of the relevant pre-school year i.e. end June. However, some parents may decide to send their child to primary school in September as ECCE is not a mandatory programme. Children born prior to January 2012 will not be eligible to avail of the ECCE programme in September 2016.
Exceptions to these criteria can only currently be made in the event that a child has been diagnosed as having a special/additional need. Any request for an exemption from ECCE eligibility criteria must be supported by a medical assessment report from the HSE/medical specialist, specifying the child's special need and diagnosis. In such a case, an application should be made to the Early Years Policies and Programmes Unit of my Department, attaching a supporting medical report.
555. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the status of an application by an organisation (details supplied) for funding under the special project for youth. [18138/16]
View answer563. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to approve an application by an organisation (details supplied) for a project bus under the special protection for youth scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18393/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 555 and 563 together.
My Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support the provision of youth services by the voluntary youth sector, to young people throughout the country including those from disadvantaged communities. In 2016, funding of €51m has been provided to my Department for these schemes. Foróige Balbriggan Youth Service, operating as CRYPTIC, was allocated €82,669 under the Special Projects for Youth Scheme in 2016.
The funding schemes, including the Special Projects for Youth, support national and local youth work provision to some 380,000 young people and involve approximately 1,400 youth work staff in 477 projects and 40,000 volunteers working in youth work services and communities throughout the country.
Some €2.6m in capital funding, provided in Budget 2016, is being made available to my Department to support small scale projects, including refurbishment, health and safety fit-outs and accessibility improvements in local youth services. The applications for capital grants, under the scheme, are currently being processed and I hope to announce details of the successful applicants in the coming weeks.
556. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs , further to Parliamentary Question No. 697 of 13 May 2014, other than social media to advertise the 116000 hotline, if there are posters on display in all Garda Síochána stations, public libraries and schools; and if it states on the posters that members of the public may call the hotline if they see a missing child or if they have any information to pass on regarding a missing child. [18154/16]
View answer557. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of calls received by the 116000 hotline in each of the years 2013 to 2015. [18155/16]
View answer558. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the 116000 helpline is handed out to print media or Aertel each time a child goes missing; and where exactly on the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children's web page, missing children's hotline, does it state that members of the public can call the 116000 helpline if they see a missing child or have any information to pass on regarding a missing child. [18156/16]
View answer559. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the location on the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children website it states that members of the public can call the 116000 helpline if they have a concern for a child's welfare; and if the 116000 helpline can be used to report issues other than a missing child. [18157/16]
View answer560. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the amount of European Union and State funding the 116000 helpline has received in each of the years 2013 to 2015; the number of full-time staff who are employed by the 116000 hotline; and if there has been any cut back to staff recently.. [18158/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 556 to 560, inclusive, together.
The 116 000 Missing Children Hotline number is operated by the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) and is financially supported by my Department. The Hotline is not an emergency number and, in such instances, the first point of contact is An Garda Síochána at 112/999.
My Department has been informed by the ISPCC that posters and business cards were delivered to the Missing Persons Bureau in An Garda Síochána Headquarters for distribution to all Garda stations nationwide. The posters were utilised to advertise and promote the service. The posters named the service, highlighted the contact number and noted the support of my Department. In 2014, ISPCC personnel spent almost 460 hours on the distribution of posters in community venues around Ireland. In addition, in any ISPCC outreach that took place in a school or community venue, the ISPCC staff member/volunteer also spoke about the Hotline service. The ISPCC continues to raise awareness of the Missing Children Hotline in ongoing media work; e.g. press release and social media use to mark International Missing Children’s Day on 25th May 2016.
In respect of the numbers of calls received by the Hotline in each of the years 2013 to 2015, the ISPCC have provided the following information:
- 523 calls in 2013 (this includes a high number of test calls made to check initial functionality)
- 218 calls in 2014 and
- 217 calls in 2015.
There was a total of 51 calls in the 1st Quarter of 2016.
The ISPCC has advised that it regularly keeps the media informed of the number of the Hotline and its purpose. While the 116000 number is not provided to print media each time a child goes missing, information provided to the ISPCC by An Garda Síochána is distributed appropriately within the ISPCC to relevant personnel, so that local support needs can be identified and provided where appropriate. Information is also posted to the Missing Children Hotline website – www.missingchildrenshotline.ie - where appropriate and subsequently to the Facebook and Twitter pages. Where the case is concluded, the post is removed from the site to protect the identity of the child.
Information on the Hotline is located on the ISPCC website at www.ispcc.ie/missingchildren. This page clearly states that members of the public can call the 116000 helpline if they have a concern in respect of a missing child or information in respect of a missing child. It clearly states that in an emergency situation, a report should be made to An Garda Síochána.
The Hotline takes calls from the general public and if necessary, will redirect them to the relevant authorities. In addition to the Missing Children Hotline, the ISPCC has a separate Support Line available to members of the public if they have any concerns about a child’s welfare. It can be contacted by phoning 01 6767960.
The ISPCC has advised that the amount of European Union and State funding the 116000 helpline received from 2013 is as follows:
|
Funder / Year |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
EU Daphne Programme |
€ 75,878.68 |
€ 75,878.68 |
€ 0* |
|
DCYA |
€ 87,631.75 |
€ 85,447.72 |
€ 86,969.25 |
|
Total |
€ 163,510.43 |
€ 161,326.40 |
€ 86,969.25 |
*No funding was available for Hotlines in 2015 from the European Daphne Programme, so the ISPCC did not apply for that year. The ISPCC has advised that it made a successful application to the Programme for 2016.
With regard to staffing, the ISPCC employs staff to run the various helplines including the Hotline, Childline and the European Helpline as well as staff to answer calls and provide administrative support.
The number of staff employed, as set out below, includes all staff involved in the provision of the various phone helpline services provided by the ISPCC. All helpline staff are trained to take calls from each helpline number and therefore all staff employed in the helpline services are available to take calls from the Hotline. These staff are supported by trained volunteers of whom there was a total of 507 at the end of May 2016.
|
Year |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
Full time equivalent staff |
29.3 |
29.9 |
26.5 |
It should be noted that the Hotline has the following purposes:
- Informs all callers to the Hotline that An Garda Síochána is the Agency responsible for investigating missing children and as such, should be the first port of call in respect of a missing child.
- Provides emotional support to children who are missing, their family and others responsible for the missing child.
- Offers guidance and advice to the callers regarding a missing child.
- Reports cases where a child is at immediate risk as per Children First.
- Re-directs calls outside the scope of the Hotline.
- Provides a confidential text support via sending an automated generic SMS to the missing child when parental consent is received.
561. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on a matter (details supplied) regarding family life in disadvantaged social groups; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18346/16]
View answerThere is a clear and developing basis for the provision of family support services by the Child and Family Agency. The Agency, established in 2014 pursuant to the Child and Family Agency Act 2013, assumed responsibility for a range of functions including those of the Family Support Agency. Consequently, the Child and Family Agency provides core funding for the operation of Family Resource Centres throughout the country. Also, the functions of the Child and Family Agency under the 2013 Act include supporting and encouraging the effective functioning of families and, in that context, providing preventative family support services aimed at promoting the welfare of children.
In April 2015, in line with a commitment in Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures – The national policy framework for children & young people 2014-2020, my Department published a ‘High-Level Policy Statement on Supporting Parents and Families’. The Statement provides the policy context for the discharge by the Child and Family Agency of its family support function. The Statement specifies that it is essential that parenting and family supports and services are designed to be fully inclusive and take full cognisance of evolving family forms.
The Child and Family Agency is currently involved in a major programme to develop and mainstream Prevention, Partnership and Family Support (PP&FS) over the period 2015-2018. This Programme, launched in April 2015, is a key component of the Agency’s National Service Delivery Framework. Since the launch of the Programme, the Agency has been working to progress eight main work streams identified. These comprise an area-based approach and the use of 'Meitheal': a National Practice Model for all agencies working with children, young people, and their families; participation; information; commissioning; public awareness; supporting parents; alternative care strategy and workforce learning and development.
More detailed information regarding the services provided by the Child and Family Agency in the areas of Family and Community Support can be found on their website (www.tusla.ie).
562. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will provide additional hours of special needs assistance to a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18371/16]
View answerPolicy on Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) is the responsibility of my colleague, Richard Bruton, T.D., Minister for Education and Skills. I understand that the SNA model operates in primary and secondary schools.
For the pre-school sector, I am delighted to provide details of a new model of supports, funded by my Department, which I recently unveiled and which will support children with a disability to access the free pre-school programme. A new Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) is now available to enable children with disabilities to access and fully participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme. The model will deliver seven levels of progressive support, moving from the universal to the targeted, to enable the full inclusion and meaningful participation of children with disabilities in the ECCE Programme. The new model focuses on the developmental level of children with disabilities, their functional ability, their strengths and their needs. It is not an SNA model, but is much more comprehensive, and will not focus on diagnosis, recognising that many children may not have a formal diagnosis at the time of presenting to pre-school.
The main supports offered under the model include:
- A new higher education programme to upskill early years practitioners in inclusive early years care and education. My Department will fund a small capitation increase where service providers employ a graduate from the programme;
- A dedicated website containing comprehensive information resources for parents and providers. Information can be accessed at www.preschoolaccess.ie;
- Advice and support from a team of 50 experts in early years education for children with disabilities;
- A scheme for the provision of specialised equipment, appliances and minor building alterations;
- Therapeutic intervention where this is needed to allow a child enrol, and fully participate in, pre-school; and
- Additional capitation to enable the pre-school leader to buy-in additional support or reduce the staff to child ratio where this is critical to ensuring a child’s participation.
Service providers, in partnership with parents, can now submit applications to Pobal for supports under the AIM model to allow them to plan for pre-school enrolment in September 2016. Further information on AIM can be accessed at www.preschoolaccess.ie.
It will take some time for the model to be fully embedded and to build capacity across the system. In the meantime, there is a commitment that all supports currently available through the HSE and various agencies will remain in place until the model is fully operational. My Department has raised this particular case with the HSE and I will revert to the Deputy as soon as possible.
564. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if a person (details supplied) is entitled to a second year of free preschool under the early childhood care and education scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18414/16]
View answerIn Budget 2016, my Department announced a significant expansion to pre-school provision under the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. This measure, which will be introduced from September 2016, means that children will be eligible to start free pre-school when they reach the age of 3, and continue to avail of free pre-school until they start primary school (once the child is not older than 5 years and 6 months at the end of the pre-school year i.e. end June). Following the introduction of the expanded programme there will be three opportunities each year - in September, January and April - for eligible children to enrol for the free pre-school provision. This will ensure that children aged 3 or over have the opportunity to enrol as soon as possible after their third birthday. The maximum number of free pre-school weeks to which a child is entitled will depend on their date of birth, and the age at which they start primary school.
The expansion of the ECCE programme will see the number of children benefitting from the Programme rise from around 67,000 to around 127,000 in a given programme year. For the 2016/17 programme year, it is estimated that 89,500 children will be eligible to enrol in the Programme from September 2016, an additional 22,000 from January 2017 and a further 15,500 from April 2017. Accommodating this expansion requires a significant increase in capacity in the pre-school sector; providers need time to implement any needed infrastructural or services changes, or to hire additional staff. The September 2016 implementation date was set to allow pre-school providers to put such measures in place. Should an earlier start date have been chosen, the likelihood is that there would not have been sufficient capacity in the sector to accommodate all children.
In addition, an upper age limit for participation in free pre-school was set by the Inter-Departmental Group on Future Investment on the advice of the Department of Education and Skills. Limiting the diversity in age ranges in primary school is considered to be generally in the best interest of children, in relation to peer interaction in junior infants, as well as other educational considerations. This does mean that different children will spend different lengths of time in free pre-school, but our focus throughout in considering these issues was how to achieve the best outcomes for children.
A child born 24 October 2012 is eligible to enrol in free pre-school, under the ECCE scheme in September 2016 as this is the earliest entry point after the child’s third birthday. They will not be eligible to enrol again in September 2017 as the child would be over the upper age limit of 5 years and 6 months at the end of the 2017/2018 pre-school year (i.e. June 2018).
565. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she is aware of the ongoing dispute between Childminding Ireland and IMPACT members in Kilcoole, County Wicklow; if she will use her influence to require Childminding Ireland to engage in normal negotiations through the State's industrial relations bodies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18445/16]
View answerI am aware of the difficulties currently being experienced in Childminding Ireland in relation to the proposed restructuring of the organisation. The dispute between IMPACT members and Childminding Ireland is regrettable. However, the restructuring and the current dispute is an operational matter for the employer and the Board of Childminding Ireland. In the circumstances, it would be inappropriate for me as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to interfere in such matters.
I am aware that both IMPACT and Childminding Ireland have re-engaged with the Workplace Relations Commission. I hope that the matter will be resolved quickly and to the satisfaction of all parties.
566. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if he is aware of any concerns regarding the administration of the soldiers' welfare fund in Baldonnel. [18163/16]
View answerI am advised by the military authorities that there is an investigation currently underway in relation to the administration of the Benevolent Fund, which is funded through voluntary contributions from members of the Defence Forces. I understand that there is no direct Exchequer funding involved. That being said, pending the conclusion of this investigation I am not in a position to comment further.
567. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the amounts received by his Department for the sale of the Government jet. [18164/16]
View answerIn July 2014, the Gulfstream IV aircraft, which had been in service for 23 years, travelled to the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation (GAC) facility in Savannah, Georgia, USA, for its annual maintenance inspection. During this inspection, it became apparent that the servicing and repair of the aircraft would have involved a significantly higher level of investment than was anticipated. Given the number of flying hours achieved, the age of the aircraft and the expected repair costs involved it was decided that all work on the aircraft should cease, the servicing and repair of the aircraft would not be completed, the aircraft was to be withdrawn from operational service in the Air Corps and the aircraft would not be returned back to Ireland.
With the assistance of Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, the Department of Defence concluded the sale of the aircraft on an “as seen” basis with a US based company, Journey Aviation, based in Florida, USA in December 2014. The amount received by the Department of Defence for the sale of the Government Jet was US$500,000. In addition, the sale of related spare parts for the aircraft to Journey Aviation also on an “as seen” basis took place in February 2015 for a sum of US $60,000.
568. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence why he has not made payments to Army rangers and cooks which were due to be awarded under an adjudication process, given that the public finances have been restored to stability. [18165/16]
View answerOn 27th September 2010 the Adjudicator under the Conciliation and Arbitration Scheme for members of the Permanent Defence Force awarded increases in the Army Ranger Wing allowance and in technical pay to cooks. These awards are backdated to 1 June 2006. The Adjudicator’s Findings cannot be implemented having regard to the provisions of Sections 2 and 5 of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No 2) Act 2009.
These two adjudications are part of the outstanding adjudication findings covered under paragraph 1.16 of the Public Service Agreement 2010-2014. Paragraph 5.3 of the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013-2018, known as the Lansdowne Road Agreement, states that “The Parties have agreed that any outstanding adjudications as referred to in paragraph 1.16 of the Public Service Agreement 2010-2014 will be reviewed jointly by the Parties prior to the expiry of this agreement.” The review mechanism is the subject of ongoing consideration in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
569. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of vacancies in the medical corps of the Defence Forces; the length of time each post has been vacant; the steps he will take to fill each post; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18397/16]
View answerThe information sought by the Deputy is currently being compiled by the military authorities and I will forward same when received. Having regard to the recent vacancies, it has been necessary to identify alternative options for the provision of medical services to the Defence Forces. In this connection, a joint civilian/military Standing Committee has been set up with a view to advancing the development of a sustainable integrated medical service and to address appropriate means of delivery of key medical capabilities for the Defence Forces. An integrated model for the provision of the required medical services, involving both the Medical Corps and outsourced service provision is currently being progressed.
