Written Answers Nos. 535-555
535. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to expedite the electrification of the DART to Maynooth, County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31152/17]
View answerI refer the Deputy to my response to Dáil Question No. 541 which I answered on Tuesday, 16 May 2017. The position remains as outlined in that response.
536. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the status of an application (details supplied) in respect of an urgently needed facility which would contribute greatly to the community in the west of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31263/17]
View answerThe 2017 round of the Sports Capital Programme closed for applications on 24 February and I can confirm that an application has been submitted by the organisation referred to by the Deputy.
By the closing date, a record number of 2,320 applications seeking €155 million in grants were received and all of these applications are currently being assessed. The total amount available to allocate under this round is €30 million. Accordingly, the allocation of grants will be particularly challenging. Given the number of applications received and the detailed information submitted, it will take a further number of weeks to complete this process and I expect that an announcement regarding allocations will be made in September.
537. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if there is a senior official with designated responsibility for Brexit matters in his Department; if so, the grade of the designated official; the funding allocated to the said Brexit unit; the cost to date; the anticipated cost; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31281/17]
View answerBrexit has the potential to have serious adverse economic impacts on transport and tourism and as a result has been identified as the main strategic risk facing the Department. The Department in response has organised itself internally to address this risk. While all relevant areas of the Department are actively engaged in Brexit related work and consultations with stakeholders, overall responsibility for the preparation and coordination of the Department's response to Brexit has been assigned to the Head of Function of the Policy and Governance Coordination Division. Brexit issues relating to Tourism are managed by the Head of Function of the Tourism Marketing Policy and Impact Assessment Division. Both Heads of Functions are at Principal Officer level. The Minister and Management Board members are also actively involved in reviewing the implications and response to Brexit.
The Management Board keeps under review the Department's internal organisation and structures for Brexit to ensure that they remain robust in addressing the evolving Brexit situation. As part of this ongoing review, the Department yesterday restructured part of its internal organisation in order, inter alia, to facilitate a greater focus on Brexit by the Policy and Governance Coordination Division as it moves into the negotiation phase. The additional cost to the Policy and Governance Coordination Division arising from Brexit activities, outside of staff costs, is estimated to be €50,000 in 2017, of which some €10,000 has been incurred to date. The need for additional funding will be kept under ongoing review.
538. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the progress in the upgrading of the M7 Naas to Newbridge-Osberstown interchange and Sallins bypass; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31309/17]
View answerAs Minister for Transport,Tourism & Sport I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual national road projects is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 in conjunction with the relevant local authorities. In the case of regional and local road projects the local authority is responsible for project implementation.
Noting the above position and in view of the fact that the projects mentioned by the Deputy are being progressed together, I have referred the Deputy’s question to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you don’t receive a reply within 10 working days.
539. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the consideration which is given by his Department to service provision and policy response further to the publication of the census of population; the sections of his Department that are affected and-or involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31409/17]
View answerEnsuring that we have the appropriate level of investment into our transport network to meet the demands placed on it by the population is core to the business of my Department. In 2015 we published the Strategic Investment Framework for Land Transport, which set out the priorities and principles for future investment in that area, and just last week I announced the publication of Transport Trends 2017, which highlights the continued growth of transport activity within the State.
An important piece of planning future service provision is accurate statistics about the population, and in that regard Census 2016 provides an invaluable source of data at a point in time. The publication in May of statistics relating to the geographical distribution of the population will assist the Department in prioritising effective interventions while the forthcoming publication of the age profile of the population and statistics on commuting should provide additional rich sources of data for my Department to use.
The impact of changing demographics is felt right across Transport, Tourism and Sport, affecting where people choose to live, how they prefer to travel, which sports and activities they participate in, and many other decisions. As such, I expect that officials in every section of my Department will be involved in using the results of Census 2016 to inform future service provision and policy.
540. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the measures her Department is taking to attract trained and qualified staff to the early years workforce; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30909/17]
View answer546. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the measures her Department is taking to attract trained and qualified staff to the early years workforce; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30907/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 540 and 546 together.
I am very much aware of the difficulties being reported regarding the recruitment and retention of early years staff. The matter has been discussed at the Early Years Forum which I chair, and in other fora with my Department.
We are working with the Department of Education and Skills to develop a new Early Years workforce plan. This will examine workforce supply issues.
I am also aware that pay and conditions of staff is a significant barrier to retaining staff in the sector. Whilst my Department is not an employer of childcare workers, we are a significant funder. I am committed to the development of high quality services in this country and it has been proven that high quality care is dependent on a workforce that feels valued. My Department is working with the sector to explore how we can improve retention rates. The Programme for Government contains 14 commitments to improving access to high quality, affordable childcare. The Affordable Childcare Scheme, which is currently under development, will provide an important infrastructure for future investment in the Early Years sector. It is clear that we need to focus collaboratively on how best to make the early years sector a more attractive and personally rewarding place in which to work. I think that pay is only one issue, although, clearly an important one. The fact that we are investing considerably increased resources in the sector will also be important. In Budget 2017 I secured a 35% increase in childcare funding, up by €120m to €466m. This was on top of a 35% increase in Budget 2016 also. These increases reflect the emphasis I am placing on developing a quality service with appropriately supported staff. In this regard, the City & County Childcare Committees are assisting services who experience difficulties in recruiting or retaining staff, and the Learner Funds are in place to support staff in achieving minimum qualification requirements, both regulatory and contractual. The existing workforce are a significant resource and substantial investment in upskilling and CPD opportunities for early years practitioners has been put in to the sector by my Department, e.g. through the Learner Fund, the National Síolta Aistear Initiative and the Leadership for Inclusion in Early Years Settings, known as LINC under the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM). The Department of Education and Skills (DES) are undertaking a review of education programmes in Early Childhood Education and Care to ensure that the quality and content of further and higher education programmes prepare early years professionals for practice in the sector. My Department welcomes this work including the recent establishment of a Working Group chaired by DES that has been tasked with the development of a draft set of Criteria and Guidelines for higher education programmes that offer Initial Professional Education for early years professionals, that will be available for wider consultation with the sector before the end of the year. Childcare workers are part of a growing sector, which the Government is strongly supporting. I believe that by working together we can ensure that it is a viable and strong sector which makes a significant contribution to the care and personal development of our children.
541. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on whether it was the correct decision to abolish the visiting teacher service for children from the Traveller community; if education outcomes for Traveller children have improved since it was abolished; and her further views on whether this should be restored or a replacement education programme is required. [30941/17]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, the Visiting Teachers Service for Travellers was discontinued with effect from September 2011, in line with Department of Education and Skills policy on the phasing out of segregated Traveller provision.
The Child and Family Agency, established in 2014 under the aegis of my Department, has statutory responsibility in relation to school attendance and supports for young people at risk of educational disadvantage, including traveller children. Through its Educational Welfare Service, the Agency responds to instances where children, including children from the Traveller community, are not attending school regularly, leading to concerns for their educational welfare.
I am advised that the Department of Education policy in relation to Traveller Education is informed by the Report and Recommendations for a Traveller Education Strategy which was launched in 2006 following wide ranging consultation with Traveller representative groups and other relevant stakeholders. The principle of inclusion is at the core of the Strategy. The focus of both current and future provision is on the development of an inclusive school environment through the whole school planning process, teaching practice, admissions policies, codes of behaviour and whole school evaluation. In keeping with this principle, additional resources provided in the education system for children are allocated on the basis of identified individual educational need. This includes Traveller children who require additional resources based on need and not on their identity as Travellers. Segregated Traveller specific programmes such as the Visiting Teacher for Travellers were phased out in line with the principle of inclusion.
I am further advised by the Department of Education and Skills that funding for special education in provision in 2017 will amount to some €1.68 billion, which is equivalent to approximately 19% of the gross overall current allocation for education and training and represents an increase in spending in this area of 12% over the last two years. This funding provides for a range of supports and services including additional learning and resource teaching support, access to SNA support, special transport arrangements, building adaptations, enhanced capitation in special schools and special classes, specialised equipment, additional teacher training and the services of the National Educational Psychological Service.
There are currently over 12,500 learning support and resource teacher posts in mainstream primary and post primary schools.
School attendance is one of the critical building blocks of positive educational outcomes. While educational outcomes for Traveller children continue to improve, in most areas attendance still falls well behind the national average and we are aware that there are still areas where attendance and participation among Traveller children is not improving consistently. Following the launch of the 2017 National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy, my Department is committed to working with the Department of Education and Skills, the Department of Justice and Equality, Tusla Educational Welfare Services and Traveller and Roma representative groups to examine ways in which Traveller children’s attendance and participation may be further enhanced especially in areas where attendance is of greatest concern.
542. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of aftercare workers recruited by Tusla in 2015, 2016 and to date in 2017; the number that left during the same period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30812/17]
View answerAs this is an operational matter for Tusla, I have asked that they respond to the Deputy directly.
543. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the status of the Adoption (Information and Tracing) (No. 2) Bill; when she expects this Bill to be published; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30859/17]
View answerThe Department intends to commence development of a scheme for the provision of information and tracing service to adults and children who are the subject of an inter country adoption as soon as possible.
544. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the progress her Department is making in establishing a new youth funding programme in view of a 2014 review of youth services and its subsequent recommendations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30905/17]
View answer545. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her Department has been working in relation to mapping of youth service provision across the State; the areas which are showing high levels of deprivation in relation to youth services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30906/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 544 and 545 together.
The Value for Money and Policy Review (VFMPR) of the Youth Funding programmes 2014 examined three of the targeted funding schemes, the Special Projects for Youth scheme, the Young People’s Facilities and Services Fund, and Local Drug Task Force projects scheme. The schemes support the provision of youth services for young people who are at risk of drugs, alcohol misuse, early school leaving, homelessness or who are living in disadvantaged communities. The review involved an in-depth scrutiny of a complex area to do with the impact youth service provision has in young people’s lives. Overall, the review found that the youth programmes can provide a significant contribution to improving outcomes for young people and should be considered for on-going public funding. The review makes a number of recommendations for the future operation of the youth schemes and their development in the years ahead to ensure an evidence-based and outcomes focussed programme designed to secure the optimal outcomes for young people.
The implementation of the recommendations in the review have commenced over the course of 2015, 2016 and this year. The National Youth Strategy Lead Team, established in July 2016, has a specific sub-group to support implementation of the VFMPR. My Department has initiated a detailed consultation at national and regional level with the youth sector and providers of youth services about the review's findings and recommendations. Consultations have taken place with the national youth organisation, local youth services and youth officers of the Education and Training Boards that administer funding on behalf of my Department, and with other youth interests. A youth consultation process is also underway to inform the development of the VFMPR implementation.
To facilitate the review’s recommendations regarding the future development of a single targeted youth funding programme to replace the current schemes, I have given approval for funding to be provided for the establishment of several sample projects in 2016 and 2017. These sample projects will provide youth services in areas of need as identified by the Education and Training Boards with responsibility for those regions.
In implementing another of the review’s recommendations, my Department embarked on an exercise, in conjunction with Pobal and each Education and Training Board Youth Officer, to map youth service provision across the State. This mapping exercise will assist my Department and the relevant Education and Training Board in developing a detailed social demographic profile in terms of both population numbers and deprivation levels, particularly as the Census 2016 data becomes available. Following extensive work by those involved, this exercise is now in its final stage. It remains my intention that this mapping exercise will inform future development and investment in youth services. The map will available to view on Pobal's website from September.
547. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the reason the Government favours day care over other child care choices in its affordable childcare scheme; if she will consider financial supports that allows parents to choose the childcare that best suits them; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30908/17]
View answerThe Affordable Childcare Scheme (ACS) will be open equally to any Tusla-registered childcare provider, including both centre based providers and home based childminders. Facilitating parental choice of childcare provider is a key objective of the ACS, and the equal inclusion of childminders is therefore a central feature. For this reason it is incorrect to say that the ACS favours day care over other childcare choices.
I acknowledge that the number of Tusla-registered childminders is still small. However, I established a working group to make recommendations on how to support the development of childminding in the short, medium and long term, and I hope to build on that group's work in supporting a larger number of childminders to become registered and to participate in the ACS over the years ahead.
The Affordable Childcare Scheme provides financial supports for paid childcare rather than care by parents or relatives. However, the specific purpose of the ACS is to reduce the cost of childcare to parents, and it must be seen in the wider context of other policy measures that are aimed at supporting parents who choose to care for their children at home.
In this regard it should be noted that, according to the European Commission, childcare costs in Ireland are currently the highest in the EU for lone parents and the second highest for couples, and the European Commission has, for several years, been recommending action by the Irish Government to address the high cost of childcare, both to support labour market participation of parents and to help reduce child poverty.
Supports for parents who choose to care for their children at home include the Home Carer Tax Credit, which was increased in the last Budget, as well as provisions for maternity benefit, parental leave and the recently introduced paternity leave. It should be noted that the Programme for Government commits to extending paid leave for parents in the first year of a child's life, which will be a key financial support enabling parents to care for their children at home in the critical first year.
548. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her attention has been drawn to the need for youth facilities and programmes in the Newcastle, County Dublin area; her plans to put funding and resources in place to address these growing needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31019/17]
View answerIn 2017 I was delighted to approve funding of €800,000 for the establishment of new youth projects and for the augmentation of a small number of existing youth services to meet new challenges arising from population increases. This additional investment is being provided in regions of the country where there is a pressing need for services to meet the needs of young people.
Each of the sixteen Education and Training Boards, including Dublin and Dun Laoghaire ETB, was invited to nominate locations within their catchment areas for the establishment of new services and to nominate a project or service to be considered for augmentation. In total twenty-eight applications for new Sample VFM Services were received, including an application for a new service in Dublin Rural South, an area which includes Newcastle.
Based on the recommendations of a specially convened appraisal committee, and given the very limited resources available for the scheme, last week I approved the establishment of nine new targeted youth services across the country.
The application in respect of Dublin Rural South was, unfortunately, not successful on this occasion. Should further monies be made available to my Department in the coming years, it is my intention to invite Education and Training Boards to nominate locations for the establishment of new services.
549. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her attention has been drawn to the withdrawal of the provision of school lunches in a primary school (details supplied) in Dublin 11; if she will instruct her Department to intervene to ensure that funding is made available for this school to continue providing meals to children in a very disadvantaged area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31068/17]
View answerI can inform the Deputy I have no function in this matter, which is within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Employment and Social Protection.
552. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the steps she is taking to address child poverty here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31231/17]
View answerIn recognition of the higher risks and life-long consequences of child poverty, the Government set a child-specific poverty target in Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures: the National Policy Framework for Children and Young People 2014-2020 to reduce consistent child poverty by at least two-thirds by 2020. This figure currently represents 102,000 children.
Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures is a whole of government policy framework, which requires all Departments and Agencies to work collaboratively to improve outcomes for children and young people. The Children and Young People’s Policy Consortium, which I chair, has responsibility for whole of government implementation, and includes representatives from all government Departments and Agencies.
The Department of Social Protection has the lead role in coordinating government strategies on child poverty. It also has lead responsibility for the National Action Plan for Social Inclusion and has identified child poverty as a key cross-sectoral priority to be addressed.
Officials in my Department are working closely with the Department of Social Protection in informing the development of this cross-sectoral priority.
Officials in the Department of Social Protection have co-convened a subgroup with members of the Advisory Council for Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures to progress solutions to child poverty.
In recognition of the fact that child poverty is a multi-faceted problem, this group also includes officials from other Departments, including the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Skills.
Led by the Department of Social Protection, this group has developed a paper which outlines a whole of government approach to tackling child poverty. This is based around the three pillars outlined in the EU Recommendation on Investing in Children:
- Access to adequate resources
- Access to affordable, quality services
- Children’s right to participate.
Key priorities arising from this include providing universal access to GP care for under 18s, reducing the cost of education, housing, affordable childcare, labour activation and provision of in-work benefits.
In line with this, my Department is developing a Single Affordable Childcare Scheme to provide families with quality childcare at a cost they can afford. Budget 2017 provided additional funding for the scheme’s development and initial roll-out, to include both a targeted and a universal element. Subsidies will be available for children aged from 6 months up to 15 years and will meet families’ full-time and part-time childcare needs, including outside of school hours and during school holiday time. The highest levels of subsidy will be provided to those on low incomes, helping families to overcome disadvantage and contribute to a reduction in child poverty.
The Advisory Council held a round table event on 22 June with a range of key experts and stakeholders. The learning from this event will inform the further alignment of efforts across government and from civil society.
My Department has also established a Children’s Equality Commission to ensure that the voices of children who experience or understand economic hardship or poverty are directly heard and acted on by policy-makers. The Commission will be comprised of Child Commissioners and Adult Commissioners. The Child Commissioners are children who experience or have an understanding of economic hardship or poverty. The Adult Commissioners will be senior policy makers from Government Departments, Stage agencies and other bodies relevant to the issues raised by children.
Consultations with relevant children and young people have been ongoing for some months. The findings from the work with the children and young people were discussed in detail at a closed meeting held on 22 June 2017 between Child and Adult Commissioners. The next phase of this process is now at design stage and details will be announced shortly.
I and my colleagues in Cabinet are committed to advancing these efforts and actions in our collective response to addressing child poverty.
555. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if there is a senior official with designated responsibility for Brexit matters in her Department; if so, the grade of the designated official; the funding allocated to the said Brexit unit; the cost to date in 2017; the anticipated cost; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31268/17]
View answerOn 2 May, the Government published a comprehensive document on Ireland and the negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. This document sets out the approach of the Government to the negotiations, following the successful campaign to have key Irish issues recognised in the EU negotiation position. Following on from this publication, work is underway to prepare a further paper on economic implications of the Brexit challenge. This will draw on the work to date across Departments, which will be developed to mitigate emerging sectoral challenges. These plans will build on ongoing cross-Government research, analysis and consultations with stakeholders, and will reflect the core economic themes of the Taoiseach's speech to the IIEA on 15 February last.
Ireland’s economic interests lie firmly in a strong and well-functioning EU with continued and unfettered access to the single market. There is a lot of negotiation to be done around trading arrangements. Our contingency work is examining all scenarios and we cannot pre-empt the outcome at this stage. We are not under any illusions about the complexity of these negotiations and are engaged in detailed planning in relation to these. That said, it has been a good start to the negotiations - which will, without doubt - be lengthy and difficult. In January of this year, I hosted a sectoral dialogue with children, young people and key stakeholders in Croke Park at which the views of all interested parties were captured. Since then, the Advisory Council to Better Outcomes Brighter Futures; the National Policy Framework for Children and Young People 2014 - 2020 has considered the report of the event and work is ongoing in relation to the more detailed implications of Brexit. Furthermore, matters in relation to Brexit were discussed by over 100 children and young people in April of this year as part of the annual regional Comhairle na nÓg Networking events. This has enabled my Department to table those issues which may impact on children and young people, post-Brexit, and indeed identify those issues which resonate most strongly with our youngest citizens. However, it must be stated that such matters are subsets of much larger items which will be considered, in the main, in conjunction with colleagues in the Departments of Finance, Justice and Equality, Education and Health as part of the wider negotiating process. Accordingly, given the limited impact of Brexit on my Department, there is not the requirement to resource a dedicated Brexit Unit. However, while a dedicated unit is not needed, my Department continues to engage with all relevant structures and communication channels – coordinated by the Department of An Taoiseach.
