Tuesday, 18 May 2021

Data Protection

Questions (448)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

448. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Defence the number of data breaches suffered by his Department in each of the past five years and to date in 2021. [26094/21]

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Written answers

My Department takes its data protection responsibilities very seriously and makes every effort to ensure that personal data is safeguarded at all times. Technical and organisational measures, as required under GDPR, are implemented to ensure the security of personal data being processed. Data security and data privacy are central topics of all data protection awareness campaigns rolled out to staff on a regular basis. Also, my Department has a data breach protocol in place for the management of data breach incidents.

The number of data breaches in my Department in each of the past five years and to date in 2021 are outlined in the table below:

2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	01/01/21 - 12/05/21
Nil	Nil	5	9	11	6

The majority of data breach incidents that have occurred, relate to mis-addressed correspondence by email and post. In most instances, data breaches have involved low risk or no risk to the data subject. In cases where there was a low risk to the rights and freedoms of a data subject, the Data Protection Commission was notified. One case, deemed to be a high risk to the rights and freedoms of an individual data subject, was notified to the data subject and the Data Protection Commission, in line with GDPR requirements.

My Department also implements a programme of continuous review in relation to ICT security in order to keep up-to-date with evolving threat levels and to respond appropriately. For security and operational reasons, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on specific details in relation to cybersecurity.

Common Foreign and Security Policy

Questions (449)

Patricia Ryan

Question:

449. Deputy Patricia Ryan asked the Minister for Defence if he will report on the activities of Ireland under PESCO since its implementation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26305/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Defence

Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) is a process under which groups of Member States can come together to develop capabilities in support of Common CSDP Operations. On a voluntary basis, 25 EU Member States have joined PESCO and subscribed to more binding commitments to invest, plan, develop and operate defence capabilities together within this EU framework.

Ireland's participation in PESCO was agreed by Government and approved by Dáil Éireann prior to the Council Decision establishing PESCO on 11 December 2017.

The objective of PESCO is to generate coherent defence capabilities which will be available to Member States for national and multinational peacekeeping and crisis management missions and operations under UN, EU or NATO leadership. This will enhance the EU’s capacity as an international security actor, to contribute to the protection of EU citizens, support international peace and security and maximise the effectiveness of defence spending by participating member States.

As part of PESCO participation, Member States have agreed to fulfil commitments which include; regularly increasing defence budgets in real terms, increased cooperation on cyber defence, cooperating on capability development and participating in at least one project under PESCO. Member States have also agreed to produce a National Implementation Plan, updated annually, to assist in the assessment of Member States' fulfilment of the PESCO commitments both collectively and on an individual basis. The most recent National Implementation Plan submission, Ireland’s third, was made in March of this year.

The commitments made under PESCO, and which are assessed in the National Implementation Plan, support the overall development of Defence Forces capabilities in support of peacekeeping and crisis management operations through cooperation and participation in joint projects, with like-minded partners.

Ireland engaged fully with the PESCO Strategic Review (PSR) process which took place last year, bringing to a close the first initial phase of PESCO (2018-2020). A Strategic Review of Permanent Structured Cooperation was required as per the 2017 Council Decision which established PESCO. Its purpose was to assess what had been achieved so far and to consider updating and enhancing the more binding commitments and related more precise objectives in order to reflect the Union’s evolving security environment. Following extensive discussions, Council Conclusions on the Strategic Review were finalised in November of 2020.

Forty seven PESCO projects have been launched to-date. These include projects in the areas of capability development and in the operational domain. Each project is managed by the participating member States with oversight from the Council.

Ireland is a participant in one PESCO project (Greek led ‘Upgrade of Maritime Surveillance’) and also has observer status on the following nine PESCO projects (1) Deployable Military Disaster Relief Capability Package; (2) Maritime (semi) Autonomous Systems for Mine Countermeasures; (3)Cyber Threats and Incident Response Information Sharing Platform; (4) European Secure Software Defined Radio; (5) Military Mobility; (6) Energy Operational Function; (7) EU Radio Navigation Solution; (8) Counter Unmanned Aerial System; (9) Special Operations Forces Medical Training Centre.

The activities around these projects include attendance and reporting of meetings and workshops.

Ireland also participated in the German led project EU Training Mission Competence Centre, this project closed in November 2019 with the agreement of all members as it duplicated existing structures in the EU.

My Department and the Defence Forces are currently reviewing our involvement in PESCO projects and exploring the possibility of participating in projects which bring value from a Defence Forces capability development perspective. Work on the 4th tranche of PESCO projects is also commencing through the PESCO Secretariat in the European Defence Agency. This involves Member States proposing a set of new PESCO projects. Any new projects will be subject to approval of the Council later this year. These new project proposals will be analysed in relation to Defence Forces current and future capability development.

As a matter of policy under the current Programme for Government, participation in further PESCO projects by Ireland will be subject to Government and Dáil approval.

Defence Forces

Questions (450)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

450. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Defence the number of times action has been taken against the Defence Forces and brought to the Workplace Relations Commission; the number of cases his Department has won, lost or settled out of court; the number that are ongoing by service that is Army, Naval Service and Air Corps in tabular form; the breakdown of the awards paid and settlements; and the legal costs of defending these actions. [26471/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Defence

The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) was established on 1st October 2015. Since that date twenty-eight (28) complaints have been made against the Defence Forces, with the Minister for Defence listed as the Respondant in all such cases. Complaints made may originate from either Defence Forces personnel or civilians ("Others" in the table below). The Chief State Solicitor's Office is responsible for the State's legal representation for complaints lodged with the WRC where I am the named Respondent in my capacity as Minister for Defence, and any costs arising from such representation.

A breakdown of these complaints is as follows:

Total Complaints

Lodged

Complaints Won - not upheld

Complaints Lost-upheld

Complaints Settled or Withdrawn

Awards/Settlements*

Ongoing Complaints

28

5

1

13

€162,116.11

9

* Settlements containing confidentiality clauses are not included.

The origin of each of the nine ongoing complaints is as follows:

Army	Air Corps	Naval Service	Other
3	3	1	2

Social Media

Questions (451)

Holly Cairns

Question:

451. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Defence the percentage of posts made on each of his Departmental social media accounts and platforms that were exclusively in Irish between 1 May 2020 and 30 April 2021, inclusive; the percentage of posts made on each of his Departmental social media accounts and platforms that featured bilingual translations in Irish and English between 1 May 2020 and 30 April 2021, inclusive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26576/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Defence

My Department takes every opportunity possible in its day-to-day interactions with customers to promote and publicise the services it provides through Irish. These include the Department’s website where all static content is bilingual.

The Department’s corporate documents are available in both English and Irish as follows:-

- Annual Report

- Strategy Statement

- Customer Service Action Plan

- Customer Charter

- Section 15 & 16 Reference Books (under Freedom of Information Acts)

My Department has exceeded the issue of 20% of press releases per annum in Irish at the same time as the English version as per our commitment under the Official Language Scheme.

My Department also has a pool of Irish speakers available and a number of training initiatives are ongoing.

Twitter is the only social media platform where my Department has a presence and in this regard there are three Twitter accounts in use by my Department. These include those of the Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning with the Department of Defence Twitter account being launched in July 2020.

The percentage of posts which were exclusively in Irish up to 30 April 2021 was 0.5%.

The total percentage of posts made across my Departmental social media accounts and platforms that featured bilingual translations was 3%.

As content is not static on this platform, communications are predominantly in English, with approx. 3% being bilingual or as Gaeilge. My Communications Branch is reviewing opportunities to increase bilingual and Irish content on this platform going forward.

Departmental Funding

Questions (452)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

452. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Defence the amount the NGO and charity sector receive in funding from his Department per annum. [26620/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Defence

An annual grant payment is made each year from the Defence Vote (Vote 36) to the Irish Red Cross Society towards the administrative running costs of its headquarters. In 2021, the grant due to be paid to the Irish Red Cross Society is €975,000.

In December 2018, a Government decision provided for an allocation of €85,000 from the Defence Vote to Sail Training Ireland for 2019 and 2020, subject to the organisation being compliant with the Code of Governance for Voluntary Bodies. Sail Training Ireland is a charitable organisation established in 2011 by individuals who were previously involved with the State funded ‘Asgard’ sail training vessel.

The full amount was paid in 2019, however, due to Covid-19 only €20,000 was paid in 2020, with the remaining balance due to be paid in 2021, if voyages re-commence and performance delivery objectives are achieved.

Departmental Funding

Questions (453)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

453. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Defence if a record will be provided of the annual funding received by the NGO and charity sector from his Department in each of the years 2000 to 2020. [26640/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Defence

An annual grant payment is made each year from the Defence Vote (Vote36) to the Irish Red Cross Society (IRCS) towards the administrative running costs of its headquarters.

Following a Government decision in 2015, additional once-off funding was provided to the IRCS through the Defence Vote for an Emergency Humanitarian Support Scheme for small businesses, following severe weather and flooding events. The additional amounts provided were €5 million in 2015, €750,000 in 2017 and €300,000 in 2018.

An annual grant payment previously paid from the Defence Vote to the ‘Asgard’ National Sail Training Scheme from 2000 to 2009 was discontinued from 2010 onwards on foot of a Government decision in December, 2009.

In December 2018, a Government decision provided for an allocation of €85,000 from the Defence Vote to Sail Training Ireland for 2019 and 2020, subject to the organisation being compliant with the Code of Governance for Voluntary Bodies. Sail Training Ireland is a charitable organisation established in 2011 by individuals who were previously involved with the State funded ‘Asgard’ sail training vessel. The full amount was paid in 2019, however, due to Covid-19 only €20,000 was paid in 2020, with the remaining balance due to be paid in 2021 if voyages re-commence and performance delivery objectives are achieved.

All details from 2000 to 2020 are set out in the table below:

Table: Amounts of funding paid to Charities/NGOs from the Defence Vote from 2000 to 2020.

YEAR	IRISH RED CROSS SOCIETY €’ 000	COISTE AN ASGARD €’ 000	SAIL TRAINING IRELAND €’ 000	Total €’000
2000	749	600		1,349
2001	773	640		1,413
2002	805	625		1,430
2003	821	657		1,478
2004	866	693		1,559
2005	888	1,123		2,011
2006	910	749		1,659
2007	931	879		1,810
2008	951	803		1,754
2009	951	830		1,781
2010	951			951
2011	951			951
2012	869			869
2013	869			869
2014	869			869
2015	5,869			5,869
2016	869			869
2017	1,619			1,619
2018	1,169			1,169
2019	932		85	1,017
2020	965		20	985

Departmental Funding

Questions (454)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

454. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Defence the funding allocated to each NGO and charity in each of the years 2010 to 2020 by his Department. [26653/21]

View answer

Written answers

Minister for Defence

An annual grant payment is made each year from the Defence Vote (Vote 36) to the Irish Red Cross Society (IRCS) towards the administrative running costs of its headquarters.

Following a Government decision in 2015, additional once-off funding was also provided to the IRCS through the Defence Vote for the Emergency Humanitarian Support Scheme for small businesses, following severe weather and flooding events. The additional amounts provided were €5 million in 2015, €750,000 in 2017 and €300,000 in 2018.

In December 2018, a Government decision provided for an allocation of €85,000 from the Defence Vote to Sail Training Ireland for 2019 and 2020, subject to the organisation being compliant with the Code of Governance for Voluntary Bodies. Sail Training Ireland is a charitable organisation established in 2011 by individuals who were previously involved with the State funded ‘Asgard’ sail training vessel. The full amount was paid in 2019, however, due to Covid-19 only €20,000 was paid in 2020, with the remaining balance due to be paid in 2021 if voyages re-commence and performance delivery objectives are achieved.

All details from 2010 to 2020 are set out in the table below.

Table: Amounts of funding paid to Charities/NGO's from the Defence Vote from 2010 to 2020.

YEAR	IRISH RED CROSS SOCIETY €'000	SAIL TRAINING IRELAND €'000	TOTAL €'000
2010	951		951
2011	951		951
2012	869		869
2013	869		869
2014	869		869
2015	5,869		5,869
2016	869		869
2017	1,619		1,619
2018	1,169		1,169
2019	932	85	1,017
2020	965	20	985

Special Educational Needs

Questions (455)

Seán Canney

Question:

455. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Education her plans to introduce a July education programme for 2021; when details of the programme will be announced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25519/21]

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Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education

The Government has approved the provision of significantly expanded summer education programmes for pupils with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage, as a Covid-19 pandemic response measure, for summer 2021.

This is an incredibly important Government decision, which ensures that for first time all primary and post primary schools have the opportunity to provide summer programmes for students with complex needs and those at risk of educational disadvantage.

The total funding available to provide the programme is up to €40 million, a one hundred per cent increase on the allocation for summer provision in 2020.

The programmes for mainstream students in primary and post-primary schools are new programmes for 2021, building upon previous summer programmes for pupils with complex special educational needs and those in provided in DEIS schools last year.

Enhanced measures have been put in place to encourage schools to offer the programme, including measures to reduce the administrative burden, provision of funding to schools towards preparation and overseeing of the programmes, earlier payment of school staff and provision to recruit newly qualified teachers graduating this summer to work on the programme.

The programme’s aims are to support students to re-engage with education, to build their confidence and increase their motivation, promote well-being and for some who are at key transition stages, help to ensure they can move on to their planned educational placement next September along with their peers.

A home-based summer programme will continue to be available for students with complex needs where their schools are not providing a school based programme.

The programmes were developed following extensive engagement with education and disability stakeholders. My Department is now working to ensure the necessary supports, guidance and information is made available to both schools and families.

I encourage the school communities to take full advantage of this opportunity and offer this valuable programme to their students.

Further details on the schemes and how schools can apply will be available this week at gov.ie/summerprovision.

Special Educational Needs

Questions (456)

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin

Question:

456. Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin asked the Minister for Education if a dyslexia reading unit will be opened in a school (details supplied) in September 2021 given it was the understanding of parents in the area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25521/21]

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Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education

A new model for allocating special education teachers (SETs) to mainstream schools was introduced from September 2017, based on the profiled needs of schools. Over 13,600 SETs are currently provided to mainstream schools to support the learning needs of pupils who have additional needs in literacy, including those arising from specific learning difficulties.

It is the policy of my Department, in accordance with the principles of inclusive education, that pupils with such additional learning needs are supported in mainstream classes with additional provision made by a special education teacher.

In September 2018, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) was requested to develop Policy Advice on Education Provision in Special Classes and Special Schools to examine whether placement in specialist settings brings about improved educational outcomes and experiences, relative to their ability, for students with special educational needs.

This Policy Advice is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.

Special Educational Needs

Questions (457)

Marc MacSharry

Question:

457. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Education the plans for the July provision programme 2021; if a commitment will be given that children attending special schools and classes will receive compulsory in-school provision in the future; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25531/21]

View answer

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education

The Government has approved the provision of significantly expanded summer education programmes for pupils with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage, as a Covid-19 pandemic response measure, for summer 2021.

This is an incredibly important Government decision, which ensures that for first time all primary and post primary schools have the opportunity to provide summer programmes for students with complex needs and those at risk of educational disadvantage.

The total funding available to provide the programme is up to €40 million, a one hundred per cent increase on the allocation for summer provision in 2020.

The programmes for mainstream students in primary and post-primary schools are new programmes for 2021, building upon previous summer programmes for pupils with complex special educational needs and those in provided in DEIS schools last year.

Participation in the programmes will remain voluntary for schools, teachers and SNAs.

However, enhanced measures have been put in place to encourage schools to offer the programme, including measures to reduce the administrative burden, provision of funding to schools towards preparation and overseeing of the programmes, earlier payment of school staff and provision to recruit newly qualified teachers graduating this summer to work on the programme.

The programme’s aims are to support students to re-engage with education, to build their confidence and increase their motivation, promote well-being and for some who are at key transition stages, help to ensure they can move on to their planned educational placement next September along with their peers.

A home-based summer programme will continue to be available for students with complex needs where their schools are not providing a school based programme.

The programmes were developed following extensive engagement with education and disability stakeholders. My Department is now working to ensure the necessary supports, guidance and information is made available to both schools and families.

I encourage the school communities to take full advantage of this opportunity and offer this valuable programme to their students.

Further details on the schemes and how schools can apply will be available this week at gov.ie/summerprovision.

Special Educational Needs

Questions (458)

Holly Cairns

Question:

458. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Education the steps she is taking to address issues identified by a campaign group with the July provision programme (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25564/21]