Written Answers Nos. 572-591
572. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Justice if consideration will be given to allowing persons who have residency in Northern Ireland to apply for Irish citizenship based on their years living there. [46247/21]
View answerThe granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is governed by the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended. All applications for a certificate of naturalisation are processed and assessed individually in accordance with the provisions of the Act. A determination on whether an applicant satisfies the statutory criteria attendant to naturalisation can only be made after an application is received.
Section 15 of the Act sets out the statutory conditions that must be fulfilled for a certificate of naturalisation to be granted. Section 15A provides that, where the application is based on being the spouse or civil partner of an Irish citizen, the requirements include that the couple are married or civil partners to each other for a period of at least 3 years and are living together and, immediately before the date of application, have a period of one year's continuous residence in the island of Ireland and, during the preceding four years, have a further period amounting to 2 years (i.e. 3 years in total).
Following the 2004 referendum, a person born after 2004 on the island of Ireland (including Northern Ireland) is automatically a citizen if one parent was an Irish citizen, a British citizen, a resident of either Ireland or Northern Ireland entitled to reside in either without time limit, or a legal resident of Ireland or Northern Ireland for three of the four years preceding the child’s birth (excluding time spent as a student or an asylum seeker).
It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to meet the statutory conditions as prescribed in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.
573. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Justice if a coroner will be reappointed to cover south County Tipperary following the retirement of the coroner; the number of cases waiting to be heard by the Coroner's Court in County Tipperary; the average waiting time for a case to be heard in County Tipperary; the reason County Tipperary with a larger population and average annual case load has only one coroner while other counties with a smaller population and case load have three, for example, County Waterford; the efforts she is making to reduce the waiting times for the Coroner’s Court in County Tipperary; if she will urgently move to reappoint a coroner to south County Tipperary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46271/21]
View answerPrior to the retirement of the coroner for Tipperary South, Mr. Paul Morris on 25 June 2021, it had been agreed by the relevant local authority, Tipperary County Council to amalgamate, by way of Section 7 of the Coroners Acts 1962–2019, the two coronial districts of Tipperary North and Tipperary South with effect from that date.
On 25 June 2021, Mr Joseph P Kelly, the then coroner for North Tipperary, was appointed as the coroner for the newly amalgamated coronial district of Tipperary. Prior to this, Mr. Kelly had acted as Deputy Coroner for the Tipperary south district. There are no plans to reappoint a coroner for the former Tipperary south district.
I understand that Mr. Kelly will continue to provide inquests in venues previously utilised to accommodate families and I am informed that he has ensured a seamless transition.
As the Deputy will be aware, Coroners are independent in the conduct of their functions and neither I nor my Department have any role in the scheduling of inquests by a coroner.
All coroners are continuing to work to schedule inquests in a safe manner. Most coroners hold inquests in local court houses, and as a result of Covid-19, given public health considerations, inquests have unfortunately been severely curtailed.
The Courts Service is working closely with coroners across the country to facilitate inquests and continue to do so while ensuring adherence to public health guidelines.
574. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Justice if the visa applications that were accepted for Afghans included applications prior to May 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46273/21]
View answerIn response to the worsening humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, my Department is currently focused on processing applications for Afghan family members of Irish citizens and Afghan nationals living in Ireland. We are prioritising all such applications and processing them speedily and sympathetically.
A total of 295 visa applications, including both short and long term visas, have been received to date in 2021 from Afghan nationals. For the period 1 January 2021 to 30 April 2021, my Department received 64 applications from Afghan nationals and of these, 47 were granted a visa to enter the State.
For the period 1 May 2021 to 15 September 2021, my Department received 231 applications for Visas from Afghan nationals, and of these, 170 have been granted a visa to date.
The Deputy can be assured that my Department will continue to prioritise the processing of visa applications from Afghan nationals seeking to join family in the State.
575. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Justice her reason for omitting amendments to the Succession Act 1965 from the heads of the courts and civil law (miscellaneous provisions) Bill that would provide that a convicted killer is not entitled to the full value of a property for which they share joint ownership with the victim as committed to in the summer legislative programme. [46275/21]
View answerAt the outset, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere condolences to all families who have been affected in such devastating circumstances.
I can inform the Deputy that work is progressing in amending Section 120 of the Succession Act in order to ensure that perpetrators of domestic homicides could not benefit through inheritance.
My Department is working with the Office of the Attorney General and, as the Deputy will appreciate, there are a number of complex legal issues to be addressed in this area which require thorough examination by experts in this field of law. We are currently considering the most appropriate legislative vehicle to progress this issue. This is a complex area of the law and I want to ensure that we avoid any unintended or unforeseen consequences.
In addition, the independent study on Familicide and Domestic Homicide Review is expected to be published soon. While its terms of reference do not cover this issue specifically I would like to consider the next steps on this important area following on from the publication of that important review.
576. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Justice the number of drug searches that have taken place in County Tipperary since 1 September 2020; and the number of arrests and convictions for possession and supply of illegal drugs in County Tipperary since September 2020. [46285/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is by law responsible for the management of An Garda Síochána. As Minister, I have no responsibility for these matters.
I am informed by the Garda authorities that the continued disruption of the supply of all illicit drugs remains a priority for An Garda Síochána and the other state agencies tasked with responsibilities in this regard. An Garda Síochána have also stated that drugs searches are enforcement activity and as such do not generally provide this information. Drugs can also be found in unrelated searches. For this reason the Garda authorities have provided information on incidents and arrests only.
The below table, furnished to me by the Garda authorities, sets out the number of incidents and arrests recorded by An Garda Síochána for ‘Possession of Drugs for Sale or Supply’ in County Tipperary between 01/09/2020 to 23 September 2021.
|
Tipperary Garda Division |
01 Sept 2020 - 23 Sept 2021 |
|
Incidents of Possession of Drugs for Sale or Supply |
151 |
|
Arrests for Possession of Drugs for Sale or Supply |
152 |
It is important to note that these figures are operational and subject to change.
In relation to the information requested by the Deputy on the number of persons convicted of relevant offences in Tipperary, the following table, furnished to me by the Courts Service, outlines the number of convictions in the District Courts in Tipperary.
|
01 Sept – 31 Dec 2020 |
01 Jan – 31 Aug 2021 |
|||
|
Court Area |
Number of Offences where convictions were recorded |
Number of Persons convicted |
Number of Offences where convictions were recorded |
Number of Persons convicted |
|
Cashel |
4 |
4 |
26 |
25 |
|
Clonmel |
15 |
13 |
58 |
51 |
|
Carrick on Suir |
4 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
|
Nenagh |
27 |
17 |
31 |
21 |
|
Thurles |
8 |
7 |
29 |
27 |
|
Tipperary |
3 |
2 |
9 |
6 |
|
Total |
61 |
47 |
158 |
135 |
The Courts Service can only provide data in relation to where offence codes provided on the system were used by prosecutors. Prosecutors may have used uncoded free text offences and any such offences would not be included in the data provided.
At this time, the system in use by the Courts Service in the Circuit Courts is the Integrated Criminal Management System (ICMS). ICMS cannot produce reports for specific offences.
577. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Justice further to Parliamentary Question No. 497 of 22 June 2021, if she has received the necessary information from the Garda authorities. [46286/21]
View answerParliamentary Question 497 of 22 June 2021 refers to the estimated cost of installing a minimum of two defibrillators in each Garda station that is open on a 24/7 basis.
I can confirm that a substantive response to Parliamentary Question 497 of 22 June 2021 was issued to the Deputy on 6 July 2021.
578. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the efforts she and her officials have made to engage and consult with the 4,000+ civil servant Garda staff who are fearing a change in their status as a result of the proposals contained in the Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill; the steps that have been and will be taken to engage with the relevant staff; and the expected effect the proposed changes will have on Garda recruitment given that Garda numbers are so low per capita in counties such as County Meath. [46300/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, in April of this year the Government approved the drafting of the Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill, a commitment in the Programme for Government and Justice Plan 2021. This general scheme was developed to deliver on the recommendations of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland (CoFPI) following publication of its fundamental in-depth review in 2018.
A central tenet of the CoFPI report is that An Garda Síochána should be a single organisation with a single workforce. To support this, CoFPI recommended that non-sworn members (i.e. Garda staff) should be recruited directly to An Garda Síochána, not to the general civil service, and should be treated as valued members of a single Garda workforce with a shared mission.
The general scheme gives effect to this recommendation by providing for the Garda Commissioner to recruit and appoint Garda staff in accordance with the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004. Under the provisions of the general scheme, the Minister may also designate by order that existing civil servants within An Garda Síochána will change status, but only after engagement with trade unions and staff associations.
It is important to emphasise that no changes to the status of existing Garda staff will take place solely as a result of the enactment of the proposed legislation. A Ministerial order will be required before any designation to change the civil servant status of existing Garda staff may be made. The Minister must engage with any trade union or staff association concerned and consider any representations made by them. The general scheme provides for further reassurances on the terms and conditions of existing Garda staff prior to any agreement being reached with relevant unions or associations. I should emphasise that this does not pose any risk to their current terms and conditions.
Officials from my Department have been in contact with the relevant representative associations to brief them on the legislation, and are available to consult further as required.
The proposed changes will have no effect whatsoever on recruitment of Garda members, or on the allocation of policing resources by the Garda Commissioner. In that regard, the Deputy will be aware that an unprecedented budget of €1.952 billion was allocated to An Garda Síochána in 2021 which is enabling an ongoing programme of recruitment of Garda members and staff, albeit the pace of this has been impacted over the last 18 months by the pandemic. Subject to Budget 2022, I hope that it will be possible for recruitment to reach normal levels next year.
579. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for Justice if there are circumstances in which the fees for an application for naturalisation can be waived. [46347/21]
View answerThe fees in relation to applications for a certificate of naturalisation are governed by the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Regulations 2011.
The current application fee is €175, payable when an application for naturalisation is lodged. A certification fee is payable only when the application is successful and a certificate of naturalisation issues.
The standard certification fee is set at €950, while a reduced fee of €200 applies in the case of an application made on behalf of a minor or in certain cases where the application is made by a widow, widower or surviving civil partner of an Irish citizen. In the case of recognised refugees and stateless persons, there is no certification fee.
The standard fees payable by an applicant are designed to reflect the effort and cost involved in processing applications for a certificate of naturalisation which, given the benefits involved, is quite a detailed process.
All of the fees payable under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, are kept under ongoing review by the Department. However, there are currently no plans to amend the fees.
580. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Justice the status of an asylum case (details supplied). [46572/21]
View answerFor reasons of maintaining full confidentiality, it is not my Department's practice to comment on whether an application for asylum or subsidiary protection has been made in the State. An applicant for such protection status, or their legal representative, should contact either the International Protection Office (IPO) or the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT) directly, as appropriate.
The IPO may be contacted: by email to info@ipo.gov.ie; by telephone to the IPO Customer Service Centre at 01 6028008 or in writing to Customer Service Centre, International Protection Office, 79-83 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2.
The IPAT may be contacted either: by email to info@protectionappeals.ie; by telephone at 01-4748400 (or Lo-Call 1890 201 458), or in writing to Corporate Services Division, The International Protection Appeals Tribunal, 6-7 Hanover Street East, Dublin D02 W320.
I can assure the Deputy that, under the International Protection Act 2015, each international protection application is assessed individually on its merits. All applicants for international protection are carefully interviewed and their cases are individually assessed by experienced case-workers. The circumstances of each individual case is assessed having regard to both the subjective elements (the applicant’s own account or personal history) and objective elements (up-to-date information on the applicant’s country or place of origin).
Any decision in relation to reviewing decisions made on appeals is a matter for the Chairperson of the Tribunal, who is independent in their functions under the 2015 Act.
The principle of non-refoulement applies to all decisions made on international protection applications. Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and other irreparable harm.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas mail facility (INISOireachtasMail@justice.ie) which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up-to-date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the parliamentary questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
581. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Justice the number of community Gardaí attached to Finglas and Ballymun stations, Dublin 9 and 11 in each of the past ten years by rank in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46617/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, including the stationing of Gardaí and their allocation to Garda units. As Minister for Justice, I have no direct role in these matters.
I am assured by An Garda Síochána that local and senior Garda management are consulted during the allocation of Garda personnel, and are responsible for the specific deployment and assignment of duties being undertaken at divisional level to ensure the continued delivery of policing services within Garda Divisions.
To date, the official categorisation as a Community Garda refers to those who are exclusively assigned to building relationships with local communities and civil society, including by giving talks to schools, community groups and others. However, community policing is at the heart of An Garda Síochána, and all Gardaí have a role to play in community policing in the course of carrying out their duties. This has perhaps never been clearer than in the response which has been provided to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The below table, provided to me by the Garda authorities, outlines the number of Garda members categorised as Community Gardaí that are assigned to Ballymun and Finglas Garda Stations, broken down by rank, during the period 31 December 2012 to 31 August 2021.
|
Ballymun |
Sergeants |
Garda |
Finglas |
Sergeants |
Garda |
|
31/12/2012 |
2 |
10 |
31/12/2012 |
1 |
14 |
|
31/12/2013 |
2 |
8 |
31/12/2013 |
1 |
10 |
|
31/12/2014 |
1 |
8 |
31/12/2014 |
1 |
11 |
|
31/12/2015 |
1 |
5 |
31/12/2015 |
1 |
11 |
|
31/12/2016 |
1 |
5 |
31/12/2016 |
0 |
10 |
|
31/12/2017 |
1 |
7 |
31/12/2017 |
1 |
11 |
|
31/12/2018 |
1 |
7 |
31/12/2018 |
1 |
10 |
|
31/12/2019 |
1 |
4 |
31/12/2019 |
1 |
14 |
|
31/12/2020 |
1 |
5 |
31/12/2020 |
0 |
15 |
|
31/08/2021 |
1 |
7 |
31/08/2021 |
0 |
11 |
582. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Justice if she will address a matter (details supplied) regarding Operation Tombola; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46664/21]
View answerI am informed by the Garda Commissioner that on the 26 August, 2021, “Operation Tombola” was initiated in the DMR in all Divisions and will remain in place in the lead up to and over the Halloween period.
The Deputy will wish to be aware that proactive policing initiatives within the DMR under ‘Operation Tombola’ include but are not limited to the following actions:
- Increased patrolling (overt and covert) of areas of interest, including but not limited to usual locations where young people congregate as well as areas where bonfire materials are likely to be stockpiled.
- High visibility patrols of public transport on Dublin Bus, LUAS and Dart services in the lead up to and on Halloween to prevent and detect incidents of anti-social behaviour.
- Engagement with schools and youth services throughout the region with talks designed and focused on engaging with those who may participate in sale/supply and use of fireworks.
- Proactive monitoring of open source media to identify the location where individuals are operating the sale and supply of fireworks.
- Identifying the scene(s) of unsupervised and unplanned bonfire locations and liaising with local authorities to have bonfire material removed in advance of Halloween
- Allocation of designated Garda personnel to monitor overt CCTV to ensure anti-social issues are effectively dealt with in a timely manner.
- Proactive engagement by liquor licensing inspectors with managers and business owners, reminding the business community of their responsibilities under Liquor Licensing Legislation.
- Utilisation and deployment of Crime Prevention Officers (CPO) in the DMR to impart, educate and inform business owners / building site managers, etc. on how best secure combustible material (tyres, pallets etc.) in their possession in the lead up to Halloween.
- Policing the public consumption of alcohol and underage minors drinking.
583. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Justice if she will expedite an application by a person (details supplied) in County Sligo for a permanent residence card for their daughter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46702/21]
View answerThe processing of this application is ongoing at present. The EU Treaty Rights Division of the Immigration Service of my Department will contact the applicant by the end of this week with an update on their case.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility (inisoireachtasmail@justice.ie), which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
584. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Justice the Garda strength in the DMR by division in each of the years the years 2016 to 2020 and in June 2021, in tabular form. [46706/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is by law responsible for the general management and administration of the Garda organisation under the Garda Síochána Act 2005. This includes the deployment of members of An Garda Síochána throughout the State. As Minister, I have no role in these independent functions.
I am assured, however, that Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of policing priorities and crime trends, to ensure their optimum use. I am further advised that it is a matter for the Divisional Chief Superintendent to determine the optimum distribution of duties among the personnel available to him or her, having regard to the profile of each area within the Division and its specific needs.
For the Deputy's information, the tables appended to this answer contain the breakdown of Garda members attached to the DMR from 2016 to August 2021, the latest date for which figures are available.
Detailed information in relation to the Garda strength of each Garda Division by District, Station and Rank is available on my Department’s website. This information is updated every month with the latest data provided by An Garda Síochána. The information can be found at the following link:
www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/An_Garda_Siochana_facts_and_figures.
https://data.oireachtas.ie/ie/oireachtas/debates/questions/supportingDocumentation/2021-09-28_pq584-28-9-21_en.xlsx.
585. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Justice if her attention has been drawn to the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will request her Department to reconsider the rejection letter issued. [46774/21]
View answerFor reasons of maintaining full confidentiality, it is not my Department's practice to comment on whether an application for asylum or subsidiary protection has been made in the State.
An applicant for such protection status, or their legal representative, should contact either the International Protection Office (IPO) or the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT) directly, as appropriate, for an update on their application.
The IPO may be contacted: by email to info@ipo.gov.ie; by telephone to the IPO Customer Service Centre at 01 6028008 or in writing to Customer Service Centre, International Protection Office, 79-83 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2.
The IPAT may be contacted either: by email to info@protectionappeals.ie; by telephone at 01-4748400 (or Lo-Call 1890 201 458), or in writing to Corporate Services Division, The International Protection Appeals Tribunal, 6-7 Hanover Street East, Dublin D02 W320.
I can assure the Deputy that, under the International Protection Act 2015, each international protection application is assessed individually on its merits. All applicants for international protection are carefully interviewed and their cases are individually assessed by experienced case-workers. The circumstances of each individual case is assessed having regard to both the subjective elements (the applicant’s own account or personal history) and objective elements (up-to-date information on the applicant’s country or place of origin).
Any decision in relation to reviewing decisions made on appeals is a matter for the Chairperson of the Tribunal, who is independent in their functions under the 2015 Act.
The principle of non-refoulement applies to all decisions made on international protection applications. Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and other irreparable harm.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas mail facility (inisoireachtasmail@justice.ie) which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up-to-date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the parliamentary questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
586. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Justice the persons or bodies that have the legal authority to authorise surveillance including phone tapping; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46824/21]
View answerI understand the Deputy to be referring to authorisations made under the provisions of the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications Messages (Regulation) Act 1993 and the Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act 2009.
I can inform the Deputy that it is the Minister for Justice who may, in accordance with the provisions of the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications Messages (Regulation) Act 1993, authorise bodies designated under the Act to intercept communications for the purposes of investigating serious crime or safeguarding the security of the State.
Surveillance is governed by the provisions of the Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act 2009. Under Section 5 of the Act, a district court judge may authorise bodies designated under that Act to carry out surveillance for the purposes of investigation and prevention of arrestable offences and maintaining the security of the State. Section 7 of the 2009 Act provides that a member or officer of a body designated under the Act may carry out surveillance without an authorisation in cases of urgency and subject to strict conditions. Section 8 of the 2009 Act provides for the use of a tracking device where approved by a superior officer of a designated body, and subject to strict conditions.
As the Deputy may be aware, the operation of both Acts is overseen independently by serving Judges of the High Court who are designated by the Government for this purpose and report to the Taoiseach. In carrying out their functions, the Designated Judges have, by law, full access to all persons and records they consider relevant and all relevant persons have, by law, a duty to co-operate.
In addition, both Acts provide for a serving judge of the Circuit Court to act as the Complaints Referee. The Complaints Referee is empowered to receive and investigate complaints from persons who believe that their communications have been intercepted or that they might be the subject of surveillance. In carrying out her functions, the Referee has, by law, full access to all persons and records she considers relevant to her investigations and all relevant persons have, by law, a duty to co-operate with her.
587. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Health his plans to ensure that an adequate number of healthcare assistants can be sourced here or within the EEA; if he is satisfied that pay, conditions and training here for home care staff are sufficient in order to ensure that an adequate number of healthcare assistants can be sourced here or within the EEA to meet the growing demand for home care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46048/21]
View answerThe Programme for Government (2020) commits to the introduction of a statutory scheme to support people to live in their own homes, which will provide equitable access to high-quality, regulated home care. In this regard, the Department is in the process of developing a statutory scheme for the financing and regulation of home-support. It is intended that the new scheme will provide equitable and transparent access to high-quality services based on a person’s assessed care-needs.
The HSE has operational responsibility for planning, managing, and delivering home support services for older people and people with a disability at national, regional and local levels. Services are delivered either directly by HSE employed staff, or on its behalf by a combination of private and ‘Section 39’ organisations (i.e. voluntary/not-for-profit) providers who operate under service level agreements with the HSE. There are also many home support users who self-fund entirely or self-fund additional support above the support provided via the HSE. There has been sustained investment in home-support services in recent years, with approximately €630 million allocated in the National Service Plan 2021 to provide 24 million hours of home support.
In the public sector any amendments to pay are carried out in line with the current public service agreement for those working in relevant agencies. It would not be appropriate for the Minister to comment directly on the terms and conditions of those working in Section 39 or other privately operated services. Privately operated services are responsible for recruiting, setting and managing the terms and conditions of employment of their staff, having regard to employment legislation.
588. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if he or any person in his Department have had any communications with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and or the HSE regarding the future of the Dean Maxwell home in Roscrea, County Tipperary; if so, the way in which he communicated with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and or the HSE; the dates he communicated with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and or the HSE; and the persons with whom he communicated with in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and or the HSE on this matter (details supplied). [46082/21]
View answerUnfortunately, it has not been possible to provide the information requested in the timeframe available, as there may be a considerable body of work required. In order to properly answer the questions posed, my officials in the Department of Health may engage with you directly in due course on a number of matters related to your queries, including the scope and timeframe involved in the request. I can assure the Deputy that the information requested will be provided at the earliest possible opportunity.
589. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the process that a young person with an intellectual disability follows when they exit formal schooling; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46184/21]
View answerThe Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose, and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives.
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly with regard to those who transition from schooling into HSE services, as soon as possible. Processes in relation to transitions into further education or employment are led by DFHERIS and DSP respectively.
590. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the criteria as to the way in which the money is spent by each service provider in regard to each person with an intellectual disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46186/21]
View answerThe Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose, and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives.
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
591. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Health the amount that has been spent on personal assistance services by CHO area in each of the years 2016 to 2020, in tabular form. [46501/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
