Written Answers Nos. 346-365
346. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will disregard half-rate carer's allowance as income as part of the means test for the fuel allowance when the income of a person is solely made up of social welfare payments alone such as in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49927/21]
View answerThe Fuel Allowance is a payment of €28.00 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €784 each year) from October to April, to 370,000 low income households, at an estimated cost of €300 million in 2021. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. The allowance represents a contribution towards the energy costs of a household. It is not intended to meet those costs in full. Only one allowance is paid per household.
My Department also pays an electricity or gas allowance under the household benefits scheme at an estimated cost of €195 million in 2021.
The Government values the role of carers very much and it is for this reason that they receive significant income supports from my Department. In addition to Carer’s Allowance or Carer’s Benefit carers receive additional support in the form of Free Travel and Household Benefits (for those who live with the person for whom they care) and the annual Carers Support Grant in respect of each person for whom they care.
From October 2013 onwards, the payment of half-rate Carer’s Allowance does not preclude a person from qualifying for Fuel Allowance. If a person is in receipt of a qualifying non-contributory social welfare payment and a half-rate Carer’s Allowance then they are deemed to have satisfied the means test and Fuel Allowance is payable subject to all remaining criteria being satisfied. If a person is in receipt of a qualifying contributory social welfare payment and a half-rate Carer’s Allowance then the value of the half-rate Carer’s Allowance will be assessed in the means test for Fuel Allowance.
A fuel applicant and members of his/her household may have a combined assessable income of up to €100.00 a week above the appropriate rate of State Pension Contributory and qualify for a payment. The €100 a week means limit is significantly higher that the weekly fuel allowance rate of €28.00 and also the combined weekly total of household benefits and fuel allowance added together (€37.15).
Any decision to disregard half-rate carers as income as part of the means test for the fuel allowance when the income of a person is solely made up of social welfare payments alone would have cost implications and would have to be considered in the context of overall budgetary negotiations.
Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, Exceptional Needs Payments may be made to help meet an essential, once-off cost which customers are unable to meet out of their own resources, and this may include exceptional heating and travel costs. Decisions on such payments are made on a case-by-case basis.
I hope this information provides some clarification on the issues.
347. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will address the rights of persons with disabilities (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49711/21]
View answerIreland ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2018. This marked an important milestone in a process to strengthen the rights of people with disabilities in Ireland.
The approach being taken to meeting the obligations of the UNCRPD is one of progressive realisation, each year moving forward on key reforms, with the obligations arising from the Convention being met over time. Initial priority has been given to meeting legislative commitments.
Ireland currently has two whole-of-government strategies in place, the National Disability Inclusion Strategy (now extended until the end of 2022) and the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities, 2015-2024. These include important measures to support people with disabilities in all aspects of their lives. They encompass a wide diversity of people with disabilities, including those with Down's Syndrome.
These are the key frameworks for policy and action to address the needs of persons with disabilities in Ireland, and to improve their lives in a practical sense. They include actions on enabling people with disabilities to access education, to enter employment and to live independently. They are also the key framework for advancing progress with respect to UNCRPD obligations, including those raised by the Deputy. My Department coordinates these two strategies and my colleague, Minister of State Anne Rabbitte T.D., chairs the National Disability Inclusion Strategy Steering Group.
348. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason the Final Report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes contains so little information about St. Gerard’s Mother and Baby Home when it was part of the Commission of Investigation’s remit to investigate it and when its records were in the possession of Tusla; if he has plans to correct this deficit in the final report by ensuring that the records for St. Gerard’s are processed and a further and comprehensive report on St. Gerard’s Mother and Baby Home is issued including the nature of its engagements with St. Patrick’s Guild; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50074/21]
View answer355. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on the fact that the Final Report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes appears to have failed to reach findings in respect of St. Gerard's Mother and Baby Home; if he accepts the Church of Ireland executive summary claim that the commission knows very little about St. Gerard’s due to the fact it was unable to access its institutional records; if he plans to conduct a review of this particular home; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49190/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 348 and 355 together.
The Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) was entirely independent in the conduct of its investigations and this independence was guaranteed in law.
It was a matter for the Commission alone to reach whatever conclusions it deemed possible, based on its assessment of the full body of evidence available to it at the time. It is incorrect to infer that the Commission did not make findings in relation to St. Gerard's Mother and Baby Home. The Commission had statutory powers and access to a body of information never previously available in examining these matters. Its Final Report addresses important questions in relation to the practices in place throughout the network of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions during the period under investigation.
The Commission noted that St Gerard's was in operation between 1919 to 1939. On the basis of its capacity, and the 45 recorded births in the 1930s, the Commission reports that it was likely to have catered for no more than 200 women and their children in total. The Commission stated that the records of St Gerard’s which it examined are part of the very large archive of records relating to St Patrick’s Guild. It was acknowledged that, at the time of the investigation, it was unable to extract specific records in relation to St Gerard’s. However, during its investigation, the Commission cross-referenced information from the institutional records available to it, State records, testimony from witnesses and evidence from other sources, in order to reach its conclusions. There are a number of such citations in relation to "Chapter 27: St Gerard’s, originally 39 Mountjoy Square" of the Commission's final report.
The Commission has now been dissolved in law. My Department does not have comparable powers to access records or compel persons to provide information. I have no plans to re-investigate the findings made by the Independent Commission, nor does my Department have the statutory powers to do so.
Notably, the Commission's terms of reference specifically acknowledge the importance of its work in supporting further historical research. I, therefore, welcome future academic research into these matters, and the Government has committed to supporting further research and access to records as key parts of our response to the Commission’s Report.
As I have previously stated, the Commission’s Report is not the end of the State’s response to mother and baby and county home institutions. It provides the initial basis on which we are building a series of responses to the needs and concerns of survivors and their families.
349. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will seek State funding to the yellow flag programme run by an organisation (details supplied) to build a culturally competent and inclusive school environment. [49110/21]
View answerMy Department is currently compiling the information requested by the Deputy and a response will be issued directly as soon as possible.
350. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the amount paid to a company (details supplied) annually; the number of children involved in each of the years the company was contracted in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49114/21]
View answerThis had been referred to Tusla for their direct reply to the Deputy.
351. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the fee paid to a company (details supplied) per child per night for emergency foster care; the amount paid to each emergency foster carer per child per night; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49115/21]
View answerThis has been referred to Tusla for their direct reply to the Deputy.
352. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if there is a system in place by which professionals paid by the State or in agencies contracted by the State must carry an emergency pack for delivery of children into emergency foster care to include the basics of travel cot, nappies for babies, pull-ups for toddlers and food; if not, if he will make such a provision a basic requirement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49116/21]
View answerThis has been referred to Tusla for their direct reply to the Deputy.
353. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if his Department will view toddlers and babies being delivered to emergency foster care with no cot, food or nappies provided for the night; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49117/21]
View answerThis has been referred to Tusla for their direct reply to the Deputy.
354. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will meet with an organisation (details supplied) to discuss the way an innovative, intercultural solution to tackle racism at a social and institutional level can become embedded into national policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49158/21]
View answerThank you Deputy Tully, I am meeting with the Yellow Flag Programme and Irish Traveller Movement on Monday 18 October.
As the Deputy knows, the National Anti-Racism Committee is an independent Committee established by Government in 2020 to develop a National Action Plan Against Racism. The work of the Committee will help to strengthen the Government’s approach to combatting individual and institutional racism and will build on the anti-racism actions included in the Migrant Integration Strategy (MIS) and the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy (NTRIS). The Committee will also examine international best practice in combatting racism and will benchmark its actions against these standards.
On the same day as the publication of their Interim Report, the Committee launched the public consultation phase of its work, which ran for twelve weeks from 21 April until 14 July. During this phase, the Committee accepted written submissions, conducted an online survey, and held a series of consultation sessions with stakeholders in order better to understand the nature and different forms of racism that are present in Ireland today. The Irish Traveller Movement attended a number of these consultation sessions, including the one on Education, and sent in a written submission.
Having completed its public consultation, the Anti-Racism Committee is now engaged in the preparation of the National Action Plan Against Racism, with a view to submitting a draft Plan to me for consideration in the coming months. I then intend to bring this Plan to Government and, subject to the agreement of the Government, hope to publish it early next year.
356. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 488 of 5 October 2021, the number of minors, not being unaccompanied minors, that have gone missing while in State care in each of the years 2010 to 2020 and to date in 2021; the number found or accounted for; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49237/21]
View answerThe Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
357. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 488 of 5 October 2021, the steps being taken to locate the 43 unaccompanied minors that have gone missing while in State care and who remain unaccounted for since 2010 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49238/21]
View answerThe Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
358. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the extent to which projects that fall within the aegis of his Department and are within the revised national development plan are at an advanced stage at present or are in course thereof; the extent to which preliminary work has taken place or on-site works are in hand or proposed; the expected delivery date of each; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49248/21]
View answerMy Department is currently collating the information requested and a reply will issue directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
359. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of Tusla front-line social worker vacancies in areas (details supplied) in June 2021, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49277/21]
View answerI wish to inform the Deputy that my officials have asked Tusla to respond to you directly on this matter.
360. Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to provide paid maternity leave for women who have experienced a miscarriage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49313/21]
View answerPregnancy loss is a heartbreaking experience for parents and my sympathies are with every person who has suffered a loss.
The Maternity Protection Acts 1994-2004 provide for paid maternity leave and, in the event of a stillbirth or miscarriage occurring after the 24th week of pregnancy, the mother is entitled to take her full maternity leave. Paternity leave is also available to the relevant parent in the event of a stillbirth or miscarriage occurring any time after the 24th week of pregnancy.
There is currently no provision for leave where a pregnancy loss occurs prior to 24 weeks. However, my Department has been examining this issue and intends to commission research in the coming weeks to examine how best to support working parents who have suffered a miscarriage. The findings of this research will inform Government policy to develop a practical, workable response to support those parents.
361. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on the recent Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, report which found that just 36% of working-aged persons with disabilities are working; the actions his Department is taking to increase this figure; and if he will investigate the matter. [49358/21]
View answerI am aware of the report referenced by the Deputy and the extent to which it highlights the need to continue to make progress on the issue of employment for people with disabilities. My colleague Minister Anne Rabbitte T.D. spoke at the launch of the ESRI report that the Deputy refers to, an event organised by the National Disability Authority which also saw the launch of a similarly employment-focused report by the OECD.
Both reports are receiving detailed consideration by officials in my Department, particularly in the context of the design of the next Action Plan for 2022-2024 of the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities (CES) 2015 - 2024.
The Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities (CES) 2015 - 2024 is the primary vehicle for advancing the specific employment challenges faced by people with disabilities. It takes a cross-government approach, bringing together actions by Government Departments and Agencies to address the barriers and challenges to employment of people with disabilities. The CES’s strategic priorities are to build skills, capacity and independence, to provide bridges and supports into work, to make work pay, to promote job retention and re-entry to work, to provide coordinated and seamless supports and to engage employers.
Implementation of the Strategy is undertaken through agreed action plans and is monitored by an Implementation Group with an independent Chairperson: Fergus Finlay. Currently the group is monitoring the CES Phase Two Action Plan which covers the period 2019 – 2021. The CES Phase Three Action Plan will shortly be developed, and the ESRI and OECD reports are both valuable and timely in that context. Separately, my Department is funding the Employers for Change project which provides support to employers to recruit and retain people with disabilities. My Department will also bring forward legislative proposals in the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Bill to increase the target for employment of people with disabilities in the public sector from 3% to 6% by 2024.
362. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated cost of hiring an extra 400 social workers and 160 aftercare workers, respectively. [49363/21]
View answerI wish to inform the Deputy that my officials have asked Tusla to respond to you directly on this matter.
363. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of State boards under the remit of his Department or its agencies in tabular form; the number of members of each board; the number of women on each board; and the percentage of each board that is made up of women. [49554/21]
View answerMy Department is currently collating the information requested and a reply will issue directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
364. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of early childhood care and education, ECCE-only childcare providers, that are providers that do not offer a service outside of ECCE provision; the amount of annual funding they received; the number of childcare providers in receipt of State funding in same; the amount of annual funding they received; the number of providers in receipt of funding that do not provide ECCE; and the amount of annual funding providers received in 2020 and 2021, respectively. [49603/21]
View answerThe Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme is a universal two-year pre-school programme available to all children within the eligible age range. The programme is provided for three hours per day, five days per week over 38 weeks per year and runs from September to June each year, aligned with the primary school calendar.
The number of services that have only signed an ECCE funding agreement is currently 1,217. The approved budget for these services for the 2021/22 programme year is €73,838,083 with €13,926,798 paid to date.
While these services do not have contracts with my Department for the provision of other subverted early learning and childcare schemes, such as the NCS and CCSP/TEC, they may be providing additional early learning and childcare services to parents on a fee paying basis. If they are providing additional childcare services they would not ECCE only services. The Department does not collect data from providers on private childcare arrangements.
With regard to services who have entered in to contracts with the Department for subsidy schemes other than ECCE, there are currently 461 services who are registered to provide NCS and or CCSP/TEC but have not signed an ECCE 2021 funding agreement. The approved budget for these services for 2021/22 is €5,298,182 with €1,815,292 paid to date.
The amount of annual funding all ELC providers (including services that have since closed) received in 2020 and 2021 is outlined in the table below based on the programme year. The programme year generally runs from 1 September to 31 August of the following year.
|
2020-21 Programme Year |
2021-22 Programme Year to date |
|
€554,600,040 |
€96,547,176. |
365. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the programmes, further supports and initiatives that are funded under programme B:5 sectoral programmes for children and young persons in the 2021 Revised Estimates. [49604/21]
View answerMy Department operates a number of early learning and school-age childcare funding schemes which are, in the main, administered by Pobal on behalf of my Department. In 2021, some €88.7m was made available under the B5 subhead.
Funding under this allocation is used to pay for Pobal’s administration of early learning and school-age childcare funding schemes. Also thirty County Childcare Committees (CCCs) are funded under this sub-head.
Funding is provided to Tusla to conduct its statutory pre-school inspection role. Funding is also provided to a number of Voluntary Childcare Organisations to support my Department in the delivery of the early learning and school-age childcare funding schemes. The vetting of the sector is also funded under this sub-head.
Schemes administered under the B5 subhead are:
- ELC and SAC Capital Programme
- Childminding Development Grant
- Parent and Toddler Grant
- Learner Fund
- AIM Programme Supports
The remainder of the funding is allocated to support the ELC and SAC sector, and in particular:
- implementation of the First 5 Strategy
- development of the workforce development plan
- rollout of National Síolta Aistear Initiative
- rollout of childminding Initiatives
- sustainable supports
