Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 October 2021
174. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the amount of the €183 million funding for his Department announced in Budget 2022 that will be used to establish a support service for parents of children that have been taken into care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51393/21]
View answerMy Department has been allocated additional funding of €183 million in Budget 2022. This will bring the total investment provided to this Department to just over €2.1 billion for 2022.
I was pleased to announce in Budget 2022 that Tusla will be allocated €899m for 2022, which is an increase of €41m over the amount allocated in Budget 2021. The specific amount to be used for the purpose outlined by the Deputy is not yet established.
I will shortly issue my Performance Statement to Tusla outlining the overall parameters of Tusla's financial resources, and signalling my priorities for the coming year in accordance withsection 44 of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013. In response to this, Tusla will prepare its annual Business Plan for 2022 in accordance with section 46 of the Act. This outlines the proposed activities for the year and the details of the proposed allocation of total financial resources.
I can advise the Deputy that requests for tenders for the development phase of a national service to support parents of children in the care of the state opened last week. Tusla has contracted the Children’s Rights Alliance (CRA) to undertake this process. The CRA is carrying out a scoping exercise on the needs of parents with children in care and is also managing the tender process to secure a service provider who will deliver and evaluate a model of supports to meet the identified needs. This is part of a process that, if proven effective, will move towards the development of a larger national service.
