Written Answers Nos. 1401-1415
1401. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated full cost moving to a fully publicly run childcare service; the estimated length of time needed for same; the estimated cost in year one; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41478/22]
View answerThe Programme for Government contains a number of commitments for early learning and childcare, including reforming the system to create one that brings together the best of community and private provision and the development of a new funding model for affordable, accessible, sustainable and high quality Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School-Age Childcare (SAC).
Not including special Covid-19 funding arrangements, an estimated 60% of funding for ELC and SAC services comes from the State. The First 5 strategy published in 2018 committed to at least doubling expenditure in the sector by 2028 to approximately €1 billion.
An Expert Group to develop a new funding model for ELC and SAC was established in 2019 to consider how best to structure this additional investment. It was independently chaired and comprised of national and international experts across multiple fields.
Under their terms of reference, the Expert Group was not asked to propose changes to the current model of delivery (i.e. privately-operated provision), rather that they the Group should seek to further achieve policy objectives of quality, affordability, accessibility and contributing to addressing disadvantage in a privately-operated system through increased public funding and public management.
The report of the Expert Group, 'Partnership for the Public Good: A New Funding Model for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare', was published on 7 December 2021 following consideration by Government and acceptance of its 25 recommendations. Work has now commenced on implementation of these recommendations. The report of the Expert Group is available here: first5fundingmodel.gov.ie/report/.
Of the 25 recommendations, three are grouped under the title 'Role of the State'. In particular, the final recommendation states that, "[I]n the medium term, the Minister should mandate the Department to examine whether some element of public provision should be introduced alongside private provision." Evolving over time, the new funding model entails a substantially increased role for the State in a range of areas, including fee management, capacity planning, provision of information to parents, planning the development of the sector, supporting services, and managing centre closures.
Taken together, these recommendations reflect a key theme of the report, which is the importance of strengthened State involvement and enhanced public management in the sector, in conjunction with increased State funding. This is underpinned by a cultural shift to a partnership relationship between providers and the State that reflects the public good dimension of ELC and SAC, with new responsibilities on both sides.
Announcements in Budget 2022 signalled the commitment to the first stage of implementation of the Expert Group’s recommendations. In particular, Budget 2022 allocated €73.5 million to a new Core Funding stream, equivalent to €221 million in a full year. Full implementation of all recommendations, including recommendation 25 which would likely involve an estimate of cost and timeline for delivery of a portion of public provision, will be progressed in the coming years as additional funding is secured through the annual Estimates process.
1402. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated cost of establishing the Ombudsman for Children; and the equivalent amount with the costs for 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41479/22]
View answerThe Ombudsman for Children was established in 2004 with an initial budget of €276,252 and a staff of five.
In terms of equivalent costs for 2023, the budget for 2023 has yet to be agreed, and will be finalised in the context of the normal estimates process for Budget 2023.
The Ombudsman for Children’s Office currently has a staff of 37 and the current budget allocation for 2022 is €3.312 million.
1403. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated full-year cost of running the Ombudsman for Children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41480/22]
View answer1405. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated full-year cost of running the Children’s Ombudsman. [41500/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1403 and 1405 together.
The current budget allocation for the Ombudsman for Children’s Office for 2022 is €3.312 million.
1404. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated full cost of implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; the timeframe for same; the estimated cost of implementation in year one; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41499/22]
View answerIreland ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2018. Since then, Ireland has pursued a policy of mainstream-first in progressively realising the rights contained in the Convention. For that reason, there is no end date by which implementation will be considered to be complete - as we make progress, we continually set the bar higher. Our ambition to respect, protect and fulfil the rights in the UNCRPD has no temporal limitation.
This Department coordinates two cross-cutting national strategies that drive action across all Government Departments and Agencies in relation to the implementation of the UNCRPD, these are the National Disability Inclusion Strategy and the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities. However, each Department and Agency remains responsible, individually and collectively, for upholding the State's obligations under the UNCRPD.
There is no standardised system from which UNCRPD-specific implementation costs can be disaggregated or derived, and as such it is not possible to estimate the full cost of implementing the UNCRPD either in year one - 2018/2019 - or in subsequent years of implementation to the present day. However, the Initial State Report under the UNCRPD, which Ireland submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 8 November 2021, outlines the breadth of actions taken to implement the UNCRPD since ratification. Ireland is currently awaiting a review date for this progress to be evaluated by the UN Committee.
I am fully committed to the UNCRPD and its implementation in Ireland, and to the commitment in the Programme for Government to develop a UNCRPD Implementation Plan. This commitment will be progressed inclusively through consultations with people with disabilities and their representative organisations in the second half of 2022.
1406. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the estimated full-year cost of bringing spending on disabilities up to the European Union average of 2% of GDP; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41501/22]
View answerThe Government is committed to improving the lives of people with disabilities in Ireland, in line with Ireland’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), which Ireland ratified in March 2018. As Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Disability, I will continue to work towards delivering improved disability services that promote independence and inclusion and to strengthening the rights of people with disabilities in Ireland.
Ireland’s approach to implementing the UNCRPD is one of progressive realisation, with obligations from the Convention being met over time. Emphasis is also placed on ensuring that a disability perspective is integrated into mainstream expenditure, policy development and service delivery.
All Government Departments and all Agencies have a role to play in implementing the UNCRPD and as such, disability related expenditure is incurred on a Government-wide basis. According to the IGEES Spending Review 2021, an estimated €7.1 billion was spent across the public sector on disability and special education related supports in 2020 (excluding disability related tax measures). The highest levels of expenditure were associated with the provision of social protection, health services and special education. Expenditure on disability and special education supports across the State increased by 51% between 2011 and 2020.
Pending the transfer of functions of specialist community-based disability services from the Department of Health to this Department, this Department only has responsibility for a small budget pertaining to the coordination of Ireland’s national disability strategies, the National Disability Inclusion Strategy and the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities. As such, I would direct the Deputy to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) for the most up to date calculations comparing overall spend on disability across the State to GDP.
My Department is acutely aware of the importance of using public funding to improve equality outcomes for people with disabilities. To this end, my officials have been closely involved in the development of the Equality Budgeting Initiative, which is being advanced by DPER and which covers multiple dimensions of equality, including disability. As part of this initiative and in line with international best practice, an EU Structural Reform Support Programme (SRSP) funded project is currently underway to identify a system of tagging public expenditure against different equality dimensions, including disability. I very much welcome the expected advances in this area which will provide for greater clarity in relation to disability expenditure across the State and allow for a more impact-focused approach to disability expenditure into the future.
1407. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will provide an update on the constitutional challenge by a ward of court as referred to by him during the pre-legislative scrutiny of the Assisted-Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41537/22]
View answerA constitutional challenge has been taken against the State in relation to both the Marriage of Lunatics Act 1811 and the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act 1871, which underpins wardship in the State. The case raises issues in relation to the rights of intellectually disabled persons, and the State's implementation of its obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The Marriage of Lunatics Act 1811 was repealed by Statutory Instrument on 1 February 2021, but the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act is required to repeal the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act 1871.
The constitutional challenge was adjourned on the basis that wardship would be abolished in orderly fashion via an Act of the Oireachtas, and this remains the case presently.
1408. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the dividends paid by State-owned enterprises under the remit of his Department in each of the past five years; the projected dividends to be received in 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41645/22]
View answerThere are no State-owned enterprises under the remit of my Department which have paid, or are due to pay dividends in the last five years and in 2022. The bodies under the remit of my Department are all non-commercial semi-state companies and are funded through public moneys.
1409. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he is giving consideration to the proposals from Ukraine Civil Society Emergency Response (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41699/22]
View answerI take note of the recommendations made in the submission which has been shared with those in my Department working on the Ukraine response team. I would like to take this opportunity to pay warm tribute to the efforts of many across civil society who are working hard to support refugees arriving to the State.
Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine on 24 February, and the invoking of the temporary protection Directive by the European Union shortly afterwards, my Department has worked intensively as part of the cross-governmental response, with a focus on the immediate, short-term accommodation needs of those who have fled Ukraine. The scale of this operational challenge is unprecedented: to date, more than 42,000 people have arrived in Ireland and in excess of 31,000 of those have been referred to my Department seeking accommodation from the State.
Overseeing provision of accommodation on this scale during this timeframe for all those who require it remains immensely challenging. My Department continues to invest heavily in collaborating with all relevant Departments, Agencies, NGOs and Local Authorities, as well as the private sector to ensure that refugees are provided with temporary accommodation on arrival, and to orient individuals towards the various supports available to them.
Further information on the Government's response to the crisis, to which my Department is contributing may be found here: www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/bc537-irelands-response-to-the-situation-in-ukraine/.
1410. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the planned locations for the 500 modular homes for Ukrainian Refugees (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41708/22]
View answerOn 26 June, the Government approved the proposal that 500 modular units would be built as part of its plans to address the need to expand the potential accommodation capacity for Ukrainian arrivals. Once in place, the modular houses will accommodate up to 2,000 people at urban locations across the country.
My Department is finalising the site selection, with support from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, drawing on publicly owned sites owned by Government Departments and Agencies or by Local Authorities. DCEDIY will be the client Department for the initiative and the OPW will be managing the roll-out of the pilot programme, involving site preparation as well as the acquisition and installation of modular units.
1411. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he has engaged with his Department or the Department of Education to explore any potential solutions to the issues facing a community pre-school (details supplied) in Dublin. [41709/22]
View answer1412. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will engage with the stakeholders involved to explore solutions to ensure the retention of community pre-school services (details supplied) in Dublin.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41710/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1411 and 1412 together.
Dublin CCC has been working closely with the service concerned to identify alternative arrangements for the families affected by this closure. Unfortunately, given the pressures on the private rental market it is not be possible to secure alternative premises. Both the provider and the CCC are continuing to work with parents to secure alternative placements for families.
My Department has engaged with the Department of Education to help identify ELC/SAC services on school grounds which could be affected by such changes of use.
Given that ELC and SAC services are provided by private enterprises, the Department is not involved in decisions around the day to day running of such services and any decision to close is ultimately a matter for the service provider and, in this case, the building owner.
The Department of Education Guidelines on the use of School Buildings Outside of School Hours guide schools in the use of school facilities for other services, including early learning and childcare services. The Guidelines are clear that the issue is a matter for the property owners taking into consideration the needs of the school, staff and students. The Guidelines also require that any licence should include a term that the use of facility/portion of site covered by the licence must cease should it be required for school provision.
The Department of Education is in the process of updating these Guidelines and has engaged with the Department of Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth on this work.
My Department will continue to engage with CCCs and relevant stakeholders, within existing structures, to help them provide support to services and to ensure that parents have access to childcare provision.
1413. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his interpretation of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of People with Disabilities General Comment No. 1 on the UNCRPD as it relates to the functional test of capacity. [41743/22]
View answerUNCRPD was ratified by Ireland in March 2018. The purpose of the Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity. It applies established human rights principles from the UN Declaration on Human Rights to the situation of people with disabilities.
The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, and the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Bill 2022 will bring Ireland further in compliance with UNCRPD, by abolishing the archaic wardship system currently in use in the State, replacing it with a flexible functional approach, whereby capacity is assessed on an issue and time-specific basis.
It will abolish the wards of court system for adults by repealing the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act 1871. Adults currently in wardship will transition to the new decision-making support arrangements on a phased basis over 3 years from the date of commencement.
Ireland, similar to many other states, reserves the right to operate a functional capacity assessment model as part of Assisted Decision-Making legislation. This does not mean that Ireland will not be compliant with UNCRPD. General comment 1 of UN Committee on CRPD clarifies States parties' general obligations under Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to ensure disabled persons' equal recognition before the law. The abolition of wardship and the introduction of a rights based flexible functional approach will achieve this.
1414. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the way that he will ensure that the State is in compliance with United Nations committee on the Rights of People with Disabilities General Comment No. 1 on the UNCRPD, as the definitive interpretation of UNCRPD article 12, concerning the removal of functional test of capacity from all legislation and public policy. [41744/22]
View answerUNCRPD was ratified by Ireland in March 2018. The purpose of the Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity. It applies established human rights principles from the UN Declaration on Human Rights to the situation of people with disabilities.
The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, and the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Bill 2022 will bring Ireland further in compliance with UNCRPD, by abolishing the archaic wardship system currently in use in the State, replacing it with a flexible functional approach, whereby capacity is assessed on an issue and time-specific basis.
It will abolish the wards of court system for adults by repealing the Lunacy Regulation (Ireland) Act 1871. Adults currently in wardship will transition to the new decision-making support arrangements on a phased basis over 3 years from the date of commencement.
Ireland, similar to many other states, reserves the right to operate a functional capacity assessment model as part of Assisted Decision-Making legislation. This does not mean that Ireland will not be compliant with UNCRPD. General comment 1 of UN Committee on CRPD clarifies States parties' general obligations under Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to ensure disabled persons' equal recognition before the law. The abolition of wardship and the introduction of a rights based flexible functional approach will achieve this.
1415. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the steps that are being taken to ensure that Ukrainian refugees are kept in the same location in which they arrive given the ties that they make regarding childcare, employment and accommodation [41773/22]
View answerSince the outbreak of the war in Ukraine on 24 February, and the invoking of the temporary protection Directive by the European Union shortly afterwards, my Department has worked intensively as part of the cross-governmental response to the Ukraine crisis.
The operational challenges brought about by responding to the conflict are significant. Our country has never experienced an influx of displaced persons like the one that we have seen over the past months. My Department’s role is focused on the immediate, short-term accommodation needs of those who have fled here.
To date, more than 42,000 people have arrived in Ireland and just in excess of 31,000 of those have been referred to us seeking accommodation from the State. The number of people seeking international protection has also increased adding to accommodation capacity issues.
The accommodation provided to people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine by my Department is temporary in its nature, and as contracts come to an end, it is necessary to move people to new accommodation. Given the number of people that are being accommodated it is not possible to develop tailored solutions for individuals or families. I understand that people may wish to be accommodated in specific locations for a variety of reasons, but my Department cannot facilitate these requests at this time given the number of people arriving wishing to be accommodated.
Beneficiaries of temporary protection are entitled to make their own private arrangements if they wish, and can avail of supports to do so.
More information on supports available to Ukrainian people while they are in Ireland and information on how people and community groups can help can be found at the Government website: www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/bc537-irelands-response-to-the-situation-in-ukraine/.
