Written Answers Nos. 139-159
140. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth when a payment for accommodation will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56778/22]
View answerI can advise the Deputy that my officials are contacting the person named in the Details Supplied to ensure that payment for accommodation of Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection in their guesthouse is processed as quickly as possible.
141. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will provide details of the number of Ukrainian refugees that have come to Ireland by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56786/22]
View answer142. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of Ukrainian refugees in the Killarney area; the breakdown of the number for other towns in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56787/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 141 and 142 together.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the activation of the Temporary Protection Directive immediately afterwards, approximately 60,000 people from Ukraine have sought refuge here in Ireland, with about three quarters of those being provided with accommodation from the State. The scale of the response to this crisis has been unprecedented and Irish people have displayed a commendable level of generosity in their support, in their welcome for beneficiaries into their communities, and in pledges of accommodation.
Below is a table extracted from our records showing Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection accommodated by my Department in Kerry, within our remit to provide suitable temporary accommodation. Although not all providers have completed the "town" field, where a town is stated this has been entered.
The table below relates only to those accommodated by my Department and does not include all Ukrainian refugees. For further information I can refer the Deputy to the website of the Central Statistics Office where further information and regional breakdowns are available.
www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/fp/p-aui/arrivalsfromukraineinirelandseries7/
|
Town |
Individuals Booked |
|
Kerry |
5,531 |
|
BALLINSKELLIGS |
25 |
|
BALLYBUNION |
380 |
|
BEAUFORT |
22 |
|
CAHERCIVEEN |
42 |
|
CAHERDANIEL |
182 |
|
CAHIRCIVEEN |
28 |
|
CAHIRSIVEEN |
7 |
|
CASTLEMAINE |
30 |
|
CROMANE |
14 |
|
DINGLE |
205 |
|
DUNGEAGAN |
17 |
|
GLENBEIGH |
74 |
|
KENMARE |
178 |
|
KERRY |
63 |
|
KILGARVAN |
16 |
|
KILLARGLIN |
32 |
|
KILLARNEY |
1,644 |
|
KILLARNEY TOWN |
71 |
|
KILLORGLIN |
57 |
|
KILORGIN |
11 |
|
PORTMAGEE |
122 |
|
TARBERT |
18 |
|
TRALEE |
771 |
|
VALENTIA ISLAND |
39 |
|
WATERVILLE |
12 |
|
Town not stated |
1,471 |
|
Grand Total |
5,531 |
143. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of asylum seekers currently in Killarney; the status of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56788/22]
View answerDeputy, as of 6 November, there are 589 persons availing of International Protection Accommodation Service provided accommodation in Killarney. Of this total, 81 have permission to remain status and 508 are international protection applicants who are currently awaiting their applications to be assessed by the International Protection Office.
The pressure on the State to accommodate almost 63,000 people currently - 47,000 of whom are Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection - has led to significant shortages particularly for the international protection cohort.
Under the Recast Reception Conditions Directive (SI 230 of 2018), the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) is legally required to provide accommodation to international protection applicants who seek it while their claim for international protection is being determined by the Department of Justice.
The accommodation of international protection applicants (IPA) is a demand-led process with applicants arriving in the country and seeking accommodation spontaneously.
All of the limited accommodation capacity within the IPAS system is currently being used. As the Department has not been able to meet the capacity needs from the first advertisement of the 2022 tender process, officials continue to engage in emergency accommodation procurement to address the shortfall in capacity.
Emergency centres have been opened in all parts of the country. There have been circa 40 accommodation locations utilised since January 2022 across 13 counties. DCEDIY is working urgently across Government and with agencies, NGOs and local authorities to bring new accommodation on board to meet State’s humanitarian responsibilities. In addition, IPPS is sourcing vacant office buildings and state owned properties in order to increase available accommodation. A number of these projects are currently being progressed. These options are necessary in order to provide shelter to international protection arrivals, to meet basic needs and to prevent homelessness.
A republished tender for IPAS to provide more own-door accommodation closed on 8 November. The International Protection Procurement Service (IPPS) is beginning site visits to potential locations to evaluate these options shortly. It is expected that successful tenderers from this republication will be added to accommodation provider panels in Quarter 1 of 2023.
144. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will provide a breakdown of the number of asylum seekers in the country by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56789/22]
View answerAs of 6 November 2022, there are 16,908 people accommodated in the IPAS accommodation system as a whole. A breakdown of this number by county is set out below.
|
County |
Residents |
|
Cavan |
118 |
|
Clare |
521 |
|
Cork |
1,156 |
|
Donegal |
596 |
|
Dublin |
6,498 |
|
Galway |
613 |
|
Kerry |
889 |
|
Kildare |
486 |
|
Laois |
453 |
|
Leitrim |
97 |
|
Limerick |
257 |
|
Longford |
69 |
|
Louth |
455 |
|
Mayo |
511 |
|
Meath |
862 |
|
Monaghan |
420 |
|
Offaly |
161 |
|
Sligo |
179 |
|
Tipperary |
395 |
|
Waterford |
424 |
|
Westmeath |
865 |
|
Wexford |
183 |
|
Wicklow |
700 |
|
Total |
16,908 |
It is important to note that at this point in 2021 there were approximately 7,250 persons in IPAS accommodation.
The pressure on the State to accommodate almost 63,000 people currently - 47,000 of whom are Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection - has led to significant shortages particularly for the international protection cohort.
Under the Recast Reception Conditions Directive (SI 230 of 2018), the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) is legally required to provide accommodation to international protection applicants who seek it while their claim for international protection is being determined by the Department of Justice.
The accommodation of international protection applicants (IPA) is a demand-led process with applicants arriving in the country and seeking accommodation spontaneously.
All of the limited accommodation capacity within the IPAS system is currently being used. As the Department has not been able to meet the capacity needs from the first advertisement of the 2022 tender process, officials continue to engage in emergency accommodation procurement to address the shortfall in capacity.
Emergency centres have been opened in all parts of the country. There have been circa 40 accommodation locations utilised since January 2022 across 13 counties. DCEDIY is working urgently across Government and with agencies, NGOs and local authorities to bring new accommodation on board to meet State’s humanitarian responsibilities. In addition, IPPS is sourcing vacant office buildings and state owned properties in order to increase available accommodation. A number of these projects are currently being progressed. These options are necessary in order to provide shelter to international protection arrivals, to meet basic needs and to prevent homelessness.
A republished tender for IPAS to provide more own-door accommodation closed on 8 November. The International Protection Procurement Service (IPPS) is beginning site visits to potential locations to evaluate these options shortly. It is expected that successful tenderers from this republication will be added to accommodation provider panels in Quarter 1 of 2023.
145. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will meet with an organisation (details supplied) to discuss its concerns regarding disadvantage funding and supports; and if not, the reason. [56856/22]
View answerMy Department is in the scoping phase of developing a new strand of the funding model for early learning and childcare - Tackling Disadvantage - in line with a commitment in First 5 and informed for recommendations in Partnership for the Public Good.
I have tasked officials within my Department to consider a response to the needs associated with socio-economic disadvantage and present a policy response and recommendations for my consideration informed by a number of key stakeholders including the organisation noted.
Officials from my Department will present the work that has been carried out to date and the planned actions to follow, to the Early Learning and Childcare Stakeholder Forum in the coming weeks, of which ACP Ireland is a member. All parties to this Forum (over 20 different representative organisations) will have an opportunity to input.
In addition, I understand offers of a bilateral meeting between ACP Ireland and the officials working on the Tackling Disadvantage Plan in my Department have been made, but have not yet been taken up.
146. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 123 of 12 October 2022, when the report of the Collaborative Forum of Former Residents of Mother and Baby Homes and Related Institutions will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56930/22]
View answerI can advise the Deputy that the Collaborative Forum Report was published in full yesterday 15th November 2022.
Following the publication of the Final Report of the Commission of Investigation, and on foot of legal advices, my Department engaged with organisations named in the Collaborative Forum Report to ensure they had an opportunity to review relevant material and provide any observations which they deemed appropriate. Although this process has taken some time, it has ultimately facilitated publication of the Forum’s report in full and without any redactions.
The recommendations made by the Forum have directly influenced the important ongoing work of my Department and others in seeking to address the priority concerns of survivors and their families. The achievement of Forum participants in representing the voices of survivors has had real value and meaningful impact in the context of the State’s response. It is my commitment, and that of the Government, to continue to support engagement with survivors, including through a new Advocate model.
147. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of times that he has visited County Clare since the Government took office; and the locations that he visited in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57033/22]
View answerSince my appointment, I have visited County Clare on one occasion on the 12th and 13th April this year.
|
Date |
Organisation |
|
12/04/2022 |
Clare Women’s Network, Ennis |
|
12/04/2022 |
Obair, Newmarket on Fergus – Tradaree Hub |
|
13/04/2022 |
North West Clare Family Resource Centre, Deerpark |
|
13/04/2022 |
Meeting with Ukranian Refugees, Lisdoonvarna |
|
13/04/2022 |
Inagh Ark Creche, Inagh |
148. Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the total financial amount on both a daily and yearly basis, of EU fines being paid by his Department in 2022; if he will provide the corresponding figures for 2020 and 2021, including the specifics of each case in his Department. [56781/22]
View answerMy Department has not incurred any EU fines in 2022, 2021 or 2020.
149. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will address the case of a student (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56770/22]
View answerUnder my Department's Free Fees Initiative, the State pays tuition fees, exclusive of the student contribution, on behalf of eligible students attending approved full-time undergraduate courses. Details of the eligibility criteria are available at the following location:
https://hea.ie/funding-governance-performance/funding/student-finance/course-fees/
It is the institution attended that will determine, within the terms of the scheme, a student's eligibility for free fees funding and it is not possible for my Department to advise on the determinations made by individual institutions.
Where a student requires guidance on the determination of eligibility for free fees it is necessary that a student engage with the fees office of the institution attended. Direct engagement will offer students an opportunity to understand the determination of the institution and provide a basis for the student to provide additional information to the institution as appropriate to assist the institution in considering a student's eligibility.
Where students do not qualify for free fees funding they must pay the appropriate fee - either EU or Non-EU - to the institutions attended. These institutions are autonomous bodies and the level of fee payable by students who do not meet the requirements of the free fees scheme is a matter for the relevant institution to determine.
150. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the strategies that his Department is implementing to tackle the issue of the prevalence of sexual violence against women and girls; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56864/22]
View answer151. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if his attention has been drawn to the UK government awareness campaign on the issue of the prevalence of sexual violence against women and girls, entitled “ENOUGH”; if he will consider developing and funding a similar campaign in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56865/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 150 and 151 together.
I note the Deputy’s reference to the UK Government’s awareness campaign on the issue of the prevalence of sexual violence against women and girls, entitled “ENOUGH”. The Deputy will be aware that my colleague, Deputy Helen McEntee TD and Minister for Justice, published the Third National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual & Gender-Based Violence 2022-2026 in June. The new Strategy includes a number public awareness raising and training actions which are being led by the Department of Justice with the support of other departments.
My Department is leading on a number of awareness raising campaigns which complement the work of the Department of Justice. For example, the recent #Unmute Consent 2023 campaign aims to mobilise the student community to make a difference, by speaking out, by enhancing their own knowledge about consent, and ultimately, by changing behaviours. The campaign is led by the IUA in partnership with THEA and USI. The campaign targets students across all HEIs, with a particular emphasis on first year undergraduates and high-risk groups.
152. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of times that he has visited County Clare since the Government took office; and the locations that he visited in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57029/22]
View answerI visited County Clare on May 30th 2022. I visited Saint Anne's Community College, Coláiste Muire, College Road, College of FET Ennis Campus,, Scoil Mhuire and the College of FET Kilrush Campus. I intend to visit again later this year.
153. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Justice if her attention has been drawn to the UK government awareness campaign on the issue of the prevalence of sexual violence against women and girls, entitled “ENOUGH”; if she will consider developing and funding a similar campaign in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56863/22]
View answerI am aware of the UK Home Office's 'Enough' Campaign and congratulate them for their work on it. Such campaigns are vital in letting society know we all have a role in tackling Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence.
My own Department has made significant commitments to tackling DSGBV through major awareness raising campaigns, since 2016, on both a national and local level.
Since 2016, a series of high impact media campaigns, developed to reach a national audience through many mediums including TV, cinema, radio, outdoor, social and digital advertising, have been launched.
The ultimate goal of all these campaigns is to reduce and prevent the incidence of domestic, sexual violence and gender-based violence which affects the lives of too many people, both directly and indirectly, and thereby make Ireland a much safer society.
Prior to 2016, the Department of Justice funded up to 60 organisations annually to promote awareness of domestic and sexual violence and services. This fragmented approach resulted in diverse messaging and duplication of materials which were mainly focused on raising awareness of victim services.
The Department had a call from NGOs in the DSGBV sector to change societal attitudes in 2015. This call fed into the development of Second National Strategy on DSGBBV which included a key action to launch a six year, two part, national awareness campaign with the following aims:
- to increase the awareness of domestic and sexual violence;
- to bring about a change in long established societal behaviours and attitudes and
- to activate bystanders with the aim of decreasing and preventing this violence.
This work has continued since then through the development of a number of campaigns in the DSGBV sphere, which have been developed in partnership with frontline service providers.
Key actions contained in Zero Tolerance, our Third National Strategy on domestic, sexual and gender based violence which I launched earlier this year, will build on and expand the reach of a number of the successful campaigns developed under the Second National Strategy.
Information on these campaigns is contained below for the information of the Deputy, including in respect of where they are aligned in design and purpose to the UK Home Office's 'Enough' campaign.
‘What Would You do?’ (If you witnessed domestic violence)
‘What Would You do?’ (If you witnessed domestic violence) was launched by the then Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality in November 2016 and ran until the end of 2018. The campaign recognised that both women and men are victims of domestic violence.
The ‘What would you do?’ campaign was a high impact media campaign to reach a national audience featuring TV, cinema, radio, outdoor, social and digital advertising. The call to action directed people to search the campaign website whatwouldyoudo.ie for information and advice on how to help and support victims of domestic violence.
No Excuses
in 2019 the Department launched a major national awareness campaign on sexual harassment and sexual violence. ‘No Excuses’ was a high impact media campaign designed to reach a national audience.
The campaign ads feature both male and female perpetrators and victims in various situations where sexual harassment and sexual violence can occur.
The Deputy may be pleased to learn that there are many similarities between the UK 'Enough' campaign and our own 'No Excuses' campaign. Both campaign websites are laid out in a similar manner and have a focus on informing bystanders about safe ways they can intervene if they witness incidences of DSGBV.
Still Here
The Still Here campaign was launched in April 2020 to reassure victims of domestic violence that frontline services and the full force of the Justice System were ‘still here’ for them during the pandemic, and that victims were being prioritised. The campaign highlighted a tragic reality that for many people in Ireland during the pandemic, their home is not a safe place, especially during lockdown periods that were necessary to curtail the spread of Covid-19.
We intend to run the Still Here campaign again over the Christmas period to let victims know support is still available to them during the festive period, a time when we know incidences of such violence increase.
Intimate Image Abuse
In September 2021, my Department launched a campaign to raise awareness of image-based sexual abuse and to better inform people of Coco's Law, which was introduced to combat it.
At its core, the campaign aims to educate wider Irish society that sharing intimate images without consent is socially unacceptable, has harmful consequences and there is legislation in place with appropriate punitive measures that will challenge these actions, regardless of a persons motivation for doing so.
This campaign is currently running on TV and across various mediums and will be further developed in 2023 to raise awareness of the fact that threatening to share intimate images without consent is also a criminal offence.
154. Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice the total financial amount on both a daily and yearly basis, of EU fines being paid by her Department in 2022; if she will provide the corresponding figures for 2020 and 2021, including the specifics of each case in her Department. [56781/22]
View answerI can inform the Deputy that no EU fines have been imposed on my Department in either 2022 or 2021.
In 2020, one fine was imposed on my Department by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in relation to a delay in transposing Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing. On July 16, 2020, the ECJ imposed a €2 million lump-sum fine for this delay. The Court accepted that the Directive has now been fully transposed by Ireland.
155. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Justice the number of "permission to remain in the State as the spouse of an Irish national" applications currently queued for processing at this time; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56758/22]
View answer156. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Justice the average length of time that a "permission to remain in the State as the spouse of an Irish national" is queued to be processed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56759/22]
View answer157. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Justice the average turnaround for a "permission to remain in the State as the spouse of an Irish national" application; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56760/22]
View answer158. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Justice the number of "permission to remain in the State as the spouse of an Irish national" applications currently being actively processed by the residence division of her Department; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56761/22]
View answer159. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Justice the number of staff in the residence division of her Department; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56762/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 155, 156, 157, 158 and 159 together.
The Spouse of Irish National (SOIN) Unit of the Immigration Service Delivery in my Department deals with complex cases involving detailed assessment of the individual circumstances and compliance with relevant scheme criteria and various legal requirements. While every effort is made to process such written applications efficiently, processing times will vary due to a number of factors, such as the number of applications on hands, individual circumstances, the complexity of applications, whether further information is required, and the resources available.
The Unit endeavours to process applications as quickly as possible and I am advised that some cases may be processed within months of receipt. However more complex applications take in excess of 12 months to complete.
To be fair to all applicants, applications are dealt with in chronological order by date received and there are currently 289 applications at various stages of processing, details provided in the table below;
|
Unit |
0 to 6 months |
6 to 12 months |
12 to 18 months |
24 months + |
Total |
|
Spouse of an Irish National |
180 |
81 |
27 |
1 |
289 |
Currently the Spouse of an Irish National (SOIN) Unit has 4 staff, a Higher Executive Officer, an Executive Officer and 2 Clerical Officers.
