Written Answers Nos. 530-545
531. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if a payment to a service provider (details supplied) will be expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15332/23]
View answerMy Department has engaged over 750 properties to provide accommodation for Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection. In line with the Department’s commitment to substantially clear the backlog at the end of 2022, I temporarily re-assigned staff from other parts of the Department in December, doubling the size of the payments unit. The enlarged team approved more than 100 million euros worth of payments. This increased commitment has been repeated and supplemented by outsourcing and in March to date we have paid more than €120 million for Ukraine accommodation and related charges.
My Department is prioritising maintaining a practice of more timely payments, including providing more resources to address any issues. Any delays in making payments are deeply regretted and my Department is according this issue very high priority.
I am advised by my officials that the Department has been in contact with the provider referred to by the Deputy regarding the outstanding balance. On receipt of valid invoices, these invoices will be processed as priority, with payment expected to issue shortly thereafter pending final checks.
532. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the role his Department has undertaken in consulting on, or drafting, the proposed Sale of Alcohol Bill. [15372/23]
View answer533. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth whether his Department has drafted analysis of the proposed Sale of Alcohol Bill; and if he will publish same. [15374/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 532 and 533 together.
Officials from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth have been in contact with the Department of Justice regarding section 19 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act. The issue is being considered as part of the ongoing review of the Equality Acts. Officials have been working on the report of the submissions to the public consultation on the review of the Equality Acts, and it is due to be published in the coming weeks. Further consultation is also being considered on issues that were raised in the consultation and it is hoped to bring some legislative proposals forward later this year.
534. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 443 of 14 February 2023, and his deferred response of 10 March 2023 by way of email, if the contracted capacity of each individual centre will be provided as requested; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15389/23]
View answerThank you for your correspondence. Further to your query regarding the contracted capacity of each individual centre, this information has been collated and will be forwarded to you through email.
535. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth when grant approval will issue (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15422/23]
View answerMy Department successfully secured €70 million under the revised National Development Plan (NDP) allocation for the Building Blocks Capital Programme, designed to meet current and long-term Early Learning and Childcare infrastructure needs.
The Building Blocks Capital Programme includes three Pillars:
- An Improvement Grant to improve energy efficiency standards, while also supporting the continuous improvement of the physical environment of services.
- A Capacity Grant to address capacity gaps, to fund an expansion in existing services and investing in the development of new services where most needed
- An Innovation Grant to pilot a range of innovative initiatives such as outdoor early learning and childcare services.
My Department has allocated €9m for The Building Blocks - Improvement Grant for Early Learning and School-age childcare facilities. Grants will range from €35,000 to €75,000 across two separate strands: Green Energy and Retrofit. The Green Energy Strand will support the Climate Action Agenda and the Programme for Government, which aim to transition to a carbon neutral economy by the end of 2050 and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030.
The deadline for submission of applications was 16 December 2022. There was a very significant number of applications received and it is my intention that applicants will be advised of the outcome of the appraisal process shortly.
536. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on the practice in place to ensure that homeless international protection applicants have access to the daily expenses allowance and other material resources; his further views on the practice in place to ensure that international protection applicants resident at Citywest transit hub are paid the daily expense allowance; if these practices were introduced recently; if so, his views on the practices in place prior to these systems’ introduction; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15423/23]
View answerAs at 19 March 2023, there are 20,190 people accommodated in the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) system as a whole, compared with 10,000 at this time last year.
The response to the ongoing migration crisis has entered an extremely difficult phase; with no apparent accommodation for International protection applicants (IPAs) at scale available into the short term to medium term.
Since the paused entry into Citywest on 24th January, 379 people remain un-accommodated by IPAS with 322 people who were originally un-accommodated have subsequently been accommodated.
IPAS does not make a decision to not provide accommodation to an IPA, it is in the absence of an alternative, that IPAS is not in a position to provide accommodation.
The Government is aware of it’s obligations to provide material reception conditions to international protection applicants under the EU Recast Reception Conditions Directive (SI 230 of 2018).
Material reception conditions include accommodation, 3 meals per day, utilities, a full medical card and the Daily Expenses Allowance (DEA) which is €38.80 per adult and €29.80 per child.
The DEA is paid to persons who are accommodated in designated International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) accommodation and those in Citywest transit hub are currently paid that allowance.
My Department has recently liaised with the Department of Social Protection (DSP) to ensure arrangements for the payment of the DEA, to IPAs who are currently without IPAS accommodation.
DSP are finalising the necessary arrangements to facilitate this request and it is envisaged that the payments will begin this week. DSP have confirmed that payments will be backdated for the period from when individuals arrived in Ireland to date.
If a person is not in IPAS accommodation but indicates they have a need for financial support when they attend at an Intreo Centre currently, they can apply for an additional needs payment under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme.
Those who are not accommodated are also offered food vouchers to the value of €50 and given contact details for the Capuchin Day Centre.
Since January 2022 more than 100 emergency accommodation locations have been opened in 17 counties nationwide, over 2,300 bed spaces have been brought online since 1st of December 2022.
Department officials continue to work tirelessly to source additional emergency accommodation to provide shelter and prevent homelessness.
537. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason institutions (details supplied) were omitted from the mother-and-baby institutions payment scheme, despite the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth advising that they should be included; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15426/23]
View answerThe Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme will provide financial payments and a form of enhanced medical card to people who spent time as mothers or children in Mother and Baby or County Home Institutions. The institutions covered by the Scheme are those identified by the Commission of Investigation as having had a main function of providing sheltered and supervised ante and post-natal facilities to single mothers and their children. The institutions listed in the question are not included in the Scheme as they do not meet this criterion.
It is important to note that the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill allows for the addition of any institution to the Scheme which was established for the purpose of providing maternity and infant care services and the placement of children for the purposes of adoption or care arrangements, and in respect of which a public body had a regulatory or inspection function. If an institution has been found to meet these criteria it may be added in the future.
The decision not to include other institutions or care settings in the Scheme is not intended to disregard or diminish any person’s experience and the Government recognises that there are people who suffered stigma, trauma and abuse in other institutions, and outside of institutions, who will not qualify for this Scheme.
538. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will investigate the reason people with disabilities who use mobility scooters are being refused travel on Bus Éireann buses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15428/23]
View answerThis is a matter for my cabinet colleague, the Minister for Transport.
539. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason that a child's hours in a full-time creche needs to be recorded; if the subsidy will be affected if parents collect their children earlier from the creche; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15459/23]
View answerThe National Childcare Scheme is designed to be flexible and acknowledge that childcare needs differ widely across different families. NCS subsidies are awarded as an hourly rate, along with a maximum number of weekly hours that the subsidy will be paid for. This means that if an applicant receives an award for 20 hours, the subsidy could be used for four half-day sessions (8am – 1pm). Alternatively, the same award could be used for two full-day sessions (8am-6pm)
The actual subsidy payment is based on the hours agreed between the parent and provider, and claimed by the provider on the NCS system.
Given the large amount of public money that is invested by the Exchequer in funding the Scheme, there must be an appropriate level of oversight and accountability. Further, in relation to attendance records, this requirement is not just a means of safeguarding public money; early learning and childcare providers must agree to maintain daily records for each child as per Tusla requirements. The accurate recording of a child’s attendance is a core obligation under the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016.
The subsidy is not affected if parents collect their children earlier from crèche occasionally. To clarify, a certain level of under-attendance is permitted under the NCS. The Scheme recognises that there are many reasons why a child's attendance may occasionally be less than their agreed hours due to, for example, illness or appointments - or a parent being able to collect their child earlier than usual.
The Scheme incorporates rules in relation to circumstances where a child is continuously absent from a service, or not fully using the agreed place over a prolonged period. These rules are intended to reflect the realities of family life in a child-centred, fair and proportionate manner.
Where a child is not fully using the agreed place, the NCS allows for an eight-week cycle of under-attendance. This is broken after a child resumes their full number of subsidised hours in one week. As long as the under-attendance is broken by one full week of attendance, the subsidy will remain unchanged.
540. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will engage with the survivors and their relatives of a former mother-and-baby home (details supplied) to pursue an appropriate intervention as allowed for under the Institutional Burials Act 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15493/23]
View answerI am very conscious of the hurt that continues to be felt by survivors and family members of the people who died while resident in Mother and Baby institutions. One of the most tragic aspects of what happened in the former institution in Bessborough is the uncertainty regarding the burial place of many children who were resident there.
The investigation of burial arrangements in Mother and Baby institutions, including the institution in Bessborough, was an important part of the work of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and certain related matters. The Commission concluded that it is likely that some of the children who died at Bessborough are buried in the grounds but was unable to find any physical or documentary evidence of this. The Commission carried out cartographic and landscape assessments of possible unrecorded burial arrangements and also followed up with people on responses to its appeal seeking information about burials in Bessborough. As no evidence of locations was found, the Commission did not consider it feasible to excavate the full available site, which amounts to 60 acres.
The Institutional Burials Act 2022, which came into effect on 15 July last, provides the underlying legislative basis for an intervention, whereby the remains of those who died in residential institutions, and who were buried in a manifestly inappropriate manner, may be recovered and re-interred in a respectful and appropriate way. Under the legislation a relevant Minister may bring a proposal to Government for an intervention at a site if manifestly inappropriate burials are discovered there. The Government can, by Order, direct an intervention at the site where it is satisfied that the criteria set out in the legislation are met.
The legislation was developed in response to the abhorrent situation at the site of the former Mother and Baby institution in Tuam, Co. Galway. To avoid delays in responding to any similar situations that may arise in the future, the Act is not site specific and allows for excavations and identification programmes at other institutional sites should manifestly inappropriate burials be discovered.
In the case of Bessborough, the location of burials is, sadly, unknown. Therefore, in the current circumstances, a proposal to establish an Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention to oversee excavation, recovery and identification of inappropriately buried remains at that site cannot be brought forward under the Act.
Last November, the Minister for Housing Local Government and Heritage wrote to all City and County Councils requesting that Development Plan processes give adequate consideration to incorporating appropriate measures to ensure the protection of unrecorded burial sites associated with an institution.
I have also publicly emphasised my view that any proposed development at the Bessborough site should have due regard to the Commission’s reports and give adequate consideration to the views of all survivors and family members, including requests for appropriate access and respectful memorialisation in due course.
541. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth what funding opportunities are available for sports clubs to integrate children and young people resident in direct provision centres, including funding for transport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15494/23]
View answerMy Department provides some €73 million in current funding to support a range of youth services and opportunities which are delivered by youth organisations. This includes €46.3m for UBU Your Place Your Space which is a single youth funding scheme that targets disadvantaged young people with evidence informed interventions and services that will secure good outcomes. This includes marginalised young people such as immigrants (or migrants).
Earlier this year my Department launched the Communities Integration Fund (CIF) for 2023 where €500,000 will be made available to local community-based projects nationwide to support the integration of migrants. Within the CIF, grants of up to €5,000 will be allocated to successful organisations to support integration initiatives.
The press release launched by the Department on 15 February 2023 provided detailed information on where applicants can source guidance on accessing this fund through the Gov.ie website under the Community Integration section.
For each of the past six years a total of €500,000 has been made available to local community based organisations to carry out integration projects in their local area.
In addition, on 24 January 2023, Minister Joe O'Brien launched the €50 million Community Recognition Fund which is a major initiative to support communities that have welcomed people from Ukraine and other countries. The fund will provide assistance to sports clubs, community organisations, transport infrastructure and local groups and is the first of its kind designed to specifically support communities across the country that have welcomed and are hosting families and citizens from Ukraine and other countries. Among the projects that will be supported under the fund include:
- the refurbishment of local sports clubs and facilities;
- the upgrade of community facilities such as play areas, walkways, parks and community gardens;
- the purchase of equipment to benefit local clubs, festivals, music and arts organisations;
- the enhancement of school or parish facilities that are open to the wider community after hours or on weekends; transport infrastructure such as community vehicles and bus shelters.
An example of transport from an IPAS accommodation centre is Clonakilty Lodge, where there is a bus available every Friday to Cork City Centre leaving at 9.30 and returning at 3.30 from Cork City Centre. Residents must advise the Manager that they wish to use the bus and then the necessary arrangements are made.
542. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of legal cases that related to staff HR issues that are currently ongoing in each of the Irish universities; the number of these that have been ongoing for five years or longer; and the number of these cases that relate to issues with female university staff. [14637/23]
View answerAs the Deputy will appreciate, universities are autonomous institutions within the meaning of the Universities Act, 1997 and, as such, are responsible for HR matters, including the management of any legal cases arising.
As Minister, I rightly have no direct role in that regard, and, accordingly, my Department does not collect nor have access to the data requested by the Deputy.
543. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will confirm that funding under the mitigation against educational disadvantage fund will be made available this year for an important social project (details supplied); if he accepts that this project provides a valuable sports outlet and training for leaders and instructors to be self-sustaining over a period of years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14702/23]
View answerThe Reach Fund, originally named the Mitigating Against Educational Disadvantage Fund, was introduced in 2020 to support the most disadvantaged learners throughout the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund has continued to focus on the participation of disadvantaged learners in education, particularly those who are undertaking literacy and skills programmes and on building the digital infrastructure of community education providers to increase the capacity to deliver online learning. Each year the Education and Training Boards (ETBs) invite Community Education providers to apply for funding across several categories including learner assistance, green projects, support for refugee groups and digital supports. SOLAS has allocated over €17m to the ETBs under the REACH fund during 2020-2022. The 2023 Reach Funding guidelines have been issued to the ETBs and calls for applications for support have commenced. SOLAS will advise the ETBs of their 2023 REACH allocations shortly. The ETBs will award funding based on the scheme criteria and the level of demand for support in each ETB area.
544. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will provide details of all procurement competitions, if any, in which companies (details supplied) won contracts from his Department since 2016. [14725/23]
View answerMy Department has not awarded any contracts to the listed companies since its formation in August 2020.
545. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the total costs of accommodation and travel expenses associated with his recent foreign trip, or foreign trips by Ministers for State at his Department, for St Patrick's Day; and if a breakdown can be provided on travel costs, accommodation costs, country/state visited, number of departmental staff accompanying him, and the duration of the trip, in tabular form. [14743/23]
View answerDue to my dual Ministerial responsibilities, costs incurred for my St. Patrick's Day trip were shared by my two Departments.
The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science does not yet hold a complete record of information requested in a readily accessible format. Once available the information will be forwarded to the Deputy.
