Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 May 2023
472. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Social Protection the annual monetary amount spent on translation services for victims of domestic violence from 2016 to 2023 inclusive; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26105/23]
View answerThe Department of Social Protection arranges for the provision of translation and interpretation services at the request of customers and in cases where it is apparent that the customer’s interaction with the Department can be improved by having access to such services. The commitment to provide translation and interpretations services is published on my Department’s website and in its Customer Charter.
When accessing translation services, sensitive information pertaining to customers' personal circumstances is not submitted or retained by my Department, therefore the annual monetary amount spent on translation services specifically for customers experiencing domestic violence is not available.
I can confirm that in 2022, my Department provided almost 5,000 document translations and over 9,400 multi-language interpretations services to our customers. The current budget allocation for 2023 for the provision of these services in my Department is €2 million, though this is likely to be surpassed given continued demand for Ukrainian translation and interpretation services.
