Parliamentary questions

Sugar Industry

Declan Breathnach

260. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the funding streams and grant aid supports there are for producing industrial chemicals from sugar beet; if any projects have accessed the EU funding opportunity under the bio-based industries joint undertaking to date; his plans to provide funding supports to help re-establish the sugar beet industry from 1 October 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12448/17]

Health Insurance Cover

Declan Breathnach

203. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health if he will intervene in a matter (details supplied); if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the facility has to turn persons away that are members of a company due to this refusal and that these persons have nowhere else to turn to in the region; if his attention has been further drawn to the fact that the facility is struggling to maintain its staffing levels due to this refusal; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that this refusal is contrary to EU law; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12274/17]

Insurance Coverage

Declan Breathnach

284. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to regulate for insurance for hobby drone users; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the two insurance companies here underwritten by UK companies that offer insurance cover for drones will not cover drones used by amateurs and hobbyists; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that there have been a number of accidents and damage to property caused by drones operated by amateurs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12317/17]

Hospital Facilities

Declan Breathnach

535. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health if the five new operating theatres and emergency departments will be fully equipped and commissioned to function as per planning permission when the phase two building at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is complete in November 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11519/17]

GLAS Payments

Declan Breathnach

678. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 236 of 8 February 2017 regarding a person (details supplied), if the portion of the land that needed to be reassessed for the balance of the 2015 payment under the GLAS scheme has been examined; if the examination has not yet taken place, the reason; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a number of farmers in the Carlingford and Cooley Peninsula area are still waiting for assessment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9873/17]

Grant Aid

Declan Breathnach

704. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there is a new grant scheme available for small-scale forestry (details supplied); if so, when this scheme commences; the timeframe for persons to get access to such a scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10261/17]

Services for People with Disabilities

Declan Breathnach

299. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health if he will provide urgent funding to a facility (details supplied) in County Louth for the care of persons with intellectual disabilities and mental health issues to allow it meet modern standards for delivery of care to persons in both institutional and community settings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9189/17]

Services for People with Disabilities

Declan Breathnach

300. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to problems uncovered with the services provided at a facility (details supplied) in County Louth for persons with intellectual disabilities and mental health issues; if his attention has been further drawn to the imminent closure by HIQA of four of the units at this facility and the distress that this will cause to persons and families that use same; if his attention has been drawn to the urgent need for resources to keep this much needed service open; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9190/17]

Departmental Expenditure

Declan Breathnach

318. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health the overall spend by his Department on health and well-being initiatives each year since 2012, in tabular form; the individual initiatives in health and well-being supported by the Government for the same period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9269/17]

Road Safety Authority Campaigns

Declan Breathnach

232. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if consideration will be given to a road safety campaign focusing on visibility and awareness for vulnerable road users such as cyclists, schoolchildren and joggers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8908/17]

Labour Activation Measures

Declan Breathnach

301. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Social Protection his views on recent reports in the media that his Department is considering ending the labour activation schemes, including Tús and Gateway; if his attention has been drawn to the detrimental effect this would have on these fundamental schemes which provide an excellent gateway into the workforce for unemployed persons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8581/17]

Capital Assistance Scheme

Declan Breathnach

153. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if €86 million was allocated to capital assistance scheme projects in 2016; the amount of this allocation that was actually spent on CAS projects; if all CAS applications received were considered for funding; the areas to which the balance of the allocation for CAS projects not used for CAS projects went; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7464/17]

Capital Assistance Scheme

Declan Breathnach

155. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the status of an application for capital assistance scheme funding (details supplied); if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a company (details supplied) submitted a proposal to his Department through Louth County Council in this case in 2016 and has not yet received a reply; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7471/17]

Mobile Telephony Use

Declan Breathnach

263. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the reason Irish mobile telephone customers are paying more than other European customers for making calls when abroad; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that according to ComReg the average surcharge applied by Irish operators is 98c per minute compared with just 69c across the EU; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7590/17]

Mobile Telephony Use

Declan Breathnach

264. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the outcome for roaming charges between Ireland and the UK post-Brexit (details supplied); if his attention has been drawn to the fact that this is a serious issue for persons living in the Border regions in which mobile operator service providers automatically switch over and back; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7593/17]

Legislative Measures

Declan Breathnach

287. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if her attention has been drawn to the severe restrictions imposed on community and voluntary groups and community work placement initiatives by the need to comply with the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005; if she will make it mandatory that all persons employed under these schemes will receive proper training, proper clothing and work materials under the Act to allow them carry out the full range of tasks associated with the job; if her attention has been further drawn to the fact that participants in these schemes are prevented from reaching their full potential and training experience due to restrictions being put in place under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7723/17]

EU Issues

Declan Breathnach

103. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the status of the EU ESTA proposal; if she has discussed it with her UK counterpart; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6917/17]

Illicit Trade in Fuel and Tobacco Products

Declan Breathnach

108. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Finance the reason the number of seizures of illicit cigarettes and tobacco has dropped 16% from 7,154 seizures in 2015 to 6,024 in 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6147/17]

Occupational Therapy

Declan Breathnach

208. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Health the reason the waiting lists in County Louth for occupational therapy are increasing; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are children on the waiting list for more than 20 months because of staff shortages; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6206/17]

GLAS Payments

Declan Breathnach

236. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason there are continuing delays in payments under the GLAS scheme; when a person (details supplied) will receive payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6142/17]