Parliamentary questions

School Patronage

Bríd Smith

68. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans in respect of access to a new school (details supplied); and if he will meet a representative group of parents from the Dublin 8 and 12 areas. [16794/19]

Health Services Reports

Bríd Smith

130. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health if a person (details supplied) will be allowed to give evidence to the vaginal mesh review team in the interest of transparency and fairness in view of the fact that another person gave evidence. [16866/19]

Traveller Community

Bríd Smith

196. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to establish a Traveller specific employment strategy to support the training and employment objectives in the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021 in view of the 80% unemployment in the community. [16795/19]

Traveller Data

Bríd Smith

197. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the level of Traveller participation in activation programmes; and the specific targeted measures used to increase Traveller involvement. [16796/19]

Social Welfare Benefits Waiting Times

Bríd Smith

4. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason for the backlog and delays in issuing social welfare payments; and the further reason for the delay of six months in relation to appeals. [15690/19]

Employment Rights

Bríd Smith

6. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to deal with bogus self-employment practices; and when legislation will come before Dáil Éireann on the matter. [15656/19]

JobPath Programme

Bríd Smith

19. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when the contracts with JobPath providers will expire; when a decision on the future of the scheme will be made; if the recent Dáil Éireann motion on the issue will be taken into account; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15655/19]

Telephone Support Allowance

Bríd Smith

32. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the estimated cost of full restoration of the telephone allowance including to those who may qualify but do not live alone; and her plans to address the issue in the next period. [15657/19]

Illness Benefit Appeals

Bríd Smith

40. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will commission a review to ascertain the number of workers per year affected by the six-day waiting period while sick from work; and the estimated cost of restoring the waiting period to three days. [15658/19]

Pension Provisions

Bríd Smith

69. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will examine the possibility of widening the applicability of the home care credit in the calculation of pension entitlements for retired workers, specifically workers in semi-State organisations and bodies such as the Central Bank, who may have no entitlement to State contributory pensions and whose workplace pensions are disadvantaged by the refusal of the semi-State employers to give credit to workers for years out of the workforce raising families; if the legislation can be amended to cover such workers and ensure all women who raise families are given home care credits in calculating their final pensions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15848/19]

Pension Provisions

Bríd Smith

72. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if legislation governing the pension entitlements of workers (details supplied) can be amended to allow women who raised families and took leave from their workplaces for those periods to avail of home care credits similar to those recently amended under the contributory pension scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15854/19]

Literacy Programmes

Bríd Smith

75. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans for future funding of a society (details supplied); the amount of funding that will help develop and support Irish sign language and specifically the programmes run by the society such as deaf adult literacy services and the Irish sign language academy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15855/19]

Literacy Programmes

Bríd Smith

82. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans for the future funding of a society (details supplied); the way in which the funding will help develop and support Irish sign language and specifically the programmes run by the society such as deaf adult literacy services and an academy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15766/19]

Back to Education Allowance Appeals

Bríd Smith

320. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when a response will issue in the case of a back to education allowance for a person (details supplied). [15691/19]

Approved Housing Bodies

Bríd Smith

225. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to tenancy contracts by approved housing bodies such as a body (details supplied) which informs tenants that their tenancy can be ended if the body plans to sell the premises within three months, refurbish the premises, change the use of the premises or if it is deemed no longer suitable for the tenant; if this tenancy agreement is approved by his Department for persons housed by such bodies from the social housing waiting list; his views on AHBs potentially using such grounds for eviction in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15849/19]

Public Transport Fares

Bríd Smith

17. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to lower fares to encourage uptake of public transport in relation to BusConnects plans; if he has reviewed the increase in fares across public transport since 2011; his views on whether the present fare structures may be discouraging uptake; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15153/19]

Railway Stations

Bríd Smith

55. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his attention has been drawn to the difficulties caused to persons with disabilities by the failure of lifts at DART and rail stations across the city and that these failures are ongoing and constant and make accessing public transport impossible for many persons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15152/19]

Direct Provision System

Bríd Smith

210. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if his attention has been drawn to the practice of direct provision centres encouraging residents to volunteer to undertake duties which could be paid employment jobs; if such practices are widespread; if his Department is consulted by providers before such volunteering is organised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14940/19]

Exploration Licences Applications

Bríd Smith

57. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if plans by a company (details supplied) to commence exploratory drilling off the south coast in June 2019 for oil or gas will aid plans to make Ireland a world leader on climate change and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14168/19]

Exploration Licences Approvals

Bríd Smith

58. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if the issuing of further licences for exploration will be halted in view of the worsening climate crisis evidenced by the catastrophic monsoon in south-western Africa; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14194/19]