Parliamentary questions

Dormant Accounts Fund

Maureen O'Sullivan

110. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 240 of 17 May 2016, if he will request the Central Bank to carry out an analysis of the benefits or possible disadvantages to the credit union movement, and to the community generally, of adding dormant credit union accounts to the dormant accounts fund, as has been recommended by the Dormant Accounts Board. [17573/16]

Family Income Supplement Appeals

Maureen O'Sullivan

136. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Social Protection if the family income supplement appeals office is adequately staffed given that it is not uncommon for appeals to take a number of months (details supplied); if he will provide more resources to enable it to respond to applicants within a reasonable time given the importance of this payment to parents trying to excel in employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16352/16]

School Patronage

Maureen O'Sullivan

185. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the cost of taking over the patronage of the primary school system, based on the cost per pupil of running the model schools. [15383/16]

Greyhound Industry

Maureen O'Sullivan

56. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to intervene in the crisis surrounding Irish greyhounds being transported to China; and if he accepts that he has a specific role to play in prohibiting Irish greyhounds from being transported to countries where they face cruelty and abuse, given his funding of Bord na gCon. [14518/16]

Animal Welfare

Maureen O'Sullivan

73. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 160 of 22 March 2016, his views on seized horses and that one horse died while in his custody while legal proceedings continued; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14519/16]

Greyhound Industry

Maureen O'Sullivan

556. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has had any contact from persons both here and internationally surrounding the exporting of greyhounds to China; and his position on the matter. [14698/16]

Horse Racing Industry

Maureen O'Sullivan

557. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to investigate a report sent to him by a person (details supplied) regarding a very serious allegation of wrongdoing; and his views on the matter with particular relevance to section 19 of the Criminal Justice Act. [14699/16]

Inland Fisheries Stocks

Maureen O'Sullivan

592. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the amount Inland Fisheries Ireland spent on the pike culling and removal of pike in loughs Corrib, Mask, Conn, Cullin, Sheelin, Arrow and Carra since 1996; his views on if this has been a worthy process with particular emphasis on the loss of revenue to hoteliers and accommodation along said waterways; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14700/16]

Public Sector Pay

Maureen O'Sullivan

542. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform why public service pay restrictions that were imposed during times of economic necessity can be maintained, given that gross domestic product figures indicate that Ireland is no longer in recession; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12544/16]

Public Sector Pay

Maureen O'Sullivan

543. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the public service pay commission will consider loss of earnings and allowances for public service workers; if he supports various unions and groups that state that a two-tier pay system is unfair; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12545/16]

Trade Agreements

Maureen O'Sullivan

895. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation given the commitments to strengthening the functioning of democratic institutions in Africa and to policy coherence for development, as a principle of the Lisbon treaty, if she will explain why European Union trade agreements are being stringent regarding deadlines for ratification; her views on claims that this can be seen to be unhelpful for the parliamentary ratification process in African countries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12955/16]

Dublin-Monaghan Bombings

Maureen O'Sullivan

7. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the timeframe for making progress on unresolved issues regarding the Dublin and Monaghan bombings; if he will request his British counterparts to release all outstanding documents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11897/16]

Syrian Conflict

Maureen O'Sullivan

16. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will condemn the hunger sieges taking place in Syria, given that Ireland is supportive of the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in Turkey this week; and his views on many non-governmental organisations being critical of the summit because of the failure of the international community to uphold basic international humanitarian law and refugee rights. [11898/16]

Health Services Provision

Maureen O'Sullivan

215. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health to address immediately the lack of a care plan for a person (details supplied). [12462/16]

Credit Union Data

Maureen O'Sullivan

97. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Finance the nature and extent of the tax expenditures in favour of credit unions which his Department's tax strategy group recommended be continued in March 2011 (details supplied); if his Department has reviewed the matter since then; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11192/16]

Local Authority Housing

Maureen O'Sullivan

210. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if his Department has assessed the effect on subsequent local authority housing output of the disposal by the State of the proceeds of certain mortgage loans associated with the local loans fund, which was established in 1935, to provide capital funding for local authority housing under the Securitisation (Proceeds of Certain Mortgages) Act, 1995; if he will enter into a comparable arrangement in order to increase local authority supply; the role of the Local Loans Fund Act 1935 in housing provision; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11194/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

271. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 62 of 28 January 2016, to review the decision announced in budget 2013 to abolish the redundancy rebate, given that its abolition not only affected profitable foreign owned companies, which seems to have been the intention, but has had a disproportionate negative effect on indigenous small and medium sized enterprises, many of which had contributed to the fund for decades; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11193/16]

Human Rights

Maureen O'Sullivan

357. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if Ireland is doing enough to combat the refugee crisis in Syria and, although Irish Aid has distributed humanitarian aid, if more vocal and progressive action is needed at EU level and at international level to combat some of the dreadful atrocities being committed in Syria, which in turn are contributing to the refugee crisis and to people deciding to flee their homeland. [11881/16]

Northern Ireland

Maureen O'Sullivan

358. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has had discussions on the outstanding issues in Maghaberry Prison in County Antrim and the implementation of the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11882/16]

Schools Health and Safety

Maureen O'Sullivan

15. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if educational programmes relating to drugs and alcohol addiction awareness in primary and secondary level schools are effective in addressing these issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10758/16]

National Educational Psychological Service

Maureen O'Sullivan

24. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he has ensured additional counselling and other resources for those students seriously affected by recent gangland crime and murder in the North Inner City of Dublin. [10759/16]

National Drugs Strategy

Maureen O'Sullivan

90. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to engage with the current review of the national drugs strategy. [10858/16]

Teachers' Remuneration

Maureen O'Sullivan

91. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will commit to a timeframe to end the pay inequality that teachers endure; when he hopes to establish the public service pay commission and potentially end the situation whereby appointed teachers after 2012 are receiving significantly less pay for equal work and given the healthier outlook of the economy if this will be a priority for him; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10859/16]

Ministerial Meetings

Maureen O'Sullivan

15. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to meet with representatives from the community sector to discuss meaningful actions to address serious violence and drug dealing in the north inner city area of Dublin. [10145/16]

Criminal Assets Bureau

Maureen O'Sullivan

27. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to roll out a locally organised criminal assets bureau as piloted in Store Street in Dublin 2 in February 2016; and if expanding and fast-tracking this process will be an important step in targeting the unexplained wealth of middle and lower level drug dealers and protecting public safety in the areas affected most by criminality, given the recent spate in gangland violence. [10144/16]

Community Policing

Maureen O'Sullivan

130. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to strengthen and reinforce community policing by An Garda Síochána as the core approach of all police work, based on visibility on the ground and relationship-building with the local community. [10316/16]

Misuse of Drugs

Maureen O'Sullivan

131. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her role in tackling the endemic and intergenerational disadvantage that allows the drugs trade to flourish, and in the review of the national drugs strategy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10317/16]

Direct Provision System

Maureen O'Sullivan

134. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality how she will implement the key recommendations of the report of the working group on the protection process, including direct provision and supports to asylum seekers, in June 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10404/16]

Credit Union Fund

Maureen O'Sullivan

239. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Finance to direct the Central Bank to develop a framework with the credit union movement to realise the potential of section 44 of the Credit Union Act 1997 for social housing initiatives at local level and for social, cultural and charitable purposes at community level; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10662/16]

Dormant Accounts Fund

Maureen O'Sullivan

240. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Finance to outline his views on expanding the reach of the Dormant Accounts Acts to include the credit union movement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10663/16]

Road Traffic Legislation

Maureen O'Sullivan

1121. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to update road traffic laws and regulations to restrict the sale of vehicles parked on public roads and to prevent car dealers from occupying valuable residential parking space in urban areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9645/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

69. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to report on the management of the redundancy scheme fund for the period 1967 to 2015, during which time it was known as the redundancy fund, 1967 to 1984, the redundancy and employer’s insolvency fund, 1984 to 1991, and the redundancy and employer’s insolvency fund and which merged with other funds within the social insurance fund, 1991 to date; and if the fund was in surplus on 31 December 2013. [8350/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

70. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the characteristics of the redundancy scheme fund for 1967 to 2016 to date including the income into the fund, the costs borne by the fund, the year-end surplus and deficit and the cumulative reserve built up over the years; and if she has used the cumulative reserves for the purposes set out in the redundancy and the employer insolvency legislation. [8351/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

71. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she has managed the redundancy scheme fund in an accountable and transparent manner; if this is subject to independent third-party scrutiny; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8352/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

72. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to consider the operation of the redundancy scheme fund as a vital measure in providing mitigation by way of rebates on the statutory payment made to employees for enterprises, especially small and medium sized enterprises, as providers of employment and as revenue collectors for the Exchequer, as a vital component of the economy and as creators of wealth. [8353/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

73. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection her assessment of the redundancy scheme fund as a governance stabilising measure for the employment market, especially in the small and medium enterprise sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8354/16]

Redundancy Payments

Maureen O'Sullivan

74. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she has acted effectively as trustee of the redundancy scheme fund and managed its funds and surpluses properly and prudently; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8355/16]

Magdalen Laundries

Maureen O'Sullivan

222. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of women who have applied for the Magdalen ex gratia scheme; the number of women in receipt of benefits from the scheme overall; and the number of women who have applied for the scheme from the United States of America and Canada and who are in receipt of benefits. [8361/16]

Drug Treatment Programmes

Maureen O'Sullivan

317. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the policies and programmes on prevention and education relating to drugs and alcohol for young persons; if there is dedicated staff in his Department and the Health Service Executive on this matter; and if there have been evaluations of these programmes. [8356/16]

Magdalen Laundries

Maureen O'Sullivan

318. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health in relation to the Magdalen ex gratia scheme, if the recommended reimbursement guidelines for United States of America residents were approved by the Minister for State, Deputy Lynch, in December 2015; and the number of women availing of the guidelines. [8358/16]

Health Services

Maureen O'Sullivan

320. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health his plans to reverse cutbacks put in place regarding chiropody for elderly persons over 65 years of age; if he is aware that these cutbacks to three appointments per annum are not sufficient for many persons who suffer with diabetes and arthritis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8363/16]

Substance Abuse Prevention Education

Maureen O'Sullivan

401. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the policies and programmes on prevention and education in respect of drugs and alcohol for young persons; if there is dedicated staff in her Department on this matter; and if there have been evaluations of these programmes. [8357/16]

Rail Network

Maureen O'Sullivan

487. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will consider providing funding for noise control or possibly consider systems used in other countries, such as the acoustic screening of railway lines in Denmark by the state-owned Banedanmark during its noise project dating back to 1986, to accommodate residents on the extremely busy stretch of railway track between Connolly Station and East Wall Road bridge. [8342/16]

Pension Provisions

Maureen O'Sullivan

4. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the reason persons must work 48 years to qualify for a full pension; her views on whether this is a particularity long period and that the tier system is insufficient; and if her attention has been drawn to the fact that some women, in particular, feel this is unfair as many choose to work part-time after giving birth to children. [7876/16]

Animal Welfare

Maureen O'Sullivan

37. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to a company (details supplied) seeking greyhounds from here, in view of the decision by the Australian Government to ban animal transports to this company; and if he will ban the transport of greyhounds from this country to that racing track, where they are open to abuse and exploitation. [7838/16]

School Curriculum

Maureen O'Sullivan

99. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason animal shooting clubs are being allowed access to schools and pupils for public relations exercises; and if there are any restrictions on the type of groups which may access school grounds and pupils. [7877/16]

Rental Accommodation Scheme Criteria

Maureen O'Sullivan

119. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to alter the requirements to qualify for the rental assistance payment scheme (details supplied); his views on whether, with the lack of rent management, this scheme should be altered to accommodate more persons. [7889/16]

Planning Issues

Maureen O'Sullivan

123. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number of planning applications invalidated by Cork County Council western division from 1 January 2016 to 31 March 2016; and the number of instances where prospective invalidations were avoided because the planners contacted the applicants in time to allow them to remedy small defects in the planning applications without recourse to invalidation as recommended in the planning guidelines. [7890/16]

Traffic Management

Maureen O'Sullivan

154. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport further to Parliamentary Question No. 583 of 22 March 2016, if the recent announcement by Dublin City Council to pedestrianise large sections of the city centre at College Green has changed his point of view regarding limousines and their use of bus lanes; if he would be willing to meet representatives of the National Chauffeur Drivers Association to discuss the impact of effectively making large sections of the city centre inaccessible to their industry. [7875/16]

Accident and Emergency Departments

Maureen O'Sullivan

612. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health his views on the Health Service Executive's escalation policy, specifically on the issue of the cancellation of operating lists to accommodate emergency departments despite the fact that these freed-up beds cannot be used for patients on trolleys because the patients on trolleys could present a risk of infections for post-operative patients already on the ward. [7211/16]