Parliamentary questions

Covid-19 Pandemic

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

548. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the efforts being made to facilitate the return to work of driving instructors; the timeframe for same; and if he will work with his counterpart in the Northern Ireland Executive to ensure the return to work for the sector is at the same time across the island of Ireland in order to not disenfranchise driving instructors based in Border counties. [9791/20]

Driver Test

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

549. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the timeframe for the recommencement of the driver test system nationwide. [9792/20]

National Monuments

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

726. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will make contact with the Spanish Government to offer assistance to Valladolid City Council and the team undertaking works to locate the resting place of Red Hugh O’Donnell (details supplied); and if she will pursue the objective of returning the remains back to County Donegal. [9787/20]

Covid-19 Tests

Pádraig MacLochlainn

562. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if mental health workers in the public, private and community sectors returning to work are being prioritised for Covid-19 testing; and if not, the reason therefor. [8575/20]

Medicinal Products

Pádraig MacLochlainn

563. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the ongoing campaign by families of persons with amyloidosis here to be provided with the drug patisiran as is the case in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8576/20]

Fire Service

Pádraig MacLochlainn

1166. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the current and long-standing issue of the recruitment and retention crisis within the fire and rescue services nationally and that the last meaningful engagement with significant improvement for retained firefighters was the composite agreement which took place in 1999; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8436/20]

Fire Service

Pádraig MacLochlainn

1167. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the mass exodus of fully trained and experienced firefighters from the fire and rescue service over the past number of years well before retirement age due to their inability to have a work-life balance and the 50% drop in calls nationally that in turn makes it not financially viable to stay in the service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8437/20]

Fire Service

Pádraig MacLochlainn

1168. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the fact that fire calls are being vetted by fire service management (details supplied); if his attention has been further drawn to the fact that fire service call charges differ from county to county not only in amounts charged to the public and that some counties have call charges and others do not; and the reason persons have to pay for availing of this front-line service but no other front-line service such as An Garda Síochána or the ambulance services. [8438/20]

Fire Service

Pádraig MacLochlainn

1169. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his views on whether the fire and rescue service is the best geographically placed organisation to deliver on the co-responder project which would help in reducing the death toll in cardiac arrest and respiratory emergencies in rural areas; and if he will work with the Minister for Health to complete the memorandum of understanding commenced by his predecessors and enable the fire and rescue service to be deployed to respond to these emergency situations. [8439/20]

Fire Service

Pádraig MacLochlainn

1170. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to a report (details supplied) that stated that the retained fire service was not fit for purpose; and his plans to ensure that the proposals will now be implemented. [8440/20]

Maternity Services

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

568. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health the locations of antenatal and maternity clinics in County Donegal in each of the years 2000 to 2020, in tabular form. [7696/20]

Maternity Services

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

569. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if the HSE will reinstate antenatal and maternity services and clinics to Inishowen, County Donegal. [7697/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

570. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health the reason the HSE advice on the wearing of masks changed for health workers caring for older persons over recent months. [7698/20]

Foreshore Issues

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

662. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his attention has been drawn to the construction of a road approximately 400 metres in length along the foreshore of Lough Foyle at Clar, Redcastle, County Donegal without planning or consultation; and if his Department can co-operate with the Loughs Agency to protect the foreshore of Lough Foyle on the Inishowen side. [7605/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Supports

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

663. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is satisfied that the level of financial support being offered to owners of fishing vessels to support them through the Covid-19 crisis compares favourably with the financial supports being offered by other EU states and the UK Government. [7606/20]

School Accommodation Provision

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

213. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason for delays being experienced in progressing a project to provide additional classroom accommodation at a school (details supplied); if his attention has been drawn to the impact the stalemate has been having on the ability of the school to meet the accommodation and the educational needs of students; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5999/20]

Schools Building Projects Status

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

214. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of plans to find a suitable site to house new school buildings for a school (details supplied). [6000/20]

Schools Building Projects Status

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

215. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of plans to find a suitable site to house new school buildings for a school (details supplied). [6001/20]

Schools Building Projects Status

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

216. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the plans for a new school building at a school (details supplied). [6002/20]

Schools Building Projects Status

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

217. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the progression of plans for a new school building for a school (details supplied). [6003/20]

Childcare Services

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

1123. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if pharmacists will be included in the proposed childcare scheme for front-line essential healthcare workers in view of the fact the HSE and the Department of Health have accepted and confirmed that pharmacists are essential front-line healthcare staff. [6006/20]

Court Accommodation Refurbishment

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

128. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the OPW is in ownership of Carndonagh courthouse, County Donegal; and if so, the plans of the OPW to provide the necessary funding to refurbish the building in order that the court sittings can be reinstated for Carndonagh and north Inishowen. [4319/20]

Mica Redress Scheme

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

1238. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government when the necessary guidelines will be issued to allow Donegal County Council to proceed with the Mica redress scheme. [4323/20]

Mica Redress Scheme

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

1241. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if the Mica redress scheme will be amended to provide for funding to local authorities to make the homes in their housing stock safe. [4388/20]

Hospital Staff Recruitment

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

586. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health when the necessary staff will be appointed to allow the acute stroke unit to be opened at Letterkenny University Hospital. [2835/20]

Hospital Services

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

587. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health when the remaining nine beds in the short-stay ward at Letterkenny University Hospital will be permanently reopened; and when the necessary staff will be appointed. [2836/20]

Healthcare Infrastructure Provision

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

588. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health when construction and refurbishment works will commence at Buncrana Community Hospital, County Donegal; and if additional bed capacity can be incorporated into the plans at this stage. [2837/20]

HSE Funding

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

589. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if additional HSE funding will be allocated to organisations (details supplied) in addition to the core funding of €36,000 allocated to them in recent years. [2838/20]

Hospital Procedures

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

590. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if Letterkenny University Hospital will continue to support and facilitate a person (details supplied) to carry out gastric bypass procedures at the hospital. [2841/20]

Disease Management

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

631. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health the approach of his Department and the HSE to requests for persons suffering with Lyme disease or chronic Lyme disease to be properly supported by the health authorities here; and the reason there is no joint approach between health authorities and local authorities that have erected signage warning of the dangers of ticks. [2989/20]

Autism Support Services

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

634. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health if the autism therapist post has been filled to support families in the Inishowen area of County Donegal (details supplied). [2996/20]

Departmental Funding

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

927. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if the decision to reverse funding for a facility (details supplied) will be reviewed. [2839/20]

Harbours and Piers Development

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

928. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason the breakwater at Greencastle Harbour, County Donegal, has been allowed to lie half-completed for several years; and if his Department funded and oversaw these works during the earlier construction phase. [2840/20]

Broadband Service Provision

Pádraig MacLochlainn

566. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources when an efibre upgrade will be rolled out at Bridgend in County Donegal, as Bridgend is designated as a second tier town by Donegal County Council, and is strategically well located on the border and on the Derry-Letterkenny gateway, with much potential for economic development and investment. [4151/16]

Garda Misconduct Allegations

Pádraig MacLochlainn

183. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality given the serious allegations concerning misconduct by An Garda Síochána and inadequacies surrounding a case (details supplied), and given the need for the probity and independence of the Independent Review Mechanism, if she will authorise publication of the report prepared in 2007; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3478/16]

Garda Inspectorate Reports

Pádraig MacLochlainn

2. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her views on the commentary in the Garda Inspectorate's report, Changing Policing in Ireland, that there has been a repeated failure by An Garda Síochána to implement recommendations for change from its previous reports and from other reviews and inquiries; and the actions she is taking to ensure the recommendations in the Changing Policing in Ireland report and previous Garda Síochána Inspectorate reports will be implemented. [3053/16]

White Collar Crime

Pádraig MacLochlainn

5. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to strengthen the performance of the criminal justice system in tackling white collar crime. [3044/16]

Garda Investigations

Pádraig MacLochlainn

13. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to establish an independent inquiry into the actions of all relevant State agencies related to the circumstances surrounding the death of a person (details supplied); and if she is aware of the deep distress caused to the family of the person in its experience with the independent review mechanism. [3043/16]

Communications Surveillance

Pádraig MacLochlainn

16. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to ensure that her proposed review of legislation will ensure the inclusion of independent judicial oversight over applications for data access or for ongoing surveillance by the relevant authorities, given that almost 62,000 applications for access to landline, mobile telephone and Internet data were made to companies providing services to the public by State authorities over a five-year period. [3042/16]

Migrant Integration

Pádraig MacLochlainn

24. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to ensure the regularisation of undocumented migrants in the State through a fair and pragmatic system as outlined by the Migrant Rights Centre in a presentation to the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality in 2015. [3045/16]

Garda Misconduct Allegations

Pádraig MacLochlainn

28. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to facilitate an appeals process to the independent review mechanism that has examined allegations of malpractice by An Garda Síochána. [3041/16]

Garda Operations

Pádraig MacLochlainn

296. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality while understanding the need for the State to have powers of surveillance in combating various types of crime, how many regulations have been made under section 10(3) of the Criminal Justice Surveillance Act 2009 given the important safeguards for the right to privacy recognised by the European Court of Human Rights, particularly in notifying persons who have been subject of surveillance measures as a deterrent to unwarranted surveillance, and in the provision of an effective remedy in the courts to persons in the cases of abuse; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3274/16]

Garda Complaints Procedures

Pádraig MacLochlainn

297. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality why she did not request the exhumation of a deceased person (details supplied); if she will issue an exhumation order; if she will request an independent inquiry into the serious allegations made against An Garda Síochána regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of the person; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3275/16]

Hospital Services

Pádraig MacLochlainn

385. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health how much it has cost the Health Service Executive to relocate services from Letterkenny University Hospital to the McGinley Building at Justice Walsh Road in Letterkenny, County Donegal; the type and cost of the lease the HSE has on the building; and if the HSE intends to relocate these services back to Letterkenny University Hospital in the near future [3223/16]

Northern Ireland Issues

Pádraig MacLochlainn

388. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the measures he has taken, or plans to take, in the context of the international agreement between the Irish and British Governments to ensure that the European Convention on Human Rights remains in force in the North should the British Government withdraw from the British convention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3100/16]

Schools Building Projects Status

Pádraig MacLochlainn

450. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills to set out the status of the site selection and construction of a three-school campus for schools (details supplied) in County Donegal; if provision will be made for a certain school at this campus; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3122/16]

Garda Misconduct Allegations

Pádraig MacLochlainn

112. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality when she will provide statistical analysis of the outcome of the deliberations by the independent review panel of the hundreds of allegations of Garda Síochána malpractice. [2425/16]

Ambulance Service Provision

Pádraig MacLochlainn

128. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Health given a previous reassurance from him that the director would contact this Deputy to facilitate a meeting that this Deputy has repeatedly requested, why this Deputy has yet to hear from the director of the National Ambulance Service; and if it is acceptable for the National Ambulance Service to behave in this fashion. [2426/16]

Gaelscoil Issues

Pádraig MacLochlainn

153. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will urgently address the serious concerns of parents regarding a range of issues at a school (details supplied) in County Donegal including the fact that their children are being taught in the English language for five subjects; if she will urgently instigate an immediate review of the reasons enrolment levels are so low at the school considering there are four Naíscoil and three Gaelscoil in the school's catchment area that are thriving for many years and that evidences the considerable support for the revival of our native language in Inishowen and in Derry city; and if she is aware that the future of this school is under real threat if urgent action is not taken to address the well documented concerns of parents and the wider community. [2450/16]

Forensic Science Ireland Laboratory

Pádraig MacLochlainn

273. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the date when Forensic Service Ireland will provide its new facility; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1855/16]