Questions and answers published after July 2012 can be viewed here. Viewing by Government Department is possible by term or specific dates from March 2016 onwards. Written answers are published as received from departments. To see parliamentary questions published before July 2012, search in Dáil debates.
Questions and answers for all sittings
Page 69 of 90
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Social Welfare Benefits Expenditure
Thomas Pringle
546. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Social Protection the cost of increasing the living alone allowance by €2.50 per week; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10338/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Household Benefits Scheme
Thomas Pringle
547. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Social Protection the cost of restoring the telephone allowance to €9.50 per month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10339/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Household Benefits Scheme
Thomas Pringle
548. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Social Protection the cost of restoring the telephone allowance to its original value of €22.50 per month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10340/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Social Welfare Benefits Expenditure
Thomas Pringle
549. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Social Protection the cost of fully restoring the Christmas bonus to recipients of the State pension; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10341/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
State Pension (Contributory) Eligibility
Thomas Pringle
550. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Social Protection the savings accrued by changing the PRSI contribution eligibility criteria for the State pension in September 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10342/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Public Procurement Regulations
Thomas Pringle
597. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to increase the transparency and clarity of the public procurement regime, which is primarily determined on a lowest cost basis with no effective remedy process for disputes or appeals; if he will ensure that international best practice is applied to public procurement processes to prevent discrimination against small Irish businesses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10398/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Fish Imports
Thomas Pringle
613. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to petition at European Union level to have the American lobster recognised as a foreign species, as Sweden has already done in March 2016, which would prohibit the import of live lobsters from the United States of America and Canada (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10087/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries
Thomas Pringle
625. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health how persons can access records of local authorities prior to the introduction of the health boards in relation to births that took place in mother and baby homes, particularly in Donegal County Council and at Bessborough House in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9420/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Commencement of Legislation
Thomas Pringle
627. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health when he will commence relevant sections of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 to enable the non-biological parents of children conceived in assisted human reproduction to be legally recognised as parents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10026/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Health Services Reform
Thomas Pringle
836. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health his plans to replace the Health Service Executive with a health commission and to provide an expanded role for private health companies in the public health system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10294/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Mental Health Services Funding
Thomas Pringle
837. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health his plans to preserve the mental health budget as part of the A Vision for Change strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10295/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Positive Ageing Strategy Implementation
Thomas Pringle
838. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health to outline an implementation plan and timeline for the national positive ageing strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10296/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Care Packages Provision
Thomas Pringle
839. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health to enact legislation setting out the statutory right to home care to recognise the vital role of primary care and the right to that care for elderly persons in particular; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10297/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Ambulance Service
Thomas Pringle
840. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health his plans to unify the National Ambulance Service with fire stations as advocated by the Chief Fire Officers Association in response to the recently published report commissioned by the Health Service Executive which indicated that additional staff and resources allocated to the National Ambulance Service would not enable it to meet additional targets of response times in rural Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10298/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Disability Support Services Provision
Thomas Pringle
841. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health why some of the nurses allocated to provide home respite care are on temporary contracts, given that Our Children's Voice was promised 9.5 permanent nurses; why some of the nurses are not for respite care but for direct care, which means families are restricted as to when and how long they can leave, if they can leave the home at all while the nurses are present; why parents are not allowed to leave the home for more than 30 minutes at a time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10299/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
National Dementia Strategy
Thomas Pringle
850. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health to implement the national dementia strategy; to provide ring-fenced funding for dementia and develop a second strategy to ensure persons with dementia are supported to live well in the community; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10336/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Drugs Payment Scheme
Thomas Pringle
851. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the cost of reducing the drugs payment scheme threshold to €100 per month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10343/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Prescriptions Charges
Thomas Pringle
852. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the cost of abolishing prescription charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10344/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Prescriptions Charges
Thomas Pringle
853. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the cost of capping prescription charges at €20 per month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10345/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Help Service Data
Thomas Pringle
854. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the cost of increasing the number of home help hours by 10% in 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10346/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Care Packages Data
Thomas Pringle
855. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in receipt of intensive packages under the home care scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10347/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Care Packages Data
Thomas Pringle
856. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in hospital services waiting for packages under the home care scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10348/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Care Packages Data
Thomas Pringle
857. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in the community waiting for packages under the home care scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10349/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Help Service Data
Thomas Pringle
858. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in hospital services waiting for home help; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10350/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Home Help Service Data
Thomas Pringle
859. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in the community waiting for home help; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10351/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Fisheries Protection
Thomas Pringle
1034. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the rules and regulations for importing live lobsters; the controls in place to prevent the release of imported live lobsters such as the American lobster into Irish waters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10088/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Fishing Industry Data
Thomas Pringle
1035. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the tonnage of live American lobster imported and subsequently exported to the European Union under the label of Irish lobsters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10089/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Areas of Natural Constraint Scheme Payments
Thomas Pringle
1036. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 34 of 5 May 2016, wherein it was indicated his Department has no record of the person (details supplied) submitting an amendment form, if his attention has been drawn to correspondence which indicates the amendment form was sent to his Department; if he will re-examine this case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10092/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Small and Medium Enterprises Supports
Thomas Pringle
1185. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if she will restructure indigenous enterprise policy to include all types of firms and all sectors including import and export, rural and urban with a specific focus on developing small business viewing them with the potential of becoming exporters into the future; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10399/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Employment Rights
Thomas Pringle
1186. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if she will examine the issues that affect seasonal workers, particularly in the fishing sector; her plans in response to a study on the prevalence of zero-hour contracts as carried out by her predecessor; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10400/16]
Tue, 17 May 2016
written
Small and Medium Enterprises Supports
Thomas Pringle
1187. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if she will establish an agency, similar to that of IDA Ireland, for the development of small businesses in Ireland given that small businesses employ nearly 1 million persons or over 70% of the private sector in Ireland with potential to employ many more if expansion was adequately supported; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10401/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Areas of Natural Constraint Scheme Payments
Thomas Pringle
34. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of payments to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9264/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Direct Provision System
Thomas Pringle
51. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to respond to the implementation of the report of the working group on the protection process report this week which found that most recommendations have not been implemented ten months on; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9211/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Refugee Status Applications
Thomas Pringle
52. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to increase the resources needed for the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and the Refugee Appeals Tribunal to address the considerable backlog of applications present, before the applications are transferred to the new office of the chief international protection officer as part of the introduction of a single procedure; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9212/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Immigration Status
Thomas Pringle
53. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications made under the European Court of Justice, ECJ, judgment in the Zambrano case by persons who had no current right of residency; the number of persons who have had their status regularised under the ECJ judgment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9221/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Health Services Provision
Thomas Pringle
63. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health the reason a hydro-pool project for Dungloe in County Donegal has been on-hold since 2006 despite the Health Service Executive making a political commitment to the local committee in 2007; if he will review this decision; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9213/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
National Broadband Plan Administration
Thomas Pringle
137. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the reason for the recent delay in administering tenders for the national broadband plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9203/16]
Thu, 5 May 2016
written
Turf Cutting
Thomas Pringle
151. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if her Department or the National Parks and Wildlife Service has written to landowners in the Slieve League area (details supplied) advising them to discontinue turf cutting in the special area of conservation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9341/16]
Wed, 4 May 2016
written
Social Welfare Payments Administration
Thomas Pringle
34. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of recipients of social protection payments who cash their cheques at post offices; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9056/16]
Wed, 4 May 2016
written
Mental Health Services Provision
Thomas Pringle
208. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health when elderly mental health services provided by the Health Service Executive in County Donegal will commence, given that they were cancelled earlier in 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9142/16]
Wed, 4 May 2016
written
Special Educational Needs
Thomas Pringle
236. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will reconsider a school's (details supplied) application for resource hours for September as opposed to October in order that a person is not without special needs assistant support for over a month and can therefore begin school in September; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8823/16]
Wed, 4 May 2016
written
Education and Training Boards
Thomas Pringle
265. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will meet with representatives from an organisation (details supplied) regarding the decision not to review an application to establish an Aonad; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9097/16]
Tue, 26 Apr 2016
written
Social Welfare Payments Administration
Thomas Pringle
9. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 48 of 6 April 2016, the number of casual workers and part-time jobseekers who use bank accounts and the number of social protection recipients who use post offices to withdraw payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8083/16]
Wed, 20 Apr 2016
written
Harbours and Piers Development
Thomas Pringle
171. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 290 of 6 April 2016, if he will make available the study as referenced in the reply in which a chemical re-evaluation was carried out in 2015-16 indicating at least 85% of sediments near Smooth Point at the Killybegs Fishery Harbour Centre in County Donegal is suitable for disposal at sea; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7469/16]
Wed, 20 Apr 2016
written
Agri-Environment Options Scheme Applications
Thomas Pringle
174. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of an application under the agri-environment options scheme by a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7508/16]
Wed, 20 Apr 2016
written
Health Services Expenditure
Thomas Pringle
304. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health if he will address concerns on behalf of the Donegal Centre for Independent Living in respect of pay cuts and the rise in employers' pay-related social insurance resulting in the loss of €218,000 per year for operation and development costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7440/16]
Wed, 20 Apr 2016
written
Teachers' Remuneration
Thomas Pringle
419. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills the steps she will take to address the unequal pay developing in the teaching profession; her views on the recent Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development report, Education at a Glance, which found a direct correlation between teachers’ pay and the quality of education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7429/16]
Thu, 14 Apr 2016
written
Illness Benefit Eligibility
Thomas Pringle
55. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if persons on illness benefit from before 2009 prior to changes in criteria and who are on long-term illness benefit will be assessed under new guidelines and only be awarded benefit for a maximum of two years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7039/16]
Thu, 14 Apr 2016
written
National Lottery Funding Disbursement
Thomas Pringle
363. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 344 of 10 November 2015, when he will announce details of the scheme from additional Exchequer funding as indicated in his reply; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7040/16]
Thu, 14 Apr 2016
written
Sports Capital Programme Administration
Thomas Pringle
860. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport when he will open the sports capital fund for applications in 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7038/16]