Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 21 Oct 2009

Vol. 692 No. 3

Adjournment Debate.

Cervical Cancer Vaccination Programme.

Deputy Denis Naughten

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for giving me an opportunity to raise this important issue on the Adjournment. I am here to support the call that has been made by a constituent of mine, Ms Michelle Fitzpatrick, for the immediate roll-out of the cervical cancer vaccine to young girls. Michelle has taken the brave decision to go public with her own diagnosis of cervical cancer to raise awareness of the disease and to call on the Government to reverse its decision not to proceed with the cervical cancer vaccination programme. Michelle, who is seriously ill with cervical cancer, has made a public plea for the introduction of a programme of vaccination of young girls, including her own daughters. If it is found that the cancer has spread, she will have a life expectancy of just two years. If she is lucky, radical surgery will save her life. Michelle does not want her daughters or any other young girl to go through the nightmare she is going through. Many people say that life begins at 40, but in Michelle's case, her nightmare began at 40. She is now 42 years of age and the mother of four young girls. Her fear is that if the Government does not proceed with a vaccination programme, her daughters will face the same suffering and trauma she is going through. She is pleading with the Government to offer this vaccine to all young Irish girls.

The Minister for Health and Children recently reiterated that she is not prepared to proceed with the cervical cancer vaccination programme at this point. She has chosen to focus on other competing priorities in the context of the current budgetary situation. It is staggering that 2,900 women in Ireland are living with cervical cancer. It is clear that the virus which causes this disease is on the increase in Ireland, as the mortality rate has increased by 1.5% each year since 1978. Some 200 women are diagnosed each year with cervical cancer, which is a preventable disease. The incidence of cervical cancer can be effectively reduced through a combination of the cervical cancer screening and vaccination programmes. Organised screening programmes can prevent up to 80% of cases of cervical cancer and the vaccine can prevent seven out of ten cases of cervical cancer. The tragic death of Ms Jade Goody, following a battle with cervical cancer, brought this issue to light for many young women. The disease, which claims approximately 90 lives per year in Ireland, needs to be highlighted and women need to be made more aware of the issues surrounding it.

Michelle Fitzpatrick is hoping her story will keep this issue in the public mind. On 5 August last year, the Minister for Health and Children said she intended to accept the advice of the expert group on the introduction of a universal high-uptake vaccination programme for young girls. The decision to withdraw the rollout of this vaccination programme puts 106,076 young girls between 11 and 15, the proposed target group, at risk of contracting this form of cancer. It includes 906 girls in County Leitrim and 1,944 in County Roscommon. This decision was taken to save funds the equivalent of one eighth of the cost of purchasing the electronic voting machines which are rusting away in a field in County Meath. The Government is persisting with the decision while spending 6,700 times the amount required for the vaccination programme to bail out the banks of this country.

This is a short-sighted action that risks women's health and penalises parents such as Michelle Fitzpatrick, who cannot afford to give her daughters the vaccine required to prevent them from contracting cervical cancer in the future. I urge the Minister of State to accept the call being made by Michelle Fitzpatrick and other women suffering from cervical cancer and roll out the vaccination programme.

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Deputy Barry Andrews)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter as it provides me with an opportunity to outline to this House the importance attached by the Department of Health and Children and the Health Service Executive to the issue raised.

The renewed programme for Government states the Government will take further progressive steps building universal health services that provide high-quality health care, fair access and affordability for all, with a focus on several key areas. The first area mentioned is the implementation of the cancer control strategy. Within this, the Government makes a commitment to "expand cancer prevention measures such as colorectal screening and cervical vaccination programmes at the earliest opportunity, in accordance with clinical priorities". The issue is not, therefore, whether the case for a cervical cancer vaccination programme is accepted by the Government, because it is, but how to place such a programme in order of clinical priorities for the allocation of scarce resources available for public health services and for the cancer programme in particular.

The Minister has stated elsewhere that, in respect of cancer prevention and screening measures, she believes the next highest priority now is for a population-based colorectal screening service to be put in place for men and women, subject to a cost-effective method being designed. This is because of the high incidence of colorectal cancer in Ireland, with approximately 2,200 new cases diagnosed every year. There are approximately 950 deaths each year with colorectal cancer as the major cause.

On cervical cancer, all the clinical advice available to the Minister indicates that, in the context of the limited resources available, the national roll-out of a cervical screening programme should take precedence over the introduction of a HPV vaccination programme. Population-based cervical cancer screening carries both immediate and long-term benefits. It carries the significant advantage of delivering earlier benefits than a vaccination programme.

The national cervical screening programme is now well under way. The programme, CervicalCheck, is being successfully implemented at a full-year cost of €43 million. Since its introduction just over a year ago, approximately 250,000 women have been screened. Some 70 to 100 women present with cervical cancer each year. The national screening programme for women aged between 25 and 60 years of age has the capacity to eliminate the incidence of cervical cancer by 80% to 90%.

The highest priority must be attached to implementing and sustaining the national cervical screening programme, even in circumstances where a vaccination programme is added. The Minister is keeping the cost of implementing such a programme under review so that, in accordance with the renewed programme for Government, it may be introduced at the earliest possible opportunity in accordance with clinical priorities.

Prison Accommodation.

Deputy Lucinda Creighton

I thank the Minister of State for attending.

This matter has been of concern to me for many years. When I was a law student in Trinity College, I was taken by my lecturer at the time, Senator Bacik, to visit Mountjoy Prison. I was stunned and appalled by the archaic and inhumane conditions in the prison. At the time, there was much discussion on the need to relocate. The Thornton Hall option became live and it was expected that the prison in Mountjoy would be relocated in the relatively near future.

When I was studying in Kings Inns, I was taken again to Mountjoy as part of my course. Far from having improved, conditions had deteriorated. They could only be described as appalling and grotesque for any human being, irrespective of what crime one had committed.

I have been contacted by members of the prison visiting committee. Nobody could turn a blind eye to some of the reports contained in national newspapers over an extended period in respect of the living conditions and the security issues that arise in regard to the unsuitability of Mountjoy as a modern prison. Let me outline some stark and illuminating headlines. In July 2009, a headline referred to €40,000 damages being awarded to a prisoner assaulted with a blade in Mountjoy. A headline in the Irish Independent in June 2009 asked whether the Mountjoy crisis would ever end. In June 2009 The Irish Times contained a headline stating, “Mountjoy inmates being forced to sleep in showers”. Also this year The Irish Times contained a headline stating “Prison reform long overdue”. This is a theme in all the national newspapers.

The theme is raised consistently by those associated with and who work in the prison. Mr. John Lonergan, the longest-serving and most vocal campaigner, for whom I have immense respect, has done considerable work to draw attention to the plight of prisoners in Mountjoy and the appalling conditions to which they are subjected. The prison has been described as cockroach-infested. The list goes on and the conditions that exist are nothing short of degrading. The practices in the prison are clearly inappropriate. I refer to sleeping on floors in overcrowded cells, in the reception and shower areas, special observation cells and other unsuitable areas. Other inappropriate practices include sleeping on cell floors infested with cockroaches, mice, ants and other assorted vermin.

There is 23-hour lock-up for those on protection, with just one hour per day to socialise with other inmates. Even this is in a confined, bleak outdoor yard. Daily bodily functions must be performed while locked up in cells. Slopping out when the doors are reopened still occurs in 2009. This takes place regardless of the number of prisoners in each cell. There can be up to five prisoners in a cell at any one time. Prisoners must eat all their meals in the confined cell area where they sleep and slop out. It is really disgusting and inhumane.

I assure the Minister of State I am no bleeding heart and take a very tough approach to crime but I believe that, at this point in 2009, it is time that the Government dealt with this issue so prisoners can serve their time in prison with some dignity.

Deputy Barry Andrews

I thank the Deputy for rasing this very important issue. The issue of overcrowding in prisons is not unique to Ireland. It is an international problem and this was acknowledged by the Inspector of Prisons in his annual report for 2008.

No level of inter-prisoner violence is acceptable. To that end, every effort is made by the Irish Prison Service to limit the scope of acts of violence. Stringent security measures have been introduced which have resulted in the confiscation of contraband material such as mobile phones. More than 2,000 mobile phones were seized in 2008 and figures to the end of August 2009 show that close to 1,700 were confiscated. However, it must be acknowledged that it is not possible to completely eliminate the possibility of such violence in a prison system which is holding a high proportion of violent offenders without introducing a regime that would be so restrictive as to be unacceptable.

Prison statistics show there has been a consistent increase in the total prisoner population over recent years. Indeed, this situation is particularly apparent over the past 12 months where we have seen the total number in custody increase by 306. This represents an 8.5% rise in the numbers in custody. Looking at the figures for yesterday, 20 October 2009, there were 3,998 prisoners in custody as compared to a bed capacity of 3,942. This is equivalent to an occupancy level of 101%.

The Government has provided the necessary resources to improve and expand the prison estate in the past decade or so. Putting figures to prison spaces provided by successive Ministers since 1997, we have provided in excess of 1,400 additional spaces including a new accommodation block for 100 prisoners which the Minister, Deputy Dermot Ahern, officially opened on 15 September.

As set out in our renewed programme for Government we will continue to progress our new prisons building programme including Thornton Hall. Current projects will provide the potential for an extra 450 prison spaces during 2009 by the following means — a new block in Portlaoise Prisons will have the potential to accommodate approximately 200 prisoners; a new block in Wheatfield prison will have the potential to accommodate 200 prisoners; and the opening of the separation unit in Mountjoy Prisons will have the potential to accommodate 50 prisoners.

Notwithstanding this significant level of investment, it is accepted that in some of our prisons we are operating in excess of bed capacity at this point in time. I want to again reiterate the Government's commitment to replacing the outdated and outmoded Mountjoy Prison complex with a modern, purpose built, regime-focused new prison campus at Thornton Hall.

There is no disputing the fact that there are many limitations to the existing Mountjoy male prison. The Director General of the Irish Prison Service has instructed the governor of Mountjoy to address all local management issues raised by the Inspector of Prisons in his report on Mountjoy.

In addition, to further reduce the volume of prisoners committed to Mountjoy, those sentenced prisoners committed by the District Courts sitting in Dún Laoghaire, Swords, Tallaght, Cloverhill and Blanchardstown will be committed to Wheatfield Prison. The Minister will make the necessary order when the additional capacity becomes available in Wheatfield Prison later this year.

The Government and senior Irish Prison Service management are committed to taking all proportionate steps to limit, as far as possible, violence in the prison setting. Stringent security measures will continue to be enforced and additional new prison accommodation will be brought into use in the short to medium term until the Thornton Hall campus allows for the closure of the full Mountjoy complex. Other non-custodial options such as the greater use of community service orders and the potential to use restorative justice, to name but two options, will be evaluated as will making use of electronic monitoring as a management tool for the management of offenders.

The Minister, his Department, the Director General of the Irish Prison Service and his senior management team are all determined to continue to strive to provide good quality prison accommodation and safe and secure custody for all.

Aquaculture Industry.

Deputy Brian O’Shea

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. Gabhaim buíochas leat as ucht seans a thabhairt dom an cheist seo, atá an-thábhachtach do mo dháilcheantar, a cur os comhair na Dála agus leis an Aire Stáit as ucht a bheith anseo chun freagra a thabhairt ar an gceist.

There is a great need for the immediate opening of the operational programme for fisheries to allow for funding to the aquaculture sector and to restore a level playing field for Irish companies to compete fairly in Europe and on the world stage. The representative organisation of this sector, IFA Aquaculture, has called on the Minister to honour the commitments made by the Government in signing up to the Cawley report on the seafood sector in 2007 and to ensure that in the 2010 budget there is a sufficient level of funding, at least €10 million, earmarked under the co-funding programme for fisheries to be drawn down in 2010. As a Deputy from a constituency which has both a coastal and rural area, I support this call. It is incumbent on the Minister to ensure that this vital capital grant aid is open for access immediately.

The Irish aquaculture industry is worth €120 million per annum and provides more than 2,000 vital jobs in coastal and rural areas. It is of particular importance in my own constituency, where jobs in primary production of shellfish are important earners which provide full-time and part-time jobs. The aquaculture industry also provides vital business for companies supplying a range of goods and services, ranging from fuel to IT, engineering, chandlery and so on. One company in the Dungarvan area of County Waterford provides 17 full-time and 12 part-time jobs. The oyster industry as a whole provides approximately 50 full-time and 30 part-time jobs in the Dungarvan area. Almost the entire product is exported to EU countries and this industry provides vital cash to local economies.

The main competitors to the Irish industry come from the EU, Scandinavia, Africa and South America. For the Irish industry to stay competitive it must continually improve and adapt technology and reduce costs. This fact has already been recognised by the introduction of the European Fisheries Fund Regulations in 2007. The regulations allow member states to fund capital programmes up to 40% to improve aquaculture industry efficiency, lower any environmental impact and improve the quality of the final product.

I understand that, due to internal disputes between Departments, the funding under the EFF regulations has yet to be made available. This must be taken against the fact that the governments in every one of our main competitor countries in Europe have opened access to funds from the EU and national exchequers to assist their industries under the terms of the EFF. The programme runs from 2007 to 2013 and we are now almost at the half-way point.

As a matter of the greatest urgency, I am seeking that the Irish small and medium industries involved in the primary production of shellfish are given immediate notification that the Irish national operational programme for fisheries is open for application.

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Deputy Tony Killeen)

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta Brian O'Shea as ucht an ábhair thábhachtach seo a chur os comhair na Dála agus deis a thabhairt dom freagra a thabhairt air.

Let me assure this House that I am actively working to address the current challenges and my objective is to have a scheme in place that will enable grant aid support to be made available to the sector in 2010.

First, it is important to note that funding support for the fisheries and aquaculture sectors comes under the European Fisheries Fund Regulations 2007. In Ireland, the seafood development measure contained in the National Development Plan 2007-2013 is divided between the EU co-funded operational programme and the national seafood development operational programme. The EU co-funded OP commenced in 2008 with the implementation of the decommissioning scheme and grant aid totalling €36.6 million has already been paid over 2008 and 2009 for the decommissioning of 46 boats. Following concerns expressed by DG Environment of the European Commission, it was agreed not to include an aquaculture development measure in the EU co-funded operational programme.

The national seafood development operational programme 2007-2013 draft was advertised for public consultation in October 2008 as part of the strategic environmental assessment. During the consultation both the Departments of Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Communications, Energy and Natural Resources on behalf of the Central Fisheries Board raised concerns regarding the granting of aid to projects where environmental issues arise relating to compliance with the EU birds and habitats directives and sea lice control on salmon farms. Pending resolution of these issues, the national seafood development operational programme has not yet been adopted.

The Deputy has raised the funding of the aquaculture sector specifically. The delay in the launch of the national seafood development OP has not prevented grant aid from being provided to aquaculture developments in 2009. The European Commission agreed to the continuation of grant aid under the previous operational programme 2000 to 2006 until 30 June 2009.

A provision of €5 million was made available for aquaculture development in the Agriculture Vote for 2009 and I approved the spending of €4.5 million of this for aquaculture projects in both the Border, midlands and western and the southern and eastern regions. This support has assisted the continued development of aquaculture projects in these areas and the employment that those projects support.

In the meantime, this Department and its agencies working with the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government developed a comprehensive plan to deliver compliance with the EU birds and habitat directives for wild fisheries and aquaculture over a determined timeframe. This plan was submitted to DG Environment for consideration and on 13 May 2009 a meeting between this Department, the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, relevant agencies and DG Environment took place in Brussels to discuss the plan with a view to securing DG Environment's support for the approach set down in the plan. DG Environment advised at that time that it was, in principle, favourably disposed towards Ireland's plan, subject to a positive response to the issues raised and further clarifications from the Irish authorities on the details of the plan. However, it has recently advised that it remains concerned about the planned approach to delivering compliance for aquaculture licensing. The most recent views of DG Environment are being examined.

In relation to the concerns of the Central Fisheries Board, a meeting at ministerial level was held in June between this Department and the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. Following the preparation and consideration of a follow-up report, I intend to engage with Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, who has responsibility for inland fisheries, with a view to agreeing an approach that will give the necessary assurances to that Department so that it can withdraw its objection to the operational programme.

I will continue to work closely with all parties to drive both processes forward to deliver on and further develop the strategic change necessary to support Ireland's aquaculture sector.

Schools Building Projects.

Deputy Pat Breen

I am delighted to see my two Government colleagues from County Clare are present to support me in the Chamber tonight. Such is their enthusiasm that I know they will give strong support to the project and facilitate a meeting between the Minister and a group from Quin so that we can get the extension to the school.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for facilitating me in raising this matter in the House tonight. Quin national school is in urgent need of an extension to cater for the increased number of pupils, in particular, in the interest of the children's education and for health and safety reasons. The school was originally built in 1960 and has had no extension to its facilities since 1980 when an extra classroom, general purpose room and a staff room were built. In the meantime, the population of Quin has soared. There was a 32.3% increase in population between the 2002 and 2006 census.

In 2001, the application for major capital works was commenced under the former principal, Tomás Ó Síocháin. In October 2005, an application was lodged with the Department of Education and Science. In 2006, a technical visit was granted and the Department acknowledged that it would review the accommodation for a principal and 12 teachers. Since then the entire process has come to a standstill. When I raised the matter in the House with the Minister on the 19 June 2008 he said that a technical visit had not taken place but indicated that he would arrange a visit in the near future when resources allowed and when the project was ready to progress through the programme. When the technical visit failed to take place, I raised the issue with the Minister again on 8 October 2008. At that time the Minister changed his mind and could not give a timeframe for the further progression of the project.

Last Monday, I visited the school and saw the conditions for myself in which the principal, Ms Anne Fitzpatrick, and her colleagues have to teach children every day. They do an excellent job under trying conditions. There are 224 pupils in the school and they currently have only four mainstream classrooms for nine mainstream teachers. They have no rooms for three special education teachers, which means that two of the teachers work in prefabs and one teacher has to use the staff room. The situation is intolerable. The office of the school principal is a cloakroom.

I saw the classrooms in the main building where 29 to 30 children were cramped into tiny rooms. As far as I am concerned, overcrowding is a health and safety issue and it cannot be allowed to continue. The general purpose and storage facilities are almost non-existent at the school. The school operates with seven prefabs and the pupils and their teachers get drenched on a regular basis moving from one building to another. They have applied for another prefab. However, currently there is no place to put it and the only option appears to be to send 15 staff members to a tiny cloakroom to make room for it when it is provided.

More than €500,000 has been spent by the Minister on temporary accommodation to date. How much more will be spent given the likelihood of other prefabs being required up to 2013? That money would go a long way towards covering the cost of the extension at the school and would provide much needed work for the construction industry. The other problem facing the school is that by 2013 it might have to turn children away. Even accounting for a slowdown in the construction sector, it is estimated that the school will have to cater for 310 children by 2013.

Another big problem for the school is that most of its minor works grant is swallowed up by the constant need to maintain an old building. That building is damp, outdated and has electrical and sewerage problems. In 2009, it received a minor works grant of €8,793.00 and to date it has spent €18,517.00 on remedial works. Quin has a vibrant community sector and the local school has an active and hard working board of management. It has raised approximately €220,000 from the local community to purchase and develop a field to provide additional recreational facilities and to assist with the extension of the school.

Staff, pupils and parents are totally disillusioned and fed up waiting for this extension to be given the green light. I hope the Minister will shed some light on the issue tonight, given the presence of my two colleagues. While teachers are made to teach in intolerable conditions in schools such as the one in Quin, €386 million remains unspent by the Department in the schools building capital allocation programme. There is no excuse, therefore, why the project cannot be progressed.

I appeal to my colleagues, to the Minister of State, Deputy Barry Andrews, and to the Minister for Education and Science, to meet with the teachers and the board of management. They should listen to their valid case and give the children and people of Quin the extension they deserve and not leave them in the poor conditions that they have had to put up with in recent years. This is a very important project.

Deputy Barry Andrews

I am happy to reply on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe,who, unfortunately, cannot be present. He has asked me to acknowledge Deputy Breen’s considerable input into this issue and that of the Minister of State, Deputy Tony Killeen, and Deputy Timmy Dooley, who are also present.

I thank the Deputy for raising the matter as it provides me with the opportunity to outline to the Dáil the Government's strategy for capital investment in education projects and also to outline the current position on Scoil na Mainistreach in particular. In March 2001, Scoil na Mainistreach applied to the Department for an extension comprising one classroom, a resource room, a learning support room, a library, a medical room and a staff room.

The school has a current staffing level of a principal and seven mainstream teachers, plus one developing post. It also has the services of three learning support-resource teachers. Its current accommodation consists of five mainstream permanent classrooms, three prefabricated mainstream classrooms plus some ancillary accommodation. The school was recently approved for funding for the provision of additional accommodation for one mainstream classroom.

As the Deputy will be aware, all applications for capital funding are assessed in the planning and building unit of the Department. The assessment process determines the extent and type of need presenting based on the demographics of an area, proposed housing developments, condition of buildings and site capacity, leading ultimately to an appropriate accommodation solution. As part of that process, a project is assigned a band rating under published prioritisation criteria for large-scale building projects. Those criteria were devised following consultation with the education partners.

Projects are selected for inclusion in the school building and modernisation programme on the basis of priority of need. That is reflected in the band rating assigned to a project. In other words, a proposed building project moves through the system commensurate with the band rating assigned to it. There are four band ratings overall, of which band one is the highest and band four the lowest. Band one projects, for example, include the provision of buildings where none currently exist, but where there is a high demand for pupil places, while a band four project makes provision of desirable but not necessarily urgent or essential facilities. Each band rating has a number of sub-categories which more specifically describe the type of works needed and the urgency attaching to them.

The application from Scoil na Mainistreach has been assigned a band rating of 2.2. That reflects the fact that a school has a deficit of mainstream accommodation which constitutes a significant proportion of the schools overall accommodation needs but that the condition of the existing accommodation is adequate. As the Deputy will appreciate, modernising facilities in our existing building stock as well as the need to respond to emerging needs in areas of rapid population growth are a significant challenge. The Government has shown a consistent determination to improve the condition of our school buildings and to ensure that the appropriate facilities are in place to enable the implementation of a broad and balanced curriculum. However, the level of demand on the school building programme is such that all projects cannot be carried out together. They will have to be carried out over time in a structured and coherent manner and that is the reasoning behind the Department's published prioritisation criteria. The project for Scoil na Mainistreach will be carried out consistent with that approach. In the intervening period, the school can apply for temporary accommodation to meet its needs if that is necessary. I again thank the Deputy for raising the matter and assure him that the Minister is committed to advancing the project.

The Dáil adjourned at 9.20 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday, 3 November 2009.