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Seanad Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 27 Feb 2019

Vol. 264 No. 1

Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters

School Building Projects Applications

I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills, Deputy Halligan.

I, too, welcome the Minister of State and thank him for taking time out of his busy schedule to deal with this matter. It concerns a school that has over 350 pupils and 75% of the accommodation of which consists of prefabs. I was in it in the last two weeks and in quite a number of the rooms there were clear marks on the ceilings where water was coming in. The process of applying through the Department of Education and Skills for a new school building dates back over 14 years. Full planning permission was obtained for the existing site. As Carraig Na bhFear is within ten miles of Cork city, the view is that it is going to grow substantially in the next ten to 15 years. Therefore, the need for forward planning needs to be kept in mind in developing a new school.

The board of management and those in charge of working out the details of building a new school came to the conclusion that if they went ahead with the project for which they had received planning, in the not too distant future the school would not be of sufficient size to deal with the growing population and that it would not be possible to expand it further because the site would be surrounded on all sides. On one side it is bordered by the public road, while on all others it is bounded by housing. Therefore, they decided the school should move to a new site.

It was therefore decided to move to a new site which was acquired with the assistance of the purchase of some land from a community development group, some land from the GAA and some land from a private source. As a result, there is a far better site on which it will be possible to accommodate good facilities adjoining the school. The problem is that the proposal has been submitted to the Department which must give consent for an application for planning permission on the site. It is in that context that I am asking the question this morning. The board of management is very concerned about the current state of the school where more than 70% of the accommodation is provided in prefabs. There are 350 students at the school and more than 50 staff members, which includes provision for children who need that extra support. It is important that we try to move on with the project at an early date.

On behalf of the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy McHugh, I thank Senator Colm Burke for raising this important matter. It provides me with the opportunity to outline to the Seanad the current position in relation to the major building project for Scoil an Athar Tadhg national school. The project is included in the six-year construction programme for 2016 to 2021 which was announced in November 2015. The brief for the project is to provide a new two-storey, 16-classroom school with a five-classroom autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, unit. The board of management of the school is the client for the project and is fully responsible for directing the design team on progress through the design stages of architectural planning. The board has made a number of changes to the brief over the past ten years and this has resulted in significant delays in advancing the project and bringing it to site.

In October 2009, a proposed exchange of the greenfield site for the current school site which had been advanced by the board of management was deemed to be no longer a viable proposition. The reappointment of the design team was then required following a changed brief to accommodate the new school on the existing school site. A replacement civil and structural engineer and replacement quantity surveyor also had to be appointed in June 2011 following the withdrawal of the original consultants from the design team. In March 2016, the board of management requested a further brief change, which included an increase in floor area, at an additional cost of over €2 million. This brief change was approved by my Department in August 2016.

Based on the 2016 brief, the project reached the end of stage 2b in early 2017 and would then have been ready for progression to tender stage. However, in June 2017, the board of management wrote to the Department requesting a meeting to discuss the possibility of a new greenfield site which the board of management was proposing as an alternative site for this building project. Following a meeting between the school's representatives and the Department in January 2018, the Department agreed to facilitate the school and its design team to submit a report on the viability of moving to the new alternative site. The report submitted to my Department in June 2018 included details of a pre-planning meeting with Cork County Council which took place on 30 May 2018. Following a review of the report, the Department authorised the school and its design team to submit a revised stage 2a, developed sketch scheme, submission based on the proposals for the new site. The stage 2a submission has recently been received in my Department and a stage 2a stakeholders' meeting is taking place today. At the meeting, the design team will make a presentation of the proposals to the Department. As soon as the stage 2a submission can be approved, my Department will be in a position to authorise the board of management to proceed with the new planning application which is now required due to the board's proposal to move the project to an alternative site. I hope that clarifies matters for the Senator. I believe the meeting is taking place as we speak. Hopefully, we will be able to move forward over the next couple of weeks to bring the project to a conclusion.

I thank the Minister of State. I appreciate the detailed reply very much and accept that the Department has worked well to try to progress the matter. It is important to acknowledge that there will be a saving with the new project in the following sense. If the school was to be built on the existing site, quite a number of prefabs would have to be moved to a new site while the building work was in progress. In going to a new site, this will not now have to happen. While I acknowledge today's meeting, my concern is about the timeline for proceeding to planning, which will take three to four months. I ask the Minister of State for some clarification in that regard. Will consent for the board of management to apply for planning be forthcoming from the Department within the next two weeks? That is the clarification the interested parties seek.

As I said, a stage 2a submission has recently been received, albeit I am not sure on what date. In any event, it is pretty new. The design team will make a presentation to the Department. I acknowledge that the Senator submitted a Commencement matter on 5 February 2019, which was not selected. The Department tells me that after the meeting today the submission will be assessed and I believe the Department will be in a position to authorise the board of management to proceed with the new planning application in a short time. I acknowledge the length of time this has taken to date and the board of management's consideration of a new application and change of site. The Department has been very efficient in moving project stages forward at all times and is determined to get the project up and running as soon as possible. Following today's meeting, I think we will see progress within a number of weeks. I will go back to the Department immediately and ensure the Senator is informed of what happens at today's meeting and how matters are developing.

I thank the Minister of State.

Immigration Status

I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality, Deputy Stanton, to the House. I seek an extension of the current regulation around stamp 2 and stamp 4. I know someone who came to Ireland as a student in 2003 on the stamp 2 programme. The person went to college to follow courses in hotel management and business studies and has studied various other courses since. The person has been working on stamp 2 for the last number of years and applied for a visa to remain in the State. A programme for people like this was introduced in 2018 but it was from 2005 onwards and, having come to the State in 2003, the person did not qualify. The person's skills are not on the critical skills visa permit list and so the person is not eligible under that scheme either. While the relevant stamp 2 permission was extended in March 2018 for 18 months, the person has been in Ireland for 15 years and contributed to society, including through taxes. The person to whom I refer is very involved in voluntary organisations and has contributed to the community. Notwithstanding the charitable deeds performed, the person is being told that once the 18 months are up, there will be a requirement to leave Ireland. I ask for a review of the case or an extension of the programme for stamp 2 holders back to 2003. A few people are affected and they have played their part in Ireland.

We have accepted their taxes for more than 15 years. They paid to come here to be educated here. They have worked their way through it, yet we are telling them that in six months they will have to leave Ireland. It is very worrying for them because they have established themselves here as a member of society and played a fine role in their commitment, not only to the people they work with but also to the community. A review or an extension of the programme back as far as 2003 would be greatly welcomed.

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. The Minister, Deputy Flanagan, who is appearing before a committee this morning, sends his apologies. I welcome the opportunity to address the position regarding the recent special scheme for non-EEA national students.

In October 2018, a new scheme to allow certain non-EEA nationals to apply for permission to remain in the State was launched, as the Senator has outlined. The scheme was open to non-EEA nationals resident in the State who held a valid student permission between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2010, and who had not, in the intervening period, acquired an alternative immigration permission, to apply for permission to remain in the State.

The scheme addressed a significant cohort of people who had been in the State for a number of years and who form part of the undocumented persons in the State, having moved from a position of having permission to be in the State some years ago to having fallen out of permission. The scheme provides that permission will be granted for an initial probationary period of two years. This permission allows successful applicants to remain in the State including the right to reside and work in the State and will be subject to renewal after two years.

The Senator may not be aware that this is not the first such immigration scheme introduced by the Minister in respect of students. The Irish National Immigration Service, INIS, previously introduced a student scheme in 2012, available to persons who had been continuously resident in the State before 2005. It was called the 2004 student probationary extension scheme. Thus this group were specifically considered and dealt with under that scheme. INIS introduced that student scheme to assist in the transition to a new immigration policy regime for full-time students which commenced in January 2011.

As a final measure in assisting the transition to the new regime, the 2012 student probationary extension scheme was made available to non-EEA students who first registered their residence in Ireland as students on or before 31 December 2004 and who had commenced their studies in Ireland by that date. These arrangements allowed eligible students to reside in Ireland for a further period of two years on specified conditions. Some 2,700 individuals qualified under this scheme and were granted permission. In addition, at the conclusion of the two-year probationary period those students were eligible to apply for a more permanent status on condition that certain obligations were fulfilled.

Accordingly, students who came to Ireland prior to 2005, have already had a scheme and pathway made available to them. Consequently, it would not be appropriate for the Minister to duplicate the most recent scheme of 2018 for a group already given the opportunity to regularise their status in 2012.

I might add that other options are available to persons who seek to regularise their situation in the State, particularly in cases where the person fell out of permission through no fault of his or her own.

I was not aware of the prior scheme. Obviously the person about whom I am speaking was probably not aware of it at the time and missed the application date. There are other options and I will certainly explore those. Is there any way for this case to be reviewed or considered? This person has contributed financially by paying tax and in the community. This is a very fine and upstanding person who has contributed much. Is there any way for their case to be reviewed if they did not apply in time when the scheme was opened in 2011?

There are a number of ways in which people can regularise their status. I will arrange for those methods to be transmitted to the Senator so that she can ascertain if there is a way for this person to receive status.

I repeat that students who came to Ireland prior to 2005 have already had access to a scheme to regularise their immigration status. That has been done. I understand that somebody might not have known about it and missed out. The most recent scheme for non-EEA students was devised to address a cohort of long-term residents who arrived in the State between January 2005 and December 2010 and who, after initially holding a valid student permission, fell out of residence permission. We are doing this on a case-by-case basis.

These timed-out students who arrived in the State as students prior to 2005 were previously provided with an opportunity to regularise themselves under the 2004 student probation extension which commenced in August 2012. This scheme allowed those non-EEA nationals, who registered their student permission or commenced studies in the State on or before 31 December 2004 and who had maintained their residence permission as a student since initial registration in the State, to make an application to INIS for a further residence permission. Those who met the qualifying criteria were granted a two-year residence permission. Their status continues to be that of a student. However, during this two-year period they were allowed full access to the labour market. At the conclusion of the two-year probationary period, students were informed they would be eligible to apply for a more permanent status on condition that certain obligations to be fulfilled.

It would not be appropriate for the Minister to duplicate the most recent scheme for a group already given the opportunity to regularise their status in 2012. I will arrange for the details to be sent to the Senator. Following that, if she wants to communicate with the Minister's office, there may be ways of doing things. Not knowing the situation in this case, I cannot comment further.

Public Services Card

I thank the Cathaoirleach for selecting this item. I welcome the Minister of State to the House. This relates to the need for the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to make a statement on whether the public services card should be an acceptable form of identification in opening a bank account. I have received representations from people living in rural areas as well as vulnerable elderly people seeking alternatives when opening a bank account owing to the closure of rural post offices with which the Minister of State will be very familiar given that he represents a rural community.

Particularly when rural post offices close, people are being asked to have alternative arrangements to have their pensions or whatever to be transferred through a bank. A particular elderly lady from Galway contacted me. She has no passport and will not have a need for one. She does not think it is right that she should have to spend €75 getting one as a form of identification to open a bank account, in effect to arrange for her pension to be transferred into a bank account where there are no facilities, no ATMs, nothing.

The Minister of State will be very aware of this from his constituency. The public services card, PSC, is a card issued by the Government which verifies a person's identity. I know it is not necessarily a national ID card. There was much debate at the time on that issue. Many people were opposed to it and some people were in favour of it. It is an issue of the status of the card and whether it can be used as an official identification rather than people being required to go and apply for a driving licence which an elderly person would not have. In this case the woman does not drive. She does not have a passport, does not see a need for the passport and feels there should be a verifiable alternative.

A considerable amount of money was spent on developing the public services card. Can this be used as an official ID for this purpose? I would like to hear the Minister of State's view. It is a real issue of particular concern for people in rural communities and vulnerable elderly people. As a result of the shutdown of the post offices this issue has really come into focus.

Under current legislation, a public services card cannot be requested by any public or private body or person that is not designated as a specified body in Schedule 5 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, as amended. Currently, the PSC can only be used by public bodies specified in this legislation when conducting a public transaction with the person concerned.

One of the provisions set out in section 5 of the Social Welfare, Pensions and Civil Registration Bill 2017 would, if enacted, enable citizens to volunteer their PSC where they wish to use it as a form of proof of identity and-or age. However, it is important to note that a non-specified body could not request or demand the production of a PSC. It simply gives individuals the option to use their PSC if they wished, as proof of identity and-or age, in transactions with non-specified bodies. It is clear from customer feedback that PSC holders should be allowed to volunteer the card to non-specified bodies if it suits them to do so, for the purposes of ID verification. Customers often report that private companies insist on a State-issued photographic ID such as a passport or driver's licence which they might not have and which attracts a cost. In contrast, the PSC is free of charge.

This proposal provides, therefore, for the card be accepted as a form of identity verification by a private sector organisation or non-specified body, but only at the sole discretion of the cardholder.

The Social Welfare, Pensions and Civil Registration Bill 2017 proposes a number of amendments to the Social Welfare Acts, the Pensions Act 1990 and the Civil Registration Act 2004 in addition to provisions relating to the use of public services cards. The proposed amendments to the Pensions Act contain a number of key measures relating to defined benefit pension schemes. It is intended that these measures will act to support existing provisions in the Act by providing for further protection for scheme members' benefits and enhancing employers' responsibility for their schemes. These provisions, in particular, are very technical and involve complex policy issues. In order to achieve a resilient solution, it has, therefore, been necessary to consult in detail with other Departments and obtain numerous legal opinions. When these matters have been resolved and the amendments are approved by Government, an early date for Committee Stage will be requested.

I know what the Minister of State is saying but he is not telling us very much. I accept the Government is considering amendments and that the matter is complex. In essence, the Minister of State is telling me that it is a voluntary arrangement with the cardholder. However, there is no comfort there for these rural people. They have no IDs and are being forced as an unintended consequence to apply for a passport. This means an 80 or a 90 year old lady must pay €75 for a passport as a form of ID. We do not have a national ID card system in Ireland and, as such, there is no alternative. I must write to this lady today to tell her there is no comfort and that she will have to spend €75. It is a disgrace.

This matter should be looked at. As a Deputy from a rural constituency, the Minister of State should take the matter on and champion it personally as it is a very important issue. We have no form of ID for thousands of people who are being told to go through the process of applying for a passport to prove their identities. I ask the Minister of State to consider pursuing the matter on foot of the genuine concern here. These are not the people who are kicking up and roaring and screaming every day of the week. They are elderly people in rural communities who have suffered the consequences of the closure of post offices.

What the Senator says is very reasonable and I have no difficulty with the points he makes. They are eminently sensible and I will certainly advance the matter with my colleague, the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, on whose behalf I am taking this matter. What I read to the House suggests a provision has been made, provided the person consents to it being used as an ID card. Certainly, I will get more clarity on that from the Minister and see how we can progress the matter. The Senator has made a valid and reasonable request.

Primary Care Centres Provision

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, for coming to the House this morning to address this matter. I seek an update on the development of a primary care centre in Ballaghaderreen, County Roscommon. As a person from Ballaghaderreen and as a healthcare professional, I cannot emphasise enough the need to develop this primary care centre in our town to deliver enhanced health services locally. We all know this is important from the development of primary care centres across the country where people have, rightly, been able to access quality healthcare close to where they live. The current health centre in Ballaghaderreen is not fit for purpose and the development of a modern, professional space is required to deliver services in our area. Local people should be able to access a wide range of services, including GP services, public health nursing, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, counselling, clinical nutrition advice and mental health services under one roof in a modern, purpose-built setting.

I have been working on this issue for some time and believe strongly in the need for the development. Last October, the HSE was in the final stages of agreeing a schedule of accommodation and a floor plan for the centre. I hope the Minister of State can provide an update in this regard and that we have progressed further than the position in October. Health services locally are under huge pressure and it is important to deliver the primary care centre. However, a building is just that. We must also see increased capacity to support people who need to access our health services locally.

I thank the Senator for raising this matter of significance and personal importance for her as a person from Ballaghaderreen. The HSE has responsibility for the provision, maintenance and operation of primary care centres and other primary care facilities. I am happy to inform the Senator that I have received a positive update from the HSE on the proposed primary care centre for Ballaghaderreen. The centre will be delivered under the operational lease mechanism whereby the HSE leases the accommodation from the developer selected to build the centre to the HSE's specifications. Preparatory work is progressing to agree the lease to be entered between the HSE and the selected developer. The HSE advises that the schedule of accommodation to which the Senator referred has been agreed for the proposed centre, which will be located on the Roscommon Road at the site of the current doctor's surgery. I understand agreement on a floor plan is at the final stages and that planning permission will be applied for once it is agreed. It is hoped that this will be secured by the end of June this year. As I am sure the Senator will appreciate, it is not possible to provide an estimated operational date until planning permission is secured.

The expansion of community and primary care is at the heart of the Sláintecare vision. As Minister of State with responsibility for mental health and older people, I share the commitment of the Minister for Health to ensuring people get the care they need as close to home as possible and have access to a greater range of health and social care services within their communities. In this respect, Senator Hopkins will welcome the investment in primary care in County Roscommon. When the Ballaghaderreen centre comes on stream, it will be in addition to the five primary care centres already operational in the county at Boyle, Monksland, Castlerea, Roscommon and Strokestown. Our investment in Roscommon reflects the Government's determination to develop the primary care sector. There are now 126 primary care centres in operation across the country, 18 of which became operational in 2018. In addition, there are approximately 80 other locations where primary care infrastructure is either being developed or is at advanced or early planning stages. Of these, 12 centres are expected to become operational in 2019. We must and will continue to invest in the development of primary care centres in both urban and rural areas nationally to enhance and expand the capacity in the sector to deliver high quality, integrated care to people in their own communities.

I thank the Minister of State for the update. While it is positive that work is progressing, I emphasise that every effort must be made to ensure there are no delays in the delivery of the centre. In fact, I cannot overemphasise the importance of the centre to the region nor can I overemphasise the need for capacity provision, which means increased staffing allocations. By way of an update on the location for those who are interested in the development of the primary care centre in Ballaghaderreen, I understand that it will be located on the Convent Road outside the town and not on the Roscommon Road at the current doctor's surgery. That is important. As the Minister of State said, the project needs to go through the planning and other stages. As such, every effort must be made by the HSE and the Department to facilitate its delivery as quickly as possible.

Sitting suspended at 11.10 a.m. and resumed at 11.30 a.m.
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