Ceisteanna Parlaiminte

English Language Training Organisations

Bríd Smith

199. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to ensure that representatives of teachers in English language teaching colleges are represented and heard at the Covid-19 working group for the English language education sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8732/20]

English Language Training Organisations

Bríd Smith

200. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the Department responsible for the Covid-19 working group for the English language education sector has sought or will seek the opinions and input of teachers in the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8733/20]

Employment Rights

Bríd Smith

444. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation if the WRC or other body will take action or investigate employers that are implementing unilateral pay cuts often while availing of the temporary wage subsidy scheme but insisting their employers work normal weekly hours, as a result of which is resulting in new hourly rates that are below the national minimum wage or agreed sectoral hourly rates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8713/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Bríd Smith

690. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health his views on calls to facilitate visits by relatives and loved ones to the elderly in residential settings, for example, by using outdoor areas and timetabled visits with at least one or two family members per week; if he will request that nursing home managers prioritise planning to allow for such visits in the immediate future in view of the trauma inflicted on residents during the lockdown; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9326/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Bríd Smith

691. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the date on which his Department received the HIQA report containing a list of nursing homes which it was of the view might struggle with the Covid-19 crisis; the actions taken on foot of this; if direct contact was made with these residential settings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9327/20]

National Public Health Emergency Team

Bríd Smith

692. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the membership of the NPHET committee from its first meetings on Covid-19 in January 2020 to date; the persons added to the committee and when in each case; the reason for their inclusion; and the record of attendance of such persons at subsequent meetings of the committee. [9328/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Bríd Smith

693. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health his plans to ensure nursing homes, especially those in which there were clusters of Covid-19 cases and deaths, will meet HIQA standards, for example, in infection control in the coming months; the steps which will be taken to ensure adequate staffing levels, trained personnel and medical care are in place before the winter and a possible second wave or flu virus arrives; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9329/20]

Private Rented Accommodation

Bríd Smith

1190. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1342 of 20 May 2020, if he will clarify the role and function of the RTB in enforcing the emergency legislation that sought to provide protection for all tenants from eviction during the period of the Covid-19 crisis; and the reason the RTB is refusing to support tenants facing evictions or the withholdings of deposits during the Covid-19 crisis due to the fact their tenancies are not covered by the 2004 Act, when such evictions are in clear breach of the emergency legislation which a previous response made clear extended to all tenancies even those not covered by the 2004 Act. [8731/20]

Visa Applications

Bríd Smith

330. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the impact on applicants that need or seek a new or renewed visa application after 20 May 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7197/20]

National Maternity Hospital

Bríd Smith

519. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health his views on the recent transfer of land earmarked for the development of the new national maternity hospital by an organisation (details supplied); if the land will be owned by the State or owned by an organisation and leased by the State; if it is leased, the terms and duration of the lease; and if the organisation will have a mandate or influence in respect of the ethos of the hospital. [7140/20]

Health and Safety Inspections

Bríd Smith

630. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the interventions made by his Department and the HSE in meat processing plants in relation to the Covid-19 outbreak; and the inspections undertaken by public health bodies in these plants [8197/20]

Hospitals Data

Bríd Smith

631. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the number of patients released from acute hospitals to residential nursing homes since January 2020; if a protocol was in place in relation to Covid-19 in the transfer of these patients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8198/20]

Free Travel Scheme

Bríd Smith

915. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will provide the details of road passenger transport operators that received payments in respect of the acceptance of the free travel pass on their bus services; and the list of routes for which these operators received payment for 2019. [7432/20]

Maternity Benefit

Bríd Smith

1008. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the estimated cost of extending maternity leave to all women currently on leave or who were on leave prior to the passing of the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 for three months or until that legislation is revoked [8122/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment

Bríd Smith

1009. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason for stopping the Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment to residents in direct provision centres who lost their jobs as a result of the crisis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8123/20]

Company Closures

Bríd Smith

1010. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the actions she plans to take regarding the closure of a business (details supplied); and if changes in legislation are planned to prevent employers taking similar actions in the months ahead specifically in respect of redundancy legislation and the provisions of the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003. [8124/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Supports

Bríd Smith

57. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance the number of workers on the WSS whose earnings are below €205 and €350, respectively. [6156/20]

Property Tax Collection

Bríd Smith

83. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance if he will instruct the Revenue Commissioners to defer collection of the LPT from those affected by the Covid-19 crisis, that is, those on the pandemic unemployment payment or in the wage subsidy scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5959/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Supports

Bríd Smith

84. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance the number of employers, registered for tax purposes as offshore, that have availed of the wage subsidy scheme; and the cost of the scheme in these cases. [5960/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Supports

Bríd Smith

85. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance the number of transnational corporations availing of the wage subsidy scheme; the number of their employees on the scheme; and the sectors of industry in which they operate. [5961/20]

Departmental Contracts

Bríd Smith

86. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance if payments or expenses are being paid to a person (details supplied) for services provided during the Covid-19 crisis to the Government and An Taoiseach. [5962/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Supports

Bríd Smith

92. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance the number of employees who have been placed on the wage subsidy scheme and whose earnings are below €350 from this scheme and are not in receipt of any top-up from their employer; and the amount of weekly subsidy these workers receive from the scheme in bands below €350 (details supplied). [6158/20]

Third Level Education

Bríd Smith

254. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a series of matters will be clarified regarding the situation in respect of third level courses such as social care studies that require students to finish placements of up to 800 hours in a workplace (details supplied). [6266/20]

Direct Provision System

Bríd Smith

438. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number and causes of deaths in direct provision and emergency accommodation centres in 2019 and to date in 2020, in line with the recommendations of the 2020 report by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. [5896/20]

Direct Provision System

Bríd Smith

440. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of positive Covid-19 cases and clusters in direct provision centres; and the number of these occurring in new centres opened specifically as a response to the Covid-19 crisis. [5971/20]

Direct Provision System

Bríd Smith

441. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the safeguards and oversights in place to protect direct provision residents who are forced to self-isolate; and if dietary and other needs at a centre (details supplied) have been deemed as suitable for residents self-isolating. [5972/20]

Health and Safety Inspections

Bríd Smith

570. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her plans to ensure the HSA can carry out on-site inspections of workplaces as a result of complaints from workers over unsafe practices in regard to Covid-19; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5969/20]

Health and Safety Inspections

Bríd Smith

571. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her plans to empower the HSA to close down workplaces that are in breach of Covid-19 safety guidelines and ensure the protection of employees; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5970/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment

Bríd Smith

594. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation her views on cases in which workers are told their company is accessing the WSS and in which this results in a payment significantly below the PUP €350 or the regular jobseeker’s payment due to the fact the calculation is based on earnings for January and February 2020 and the workers concerned may have had little net earnings due to the fact their work is seasonal in nature; the remedy open to workers in this situation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6154/20]

Covid-19 Tests

Bríd Smith

712. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health if positive cases of Covid-19 were identified in a facility (details supplied) among residents in the direct provision system by the HSE; and if so, the date on which these were confirmed or suspected as Covid-19 cases. [5966/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Bríd Smith

713. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the location and date of the first Covid-19 positive cases identified in residential nursing homes. [5967/20]

Covid-19 Pandemic

Bríd Smith

714. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the interventions made by the HSE and the HPSC in direct provision centres, specifically on-site visits or inspections of these sites by public health teams and staff. [5968/20]

Wage Subsidy Scheme

Bríd Smith

1178. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of workers who have been placed on the wage subsidy scheme but also informed or have had to apply for supplementary welfare payments due to the fact that their earnings on the scheme are too low. [6155/20]

Wage Subsidy Scheme

Bríd Smith

1243. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of persons who have applied for SWA since March 2020; and the number of those that are on the wage subsidy scheme. [6157/20]

Private Rented Accommodation

Bríd Smith

1342. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if the RTB should hear cases from tenants who have had their deposits retained by landlords or other disputes, who are not in tenancies covered by the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 but who have faced issues of eviction and non-refunding of deposits (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5963/20]

Emergency Accommodation Provision

Bríd Smith

1343. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of units for emergency accommodation currently being used in hotel settings. [5965/20]

Departmental Communications

Bríd Smith

25. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he or his officials have been lobbied or received a representation from the Chinese Embassy in relation to the use of the Convention Centre in Dublin by a group (details supplied); and the reason for the refusal of the centre to host the show. [4161/20]

Help-To-Buy Scheme

Bríd Smith

55. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Finance if persons that had previously a history of having purchased a home but that have since relinquished a holding in the property with no financial gain will be considered for the help-to-buy scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4165/20]

Visa Applications

Bríd Smith

347. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the documents that are uniquely required for the category of short-stay spousal visa in circumstances in which an Irish citizen and his or her spouse are making a visa application online; the financial amount considered sufficient for the applicant and the person concerned or a sponsor (details supplied) to have at the time of application; the way in which the applicant can satisfy the State via documentation or statements that he or she is obliged to return to the applicant's country of origin after the visit; and if qualifications such as university qualifications and language certificates such as the international English language testing system, IELTS, affect the likelihood of obtaining a visa. [4204/20]

Cancer Screening Programmes

Bríd Smith

526. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health the laboratories and companies that will conduct the new HPV testing for cervical cancer screening; if more than one company is involved; the expected percentage of the overall testing to be done by each laboratory concerned; the location of the laboratories and institutions concerned; his plans to repatriate the service fully here; and the criteria and the weight given to costs in awarding the contracts to the laboratories and companies. [4239/20]

Just Transition Commissioner

Bríd Smith

998. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he is satisfied with the resourcing of the office of the Just Transition Commissioner and team in terms of finance, budget and staffing; his views on whether the role which is part-time should be full-time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4861/20]

Childcare Services

Bríd Smith

1086. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of early years practitioners that participated in the Better Start CDP initiative in 2019; the number of practitioners that paid for their attendance; the rate of pay they received; and the amount spent on the initiative. [3088/20]