Written Answers Nos. 522-538
524. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department, and agencies under the Department’s remit, purchase data on the habits and activities of social media users and other platforms; if so, the reasons for purchasing such data; the amount spent in 2024 and 2025 year to date on such expenditure, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [70858/25]
View answerI thank the Deputy for his question. The Department does not purchase this data.
For detailed information on costs incurred by agencies under the Department's remit, members are advised to contact the agencies directly.
525. Deputy Martin Daly asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current recruitment campaigns for occupational therapy; and the number of posts offered versus filled in each health region over the past 12 months. [70950/25]
View answerAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
526. Deputy Martin Daly asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the measures to support families and carers affected by prolonged delays in accessing occupational therapy for children with additional needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [70955/25]
View answerAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
527. Deputy Donna McGettigan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department will consider an additional emergency winter payment for disabled people, many of whom are struggling to keep up with costs to warm their homes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [70982/25]
View answer528. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the status of the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024. [71020/25]
View answerThe major pieces of legislation in Ireland that are in place to promote and protect the principles of equality and freedom from discrimination include the Employment Equality Acts (1998-2021) and the Equal Status Acts (2000-2018). Following a review of Ireland’s equality legislation, a General Scheme of the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill was approved by Government in November 2024.
This was referred for pre-legislative scrutiny by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Equality. The Committee issued its pre-legislative scrutiny report on the Bill in October, and my officials are currently examining the recommendations in this report while work is ongoing on drafting the bill.
529. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps the Government intends will take to transpose the EU Directives on standards for equality bodies; and the timeframe envisaged. [71021/25]
View answerThe Directives on Standards for Equality Bodies set minimum requirements for the effective and
independent operation of Equality Bodies in a number of key areas, in order to allow them to carry out their work more effectively in all Member States and to ensure a more uniform application of EU equal treatment law.
My officials have participated in expert group meetings and workshops on transposition of these Directives with the European Commission, and are meeting regularly with relevant bodies and departments. Work is ongoing on the preparation of draft Heads. It is expected that legislation to transpose the Directives will be in place by the deadline for transposition in June 2026.
530. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide a schedule in respect of media training, presentation training and general preparedness of Tusla officials relating to appearances Oireachtas committees; and the costs and companies engaged to deliver the training in 2025. [71060/25]
View answerAs your query relates to Tusla operational matters, I have referred your question to Tusla to reply to you directly.
531. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the whole-time equivalent number of HSE-funded occupational therapist posts in Cork city and county in each of the years 2022, 2023 and 2024, and to date in 2025; the number of posts vacant in each of those years; the number of staff who left HSE occupational therapy posts and the number appointed in each year; the resulting vacancy and turnover rates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71071/25]
View answerAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
532. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children and adults on waiting lists for occupational therapy in Cork city and county in each quarter from Q1 2022 to the most recent quarter, broken down by service area (primary care, disability services, older persons, and mental health); the median and longest waiting times in each category; and the assessment of her Department on the impact of occupational therapist vacancies on access to assessment and treatment in Cork. [71072/25]
View answerAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
533. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if the Government has initiated any searches, excavations, or scientific investigations at other former mother and baby homes and county homes where evidence strongly suggests the existence of unmarked mass graves; the timeline for action at each known site; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71104/25]
View answerI am very conscious of hurt felt by survivors and family members of people who died in institutions.
The Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes was established in 2015 to investigate issues associated with Mother and Baby institutions, including deaths and burial arrangements. Its findings in relation to each institution, including the former institutions in Tuam, Bessborough, Sean Ross Abbey and Castlepollard are set out in its reports.
The Commission confirmed the presence of juvenile remains, buried in a manifestly inappropriate manner, at the site of the former Mother and Baby institution in Tuam.
In 2022 the Government directed the establishment of the Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam to manage and oversee the excavation, recovery, analysis, identification (if possible) and reburial of the children’s remains at the site. The intervention is being carried out under the provisions of the Institutional Burials Act 2022, which provides for the appointment of a Director where the Government is satisfied that burials have taken place and where there is evidence that those burials are manifestly inappropriate.
One of the tragic aspects of the Commission’s findings in relation to the former institution at Bessborough is the uncertainty regarding the burial place of many children who were resident there. The Commission carried out assessments and surveys of the site and spoke to people with information about burials but it was unable to find any evidence of burials of the children who died at Bessborough in the grounds. As no evidence of burial locations was found, the Commission did not consider it feasible to excavate the full available site, which amounts to 60 acres, or indeed the former 200 acre estate, parts of which have now been built on.
As the location of burials is, sadly, unknown, it is not possible to bring forward a proposal to establish an Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention to excavate and recover remains at the Bessborough site. I also understand that there are different views among survivors groups about how the site should be treated.
The Commission used its investigative powers to conduct a forensic archaeological investigation of the children’s burial ground at Sean Ross Abbey. The investigation found that coffined infant human burials were located across the designated burial ground. The Commission was, therefore, of the view that no further investigation was warranted. More recently, the Department provided funding to a local group to conduct a survey of land beside the burial ground, which was not investigated by the Commission. An assessment of that survey found no clear evidence of burials in that area.
In relation to Castlepollard, the Commission stated that it had no reason to doubt that the majority of children who died there are buried in the burial ground on the site. Its investigations included a review of an archaeological assessment, which was carried out for the HSE in 2017.
Given that investigations have not shown evidence of manifestly inappropriate burials at these sites, it is not possible to bring forward a proposal to establish an Office of Director of Authorised intervention for these sites.
As part of the Government Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions, in November 2022, the then Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage wrote to all City and County Councils requesting that Development Plan processes give adequate consideration to incorporating appropriate measures to ensure the protection of unrecorded burial sites associated with an institution.
534. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality why several county homes with documented maternal and infant deaths have been omitted from the redress scheme; if their exclusion will be reviewed; the evidence threshold required for their inclusion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71105/25]
View answerThe Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme provides payments and health benefits to people who spent time in any of the Institutions that were identified by the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation as having a main function of providing sheltered and supervised ante and post-natal facilities to single mothers and their children. The institutions covered by the Payment Scheme are set out in Schedule 1 to the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Act 2023, and include Mother and Baby and County Home institutions.
There are many other institutional settings that existed, including Industrial Schools, Magdalen Laundries, Reformatories, and related institutions. Chapter 2 of the Social History section of the Commission of Investigation report - https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/89e43-chapter-2-institutions/ - details the different types of institutions that existed and whether they could be considered Mother and Baby Institutions.
The Government recognises that there are people who suffered stigma, trauma and abuse in other institutions. If it were to come to light that an institution, in which the State had a regulatory or inspection function, fulfilled a similar function with regard to single women and their children as those included in the Payment Scheme, section 49 of the Act provides that the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure may insert an additional institution into the Schedule.
It should be noted that the Payment Scheme is just one of a large suite of actions being undertaken to respond to the legacy of these institutions under the Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions. Of the seven major commitments set out in the Action Plan, six are now delivered and in place, while the seventh is well underway. Key actions include access to birth information, the services of the Special Advocate and counselling support, all already in place, as well as the ongoing development of a National Centre for Research and Remembrance.
535. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the provisions being made for childcare providers participating in core funding to cover the cost of PRSA contributions.; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71187/25]
View answerI believe that Deputy Moynihan is referring to MyFutureFund.
The introduction of Core Funding in 2022 brought a significant increase in investment for the sector. €259 million of funding was made available for services in year 1 of the scheme, of which €210.8 million was entirely new funding to the sector.
Core Funding has increased annually, now exceeding €390 million for the current and fourth year of the scheme. This is an increase of over 50% since the scheme began in September 2022. The additional funding is supporting further capacity growth, the maintenance of a fee management system to benefit families and significant improvements to pay and conditions in this valued sector.
I was delighted to announce further investment in Core Funding in Budget 2026. The additional funding being made available in 2026 will see the allocation for Core Funding in the next programme year which begins in September 2026 increase to almost €437 million. That is an additional €44 million on the current full year allocation, or an 11% increase.
This increased investment will allow for further increases in capacity across the sector and will support Partner Services in adhering to the fee management conditions of the grant including reductions in the maximum fee caps from September 2026. This will support the sustainability of the sector while maintaining Core Funding affordability measures for families. Full details of Core Funding 2026/2027 will be made available to the sector in 2026.
The Department is supporting the roll-out and implementation of MyFutureFund through sector specific communications in collaboration with the Department of Social Protection.
The base rates in Core Funding have been developed using the various components associated with the cost of delivery of service provision such as; staff pay and conditions, including contact and non-contact time, holiday pay, sick pay and other employer costs such as pension contributions; administrative staff/time and non-staff overhead costs. These components have been factored into the calculation of the budget for Core Funding since the scheme began in 2022.
Although, the cost of delivery components such as improvements to staff pay have been used to derive the base rates the eligible areas of expenditure of the Core Funding grant are much broader. Partner Services can choose how to spend their Core Funding grant in accordance with the approved areas of expenditure outlines in the Funding Agreement.
I have established an Early Learning and Childcare Provider Consultative Forum, to build on the Department’s strong commitment to, and track record in, engaging with stakeholders in the sector through the Department’s advisory, oversight, consultation and research processes. Under the Terms of Reference the Early Learning and Childcare Provider Consultative Forum will discuss policy and operational issues relating to the provision of early learning and childcare services. The Forum will inform members of early learning and childcare developments and invite the views, concerns and suggestions from providers, as appropriate.
In addition to the increased level of Core Funding for year 4 of the scheme and in Budget 2026, there are wider financial supports available from the Department where a service is experiencing financial difficulty or has concerns about their viability, which can be accessed while remaining within Core Funding.
The Department offers Sustainability Funding to services where issue/s have been identified through the Case Management process that have the potential to have serious consequences for their viability. As part of the Case Management process, in which local City or County Childcare Committees (CCCs) assist services with issues and difficulties that arise, the CCC may refer Core Funding Partner Services facing difficulties to Pobal and the Department to be considered for Sustainability Funding.
Sustainability Funding is intended to prevent significant issues that threaten the viability of a service from occurring in first instance, and any service seeking these supports should contact their City or County Childcare Committee.
536. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality for an updated timeline to ratify the second optional protocol of the UNCRC; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71192/25]
View answerThe Government is firmly committed to ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the UNCRC, and work is ongoing to ratify the protocol as soon as possible.
In Irish treaty practice, the State must be in a position to meet the obligations it assumes under the terms of an international agreement from the moment it enters into force. Often it will not be possible for the State to meet these obligations without first taking steps required by domestic law, or otherwise, enabling it to do so.
As work towards ratification of the protocol continues, the State is obliged to ensure that all legislative provisions are in place for it to meet these obligations. Considering this, the Department is seeking the advice of the Office of the Attorney General. As soon as we can proceed with ratification of the Second Optional Protocol, we will do so without delay.
537. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding the future of Liberty Street House in Cork; the steps her Department has taken to prevent its potential closure; her assessment of the impact the loss of this service would have on early intervention and the prevention of youth homelessness in Cork city and county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71220/25]
View answerAs this question relates to operational information held by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, the question has been referred to the Agency to reply directly to the Deputy.
538. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any funding streams are available to upgrade accessibility access in an arts centre (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71229/25]
View answer
