I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I am taking this Topical Issue debate on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. As the Deputy will be aware, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitisation is the lead-Department on protected disclosure legislation and provides guidance on all protected disclosure processes and guidance. Section 21(1) of the Protected Disclosures Act in Ireland empowers the Minister for public expend…

On behalf of the Minister of Health, who I am taking this on behalf of, I thank the Deputy again for raising this matter. The Department of Health encourages all staff to speak up and raise any concerns they may have relating to potential wrongdoings in the workplace. The Department provides the necessary supports for any staff member who raises any possible wrongdoings. A staff member who makes a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act is protected from penalisation or threatened penalisation. The…

I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley. I was speaking to him this morning in advance of the debate. He sends his apologies. He has to attend a meeting with the UK fisheries minister this morning. He will be in direct contact with the Deputy in the coming days on the matter. I hope that provides some level of reassurance. I will deal with the answer now, but at the top, it was important to make that point. I stress that the Government is f…

I again thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. As I already stated, I am taking it on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, who will be in direct contact with the Deputy in the coming days. He would like to have been here to take the debate in his capacity as the Minister of State with responsibility for this area but had a prior arrangement to meet the minister for fisheries in the UK. This Government is fully committed to maintaining support for the important inshore fishing sector and prom…

I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the Minister for public expenditure and reform, Jack Chambers TD. The community and voluntary sector plays a vital role in delivering public services across Ireland. Various organisations in the community and voluntary sector are contracted to provide services on behalf of the State and are provided with funding for this purpose. These organisations are not public service bodies, nor are the employees of these organisa…

I again thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. As I have stated, I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for public expenditure and reform, Deputy Chambers. Given how diligent Deputy McGrath is, I have no doubt he has already taken the matter up with the Minister. I ask him to outline the specific circumstances to the Minister directly following the debate. As I mentioned, the community and voluntary sector plays a vital role in delivering essential public services across Ireland. These organ…

We have to welcome anyone from Limerick, so I welcome our visitors. I thank Senator Duffy for raising this important matter. Addressing vacancy and bringing existing properties back into use as homes is a key priority of the Government. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Browne. A key initiative introduced in 2022 under the croí cónaithe towns fund is the vacant properties refurbishment grant, which provides support of up to €50,000 to refurbish vaca…

Having listened carefully to the points raised by the Senator, I will say that the Government is committed to addressing vacancy. The vacant property refurbishment grant has been successful in this regard, along with the other schemes and measures in place. It is supporting bringing properties back into use as homes and the regeneration of villages, towns and cities. The Senator raised a point in respect of the croí cónaithe cities scheme. I will bring his suggestion back to the Minister and the Department. I sugge…

I thank Senator Boyhan for raising this very important matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I am glad to have the opportunity to discuss the future of social housing PPP bundle 3, the individual project at Ardrew in Athy, County Kildare, and the next steps following the recent decision regarding the procurement process. The Government and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are committed to increasing the supply of new-build social and …

I thank the Senator again for raising this very important matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy James Browne. While the decision not to proceed with the original procurement route for PPP bundle 3 was difficult, it was made in the best interest of value for the Exchequer and long-term programme viability. My Department's responsibility is to ensure that every project we deliver is not only aligned with our social objectives but also financially sustai…

I thank Senator O'Loughlin for raising this important matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy James Browne. I wish to clarify that the provision of library services, including the provision of library buildings, is primarily a matter for local authorities in their capacities as library authorities under the Local Government Act 2001. In addition, the libraries capital programme for the period 2018 to 2027 is the responsibility of my colleague, the Minis…

Once again, I thank Senator O'Loughlin for raising this important matter, which I am talking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy James Browne. I understand how genuine Senator O'Loughlin is on this matter. In line with the programme for Government, there was an intention to expand URDF estimates as part of the towns and cities infrastructure investment fund. Arrangements for the implementation of this funding is still under development and will be clarified further once the …

No.

It is not being opposed.

I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "recognises that: — a national policy on adult safeguarding will be introduced for the health and social care sector, as set out in the Programme for Government, and this policy will commit to the development of adult safeguarding legislation for the sector, including nursing homes, and will build on the range of existing legislation, policies, and procedures already in place in the sector for preventing, reporting, and r…

I welcome the opportunity to discuss nursing homes and the care of older people with Members of the Seanad. I acknowledge the "RTÉ Investigates" programme that was broadcast on 4 June. This hard-hitting and harrowing programme highlighted a litany of poor care standards in two nursing homes, showing clear neglect and abuse of older people, namely, The Residence Portlaoise and Beneavin Manor in Glasnevin. The welfare of both the residents and their families was obviously at the forefront of my concerns following the…

The Deputy and I have engaged intensively at the health committee. I will go through the points she raised. With regard to the licensing, there is absolutely a lacuna there at the moment. Within a group of companies, the licensing inspection is on individual nursing homes and who they are run by, but the parent company is not under HIQA's remit. I want that to be changed. There is an acceptance in that regard. In respect of the inspection regime, HIQA does an inspection on the day. When it publishes its report, whi…

Yes.

The context here is quite simple. I always go back to the needs of older persons in nursing homes. What we saw in that programme with the residents in the nursing homes in Portlaoise and Beneavin was wanton neglect and abuse of older people. We want to look at the regulatory system and how we can improve it. All aspects will be considered. This is ultimately about improvements and ensuring that older persons have the right and entitlement to be in nursing homes that are safe. We are working with HIQA to ensure that…

I am grateful for the very good contributions of Senators. I probably will not get to every point but I want to deal with the points as raised. Senator Byrne was first up and said we had a balance in the model. Regulation is key to that, and that is why I want to strengthen the regulation in terms of HIQA to give that reassurance. She asked if funding could be provided to ensure activities for people in nursing homes. We can certainly look at that. Virtually everyone brought up safeguarding. I will give the House t…