The information session we have provided for is in no way meant to be condescending towards adopted people. It is described as an information session; it is not described as a counselling session, as it is in other jurisdictions. The session is modelled upon the social worker-led approach adopted in other jurisdictions but the key reason the session is included is to provide for the balancing of constitutional rights, namely, the right to information that we are recognising for the first time in this Bill and the r…

I thank the Deputy for the question. As of Sunday, 27 June 2021, there were 6,465 persons accommodated by the International Protection Accommodation Service, IPAS, of my Department across 70 accommodation centres. Of this number, 71%, or 4,564, are being accommodated in centres that provide independent living facilities that include cooking facilities at least. A majority of these enjoy the full suite of independent living requirements, and 33%, or 2,158, have own-door access to their accommodation. In the 46 perma…

The Deputy touched on an important point in that the success of the Government's White Paper is predicated on the ability to process claims for international protection in a far more speedy manner than is currently the case. There is a commitment in this regard by the Department of Justice in terms of its response to the report of Dr. Catherine Day. It is a matter on which I have engaged extensively with the Minister, Deputy McEntee. The Minister of State in the Department of Justice, Deputy James Browne, is curren…

I thank the Deputy for his support for the process. In respect of the White Paper, we are currently setting out the transition team and the programme board. They will set out a clear set of goals as to what we expect to achieve in 2022, 2023 and by the end of 2024. A procurement process is about to be commenced right now in order that we can move away from those 24 emergency direct provision centres, which are the ones that are least likely to have own-door accommodation or cooking facilities. That tender process w…

The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic presented challenges to maintaining the health and safety of residents living in accommodation within the International Protection Accommodation Service, IPAS, as it did for the country as a whole. In order to safeguard our residents, specific measures were put in place by IPAS in close collaboration with the HSE from the outset of the pandemic. These measures were first implemented at the same time as country-wide restrictions were imposed in March and April 2020. IPAS continues …

I thank the Deputy. I am not saying that they are not the responsibility of my Department. They continue to be IPAS applicants and their IPAS space within the direct provision centre is reserved. What I am saying is that in order to take up this particular scheme, it is the HSE which supplies and oversees it and in particular, the HSE oversees the accommodation that is provided. If the Deputy is happy to so do, I ask him to refer to me the complaints about the specific type of accommodation he has come across. I wo…

I thank the Senators. I have spoken in this and the Lower House about my commitment to getting this legislation passed and the mechanisms put in place to support it, including regulations and the website, so we can see delivery of this vital information. As Senator Bacik acknowledged, responsibility for this legislation was transferred to my Department in October last year and it was not initially with my Department when I took on this role. In that nine-month period, I prioritised this legislation again because, a…

I see, understand and recognise the important role of the trade union movement in bringing this legislation to this position where it soon will pass through this House and soon will be sent to the President for signature. I have engaged extensively with trade unions on this and other legislation since I took office. I place real value on that ongoing dialogue with the trade union movement, particularly in the context of issues involving gender in the workplace, be it on the Gender Pay Gap Information Bill; on the l…

As the Senator said, the proposed amendment to section 2 would reduce the reporting exemption from employers with more than 50 employees to employers with more than 20 employees and remove the incremental aspect of the roll-out. We spoke at some length on Committee Stage about the gestation of this Bill and the degree of engagement which took place between previous Ministers, employer organisations, trade unions and NGOs, especially those representing women. An approach was agreed which allowed for an incremental r…

I would not entirely agree with Senator Bacik on the lack of detail in the Bill, particularly when we look at section 20A(1)(a) and 20A(1)(b) and the various criteria. There are eight criteria. Section 20A(4) contains more details on how the regulations will be shaped. I would not entirely agree with the Senator. We have put in quite a significant amount of detail in terms of what will be covered in these regulations. I accept and I take the bona fides of the Senator in terms of her desire to ensure there is a robu…

I am not sure that replacing "may" with "shall", as proposed in this amendment, will have a huge impact in terms of the detail of the running. I do not mean that as a criticism of the points the Senator is making. I spoke briefly on the website, but I note the Senator has another amendment on it. We will be setting up a centralised website. Employers are welcome to publish their gender pay gap data on their own websites if they so wish, but there will be one centralised website, which will probably be the most sign…

As I said on Committee Stage and earlier, there will be a centralised website. That is the most appropriate way in which this information would be conveyed. Whereas I fully understand the proposal in the context of the lack of reference to a website in the primary legislation, I have a concern in regard to what Senator Bacik is seeking to achieve here. I am concerned that in putting in that provision, even if only permissive, it would take away from the importance of the centralised website as the go-to source for …

This amendment to the proposed new section 20A(5) seeks to ensure that the reporting of the gender pay gap information by employers occurs annually. The section as drafted provides some assurances to employers that they will not be required to report more often than annually. However, while it is my intention that such reporting will be done annually, the section as drafted provides that level of flexibility to which I referred earlier and allows for such information to be set out in the regulations rather than the…

The proposed amendment seeks to ensure that the new section 32(5) of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014 will not prejudice the entitlement of IHREC to exercise its powers under section 32 in any such case of its own motion. I confirm to Senators that this amendment is not necessary and that the new section 32(5) will not prejudice the entitlement of IHREC to exercise its powers under section 32 in any such case of its own motion. I stated on Committee Stage that the amendment was not necessary.…

I thank Senators for doing that so expeditiously. I will, as I am sure one or two Senators also will, be heading out onto the streets of Dublin Bay South with the excellent Councillor Claire Byrne. I feel that that name should get a little outing.

I think back to the McKenna judgment and other such judgments. We should have equality of reference here. I thank Senators for their substantive engagement with me on this legislation over the last weeks. This is a significant day. The passing of this legislation is significant in our journey towards gender equality. Senator Pauline O'Reilly said that many Senators have waited all their lives for legislation like this. I think it was said in jest but we have to recognise that it is a factor of Irish life that, in m…

I thank the Deputy for this topic submission and for bringing attention to the incident in which the Pride flag was removed from outside of Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Ballyfermot. We can step back for a moment and remember what the Pride flag symbolises and why Pride celebrations are so important, in terms of promoting the self-affirmation, dignity, equality and increased visibility of all members of the LGBTI+ community in Ireland and beyond. It is those themes that the Government seeks to implement in t…

It is an important comparison to make, given what is happening in European countries. The Deputy highlighted Hungary, but we saw a similar situation in Poland last year and earlier this year in terms of the so-called LGBTI+-free zones. That was condemned by the Government and across the Oireachtas. I met the Polish ambassador this year to convey the Government's concern about what was happening and to tell her about the approach we had taken in seeking to be as inclusive and supportive of our LGBTI+ community as po…

I thank the Senators and I am pleased to be able to address the House on the Third Stage of the Gender Pay Gap Information Bill. From our discussion on Second Stage, I know there is a strong desire to see this Bill implemented swiftly and this has been mentioned in the debate today. It is the Government’s belief that the Bill is robust and is proportionate in its approach as regard compliance and the timetable for implementation. On Report Stage in Dáil Éireann, I took a number of steps towards strengthening this B…

I have engaged with and have had two general meetings with the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. On both occasions, Congress’s strong desire to have this Bill passed was conveyed to me very clearly by Patricia King. It is my hope, if this process can move forward, that we can have this passed by the end of this term and that is my goal. My goal is to have the regulations in place by the end of the year and to publish the content of specific breakdowns of the various criteria and factors, many of which are listed in t…