As I said in response to an earlier question, I am very conscious of the need for a significant improvement in pay and working conditions in the early learning and childcare sector. The level of pay, which averaged €12.60 per hour in 2021, does not in any way reflect the importance of the work or the skill and expertise required. The consequence of low pay, the high turnover of staff, undermines the quality of children's early learning experiences. My Department has, over a number of years, provided a range of fina…

We have outlined our commitments to fund childcare facilities under the EWSS until the end of April. Providers are aware of the level of funding being provided in that context. From May, June, July and August, we have brought forward a contingency Covid-19 bridging fund, for which €37 million has been provided. It will kick in during those months, and then from September the new core funding will apply. There is, therefore, no question of just turning on a switch in this regard. An extensive and consistent level of…

The Deputy made several points. By the end of March, childcare services will have a strong understanding of the amount they will be receiving under core funding provision. I cannot tell the Deputy when the JLC process will end; it is independent of me. I hope that it will complete and bring forward the employment regulation order in the spring or early summer so we can continue to implement these measures. We are continuing to support childcare providers. I refer to the work my Department is doing to implement the …

The expert group was established in September 2019 to develop a new funding model for early learning and care and school age childcare. The group was tasked with examining the current model of funding and with considering how additional resourcing could best be structured to achieve a high-quality, affordable, accessible and sustainable sector. The expert group was independently chaired and comprised national and international experts across multiple fields. It met 21 times. The expert group has now completed its w…

The Deputy has quickly summarised the huge range of complexities in this sector. These are complexities that we are seeking to address, and we are taking a step-by-step approach to doing that. On the issue of affordability, in this year’s budget we have been able to take a significant step in respect of the extension of the NCS. The 50 cent per hour subvention, which is a part of that scheme and which every parent received for a child aged between zero and three attending childcare, has been extended. In September …

I thank the Deputy for recognising the excellence across the early years professional sector. That excellence is always demonstrated, but was particularly apparent during the Covid pandemic. She rightly identified that far too many early years professionals are seeking to leave the sector and that is primarily due to the issue of pay. There have already been three or four questions today on that issue of pay. I welcome the strong focus of Deputies on the issue. I am sure the sector and childcare professionals welco…

I thank the Deputy for her question on what will be a landmark piece of research and data project. I was delighted to announce the project last week after receiving the support of the Government for its commencement. The project comprises a suite of research and data activities that will strengthen our understanding of the lives of children in care and adults who have been in care. This work will provide us with much-needed insights into their experiences and valuable evidence about their outcomes. The project, whi…

Undoubtedly, the research should have been commenced before now. I could give the Deputy a range of bureaucratic reasons why that did not happen. What is happening, however, is that I have recognised this as an outstanding piece of work and I have prioritised it. I note the welcome that Empowering People in Care, EPIC, and similar groups have given to the announcement by the Government, an announcement that is backed up by funding. The project is structured and it is led by Tusla but it has the engagement of other …

As I said, the project will be led by my Department. There will be a unit within my Department leading out on this work. Tusla will be a key partner. Our first piece of work is to engage in consultation with the stakeholders on the design of the various elements. The next piece of work will be to undertake the research on the group who are ten years out of care. Work will then begin on the longitudinal study and bring together the cohort at which it will be looking. I will ask officials of my Department to provide …

As of 30 January, there were 8,582 people accommodated in the direct provision system as a whole. This includes 5,828 persons in international protection accommodation services, IPAS, centres, 1,065 in emergency accommodation centres, 396 in the national reception centre in Balseskin, 323 in quarantine facilities and 970 in pre-reception facilities. Within direct provision centres and the national reception centre, 74% of residents have access to independent living facilities. Residents can cook and shop for themse…

That is a lot to get through in one minute. The Deputy is correct, in that there has been a significant increase in the number of people coming to Ireland seeking international protection, particularly since the October-November period. That increase is reflected in the figures that I set out. I will ask my Department to send the Deputy the specific figure for how many people have been in the system for more than four years. As he knows, the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, has announced a scheme for regularis…

Yes. The Minister's scheme is primarily for people who are undocumented but it has a secondary stream for people who have been in direct provision for a long time. They will be able to apply for regularisation. Obviously, 2,800 is approximately a quarter of 8,500 or thereabouts, but the scheme will address the needs of a significant number of people who, as the Deputy identified, have been in the system for a long time.

I thank the Deputy for highlighting the importance of the community sponsorship scheme. To clarify, it is available to people who have already been identified as refugees under the Irish refugee protection programme, not people coming in through direct provision. Over the past seven months, the scheme has been particularly important to Ireland's rapid response to the situation in Afghanistan. We have issued 550 visas to people fleeing Afghanistan who were at real risk of losing their lives. Many of them are in emer…

Under the Child and Family Agency Act 2013, Tusla has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of DSGBV. Tusla is funded from my Department's Vote 40. At the end of 2021, Tusla funded 155 DSGBV-related accommodation units. These consisted of 137 refuge units and 18 safe houses. There were also six other available accommodation units. Tusla has previously advised the Department that the cost of maintaining a single refuge is in the region of €100,000 annually. This estimated annual operating c…

I thank the Deputy.

I fully agree with the Deputy. As she knows, responsibility is moving out of my Department and will be fully a matter for the Minister for Justice in the coming months. With regard to the ongoing focus, we need to increase the number of refuge places. There is no doubt that a refuge is vital in addressing emergency needs when a woman or family is fleeing a life-or-death situation. However, we also need to include in our discussion the concept of safe houses as a medium-term solution for many families, but perhaps n…

The additional €2 million, bringing the budget from €28 million to €30 million, will be distributed across the services. That will allow the services to invest in more resources. A lot of flexibility is given to services in determining what they need in their area. I hope that will allow for additional resources for therapies such as play therapy, which I agree are vital. I was in Barnardos in Mulhuddart just before Christmas and noted the great benefits. I spoke to some parents and children who have benefited from…

I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte. National disability policy transferred to our Department in October 2020 from the Department of Justice and Equality, and this includes co-ordinating two national disability strategies, namely, the national disability inclusion strategy and the comprehensive employment strategy for people with disabilities. My Department also acts as the focal point and co-ordination mechanism for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons wi…

With the help of Deputy Funchion and her committee, the assisted decision-making legislation is being subjected to pre-legislative scrutiny. I have no doubt that it will be scrutinised swiftly, after which we can bring it through the House. We need it for June of this year. The Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, and I are committed to that. Working with the committee, we seek to do that. I hope the transfer of functions will occur far earlier than I have outlined. As soon as the legislation comes through the House…

That integrated approach, involving looking at persons with a disability not through a medical lens but through a whole-of-services lens, is exactly what the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, and I are hoping to achieve. Responsibility for mental health services will not be transferred. Child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, and the like will remain with the Department of Health, but responsibility for organisations mentioned by the Deputy, such as the Brothers of Charity, will be transferred to my D…