866. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth if the Department has examined cases in which an assessment of need under the Disability Act found that a child's severe visual impairment did not affect learning, communication or mobility, despite professional reports indicating significant educational access needs; the way in which such discrepancies are reconciled with the educational supports su…
868. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the training and qualification requirements that apply to visiting teachers supporting students with visual impairment within the National Council for Special Education Visiting Teacher Service; to clarify whether visiting teachers are required to hold qualifications in Braille literacy and tactile instruction; the number of visiting teachers current…
869. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the body responsible for ensuring that students with profound visual impairment can access curriculum materials and State examinations where course content contains diagrams, graphs or other non linear visual materials that cannot be accessed through standard assistive technology; the oversight that exists to ensure such accessibility is implemented …
870. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the formal advisory documentation that is normally provided by the National Council for Special Education Visiting Teacher Service when determining appropriate educational supports for a student with visual impairment; whether such advice is normally recorded in writing and made available to schools and parents; and if she will make a statement on th…
871. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the procedures which apply where a student with a disability experiences significant distress or makes a mental health disclosure linked to difficulties accessing the curriculum; the way in which the responsibility is coordinated between schools, the National Council for Special Education and Tusla - Child and Family Agency in such circumstances; and…
931. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the total anticipated costs associated with his foreign travel for St Patricks Day; the delegation size; and if a breakdown can be provided on these costs including on accommodation and flights. [18887/26]
955. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will provide an explanation for the failure of National Broadband Ireland (NBI) and its contracted partners to deliver a confirmed broadband installation to a person (details supplied) in County Mayo on 20 February 2026, despite the person having received written confirmation from the chosen service provider that installation woul…
956. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will address the continued service failures of NBI, including conflicting information given to customers by NBI, its installation partner (details supplied) and broadband service providers; and if he will confirm whether his Department plans to examine systemic issues in NBI's customer facing processes during the final phase of th…
957. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will provide a justification for the reason County Mayo has been among the last counties to receive National Broadband Ireland services, leaving some communities dependent on 3G mobile broadband for over eight years; and the measures his Department will take to prevent continued delays or miscommunications during the completion of…
958. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the obligations placed on commercial broadband service providers who operate on the NBI network to ensure reliable communication, accurate installation scheduling, and minimum service standards; and the enforcement mechanisms which exist when providers repeatedly issue incorrect or misleading customer information. [19947/26]
1027. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the total anticipated costs associated with his foreign travel for St Patrick's Day; the delegation size; and if a breakdown can be provided on these costs including on accommodation and flights. [18895/26]
1100. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the eligibility rules for State supported home purchase schemes in respect of applicants over seventy years of age; the policy rationale for age based exclusions where applicants are working and in good health; whether an equality impact assessment has been undertaken; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20198/26]
1101. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of households in each of the past five years that were within five percent above the social housing income threshold but consequently ineligible for supports; the options available to such households; whether his Department has considered tapered eligibility to reduce cliff edge effects; and if he will make a statement …
1102. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the specific supports that exist for long term renting households with stable employment who are ineligible for social housing due to income and simultaneously ineligible for purchase supports due to age; and if he will bring forward a scheme or pilot to address this cohort; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20200/26…
1103. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department will review eligibility criteria, including age limits, for State backed purchase supports with a view to accommodating mixed age households where one applicant is over seventy years of age but both applicants are working and creditworthy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20201/26]
1110. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has assessed the impact of the new tenancy rules introduced on 1 March 2026 on the volume of notices of termination issued in the weeks preceding that date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20464/26]
1163. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will address the situation whereby employees whose employer (details supplied) has entered a mandatory 30-day collective redundancy consultation period have been informed that they can not apply for the jobseekers pay related benefit (JPRB) during this period and will instead only qualify for an exceptional needs payment capped at €254 per week;…
1164. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the correct procedure for employees of a company (details supplied) who obtain new employment during the statutory 30-day collective redundancy consultation period; the steps such employees are required to take in order to comply with his Departmental rules during this period; the reason departmental representatives were unable to provide accurate inf…
1165. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the statutory process that applies where a company enters a creditors’ voluntary liquidation and triggers a thirty-day collective redundancy consultation period, during which employees are not dismissed, are not required to attend work, and receive no wages; the way in which his Department treats the employment status of workers during this period; an…
1166. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection if he is aware of the circumstances affecting employees of a company (details supplied), which ceased trading on 20 February 2026 and placed all staff on temporary unpaid lay-off pending a creditors’ voluntary liquidation expected to be completed approximately fourteen days after cessation, during which a statutory consultation period is running until…
1167. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection if he accepts that an anomaly arises whereby employees who are not working and receiving no wages during a statutory consultation period cannot access jobseeker’s benefit until the formal redundancy takes effect, even though their employment has effectively ended in practice; the policy in such cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18…
1168. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason employees affected by the cessation of a company (details supplied) have received contradictory advice from Intreo offices, with some being instructed to apply for jobseeker’s payments and others told to cancel their claims; the action his Department will take to ensure consistent guidance for workers in similar circumstances; and if he wil…
1169. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the way in which PRSI contributions, continuity of insurance, and contribution records are treated for employees placed on temporary unpaid lay-off during a statutory consultation period prior to redundancy; whether gaps arise that could affect entitlements to future benefits; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18801/26]
1170. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the way in which employment status is recorded during a statutory consultation period where employees are still legally employed but are not working and are not being paid; the reason some employees of a company (details supplied) report that MyGov.ie lists them as ceased even though the company has not formally dismissed them; whether any administrat…
1171. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the measures his Department plans to take to ensure that employees placed on temporary unpaid lay-off during a statutory redundancy consultation period are not left without any income support; if he will address the gap in the system in future cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18803/26]