Cian O'Callaghan

82. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform his views on the increased level of privatisation and outsourcing in the provision of public services, its effect on cost overruns and outcomes for citizens; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28802/25]

What controls and monitoring are in place for the runaway train of public money being used to outsource and privatise public services?

I thank the Minister for the answer, which was really about the industrial relations processes around agreements and outsourcing. I am asking what financial controls and monitoring are in place. There is a myriad of examples of what should be public services being outsourced with detrimental outcomes for the users. We saw this week the National Treatment Purchase Fund has created perverse incentiv…

As Minister with overall responsibility for public expenditure and reform, does the Minister see a role for himself in this? This is happening across Departments. I will provide another example, namely, homeless emergency accommodation by private providers. Some are making huge profits and in some instances are providing emergency accommodation where there are bloodstains on the sheets and where p…

84. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform if he will provide an update on reform of the ethics in public office legislation, given that the review of the statutory framework was completed in December 2022; the reason for the delay in publishing the heads of a Bill; if he expects this Bill to be introduced this year; and if …

An update on the ethics in public office legislation was promised in the programme for Government in 2020. It never happened. The Minister's Department concluded its review in December 2022. We were promised heads of a Bill but have never seen them. It is now two and a half years later. When will those heads of Bill be published?

I thank the Minister for his reply but we are going backwards here. The review was concluded by his Department well over two years ago. We should have seen a heads of Bill at this stage. His predecessor, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, who I know the Minister works closely with, told this House a year ago that "we are nearly done in respect of the drafting of the heads of the Bill and I hope to be in a po…

I thank the Minister. However, I do not understand how his predecessor, the current Minister for Finance, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, who is perfectly competent and able, was in a position to tell the Dáil a year ago that the heads of Bill was almost ready to be published and he was hoping to bring it to Government very shortly. How was it possible for Deputy Donohoe to do that a year ago only for the…

Disability services in this country are chaotic and threadbare. Families of children with additional needs have to fight for the very basics. All they want for their children is to be able to access an education and appropriate services and a chance for them to fulfil their potential. The very first step for most is to get an assessment of need and there are now over 15,000 children who have been …

I asked the Tánaiste whether he would confirm what the Taoiseach said last week, which was that there had been indecision from the Government on this and that it could not agree over the past three years. I believe he implied in his answer that the Government had not been able to agree what to do. He is saying there need to be reforms to legislation but it is three years since the High Court judgm…

I recognise the work the Government has done in support for UNRWA and the International Court of Justice and in recognising the State of Palestine, which it did on this day one year ago. There is, however, much more that needs to be done. After the last 12 months, it is unclear how much longer the State of Palestine will actually exist on the map. An entire people, its culture and place are being …

This applies to all State institutions, including the Central Bank. We must act to stop this genocide. The Taoiseach must act and act now.

What is he going to do to stop the sale of these bonds?

I do not take away from anything the Taoiseach just said but I asked him about the sale of bonds being facilitated by the Central Bank of Ireland. It is very clear that these bonds are being used to fund the genocide. The Taoiseach has recognised that genocide is taking place and he has an obligation under the Genocide Convention to do everything he can to stop that genocide. The fact is that the …

Will the Taoiseach do that? Will he answer that question? I am not taking from anything else he is saying or doing but in relation to bonds and the financing of this genocide, will the Taoiseach do everything he can to stop it?

It acts unilaterally.

The Taoiseach could ask the Central Bank to comply with an instruction on this.

It authorises sales.

What about the sale-----

Children's Health Ireland is in crisis. Another three members of the board have resigned today. A succession of scandals has cast serious doubts on its capacity to provide quality healthcare to children in this country. A common thread in each of the scandals is an almost complete absence of clinical oversight. Medically questionable and unethical practices proliferated under the noses of highly p…

We are talking about children, sometimes as young as the age of two and even younger, being operated on. What has happened is incomprehensible. When parents rang the phone line that was set up for them at the weekend all they were asked for was their contact details. None of the questions they asked could be answered by the people on the phone line. It is not an acceptable way to treat the parents…

Regarding statements this evening that the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, is doing on the external audit into Children's Health Ireland, there are no questions and answers as part of that business but we need accountability. Parents at the weekend were ringing the phoneline but could not get any answers to any questions they put. They just had their contact details were taken. We ne…

First, I pay tribute to the family of Shane O'Farrell, namely, his mother Lucia, his father Jim and his sisters, Aimee, Pia, Hannah and Gemma, who are in the Distinguished Visitors' Gallery. I also acknowledge the official apology from the Minister for Justice. The family have been waiting for 14 years for this apology and for answers to questions about the death of their son and brother Shane. Th…

Cara Darmody is continuing her protest outside the Dáil today because nothing she has heard from the Government has convinced her to end it. Asked repeatedly yesterday if the Government would stop breaking the law, the Taoiseach could not even give that assurance. The Government does not seem to see the problem with this. It has access to State resources, can direct policy and can authorise hiring…

You are breaking the law.