Robert O'Donoghue

317. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide an update on the rollout of the badger BCG vaccination programme as part of the national bovine TB eradication strategy; the number of badgers vaccinated in each of the past three years; the number culled over the same period; the geographic areas where vaccination is currently taking place; the expected timeline for vaccination to replace culling as the principal wildlife control measure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49461/25]

491. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will commit to commencing the reduction in the student to teacher ratio from 23:1 to 19:1 in Budget 2026 as outlined in the Programme for Government; the measures she will introduce to prevent splitting classes in a school (details supplied) if the ratio remains at the current 23:1; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48171/25]

985. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there is a timeline for the transfer of policy and legislative responsibility in relation to the Dog Breeding Establishment Act 2010 to his Department; if there are any existing plans to enact any policy or legislative changes in respect of the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49136/25]

811. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of primary school teachers employed on temporary contracts, in tabular form for each of the years from 2020 to date in 2025; the measures introduced to offer teachers on temporary contracts full-time positions in response to the shortage of fully qualified teachers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45347/25]

1121. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will consider directing local authorities to systematically collate and publish data on the number of families presenting with a housing need as a result of domestic violence; if he will ensure that women and children residing in domestic violence refuges are formally recognised as homeless and included in the national homeless statistics; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44648/25]

1177. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason a person was directed to Fingal County Council regarding the Tenant in Situ Scheme by his Department; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the allocation of €20 million for the scheme had already been exhausted within the first six months of the year; his plans to allocate supplementary funding to ensure the continuation of the scheme for the remainder of the year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45340/25]

1350. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Social Protection his views on the disparity whereby from budget 2026 the flat rate maternity benefit of €289 per week will be lower than the new jobseeker’s pay related benefit, which can provide up to 60% of previous earnings; if he will introduce a pay-related maternity benefit to ensure fairness, gender equality, and protect women’s pension entitlements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45133/25]

1778. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the measures being taken to strengthen equine identification and traceability systems, including the enforcement of microchipping regulations, in order to improve animal welfare, prevent fraud and ensure compliance with EU standards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46118/25]

1779. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has undertaken or plans to undertake a review of the current legislation relating to carriage horses, with a view to ensuring that the highest standards of animal welfare, safety and regulation are being applied; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46119/25]

1780. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has completed the final review of the control of horses legislation; if so, when the findings will be published; and the measures being introduced to strengthen enforcement and support local authorities in the management of horse welfare and public safety issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46120/25]

1863. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when she will publish the findings and recommendations of the Advisory Group on Administrative and Regulatory Simplification for the Early Years Sector, which met during 2023 and 2024; to outline the actions that have been or will be taken on foot of the group’s work to reduce the administrative burden on providers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44468/25]

1920. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will reverse the new ECCE compliance requirement, introduced on 10 June 2025, obliging providers to store children’s PPSN details for one year considering the PPSN's are not required once a child is registered in The Hive, and the requirement increases the risk of unnecessary data breaches; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45378/25]

2008. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide a list of early years and school age childcare services that have withdrawn from the core funding scheme; the number and percentage of services that have signed up to the scheme to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47083/25]

2047. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Health if she is aware of the ongoing delays in access to timely diagnostic and consultant-led care in both public and private healthcare systems, including for patients with urgent referrals and private health insurance; if she will examine the case of a person (details supplied); if she will outline the steps being taken to improve access to diagnostics and reduce wait times in both systems; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44459/25]

2523. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Health if he will engage with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) to review its English language requirements for overseas-qualified nurses, particularly those already registered with the UK NMC (details supplied); if he will consider requesting the NMBI to review its policy to allow more flexible recognition, for example through a one-year exemption or an hours-based practice requirement, in order to ensure fairness and help address staffing needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46548/25]

484. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Transport if his Department or the National Transport Authority collects or has access to data on footfall in nightlife areas, particularly in urban centres, for the purpose of assessing public transport demand between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.; if he will make this data available for 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form, to inform future planning of late-night and 24-hour public transport services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42488/25]

913. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment his views on the impact of dynamic pricing practices in the sale of tickets to cultural, entertainment, recreational and sporting events; his plans to support and bring forward to Second Stage the Sale of Tickets (Cultural, Entertainment, Recreational and Sporting Events) (Amendment) Bill 2024, introduced by the then Deputy Jim O’Callaghan, Senator Timmy Dooley and Deputy Niamh Smyth, which proposes to prohibit dynamic pricing by primary ticket sellers and ensure that consumers pay the price originally advertised at the point of sale; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42338/25]

1317. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the number of initial applicants for the basic income for artists payment; the number of initial applicants rejected for the basic income for artists payment; the number of initial applicants rejected for the basic income for artists payment, but were successfully able to appeal their rejection; the number of successful applicants for the basic income for artists payment, by county, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40774/25]

1364. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to provide a contact list of all State and semi-State bodies connected with his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43129/25]

1460. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will urgently reconsider the significant reduction in funding to the tenant in situ scheme allocated to Fingal County Council, reported to have been cut by more than 50%, and funding already allocated, given that this scheme remains one of the few effective mechanisms currently preventing families from falling into homelessness, particularly in the absence of sufficient stock of social and affordable housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41482/25]

1816. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Social Protection with reference to the programme for Government’s commitment to ‘examine how the social protection system can better support people fleeing domestic violence’ to outline the achievements to date to support victims of domestic violence and future plans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42129/25]

1817. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Social Protection the numbers of recipients of the domestic violence rent supplement since it was introduced in 2020, in tabular form; the learnings from the first five years of the payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42130/25]

1818. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Social Protection if consideration will be given to the introduction of a dedicated 'safe fund', similar to the fleeing fund in the UK, to provide immediate (non means tested) financial assistance to victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence who need to leave abusive situations; if this measure can be considered as part of Budget 2026 to ensure that victims have access to emergency cash payments for essential items such as clothing, food, transport or temporary accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42131/25]

1965. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if he is aware of reports that new mothers recovering from C-section surgery, and those with serious illness in direct provision (details supplied), are being required to attend communal dining areas for meals, even when medically unfit to do so; if he will outline the measures in place to ensure that new mothers in recovery, and those unable to get to dining areas due to illness, will receive adequate care and dignity in accommodation centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41323/25]

2054. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration for an update on the current use and regulation of special exemption orders, SEOs, for licensed premises; the number of SEOs granted in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025, the associated costs to venue operators, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42362/25]