Ken O'Flynn

2158. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the total amount expended to date on the advertising campaign described in the media as costing nearly €450,000 to entice Irish construction workers abroad to return home, including a breakdown of expenditure by market (United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom); the number of workers who have returned to Ireland as a direct result of this campaign, and the number of workers who registered interest or engagement through the campaign’s online portal or contact point; a breakdown of those returning by country of origin and by trade or occupation within the construction sector, such as bricklayer, site engineer, carpenter, or electrician; the evidence available of any net economic benefit to the Exchequer arising from this campaign in terms of increased tax revenue, PRSI contributions, or measurable additions to housing-related construction employment; whether an evaluation or review of the cost-effectiveness of this campaign has been conducted; and if so, if he will provide a summary of findings and state whether the campaign will continue or be redesigned. [60120/25]

2159. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science having regard to reports that nearly €450,000 was spent on a campaign to attract Irish construction workers home from abroad, the number of those workers that have actually taken up employment in Ireland as a result of the campaign; the criteria being used by his Department to measure the campaign’s success or return on investment, and the date by which a full evaluation will be completed; whether he accepts that the continuing shortage of construction workers, despite this expenditure, indicates that the campaign has not delivered value for money; and whether consideration will be given to reallocating such funding to domestic training and retention schemes. [60121/25]

2160. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if an assessment was undertaken of the opportunity cost of spending nearly €450,000 on advertising to attract emigrant workers, rather than on upskilling or retention initiatives for those already working in Ireland; if a cost-benefit or return-on-investment analysis was completed before the campaign’s launch, and if so, whether he will publish the summary findings; the total number of workers targeted by the campaign, the number who returned to work in Ireland, and the cost per successful returnee; and whether any measurable increase has occurred in the domestic construction workforce that can be attributed directly to this campaign. [60122/25]

34. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Finance if he will report on the Central Bank of Ireland’s latest data indicating that fraudsters stole approximately €160 million from Irish consumers and businesses in 2024 through electronic and online payments. [57603/25]

35. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Finance the steps his Department and the Central Bank are taking to enhance the resilience of Ireland’s payment systems against fraud, including coordination with retail banks, fintech companies, and card issuers. [57604/25]

36. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Finance if he will consider mandating stronger customer-authentication and fraud-reimbursement obligations similar to those introduced in the United Kingdom under the Payment Systems Regulator’s Contingent Reimbursement Model Code. [57605/25]

117. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in view of growing opposition to State proposals for mandated encryption backdoors, if he will publish the legal advice received on privacy, cybersecurity, and constitutional implications; arrange for an independent impact assessment involving civil society and tech experts; and commit to maintaining end-to-end encryption standards for citizens and businesses, absent a court order per individual case. [57610/25]

128. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine given the existential warnings from the Irish fishing sector, if he will publish the Government’s sectoral impact assessments of the 2026 quota cuts; outline the legal and trade measures being pursued at EU and bilateral levels to counter unfair overfishing by third-party fleets; and outline a transitional support scheme (income, retraining, diversification) for affected coastal communities. [57608/25]

166. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if she will outline which authority is responsible for enforcing the provisions of the Rats and Mice (Destruction) Act 1919; the measures in place to ensure that property owners comply with their legal obligation to control or destroy rats on their premises; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57437/25]

176. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Taoiseach if the Central Statistics Office, under his Department’s aegis, holds or can provide data on the number and percentage of residents of non-Irish ethnic background in Ballyhaunis, Ballyvaughan, Clones, Lisdoonvarna, Longford, Gort, Granard, and Newport for the census years 2016, 2022, and 2024 or the most recent available figures, if this information can be disaggregated at town level [56414/25]

274. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Transport In view of the renewed consultation on Cork light rail proposals, if he will release the costed feasibility and ridership study, commit to fast-tracking funding and planning approval for example, statutory orders for the Cork route with defined milestones; and if central Government will underwrite cost overruns or reduce risk for the local authority or developers. [57123/25]

314. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Finance if he is aware of the growing number of elderly people whose life assurance policies are becoming unaffordable due to annual premium increases; if he will outline what consumer protections currently exist for persons over the age of 70 who have paid premiums for decades but now face either the loss of their policy or sharply reduced cover; if his Department has engaged with the Central Bank regarding this matter [57256/25]

351. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if he will review the operation of the revised spouses’ and children’s pension scheme (2004) as it applies to teachers and other public servants, and to address the issue of compulsory contributions by single members with no dependents, who cannot benefit under the scheme, and for whom contributions are not refundable on retirement or death; and whether this constitutes discriminatory treatment of single employees compared with married or partnered colleagues. [57238/25]

358. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the conflict of interest disclosures that adjudicators of the Workplace Relations Commission are required to make prior to taking up their position; if adjudicators may engage in discussions with legal representatives prior to a hearing; and if such communications must be declared. [56872/25]

423. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware that single teachers appointed since 2004 are required to make mandatory 1.5% pension contributions to the spouses’ and children’s pension scheme despite being ineligible for benefits under that scheme; if she considers this requirement to be equitable; and if she will engage with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitisation to examine possible reform or refund mechanisms for single teachers. [57242/25]

537. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection his Department’s assessment of the number of workers who may be financially disadvantaged by transferring from existing occupational pension schemes into the State’s new automatic enrolment retirement savings system; and if he will publish the analysis underpinning these estimates. [57377/25]

538. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection if his Department has identified categories of employees, such as those in defined benefit or matched employer contribution schemes, who may be worse off under the automatic enrolment retirement savings system; and the measures being considered to safeguard those employees. [57378/25]

539. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection if his Department has conducted an equality or impact assessment of the automatic enrolment retirement savings system with regard to income level, gender; and employment sector and if he will make that assessment available. [57379/25]

540. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the mechanisms that will be used to prevent duplication or conflict between existing private pension arrangements and the new State-run auto-enrolment system, particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises. [57380/25]

541. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the timeline for the establishment of the central processing authority responsible for administering the auto-enrolment retirement savings system; the current staffing and budget allocation; and if progress reports will be published quarterly. [57381/25]

548. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration his plans to bring forward the necessary statutory regulations or amending legislation to implement the recommendations of the 'Periodic Payment Orders Indexation Rate-Report of the Inter-Departmental Working Group' accepted by him in July 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56524/25]

549. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the current status of the implementation process for the revised indexation mechanism for periodic payment orders under part IV of the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act 2017; and to specify the expected commencement date for the new framework. [56525/25]

550. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the reasons for the delay in publishing the draft regulations or legislative amendments required to activate the revised PPO indexation rate as recommended in the 2024 Inter-Departmental Working Group Report; and if he will provide a timeline for publication. [56526/25]

551. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department has engaged with the Department of Finance, the Central Bank of Ireland, or the Courts Service in respect of operational readiness for the implementation of the new PPO indexation rate; and to provide details of those engagements. [56527/25]

552. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department has assessed the potential financial impact on plaintiffs with catastrophic injuries such as those arising in a case (details supplied) of the continued inability to elect for a properly indexed PPO under the current legislation; and if he will publish that assessment. [56528/25]