Ken O'Flynn

1897. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to confirm Tusla’s projected budget overrun for 2025; to provide a breakdown of the reported €67.8million overspend across core service categories, such as separated children seeking international protection, fostering, residential care, and legal representation; and to state whether she intends to appoint an independent external review of Tusla’s financial and operational governance. [44972/25]

1902. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of early learning and childcare services that exited or declined core funding by county and service type in 2025 to date; the number of enrolled children affected; and the reasons recorded by her Department or local city/county childcare committees (details supplied). [45122/25]

1903. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of applications under the 2024/2025 fee increase assessment process; the number of approvals and refusals; the median and interquartile range of approved increases; and the average impact on parents net weekly fees after NCS subsidies. [45123/25]

1904. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality following implementation of the September 2025 fee cap, if she will provide details of the maximum capped fees by hours band including the €295 week cap for 40–50 hours; the compliance and enforcement regime; the expected coverage share of services and children; and any sanctions for breach (details supplied). [45124/25]

1905. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to publish modelling by decile of household income and typical hours of parents net costs in September 2025 combining the new caps with NCS universal that is €2.14/hour up to 45 hours; and income-assessed subsidies up to €5.10/hour (details supplied). [45125/25]

1906. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the additional core funding provision being made to offset the sectoral pay floor increase to €15 an hour and related grade uplifts; and to provide her Department’s estimate of the marginal cost per full-time place. [45126/25]

1907. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide details of the quarterly dashboards showing average gross fees by county and care type; the average net fees after subsidy and participation rates in core funding, drawing on the Pobal Early Years Data Warehouse. [45127/25]

1909. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in view of the reported 16,593 children awaiting completion of disability assessments, if she will provide a breakdown of the number of children awaiting an initial assessment of need under the Disability Act 2005, and the subsequent follow-up assessments, by CHO area, at the end of quarter 2 2025; the average and longest waiting times for each category of assessment; the number of assessment officers, therapists, psychologists, and other relevant professionals employed by the HSE to carry out these assessments in each CHO area; the additional funding allocated in each of the past five years to address assessment backlogs; the specific measures with timeframes her Department and the HSE are implementing to reduce the backlog and ensure compliance with statutory assessment timeframes; and whether she will commit to introducing a statutory right to assessment within a guaranteed maximum timeframe. [45139/25]

1935. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the definition applied by Tusla in classifying a case as “medium priority”; if she is satisfied that the current system of prioritisation adequately protects children in situations where there are repeated referrals or escalating risk; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45547/25]

1936. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the average waiting times for the allocation of child protection cases across each Tusla area, with particular reference to Dublin South Central, and if she will provide comparative figures for 2023 and 2024. [45548/25]

1937. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the specific measures introduced by Tusla that have reduced the percentage of unallocated cases in Dublin south central from 54 per cent in February 2024 to 34 per cent at the time of the HIQA inspection; and if she will confirm whether those measures are being applied nationally. [45549/25]

1938. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide details of the number of clinical and therapeutic staff employed by Tusla to provide support services to children at risk of sexual abuse; the number of vacancies; and if she will outline the Department’s plans to close the staffing gap. [45550/25]

1939. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the interim supports, therapeutic or otherwise, that are made available to children at risk of sexual abuse in circumstances where case allocation is delayed; and if she will confirm whether there are protocols in place to ensure that no child goes without support during a prolonged waiting period. [45551/25]

1940. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the compliance timelines and performance metrics that have been agreed with Tusla following the recent HIQA inspection in Dublin South Central; and if she will confirm how the Department is monitoring delivery against those commitments. [45552/25]

1941. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department intends to introduce mandatory reassessment triggers, for example, automatic re-prioritisation following a second referral, in order to ensure that escalating risks to children are addressed without undue delay. [45553/25]

1942. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the details of the training and continuous professional development provided to Tusla frontline staff to assist them in identifying and responding to risks of sexual abuse; the adequacy of current provision; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45554/25]

1943. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her views on the findings of HIQA that children at risk of sexual abuse in Dublin south central were not receiving timely safety planning or therapeutic support; and the reforms being prioritised within her Department to address this systemic failure. [45555/25]

1959. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has considered the introduction of specific incentives, such as bursaries, training supports, or targeted recruitment campaigns, to encourage more men to enter the early years and preschool education sector, where there are critical staffing shortages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45947/25]

1977. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will urgently review the adequacy of supports for community-based childcare services in light of the closure of a service (details supplied) in Midleton, County Cork; the actions she intends to take to prevent further closures of early years services nationally; if she accepts that's the current funding and policy measures are failing to sustain services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46178/25]

2062. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if she will review the supports available to Irish patients who undergo surgery abroad under the Cross-Border Healthcare Directive and return with serious complications, in particular where surgical error is involved; if she will outline the entitlements such patients have for aftercare, corrective surgery, or clinical support; and if she will consider the introduction of a formal aftercare policy for patients returning from approved cross-border procedures. [44531/25]

2108. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department has conducted an impact assessment of the latest increases in private health insurance premiums, particularly in view of the concurrent launch of so-called "cheaper" plans which reportedly restrict access to many public and private hospitals and may offer diminished coverage: if she is satisfied that sufficient regulatory oversight exists to prevent consumers from being misled by plans that appear affordable in premium terms but are materially inferior in protection; and the discussions her Department or the Insurance Authority have held with insurers in relation to pricing transparency, benefit structures and consumer safeguards. [44722/25]

2137. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to provide a breakdown of all mental health allocations made since Budget 2024, including the amount drawn down by the Health Service Executive regions to date and which projects or community services remain unfunded [44821/25]

2138. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if she will publish legislation to prohibit commercial sunbed use, following the public consultation closing on 3 October 2025; and the provisions that will be included for existing operators. [44822/25]

2151. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the total over-expenditure on capital health projects in 2023–2025; and the updated timelines and costs for University Hospital Limerick and Merlin Park, Galway. [44883/25]

2164. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if she will consider introducing a national gonorrhoea vaccination programme in Ireland, similar to the newly launched NHS England initiative which offers a world-first vaccine roll-out through sexual health clinics; if any assessment has been made by the HSE or NIAC regarding the applicability of this vaccine in an Irish public health context; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44924/25]