Cormac Devlin

787. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of international protection applicants in each of the years 2015 to date in 2025 whose claimed minor status was referred to, or appealed to, medical or other expert reviewers for the purposes of age assessment; the outcome of those referrals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63535/25]

788. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the current arrangements in place for assessing the age of persons who claim to be minors when seeking international protection or temporary protection, including the role of his Department, the International Protection Office and Tusla; whether these arrangements are under review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63536/25]

789. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department has examined the age-assessment model in operation in Denmark, including the use of medical imaging and other scientific methods, with a view to speeding up age assessments in Ireland; if any analysis, advice or reports have been prepared on this option; if any novel testing methods such as qPCR or droplet digital PCR based techniques for age estimation have been considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63537/25]

790. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if a matter (details supplied) has been brought to his attention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63546/25]

927. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of beds or placements provided by Tusla for unaccompanied minors and other children in the care of the State who are seeking international protection or are beneficiaries of temporary protection in each of the years from 2015 to 2024 and to date in 2025, and by placement type, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63538/25]

928. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the total gross expenditure by Tusla on accommodation and related services for unaccompanied minors and other children in State care who are seeking international protection or are beneficiaries of temporary protection in the years 2020 to 2025, by programme or subhead, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63539/25]

929. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of whole-time equivalent Tusla staff assigned to work with separated children seeking international protection, including any staff engaged in age-assessment work, in each of the years from 2020 to 2025, by grade and function, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63540/25]

930. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the existing protocols and memoranda of understanding between his Department, Tusla and the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in respect of age assessment for persons claiming to be minors in the international protection or temporary protection systems; whether these arrangements are currently under review; whether the adoption of models such as the Danish system or any novel testing methods, including qPCR or droplet digital PCR-based age-estimation techniques is being considered; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63541/25]

105. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Social Protection for an overview of the Budget 2026 measures to support carers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62061/25]

507. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will review the decision to refuse retrospective payment of set up grants for the autism special classes opened in 2021 and 2022 at a school (details supplied), in view of the contribution the school has made in opening three autism classes in succession and the very high needs of the students concerned; the circulars, guidance or policies on which this refusal was based, including any time limits for applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61363/25]

508. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Education and Youth the details of the circulars and scheme rules governing set up grants for autism and other special classes at primary and post primary level; the formal time limits for submitting grant applications; the way in which these time limits are communicated to schools; if discretion is available to approve retrospective claims where classes are already established and operating; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61364/25]

509. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of schools that have received autism or special class set up grants retrospectively in each year from 2018 to date, the total amount paid in retrospective grants in each year, disaggregated by county and school type; the criteria used by her Department when deciding whether to approve retrospective applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61365/25]

510. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of new autism and other special classes opened at post primary level for each year from 2020 to date; the number of these classes that received the full set up grants available; the number of applications refused or not processed on the basis that they were submitted outside the relevant timeframe; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61366/25]

511. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will outline the internal guidance issued to Department officials on the processing of applications and late applications for autism and special class set up grants, including any instructions on the use of discretion in cases where schools have responded positively to requests to open special classes in their area; how consistency of decision making is monitored across different sections of her Department; if she will consider revising this guidance to ensure that students with complex needs are not disadvantaged by administrative oversights; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61367/25]

976. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health the number of lipid profiles ordered through primary care (GP and primary care clinics) in each of the years 2019 to date in 2025, by CHO area and by quarter, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61316/25]

977. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health the total cost to the health service from 2019 to 2025, by year for laboratory testing for standard lipid profiles ordered from primary care, including the cost per test and any trend in test volumes over that period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61317/25]

978. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health the number of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] tests carried out in public hospitals and HSE-funded laboratories from 2019 to 2025, by referral source (primary care versus hospital-based specialist services), by year, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61318/25]

979. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health if current national guidelines on cardiovascular risk assessment in primary care recommend measurement of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] for any cohort of patients; the rationale for current practice; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61319/25]

980. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health if she has considered introducing a once-in-a-lifetime lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] test as part of routine cardiovascular risk assessment for adults, in line with emerging European recommendations on heart health and inherited risk; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61320/25]

981. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health if her Department or the HSE has undertaken any clinical or economic evaluation of the potential benefits and costs of introducing once-in-a-lifetime lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] testing for the general population; the details of any such analysis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61321/25]

982. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health the proportion of adults in the State for whom Lp(a) has been measured at least once; the estimated prevalence of elevated lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] among those tested; the extent to which this information is used to guide more intensive LDL cholesterol lowering or other preventive measures; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61322/25]

983. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health if she will report on any international examples, particularly within the EU, where once-in-a-lifetime lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] testing has been adopted or piloted as part of national cardiovascular prevention strategies; if similar pilots are being considered in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61323/25]

984. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health if she will ensure that future revision of national cardiovascular prevention guidelines for primary care explicitly considers the role of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] testing in identifying people at inherited high risk of heart disease and stroke; if she will report on the timeframe for such guideline updates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61324/25]

985. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Health the way in which her Department plans to improve early detection and management of cardiovascular risk in primary care over the next five years, including the role of lipid testing, potential once-in-a-lifetime lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] screening, and targeted follow up for high-risk patients; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61325/25]

23. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence for an update on his Department and the Defence Forces Strategy Statement 2025–2028; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60433/25]