Questions

576. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 1820 of 4 November 2025, the timeframe for the strategic assessment report and preliminary business case which is required in line with infrastructure guidelines for the PET scan at UHL; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67232/25]

577. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Health if she will extend the temporary scheme of paid leave for public health service employees unfit for work post Covid-19 beyond 31 December 2025, in recognition of the exceptional service and sacrifices made by frontline staff during the pandemic; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67234/25]

578. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health if food replacement drinks will be restored to a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67238/25]

579. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Health if she will review matters raised in correspondence (details supplied) regarding the fair deal scheme; if she will address the concerns raised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67239/25]

580. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health her plans to introduce a free, organised national prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening programme for men from age 40; the estimated number of men aged 40 to 69 in Ireland; the scale and costs involved; whether the National Screening Advisory Committee has completed its health technology assessment; and when a decision can be expected; and if she will make a …

581. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health the date on which the National Screening Advisory Committee and Health Information and Quality Authority will finalise their health technology assessment on a prostate cancer screening programme; if there are plans to offer interim free PSA tests; if men aged 40 to 69 in the current pilot will be allowed to continue screening beyond the pilot sites; and if she wi…

582. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health for an update on evaluation timelines for Ireland's PRAISE U/ProstateCheck pilot involving 5,000 men in Dublin and Waterford; whether preliminary results have been shared; when these results will be published; if there are plans to extend opt-in PSA screening to all men aged 40 to 69 nationally, particularly those at high-risk; and if she will make a statement on…

583. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health the cost-effectiveness modelling that has been carried out for organised PSA plus digital rectal examination screening starting at age 40 to 69; whether Irish cost-benefit analyses indicate net savings across this age group; the assumptions on uptake, overdiagnosis, potential harms, and subsequent treatments that were made; the monetary and health outcomes that c…

584. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health the national public-awareness and behaviour change campaigns planned to encourage men aged 40 to 69 to take part in prostate-cancer screening; whether a dedicated campaign will be developed; the way in which regional inequities in incidence and survival will be addressed; the supports that will be made available to men hesitant to seek PSA testing due to cost or …

585. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health the steps the National Cancer Control Programme and HSE will take to reduce overdiagnosis and overtreatment resulting from PSA testing, to ensure adherence to updated clinical guidelines on follow-up biopsies and imaging; whether HIQA has guidelines and clinical safety protocols in place; the way in which patient quality-of-life outcomes will be monitored followi…

586. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Health when she expects the Public Health (Single Use Vapes) Bill 2025 to be introduced.; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67248/25]

587. Deputy Gillian Toole asked the Minister for Health the retrospective cost-benefit analyses of State vaccination programmes carried out in order to determine each annual campaign; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67252/25]

588. Deputy Gillian Toole asked the Minister for Health when a review of the rate of value added tax on oral vitamin and mineral supplements, currently 13.5% rate, will be carried out; and the reason there is a disparity in VAT classification between oral pharmaceuticals, and oral supplements for health promotion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67255/25]

589. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the progress his Department has made in developing a comprehensive Irish-language strategy to support the implementation of the Gaeltacht Act 2012 and the Official Languages Act 2003, with particular reference to the provision and expansion of further education and training opportunities in Gaeltac…

590. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in view of the commitments under the Gaeltacht Act 2012 and the Official Languages Act 2003, whether his Department has identified specific funding streams or partnerships with SOLAS and ETBs to ensure that further education and training programmes in Gaeltacht service towns are delivered through I…

591. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of apprenticeships there are in Ireland in each of the years 2021 to 2025, in tabular form. [66799/25]

592. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of apprenticeships that have been available in County Meath in each of the years 2021 to 2025, in tabular form. [66800/25]

593. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the breakdown of Leaving Certificate students opting to undertake third level education, apprenticeships and any other options in each of the years 2021 to 2025. In tabular form. [66801/25]

594. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to list all funding schemes, grant programmes and any other financial supports that are currently administered by his Department and its agencies; the expected launch and closing dates for applications for each scheme in 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66930/25]

595. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will publish a report (details supplied) on the design and implementation of the new learner protection fund; and the way in which the views of English language education providers and representative bodies were incorporated into the final recommendations. [66945/25]

596. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will establish a formal mechanism for regular engagement with the English language education sector, recognising its significant contribution to Ireland’s economy. [66946/25]

597. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the progress in emission reduction targets in areas that are the responsibility of his Department; which measures are particularly successful and which measures are underperforming; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67050/25]

598. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the position regarding the development of the new Galway college of further education; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67101/25]

599. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will review the case of a person (details supplied); if an avenue is available for them to seek a review or appeal of the decision in question; if the specific questions set out in correspondence will be addressed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67218/25]

600. Deputy Brian Brennan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht the funding streams available for a festival (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66762/25]