Questions

846. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any national target vacancy rate exists for Children's Disability Network Teams; whether any escalation mechanism applies where vacancy levels exceed defined thresholds; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36863/26]

847. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of Children's Disability Network Team posts approved under previous new service developments which remained unfilled at year end 2025; the associated unspent allocation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36864/26]

848. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any independent review has been conducted into the impact of staffing vacancies within Children's Disability Network Teams on waiting times, unmet need, delayed intervention or child outcomes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36865/26]

849. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently awaiting initial assessment, therapy intervention or review by a Children's Disability Network Team, broken down by waiting time band and HSE region; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36866/26]

850. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether the HSE intends to publish the June 2026 Children's Disability Network Team workforce review in full; whether this will include team-by-team vacancy data; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36867/26]

875. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether Tusla maintains statistics on the number of Emergency Care Orders involving children under one year of age in each year from 2020 to 2026, in tabular form. [37064/26]

876. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of Emergency Care Orders involving children under one year of age which subsequently resulted in the child being returned to parental care within 30 days, 90 days and six months respectively, in each year since 2020. [37065/26]

877. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any external inspection body, internal audit unit, or safeguarding review mechanism has ever examined the proportionality or evidential basis of Emergency Care Orders involving infants under one year of age. [37066/26]

878. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether Tusla conducts any retrospective case review where an Emergency Care Order involving an infant is subsequently discharged, overturned, or not renewed by the courts. [37067/26]

879. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether national guidance exists governing evidential thresholds and proportionality assessments for Emergency Care Order applications involving newborn babies and infants. [37068/26]

880. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether regional variation exists in the rate of Emergency Care Orders involving children under one year of age and whether comparative analysis is conducted by Tusla. [37069/26]

881. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether consideration has been given to establishing an independent post-decision review mechanism for emergency child removals involving infants under one year of age. [37070/26]

473. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the body, office, or accountable person that holds ultimate responsibility at national level for monitoring systemic delays in permanency outcomes for children in State care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36033/26]

474. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether the Tusla Board receives regular reports, dashboards, or governance updates relating to time-to-permanency for children in care, placement drift, duration under interim care orders, duration under voluntary care arrangements, placement instability, or repeat care episodes; and if she will provide details of the metrics reported a…

475. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether risks associated with delayed permanency outcomes, care drift, or prolonged temporary care arrangements are included within Tusla corporate risk registers, governance escalation frameworks, or internal oversight structures; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36035/26]

476. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether HIQA conducts inspections, thematic reviews, audits, or performance analysis specifically relating to permanency delays, placement drift, or prolonged temporary care arrangements for children in State care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36036/26]

477. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether Tusla currently maintains the technical capability within its information systems to distinguish between re-referrals, formally reopened social work cases, repeat safeguarding episodes, and repeat entries into State care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36037/26]

478. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether the absence of a distinct national dataset relating to formally reopened social work cases has been identified internally by her Department or Tusla as a governance, safeguarding, or performance-monitoring limitation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36038/26]

479. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any proposal, policy development, or internal review is underway to introduce national key performance indicators relating to reopened social work cases, placement stability, repeat care entry, or time-to-permanency outcomes for children in State care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36039/26]

480. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any internal analysis, briefing material, policy papers, or governance reviews prepared in connection with the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2025 identified concerns relating to permanency delays, care drift, prolonged interim care orders, or extended voluntary care arrangements; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [360…

481. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether the absence of a national dataset tracking formally reopened child protection cases has ever been discussed within the governance, oversight, audit, or risk-management engagements held between her Department and Tusla. [36072/26]

482. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether Tusla’s Audit and Risk Committee has considered risks associated with the absence of nationally standardised data on reopened child protection cases. [36073/26]

483. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any key performance indicators, governance metrics, or safeguarding indicators monitored under the Tusla Oversight Agreement relate to repeat child protection interventions, repeat emergency removals, or reopened social work cases. [36074/26]

484. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department has sought legal or policy advice regarding whether reopened child protection cases should form part of a national safeguarding and outcomes dataset. [36075/26]

485. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department receives aggregate reporting on the outcomes following Section 12 removals, including rates of return home, repeat removals, interim care orders, or progression to full care orders. [36076/26]