Questions

816. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of childcare providers that have withdrawn from core funding in each county, in each month of this year; if the reasons for withdrawal, as supplied to the local county/city childcare committee, are collated and published by her Department; and if so, if she will supply the reasons supplied for withdrawal, in tabular form. [737…

823. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her plans to address the situation that arises due to a lack of availability of childcare places whereby parents must join waiting lists during early pregnancy, without any guarantee of a place, and that such early application requirements create a situation whereby parents are more likely to have to notify providers of a pregnancy loss,…

252. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1694 and 1695 of 9 June 2026, the “exceptional circumstances” referred to where an employer may consider it appropriate to request supporting documentation; if guidance is or will be provided; and her plans to ensure that the spirit of the Act underpins employers’ dealings with employees seeking le…

770. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 1087 of 26 May 2026, her views on the upcoming evaluation of the national childcare scheme; specifically; the scope of review due to be taken in respect of the matters raised; and the level of public consultation that will take place in respect of same. [45005/26]

1574. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the shortfall between State expenditure and institutional contributions to redress schemes operated under the auspices of her Department, in tabular form. [42208/26]

1582. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the anticipated impact of Phase 2 of Shaping The Future's measure to remove access to ECCE and NCS schemes for parents of children in services who are no longer in core funding; the number of children projected to be affected in each county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42399/26]

1087. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding the national childcare scheme (NCS), in particular on circumstances arising in a situation (details supplied); and her plans to amend section 4(3) of the Childcare Support Act 2018 to ensure that the NCS is flexible and responsive to families’ needs in practice by treating registered hours as a ceiling rather than…

1088. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of eight-week underattendance notifications Pobal has issued since the national childcare scheme commenced, by programme year, in tabular form. [40296/26]

1089. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of families that have had their subsidy reduced or withdrawn under the underattendance rules of the national childcare scheme, broken down by programme year, in tabular form. [40297/26]

946. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when legislation will be published and introduced, amending the Institutional Burial Act to enable first cousins to provide DNA for matching with babies lost in the Tuam Mother and Baby Home. [34324/26]

947. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if the review of the mother and baby institutions payment scheme is running to time; if it is proposed that the review will be debated by Oireachtas, both before and after it is conducted; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34325/26]

966. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will make a statement on precisely the roadmap for reducing early years fees to €200; if she will detail the engagement she has undertaken and will take with providers and trade unions in respect of same; and if she will make a statement on her plans to ensure that there is adequate buy-in from the sector to facilitate such a redu…

967. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1480, 1510 and 1511 of 18 March 2026, the analysis her Department has carried out in respect of Companies Registration Office accounts of early years providers; if she is satisfied that existing systems sufficiently incentivise participation in Core Funding; if she will make a statement on provider…

180. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her plans to promote and advertise the Magdelene ex-gratia redress scheme, as commenced in 2013 and extended to further institutions in 2018 both in Ireland and abroad, given the low numbers of applicants to date (details supplied). [28784/26]

2569. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will report on efforts to track and trace to inform relatives of children lost in the Bessboro Mother And Baby Home records found related to tandem burials for St Finbarr's hospital in St. Michael's cemetery associated with the "home" that operated until 1998 and mentioned in the Commission's report; and her plans to trace and in…

2570. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding withdrawal of ECCE, NCS or other Pobal programmes from early years providers who left or did not join core funding. [26987/26]

1475. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will report on his meetings with survivor groups since his intervention at the 2025 Bessborough Commemoration; her plans to meet with other survivor groups; and if she has made representations to Cork City Council in respect of the Bessborough site, and public acquisition of the site, in particular. [20768/26]

1480. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of withdrawals from Core Funding in Dublin 2, 4, 6, 6W and 8 in each of the years 2022 to 2025 and to-date in 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18254/26]

1481. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when pre-school fees will reduce in line with the Programme for Government; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18255/26]

1510. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her views on the impact of withdrawals from Core Funding of creche and early years providers in Rathmines (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18645/26]

1511. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding indexing of Core Funding subsidies to reflect localised operational costs. [18646/26]

1635. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her views on the need to ensure that adequate space is available for the second year of ECCE; if she has heard reports of parents finding that schools do not want to take children until they are five years of age but creches do not have the space for older children and do not feel that preschool is fit for children over five years; her …

715. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 846 of 24 February 2026, the specific legal basis of the assertion that parents bear a lifetime and or indefinite legal responsibility for adult children with intellectual disabilities; if this legal basis is statutory; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17018/26]

846. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will clarify the position of parents in a situation (details supplied); and if the approach taken is consistent with Government policy. [13994/26]

1034. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to outline the current Government policy in respect of domestic adoption and intercountry adoption. [12545/26]