Questions

396. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department would consider the establishment of respite services for adults with intellectual disabilities in West Cork; and the work her Department has conducted on this issue to date. [75004/26]

165. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the work undertaken by her Department in regard to the possibility of the introduction of menstrual leave for workers; if her Department will consider progressing legislation to this effect; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40390/26]

412. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to outline a clear timeline for the evaluation of options to amend the ECCE eligibility criteria which is currently underway; and if flexibility to reintroduce multiple entry points such as January and April to ensure that "two years of free preschool" is a reality for all children, regardless of the month they were born, is being activ…

817. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the rational for ending the ECCE split-place exemptions from the 2026/2027 programme year. [21779/26]

818. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the impact assessment that was undertaken for the ending of the ECCE split-place exemptions in rural and oversubscribed areas; and if there is scope to reinstate the exemptions for families with no choice but to divide their childcare due to lack of availability. [21780/26]

729. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when St. Joseph’s Baby Home in Stamullen, County Meath and Temple Hill Hospital in Blackrock, County Dublin will be added to Schedule 1 of the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Act 2023; and if she will consider expanding the scheme to cover all who spent time in mother and baby institutions. [16365/26]

730. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will consider conducting a review into the administration of the mother and baby institutions payment scheme; and if so, if she will engage with survivors on their experience of the redress scheme. [16366/26]

886. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to detail the work undergone by her Department to investigate and prepare for the introduction of paid surrogacy leave for parents; when it is intended to introduce surrogacy leave; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14571/26]

907. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if the process for registering as an early years provider will be streamlined to allow for faster registration; and if those going through the registration process with Tusla will be granted some leeway to remain operational while they register (details supplied). [7742/26]

908. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her plans for the allocation of €135 million which the Government has allocated to funded childcare facilities; the geographical areas covered; and if she will ensure that rural areas, with large distances between crèches, be adequately covered by this funding allocation. [7743/26]

888. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when the plans to bring forward the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024 to introduce socio-economic disadvantage as a ground for discrimination in equality legislation; the reason this bill was not included in the Spring Legislative Programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6255/26]

394. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department will ensure that a meeting with a social worker is provided to a person (details supplied) urgently. [68622/25]

1953. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of early education providers that have left the core funding scheme from its inception to date in 2025, in tabular form; the measures she is taking to ensure that providers stay within the scheme; and the supports her department is offering to families that can no longer afford creche spaces after their provider has left the…

746. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 900 of 5 November 2024, if she will set out work carried out by her Department to transpose EU Directives 2024/1499 and 2024/1500 on standards for equality bodies into Irish law; the timeline she is working towards in order to ensure the transposition is completed by the deadline of 19 June 2026; an…

263. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide an updated list of all email and phone lines for use of Oireachtas members within her Department, including all subsidiary bodies, in tabular form. [30768/25]

1890. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to outline the work being undertaken in her Department to increase access to employment for disabled people; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20281/25]

1891. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to outline the work being undertaken in her Department to increase access to third level education for disabled people; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20283/25]

1893. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to provide a list of all EU directives which are awaiting transposition in her Department; the date on which transposition is due; and the reasons for any delay in transposition, in tabular form. [20322/25]

1894. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to provide a list of all properties her Department have rented from 2015 to date in 2025, including the length of tenancy; and the amount spent on rent on each property over this time period. [20340/25]

1895. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth whether an external company is contracted to provide cleaning services to her Department building; and if so, the name of the company and the value of the contract. [20358/25]

1896. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth whether an external company is contracted to provide security services to her Department building; and if so, the name of the company and the value of the contract. [20376/25]

1337. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if there are plans to roll out HSE adult autism assessments; and, if so, the timeline involved in such a roll-out. [11174/25]

752. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 978 of 5 February 2025, the breakdown of the overdue applications for assessments of need, by the number of months that individuals have been waiting, for each local health area, in tabular form. [7424/25]

757. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if it is her intention under the Parental Leave Act 1998, for parents and guardians of children, to extend the age limit from 12 to 18 years of age. [7486/25]

666. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to provide details of the empty buildings, by county, in her Department’s portfolio; the value of the property; the length of time they have lain empty; and the physical status of each building, in tabular form. [6225/25]