Questions

140. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if assistance can be provided to a returning emigrant (details supplied) to locate a suitable location in Dublin Port to offload personal items from a container. [74733/26]

141. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will instruct the inland fisheries to carry out an investigation in relation to the impact of high aluminium levels in the public water supply which was being treated at the Goatenbridge Water Treatment plant in South Tipperary; if he will investigate where the contaminated water was disposed of or discharged to; the water source…

142. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the breakdown of the number of farmers in each land category (details supplied); and average stocking rate, with regard to the ANC payment, in tabular form. [74941/26]

143. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to the ANC payment, the breakdown of the number of recipients, by stocking rate, in ranges 0, 0-0.1, 0.1-0.2, 0.2-0.3, 0.3-0.4, 0.4-0.5. [74933/26]

144. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to the BISS payment, the breakdown of the number of recipients, by stocking rate in ranges, 0, 0-0.1, 0.1-0.2, 0.2-0.3, 0.3-0.4, 0.4-0.5. [74927/26]

145. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the level of State funding provided to the Irish Deaf Society by her Department and the agencies under its remit in each of the years 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026; and the services the society provides in County Mayo. [74631/26]

146. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the level of State funding provided to Chime in each of the years 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026; the services Chime provides in County Mayo under its funding arrangements; and the number of staff delivering these services in the county. [74630/26]

147. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports available in County Mayo for older adults who are profoundly deaf, including access to social work and community resource services; and the way in which these services are reviewed to ensure they meet the needs of service users. [74632/26]

148. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the date on which the decision was made to introduce a restriction limiting preschool rooms to one maintenance of reduced ratio arrangement; when the decision was approved by the Department; where and when the policy was formally published prior to its communication to providers through the Early Years Hive on 25 August 2026; w…

149. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the extent to which the potential reduction in ECCE capacity influenced the decision to restrict maintenance of reduced ratio arrangements to one per room; whether consideration was given to circumstances in which a smaller group size may provide a more appropriate support than the addition of further adult assistance; and the …

150. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether an assessment was undertaken of the impact of the restriction limiting preschool rooms to a single maintenance of reduced ratio arrangement on children with additional needs for whom reduced group size is itself an essential support, including children experiencing sensory overload, communication difficulties, hearing-r…

151. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the evidence, research, consultation findings or needs-based assessment that informed the decision to limit the approval of maintenance of reduced ratio (MRR) arrangements under the access and inclusion model (AIM) to one MRR per preschool room; and the basis upon which it was determined that no further MRR arrangement may be a…

152. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether she has considered extending statutory paid paternity leave from the current entitlement of two weeks to at least eight weeks; if her Department has undertaken any assessment of the social, economic and family benefits associated with longer periods of paternity leave, including impacts on child development, maternal we…

153. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any steps are being considered to prevent childcare providers from primarily offering the more expensive band F places under the national childcare scheme. [74560/26]

154. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of families who avail of core funding, by band, in tabular form. [74559/26]

155. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the status of the role of data protection officer in Tusla. [74658/26]

156. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if consideration is being given to extending the revised childcare fee cap, or introducing alternative cost-reduction measures, for families using childcare services operating within Band F (50+ hours per week); if she is aware of concerns that many childcare providers in areas such as Lucan operate exclusively within Band F an…

157. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will clarify whether the €550 monthly childcare fee cap announced in Budget 2027 applies solely to childcare services operating within Band E (40-49.9 hours per week) under the core funding scheme; and if she will provide details of the number of childcare providers operating within Bands E and F, respectively. [74685/26…

158. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the hourly rate paid under HSE direct payment, individualised funding, personal assistant direct employment, or similar schemes that allow a person with a disability to directly employ their own care worker or personal assistant; the annual rate applicable in each year from 2016 to 2026; and the date on which the rate was last increase…

159. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the reason a child in County Mayo (details supplied) is facing an estimated four-year wait for an assessment of need (AON); the measures being taken to address the excessive delays in accessing statutory assessments; and the current waiting times for AON assessments in County Mayo. [74556/26]

160. Deputy Micheál Carrigy asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding the OT position in the adult disability service in St. Joseph's care centre in Longford. [74515/26]

161. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently on a waiting list for a crèche place in north Kildare; and the plans in place to address this issue. [74712/26]

162. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the plans in place to address crèche facility deficits in Kill and in north Kildare more broadly. [74711/26]

163. Deputy Daniel Ennis asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of providers who have left core funding since the scheme began; if any attempt has been made by her Department to incentivise providers who have left the scheme to rejoin; and the measures in place to prevent further providers from leaving the scheme. [74710/26]

164. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to outline the statutory measures in place to enforce third-party compliance under the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015; and whether binding guidelines will be issued to financial institutions, healthcare providers and State bodies regarding their legal duty to recognise tier 1 and tier 2 agreements. [74698/26]