929. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether responsibility for setting national policy on time-to-permanency outcomes for children in care rests with her Department; and if so, the policy framework currently governs same. [34161/26]
Topics / Children in Care
A subject heading for parliamentary questionsChildren in Care
358 questions from 46 TDs, between 5 February 2025 and 17 September 2026.
358
questions
353 written, 5 oral
46
TDs have asked
10
parties and groups
Independents counted together
3
departments asked
Questions per month
The record holds no questions for August, when the Dáil does not sit.
Jan 2025Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions |
|---|---|
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 19 |
| March 2025 | 16 |
| April 2025 | 8 |
| May 2025 | 9 |
| June 2025 | 2 |
| July 2025 | 23 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 8 |
| October 2025 | 0 |
| November 2025 | 23 |
| December 2025 | 11 |
| January 2026 | 24 |
| February 2026 | 19 |
| March 2026 | 19 |
| April 2026 | 16 |
| May 2026 | 77 |
| June 2026 | 52 |
| July 2026 | 29 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 3 |
| October 2026 | 0 |
Who asks, by party
The party each TD belonged to on the day, in alphabetical order. Parties differ a lot in size, and members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them, so this shows who raised it, not how much a party cares about it.
The TDs who asked most
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them. Each question counts once.
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136
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49
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20
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18
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18
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16
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12
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10
Asked of
Debated under the same heading
Debates whose official heading is exactly these words.
The questions
930. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department has undertaken any comparative analysis with other jurisdictions regarding time-to-permanency targets or standards in child protection systems; and if so, to provide details and findings. [34162/26]
931. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether prolonged duration in State care without a permanency outcome is recognised within national policy as a risk factor for adverse long-term outcomes for children; and the measures in place to mitigate such risk. [34163/26]
932. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether there is a requirement for periodic formal review at national level of cases where a child has been in State care for more than five years; and if so, the governance arrangements underpinning such reviews. [34164/26]
935. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the staff-to-child ratio and average length of stay in private versus statutory residential centres operated or funded by Tusla; the number of children that are currently on a waiting list for a residential care placement; the average waiting time; the procurement or tendering process governs the awarding of contracts to private resident…
936. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether individual residential childcare placements procured from the approved panel are subject to a secondary competitive process between providers; and if not, the basis on which a provider is selected in each case [34218/26]
937. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to set out the allocation mechanism used by Tusla when assigning residential childcare placements from the approved panel, including whether a ranking system, rotation system, or mini-competition process is applied. [34219/26]
938. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether standardised national pricing frameworks, cost ceilings, or maximum weekly rates apply to private residential childcare placements procured through the panel; and if so, to provide details [34220/26]
939. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the weighting applied to price, quality, and other criteria in the original tender process used to establish the residential childcare provider panel. [34221/26]
940. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether emergency or out-of-hours residential childcare placements are exempt from standard procurement procedures; and if so, the safeguards in place to control cost and ensure value for money in such cases. [34222/26]
941. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of providers currently on the residential childcare procurement panel; the date on which the panel was established; its duration; and whether additional providers may be admitted during its lifetime. [34223/26]
942. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether any value-for-money, procurement compliance, or audit review has been conducted in respect of private residential childcare placements since 2020; and if so, to provide details and findings. [34224/26]
948. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current number of children in special emergency arrangements (SEAs), by Tusla region and age group. [34370/26]
949. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the average, median, and longest duration a child has spent in a special emergency arrangement in each of the past five years. [34371/26]
950. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children that have remained in a special emergency arrangement for longer than 30 days, 90 days and six months. [34372/26]
951. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the statutory or legal basis under which children may be placed in unregistered special emergency arrangements, particularly where such placements extend beyond the immediate emergency period. [34373/26]
952. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether court approval or judicial oversight is sought when a child remains in a special emergency arrangement beyond an initial emergency period; and if not, the reason. [34374/26]
953. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the reason HIQA does not inspect special emergency arrangements; and whether she will commit to extending independent inspection powers to these placements. [34375/26]
954. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of safeguarding incidents, serious concerns, or Garda referrals that have arisen in special emergency arrangements in the past five years. [34376/26]
955. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of required weekly visits to children in special emergency arrangements were missed or delayed in the past 12 months. [34377/26]
956. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the proportion of children in special emergency arrangements that have accessed independent advocacy services; and whether any barriers to access have been identified. [34378/26]
957. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the reason oversight of special emergency arrangements is conducted entirely within Tusla; and whether any independent or external oversight mechanism exists. [34379/26]
958. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether she will commit to a timeline for the elimination of long-term special emergency arrangements. [34380/26]
768. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality how children have been in residential care for each of the past five years under the National Placement Team; and the number of children that are on a waiting list for residential care for each of the past five years. [32466/26]
769. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of unaccompanied minors that have been in SEAs for each of the past five years; and the number of non-unaccompanied minors that have been in SEAs for each of the past five years. [32467/26]