Hildegarde Naughton
Galway West · Fine Gael · Ireland
“It is an absolute commitment in the programme for Government to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio over the lifetime of the Government. The Deputy will appreciate I cannot announce anything here in the Dáil. I have to go into negotiations in relation to the upcoming budget.”
“Where we can, we give guidance and I know schools are very well aware of this. They do this well themselves so that where possible, the more junior classes would have a lower class size.”
“The identification model has to be applied consistently right across the country to have fairness and transparency around it. Under the DEIS strategy to 2035, work is under way in my Department, with colleagues in the Central Statistics Office and across other Departments, to utilise other administrative data sources to help improve how w…”
“The school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application under the additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme for an additional temporary classroom in 2025. This school had previously been approved for a permanent extension under the ASA scheme in 2021 for a two-classroom special education needs unit and one mainstream classroom.”
“A huge amount of work is being done on securing specialist places, be it in special classes or special schools. We are far ahead of where we were this time last year. We had a budget for 400 special classes. I got increased funding in March of this year. We are ahead in relation to forward planning.”
“The general average of pupils to teachers in the primary staffing schedule improved from 26:1 five years ago to 23:1 for the current school year. Average class sizes in primary schools have improved from 24.1 to 22.2 through the investment we are making in schools.”
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“A workforce survey conducted in April this year shows that staffing levels in CDNTs across the country rose by 8% when compared with a previous review in October last year. By way of comparison, some 29% of posts in CDNTs were unfilled in October 2023. In April this year, the percentage of unfilled posts fell to 18%. This represents an overall growth in the workforce of 414.5 whole time equivalents in CDNTs between October 2023 and April 2025. These posts have been delivered through the concerted efforts of the HSE, my Department and other partners, including the Department of higher education. I recognise the work done to address this issue but I also know the CDNT vacancy rate remains too high and intensive work will continue in this year to bolster CDNT services through ensuring sufficient team members are available across the country.”
“I thank Deputy Ó Murchú for his question. This Government is committed to enhancing the delivery of supports and services for all children in Ireland with additional needs, including autistic children. It is important to emphasise that an autism assessment or an assessment of need is not required for a child to access primary care, CDNTs or CAMHS. The Government accepts that waiting lists for assessments of need are too long. We are working to ensure that all children's disability network teams are fully staffed with the appropriate expertise and that the waiting list is reduced. I am advised by the Health Service Executive that the most recent CDNT data available show that there are 2,009 posts filled in CDNTs across the country and 445.4 posts vacant.”
“I assure the Senator that the IDA will continue to market Monaghan and the Border region through its overseas offices to target FDI opportunities with corresponding site visits.”
“I thank the Senator for raising this issue. I reiterate that the IDA is currently engaged with an Enterprise Ireland company about the proposed letting of the Monaghan ABS building, subject to contract. The Minister is confident that the IDA will do all in its power to bring that to a successful outcome. As the Senator is aware, the ultimate decision as to where a company locates its operations is a matter for the company itself. A core objective of IDA Ireland is to enable, influence and deliver a competitive property offering which promotes national economic investments, supports willing FDI and the growth and expansion of indigenous clients within the Enterprise Ireland portfolio. The IDA is maintaining momentum on the delivery of its regional property programme across the country.”
“As the Senator will be aware, it is a well-established part of our enterprise policy that the availability of property and infrastructure solutions can be a key differentiator in investment decisions made by companies. In that regard, the provision of property solutions continues to be a key element of the IDA’s marketing of the Border region and the IDA is currently actively and positively engaged with an Enterprise Ireland company in respect of a proposed letting of the Monaghan ABS building. However, the engagement remains subject to contract so I must respect the commercial sensitivities which are at play at present.”
“The programme aims to address market failure by having advanced sites available for prospective investors, although investors themselves take that ultimate decision on where to locate. For both the Department and the IDA, it is crucial that the Border region has a competitive, sustainable property offering to enable the attraction and retention of investment and jobs and the regional property programme seeks to support that objective. As part of the IDA’s marketing efforts, the IDA emphasises the significant strengths that Monaghan and the Border region have to offer potential investors. A key feature of this offering is the IDA’s new 16,000 sq. ft advanced building solution, ABS, in IDA Monaghan business and technology park, Knockaconny, County Monaghan.”
“This ambitious target reflects IDA Ireland’s ongoing commitment to support transformation and growth in the regions and was a key metric for the Minister for enterprise, tourism and employment when recommending the strategy to Government. Currently, IDA Ireland client companies directly employ more than 160,000 people in regional locations across our country, or 55% of total client employment. There are seven IDA-supported companies in Monaghan, employing 258 people out of a total of 31,000 employed across the country. The IDA’s regional property programme ensures the supply of land, buildings and infrastructure in regional locations as required by current and prospective clients of both the IDA and Enterprise Ireland.”
“I thank Senator Gallagher for raising this issue. I am here on behalf of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Peter Burke. Regional development is a key element of this Government's enterprise policy, as set out in the programme for Government and the White Paper on enterprise. It is a key focus of the work of the Department and its agencies. Accordingly, regional development is also a priority for the IDA. In that regard, the IDA published its new strategy, Adapt Intelligently: A Strategy for Sustainable Growth and Innovation 2025-29, in February of this year. That strategy aims to attract 1,000 investments over the five years of its currency, with 550 specifically targeted for regional locations outside Dublin.”
“The priority of the apprenticeship system is to ensure that apprenticeships are well equipped to continue to grow and respond to the skills needs of industry, particularly construction as the Senator has mentioned, and to adapt to the challenges facing the workforce from digitisation and climate change. Significant progress has been made towards reaching the 10,000 registrations per year target in the current action plan for apprenticeships, with over 9,300 registrations last year. Substantial work on these matters is under way at national and EU level. I will keep the Senator apprised of the work and developments on the issue.”
“I thank the Senator for raising this issue. I am aware of the importance of advocating for all workers and ensuring that no one worker is overlooked. The Department of enterprise is committed to ensuring that every worker's contribution is recognised and valued. The Department will continue to review the relevant legislation and advocate on behalf of these groups. Work is under way to tackle the issue of bogus self-employment through the platform work directive. The Department will continue to lead Ireland's negotiations on the traineeship directive.”
“This reflects the significant investment employers make in training, including mentoring and reduced productivity. The Government is committed to ensuring that employers and future workers continue to value apprenticeship and are incentivised to participate in apprenticeship programmes in all sectors of the economy.”
“The directive includes a common framework of principles and measures to improve and enforce the working conditions of trainees and to combat employment relationships being disguised as traineeships, and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is leading Ireland’s negotiations on the traineeship directive. It is important to recognise the important role apprenticeships play in many sectors of our economy. Apprenticeship remains a vital pathway, with registrations up 51% since 2019, supporting national priorities like housing and infrastructure. This clearly shows apprenticeship is a valued option by both career seekers and employers. Minimum wage legislation does not apply to the remuneration of apprentices under the Industrial Training Act 1967 or the Labour Services Act 1987.”
“Senator Cosgrove mentioned bogus self-employment. Chapter II of the EU platform work directive tackles the issue of misclassifying persons performing platform work as self-employed. It requires EU countries to set up clear procedures to determine the correct employment status. Work on the transposition of this directive is under way in the Department and will complement existing mechanisms for the determination of the employment status of individuals or groups. Turning to interns, in March 2024, the European Commission proposed an initiative that includes a proposal for a directive on improving and enforcing working conditions of trainees and combating regular employment relationships disguised as traineeships.”
“I thank Senator Cosgrove for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Peter Burke. The Government is fully committed to supporting workers and to ensuring fair wages for the lowest paid workers in our economy. The national minimum wage increased to €13.50 per hour on 1 January 2025, an increase of over 6%, which is ahead of projected wage growth across the economy. Approximately 195,300 workers directly benefited from this increase. The Senator highlighted pay for young people. As the current system of youth rates is based on a percentage of the full minimum wage, when the minimum wage increases, these sub-minimum rates also increase, with young people in receipt of these rates seeing a commensurate increase in their wages.”
“There is outreach to secondary schools for raising awareness about the importance and value of working within the disability sector and incentivising people to work and to retain staff within our CDNTs. Any suggestions are welcome.”
“I thank the Senator. To be quite frank, my door is open to all suggestions. When I was in education, many of the problems around the summer programme within the schools related to teacher burnout or people needing a break. We were looking at therapists or student teachers, for example, coming into the school setting and being able to provide the service if the school staff are not available. If the Senator has any suggestions, I ask her to please relay them. The big elephant in the room is the shortage of supply of staff. We need to be innovative in how we do that and make sure the safeguards are there and the expertise is there. That is at the heart of what we want to provide. We are increasing the funding. We have bursaries and we have incentives for people to work within the disability service.”
“To address resourcing challenges, the HSE resourcing strategy, Resourcing our Future, was launched in May 2023 to ensure a sufficient domestic supply of healthcare staff. That strategy is being implemented to maximise the resourcing and delivery of publicly funded health services for the future. We are doing recruitment drives internationally as well, to try to attract more staff into the services as well as into higher education, meaning putting them through our universities.”
“To address the high staff vacancy rate during 2025 across all children disability services, the HSE is continuing to carry out sustained workforce recruitment and retention initiatives which include intensive recruitment efforts across the HSE, section 38 and section 39 organisations to onboard staff into vacant jobs. It has also broadened access to the HSE CareerHub portal, and has had active and sustained engagement with the employment market and students to improve the perception of and interest in working in children’s disability network teams, CDNTs, boosted by an increase in clinical placements in CDNTs and the development of pipeline initiatives to map relevant applicant pools directly into CDNT jobs.”
“While additional funding has been provided over successive budgets, it should be noted that the HSE is operating in a very competitive global market for healthcare talent, as the Senator is aware. There are significant shortages of qualified healthcare professionals across the globe. The HSE and the various lead agencies are experiencing ongoing challenges recruiting and retaining staff across a range of disciplines and grades. A dedicated disability workforce strategy will be developed by the HSE in 2025, to meet growing service demands and address recruitment and retention challenges across specialist disability services.”
“Summer camps, along with afterschool respite services, Saturday clubs and other community-based respite support activities, are recorded as day-only respite. From 2021 to 2024, day-only sessions increased nearly 400%, from 16,306 to 65,151. In the national service plan for 2025, additional funding has been provided to increase the occupancy of existing respite capacity, where feasible, and alternative respite provision, including in-home respite support hours and group-based targeted measures such as summer camps and evening provision. Ensuring that the disability sector is fully resourced is a key priority for the Government, which has been reflected in the programme for Government.”
“I take this opportunity to stress that provision of respite is a key priority area, both for me and the HSE, and the benefits of proper respite supports cannot be overstated. Respite services can play a crucial role in delaying or preventing moves into full-time residential placements and can be a very important factor in preventing carer burnout and family breakdowns. There has been significant focus on respite provision in recent years, and additional funding to expand respite services has been provided in successive budgets. Between 2021 and 2024, €35.7 million in new development funding was provided to respite. This has resulted in the provision of tens of thousands of new respite sessions.”
“I thank Senator Collins for raising this important issue and for offering me the opportunity to respond. Summer services, such as summer camps, fall under the bracket of what we term "alternative respite". We often forget that respite can take many forms, such as overnights in a respite facility or another person’s home, additional support during the regular day such as afterschool or holiday programmes, or in-home support. As Minister for State with responsibility for disability, I know the importance of providing respite for people with disabilities and their families. For a disabled person, respite can be an opportunity to take part in afterschool or weekend activities with their peers, while for some carers the focus is on getting some much-needed help and relief in caring for a loved one.”
“The Department of Health, in collaboration with the HSE's NGGO, will continue to work with patient advocates and other stakeholders in the public and private sectors to transform the vision of a robust and future-proofed genetic and genomic medicine service and make sure that it becomes a reality.”
“I will raise this issue again with the Minister for Health and tell her that this House would like to be updated on progress. Again, I reassure the Senator that the Department of Health is fully committed to supporting the NGGO as it works to implement the national strategy for accelerating genetic and genomic medicine. It is important to note that a transformation of the genetic and genomic medicine landscape in Ireland is a complex challenge but one we are facing head-on. Thanks to the NGGO's work to date, we have captured the scale of the problem and are now taking the steps to expand the system towards a robust, future-proofed genetic and genomics service that suits the needs of our growing population.”
“Each advance made towards strategy implementation will improve the experience of patients and their families and builds on a firm commitment to ensure that patients benefit from the emerging science of genomics. I thank the Senator again for providing me the opportunity to speak here today.”
“All of the above will support our programme for Government 2025 objective of securing Ireland's future by combining a clinical and diagnostic service with a national genome database and making that data available for research leading to innovation and improvements in patient care. In doing so we will continue to take steps to ensure alignment with the HSE's Digital Health Strategic Implementation Roadmap and European health data space requirements; the Department of Health and the HSE's national cancer strategy up to 2026 and the laboratory services reform programme's outline strategic plan 2026-35; and the national rare disease strategy 2025-30.”
“Development of an interim national genomic processing service, NGPS, later this year will provide business intelligence to enable national laboratory demand forecasting. Arrangements to finalise the location of the NGPS are under way, and the NGGO aims to have this service in place and running during quarter 4 of this year. Development of a communications plan for ongoing patient and public involvement, PPI, and stakeholder engagement and commencement of work for a strategic workforce plan for the genomic medicine service will add much-needed capacity to our genomics workforce.”
“I thank Senator Murphy O'Mahony for facilitating this opportunity to discuss this issue. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. I assure the Senator that developing a comprehensive national genetic and genomic testing service in Ireland is a key commitment for both the Department of Health and the HSE. Despite having excellent personnel on the ground, our services face significant challenges across the system, whether that be waiting times to access specialist clinical genetics services or the need to send tests abroad to meet demand. In 2022, the national strategy for accelerating genetic and genomic medicine was developed. Subsequently, the HSE established the national genetics and genomics office, NGGO, in 2023 to implement the national strategy.”
“Regarding the current NSAC priorities, HIQA is focused on the conclusion of two health technology assessment processes based on requests from the committee to consider the evidence for a proposed age range expansion to the bowel screening programme and the potential development of a screening programme for abdominal aortic aneurysm. Should the Coeliac Society of Ireland feel that there is additional evidence that would justify the NSAC reconsidering its proposal for the establishment of a screening programme for coeliac disease, I would encourage it to submit it, as the Senator said it will do, to the upcoming NSAC call for submissions.”
“I thank Senator Byrne. I will relay that to the Minister for Health. I have no doubt that engagement will continue with the Coeliac Society of Ireland. I reiterate that the NSAC is an independent expert group which makes recommendations to the Minister for Health. It is chaired by Dr. Suzanne Crowe. There is a wide range of expertise on that board. It ensures a rigorous and expert-driven approach for considerations on Ireland's screening policy. To date, six recommendations have been made to the Minister for Health by that committee.”
“I invite the Coeliac Society of Ireland to submit an updated application, should it feel that significant new evidence has emerged that would warrant reconsideration by the NSAC. Information on how to make a submission will be available on the NSAC website. I thank the Senator for raising this issue and I will raise it with the Minister for Health.”
“The committee also pointed to existing HSE guidelines and established clinical pathways for the early identification of symptoms associated with the condition. I remind the Chamber that the benefits and harms of introducing a screening programme need to be balanced and must align with the internationally recognised Wilson and Jungner criteria for screening. It may be of interest to note that NSAC holds annual calls for submissions, which invite proposals from all stakeholders and organisations, including members of the public, HSE and other medical professionals, for the introduction of new screening programmes or changes to existing programmes. This Commencement matter is well timed, given that the 2025 call for submissions is due to launch shortly.”
“On the basis of the information provided in the submission, the committee decided that the proposal did not sufficiently satisfy its requirements for referral to the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, for a full evidence review, also known as a health technology assessment. The Coeliac Society of Ireland requested an appeal of this decision and provided additional information. However, after reviewing the additional information provided, the committee determined that its original decision would be maintained. In explaining the rationale for its decision, the committee noted that there is currently a lack of sufficient evidence to demonstrate additional benefits to the population.”
“It assesses the evidence robustly and transparently against internationally accepted criteria before making recommendations to the Minister for Health. The NSAC processes ensure that recommendations are based on solid evidence, which is crucial to maintaining rigorous processes for effective, quality-assured and safe screening programme standards. I must emphasise that any changes to Ireland's screening programmes will always be based on the available evidence and that the benefits of such a change should outweigh the potential harms. The NSAC received a proposal for the introduction of a national screening programme for coeliac disease in children through its 2023-2024 call for submissions. This proposal was carefully considered at an NSAC meeting in June 2024.”
“I thank Senator Byrne for giving me the opportunity to update the House on this important matter. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. The Minister for Health and I are dedicated to enhancing Ireland’s population screening programmes, which play a crucial role in our health services by facilitating early treatment and care for many people, thereby promoting the overall health of our community. In this regard, I highlight that any proposed changes to Ireland's screening programmes will be facilitated through established evidence-driven protocols. The national screening advisory committee, NSAC, is the independent expert group which considers any proposed changes to screening programmes.”
“This includes the N22 Ballyvourney to Macroom project, the Dunkettle interchange upgrade, the N5 from Westport to Turlough and the Moycullen and Listowel bypasses. A review of the NDP is being undertaken and the outcome of that review will inform TII on the schemes to be progressed over the coming years, pending the availability of sufficient funding. The programme for Government commits to investing in all road projects in the current NDP. The programme for Government commits to increased funding for new roads as part of the NDP review and to the maintenance of existing roads. I will raise the matter with the Minister.”
“I will raise the matter with the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. Approximately €502 million of Exchequer capital funds has been provided to TII for national roads in 2025. In line with the NDP and Government policy, TII has sought to allocate national road funding to local authorities in a manner that seeks to achieve the following key outcomes: protection and renewal of the existing national road network; progressing major projects in or near construction; and progressing major projects that are at an earlier stage of the development pipeline. An allocation of approximately €6.6 million has been provided to Kilkenny County Council for national roads in 2025. A number of new roads projects which are included in the current NDP have already been delivered.”
“The signage at the end of the southbound climbing lane near Glenmore is under review by Kilkenny County Council. A scheme to improve this has been designed and is expected to be implemented in the coming months.”
“As with all projects in the current NDP, however, the delivery programme for this project will be kept under review in future years and considered in terms of the overall funding envelope to TII. The Minister understands from TII that three high-collision sites have been identified in recent years on this section of the N25. One site at Curraghmore was improved as part of a pavement scheme in 2020 and saw the introduction of central hatching and ghost island junctions; another at Gaulstown involved roadside boulders being removed; and at Ballynamona a fixed-speed camera is expected to go live in the next few weeks. In recent years, substantial lengths of timber post and rail fence along this section of the N25 have been replaced with tension mesh fence, making the roadside boundary more forgiving.”
“However, approximately €502 million of Exchequer capital funds have been provided for national roads through TII to local authorities in 2025. The N25 Waterford to Glenmore project would link the N25 New Ross bypass and the N25 Waterford city bypass and is expected to consist of approximately 9.4 km of high-quality road, completing the upgrade of the N25 between New Ross and Waterford. As regards the status of the N25 Waterford to Glenmore project, the preferred transport route was selected in 2021. As the scheme did not receive an allocation for 2025, it cannot progress to the design and environmental evaluation phase at this time and remains at the end of the route options selection phase.”
“This funding will enable improved regional accessibility across the country as well as compact growth, which are key national strategic outcomes. The funding will provide for the development of numerous national road projects, including the completion of projects that are already at construction stage and those close to it, as well as the development of a number of others. The funding for new roads was phased across the period of the NDP, with €1.1 billion allocated for the national roads from 2021 to 2025 and €4 billion allocated between 2026 and 2030. As the greater portion of this funding becomes available in the second half of the decade, this meant that TII was unable to provide funding over the past three years for the N25 Waterford to Glenmore scheme.”
“I thank the Deputies for raising this matter. I am taking this on behalf of the Minister for Transport, who has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding relating to the national roads programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with TII, under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2015, and in line with the national development plan, NDP, the operation and management of individual national roads is a matter for TII, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. TII ultimately delivers the national roads programme in line with Project Ireland 2040 and the NDP. The Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for capital spending on new national roads projects from 2021 to 2030 as part of the NDP.”
“This is about ensuring we are dealing directly with the HSE but also with service users and those with lived experience on the ground to ensure they get access to respite and day services. Some of these projects will take time, and perhaps a phased basis, but the Deputy can be assured of my commitment to rolling this out. I look forward to working with him on these projects.”
“The Deputy's first question veered into another area, so the response to that is in the written reply. I am having pre-Estimate discussions with the Ministers for public expenditure and Finance for the upcoming budget. What we all need to see is an increase in the budget and support for our day, respite and residential services right across the country to ensure that there is a good geographical spread and that, no matter where one is living, access to the disability services one requires is not based on a postcode lottery. That will require capital and current spending. Regarding the CDNTs, we are examining recruitment and retention and means to incentivise therapists, for example, to work within our CDNTs. The Deputy mentioned a number of projects within the Cavan-Monaghan area that were referenced in my reply.”
“We are spending €3.2 billion on disability under the previous budget. We want to see the expansion and reform of our disability services in order to maximise people's independence and to help to support them to live the lives they so wish. There will continue to be significant investment in this area.”
“That is just not acceptable. Those measures are part of it. We have an extra 272 whole-time equivalents within our CDNTs across the country. That is more than a 20% increase but we need to do much more. I am certainly open to suggestions as to how we can ensure we have a greater supply of those therapies, be it occupational therapists or speech and language therapists. I am engaging with the HSE, including Mr. Bernard Gloster, and the Department on what else we can do about the assessment of need process. I am sure the Deputy has found in his own area that it is not just about getting the assessment of need. Sometimes when someone gets one, he or she is still waiting to get access to those therapies. These issues are a top priority for me to make sure that adults and, in particular, children get early access to the therapies they need.”
“Last year, my colleague, Deputy O'Donovan, when he was Minister for higher education, put in place an extra 150 therapy places through our higher education institutions and we will be doing at least that again this coming September. We are also looking at therapy assistant posts and how they can support our CDNTs to ensure our children and adults are getting the therapies they deserve and need. As the Deputy will know, I am also working my colleague, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, regarding therapies going directly into our special schools and eventually into special classes in mainstream schools. That will also help to ensure that those children most in need - or some of them - are getting access to therapies. I found instances in my last brief in special education going into special schools where a child would not have seen a therapist.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. He can be assured when I came into this role our CDNTs and that step change in disabilities service are an absolute priority. As he will know, we are working on a national disability strategy at the higher end where every single Department will have to feed in what they are going to do. Whether it is the Departments of Justice, Health, Social Protection, transport, or enterprise, that step change will be required right across Government. Regarding the issue of assessments of need, which the Deputy raised, we can all acknowledge it is currently not working. The waiting lists are far too long. There is an issue around therapists. We are doing our recruitment drives at a domestic and international level.”
“I thank the Deputy. I, and the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, also recognise and acknowledge the contributions that migrants and their families bring to our economy and our society as a whole. The Minister's Department is committed to ensuring we provide legal pathways for economic migration that are fair, efficient and responsive to the needs of the economy. While the Minister cannot pre-empt the changes to be introduced to his Department's family reunification policy until that review has been concluded, he can assure the Deputy that he is acutely aware that join family applications are hugely important for those families impacted and that he is committed to improving the service his Department provides. I will relay what the Deputy has said to the Minister.”
“In addition to concluding the review, the Minister has advised me that in recent months more resources and staff have been assigned to his Department's visa division which are expected to reduce the waiting times for join family applications overall.”