Two reports published today highlight that the State continues to heap disadvantage on disadvantage in the treatment of vulnerable children. The Ombudsman for Children has published a hugely concerning report about the impact of the pandemic on children in general. In the report, the ombudsman describes 2020 as a devastating year for children, which it was. Schools and sports facilities closed while other activities came to an abrupt halt. Children could not see their families or friends. All the normal and joyful events were stripped away.

Vulnerable children's safety nets were also stripped away. The digital divide impacted children's right to education. The number of child protection referrals fell by a staggering 42%, meaning children living in unsafe homes or at risk of violence fell through the cracks. While available supports from social workers and teachers collapsed, domestic violence rates soared. Children with additional needs did not have access to their usual services or routines and very many of them regressed. Children awaiting medical treatment or an assessment of need for disability services have joined rapidly expanding waiting lists. Children living with parents or siblings who are medically at high risk lived in fear of bringing Covid-19 home and causing the death of their family member. Many of these children felt unable to attend school for that reason and 15 months later, many are still not attending school.

Another report published today has highlighted the difficulties faced by children born into disadvantaged backgrounds. The latest research from the Growing Up in Ireland study looks at 8,000 nine-year-olds and their families. The report describes how gaps have widened between children from advantaged and disadvantaged backgrounds since the children started at primary school. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds who were early high performers in school were being outperformed by children from wealthier backgrounds by the age of nine. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds had lower reading test scores and more negative self-perception, poorer health outcomes and more socio-emotional difficulties. Those children are being knowingly failed by the State.

The pandemic has caused considerable disruption to every child in Ireland but it has taken a particularly heavy toll on the most disadvantaged children because it has exacerbated underlying structural inequalities that have persisted for far too long. I know that the Taoiseach understands how such disadvantage can rob children of their childhoods and potential. I ask the Taoiseach and his office to take the lead with a comprehensive response to mitigate the damage that has been done to many vulnerable children.

There is no doubt but that the impact of Covid-19 has been severe on children. It is a once in a century pandemic, which has turned everybody's world upside down, but that is particularly true for children. It has led to isolation at a family level. Children born in the past year, for example, have not been able to see their wider families which is important, at a basic level, for socialisation and its importance in the early development of a child. Schools were closed for different periods during the first lockdown and the third wave of the pandemic earlier this year. The Government has done everything it possibly can to support children throughout the pandemic, not least in getting schools reopened last September, which involved unprecedented investment in resources for primary and secondary schools and childcare settings to enable the return of services and schools. A range of supports was provided to enable that to happen. Unfortunately, the third wave interrupted that in the first quarter of the year but, thankfully, we were able to get kids back into school. It is a measure of our society compared to other countries, in that we were in a position to more consistently prioritise education for children above and beyond other sectors of society or the economy. We imposed localised lockdowns in the run-up to September last year. That was not popular but we did it to ensure we could facilitate the restart of education in September and could carry it on through the rest of the year. That was an important policy objective and priority.

The Deputy mentioned disadvantage and the digital divide and what she said is true. My initial feedback was that the online experience was difficult and challenging for schools to operate although it was better the second time around during the third wave. People got to learn more and improve their modus operandi, practices and so on. However, nothing ever replaces the personal interaction between a teacher and a child or a special needs assistant and a child in the classroom. That said, we have now, as part of the recovery and resilience programme and in our submission to Europe, identified a significant investment in technology for education including high-speed connectivity and the deployment of devices. That investment is heavily weighted towards supporting children in circumstances of socioeconomic disadvantage. The Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools, DEIS, programme has been a significant intervention. It was brought in by Fianna Fáil when it was last in government. I have had a long and consistent position in terms of addressing educational disadvantage. I was involved in developing the original school completion programme when I was Minister for Education and Science. That is being reviewed at the moment and we need to refine it to ensure we target the children who are most in need. The digital transformation programme is about dealing with digital disadvantage.

We already have an unacceptably high number of children who are disadvantaged. Those children have been doubly disadvantaged over the past year and we need a comprehensive response to their particular circumstances. I am asking the Taoiseach to take the lead on this because it involves a number of different Departments. These issues touch on education, child welfare and health. All of the agencies with responsibility in those areas need to be brought together to devise an immediate and urgent response to the particular problems that have been caused. I am asking the Taoiseach to take the lead on that.

The Government and I are very clear in prioritising the needs of children. The Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman, will be to the fore in advancing the issues that fall within his remit. The same applies to the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley. We will be working together. We work collaboratively through the sub-committees on social affairs and education, as we must.

The Taoiseach needs to take responsibility.

I take responsibility as Taoiseach, as I do all the time in respect of advancing policies that are beneficial to children-----

Will the Taoiseach produce a plan?

-----and that is what we intend to do. There is no question but that Covid-19 had an unprecedented impact on children and we accept that. It was a damaging impact.

Will the Taoiseach produce a plan?

We need action across the board and I am keen on that. We are doing that. We have already published the economic recovery plan, which focuses strongly on children and young people in terms of the allocation of resources to support them in the time ahead.