Today on #WorldChildrensDay I am also thinking about the children in impoverished conditions in #Palestine. Since 2000, over 1,800 children have been killed across the Occupied Palestinian Territories. .@DCIsecretariat (international NGO) report that each year approximately 500-700 Palestinian children, some as young as 12 years, are detained and prosecuted in the Israeli military court system.

THREAD 1/15. I think it is important to be clear about what the Mother and Baby Home's Bill does and does not do. The Bill does not seal the archive of the Mother and Baby Home Commission. 2/15. Is this Bill perfect? Absolutely not but it is needed so that information would not be sealed. Should there have been more engagement with survivors? Yes and I will be bringing this to my colleague @rodericogorman's attention and asking that he engages with survivor groups.

Today we announced the first budget of this government in highly trying times for us all. The participation of the @greenparty_ie in government can be seen in what was delivered today, a budget that put the vulnerable first and one that prepares for a green recovery #Budget2021 Today's budget include the following measures.

Social Protection:

- PUP extended to April 1st
- Pension age to stay at 66
- Increasing carers support grant by €150 euros
- Extending parents benefit by further three weeks
- Christmas Bonus to be paid to people on PUP

Thread-Had a long think today about the news that there will be the abolition of the Dept of Children & decided it's only right to write this. For a long time Child protection was the poor relation in the department of health, never getting the attention or resources it needed /1 /2 Two things that have driven change were the creation of Tusla as a stand alone agency & the creation of the Department of Children. The dept is seen by some as just the dept of childcare, but it's not that. Early years education & care is important (just ask any one working