President Trump on TruthSocial: I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz. There is to be no hesitation. Additionally, our mine “sweepers” are clearing the Strait right now. I am hereby ordering that activity to continue, but at a tripled up level! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP
RTE Investigates last night synopsis particular emphasis guardian ad litems, children in SEA’s like hotel rooms; costs to the State especially figure of euros 14,000 per week. Young girls being raped.
Thought for 41s
RTÉ Investigates aired a documentary last night (22 April 2026) titled Children in care: one year following a system in crisis (also referred to as Inside the Care System). It is based on a year-long investigation inside the family law courts and the child protection system run by Tusla (the Child and Family Agency). The programme exposes a deepening crisis affecting around 5,900 children in state care, driven by severe shortages of foster and regulated residential places.
rte.ie The core issue is the heavy and growing reliance on Special Emergency Arrangements (SEAs) — unregulated, unregistered, privately-run placements in rented houses, apartments, B&Bs and hotel rooms. These are meant to be short-term but are often used for extended periods for some of the most vulnerable children. Over 1,100 children were placed in SEAs last year.
rte.ieParticular emphasis on Guardian ad Litems (GALs). Guardian ad Litems (court-appointed independent professionals, many from Barnardos) represent the voice of the child in care proceedings. The documentary features several GALs who are highly critical of the system. They describe SEAs as not constituting proper “care” and warn that the placements expose children to serious, lifelong harm.
Karen Rogers (GAL for a boy named Malak) successfully fought in court to move him out of SEAs into a regulated placement after he suffered instability (including a four-hour daily school commute). She said: “This is a solution that’s organised and set up, but it’s not care. I hate calling it part of the care system.” rte.ie
Freda McKittrick (head of Barnardos’ Guardian ad Litem service) repeatedly highlighted the risks: “We are exposing children to a level of risk which can cause them lasting damage.” On cases of sexual exploitation she added: “It’s horrific… I know from a career of working with both young people and adults who have been through sexual abuse that leaves its mark. It affects the rest of their lives.” rte.ie
GALs are shown actively challenging Tusla in court and advocating for the phasing out of SEAs.Children in SEAs (including hotel rooms)The programme includes direct testimony from young people who lived in these placements:
Aaron entered care at age 9 and was moved through 20 different settings, many of them SEAs in hotel rooms. He spent a full year in hotels: “I was living in hotels for a whole year, I was getting junk food… It was lonely and depressing, going from one hotel room to the next.” His grandmother described him sitting alone all day with a PlayStation, eating takeaway in a small room. rte.ie
Other young people spoke of feeling like “an Amazon parcel,” constant moves across counties, loss of belongings and memories, isolation, and being unable to form bonds or attend school consistently. Several described the placements as chaotic and frightening. rte.ie
SEAs are not subject to HIQA inspection or the same standards as regulated children’s homes.Costs to the State — especially the €14,000-per-week figureThe programme highlights the enormous financial cost. Tusla CEO Kate Duggan confirmed that SEAs cost an average of €750,000 per child per year — that works out at roughly €14,423 per week per child. This is dramatically higher than the €420 weekly fostering allowance. Child protection solicitor Gareth Noble called it “huge money… totally and utterly unacceptable.”
rte.ie Young girls being raped / sexually assaulted. The documentary details harrowing cases of sexual exploitation, including that of a teenage girl placed in an SEA. Within weeks she went missing 12 times, associated with middle-aged men, allegedly set fire to her placement, and was reported to have been sexually assaulted by a number of men while missing from the SEA. Despite the extreme risks, she remained in the same type of unregulated placement because no suitable alternative beds were available. GAL Freda McKittrick described the outcome as “horrific.”
rte.ie Tusla told the programme it is “acutely aware of risks with the exploitation of vulnerable young people” and has a Child Sexual Exploitation Procedure in place, but the GALs and the young people featured argue the system is failing to protect children adequately.Other issues raised. The investigation also references forged staff references at one major SEA provider (Kare Plus / Baig & Mirza Health Services) and broader governance failures. Retired Judge Dermot Simms stated that children in SEAs “are being failed by the State.”Tusla’s response in the programme acknowledged that the experiences described “are not acceptable” and that the agency is under pressure, but it is working to increase capacity and reduce reliance on SEAs.
rte.ie Overall the documentary paints a picture of a care system in crisis that is outsourcing its most vulnerable children into unsuitable, high-risk, high-cost emergency placements — a situation that multiple Guardian ad Litems say must end.
1 web page
Explain GAL role in detail
Tusla reform proposals
Is there a foreign company involved (fraud perhaps) involved in SEA’s
Thought for 39s
No, there is no evidence of a foreign-registered company directly operating SEAs or involved in the fraud highlighted in the RTÉ Investigates documentary. The provider at the centre of the forged references scandal is an Irish-registered company.The company in question Baig & Mirza Health Services Ltd (trading as Kare Plus Dublin South) is Ireland’s biggest SEA provider. It is a private limited company (Company No. 671565) incorporated in Ireland on 3 June 2020, with its registered address in Dun Laoghaire, Dublin. It has received approximately €47 million from Tusla over the past three years for running unregulated SEAs.
rte.ie
It operates under a franchise agreement with Kare Plus Ireland (a separate Irish entity founded in 2018). The Kare Plus brand itself originated as a UK healthcare franchise, but the Irish operations (both the franchisor and this franchisee) are Irish companies. rte.ie
Its largest shareholder is Baig and Mirza Gulf Holdings Limited (another Irish-registered company). The “Gulf” name in the holding company suggests possible Middle East/Gulf region connections or ownership ties, but the operating entity providing SEAs is fully Irish-registered and Irish-based. solocheck.ie
The company is owned by Muhammad Usman Baig and Farhan Mirza (Irish company filings and media reports confirm Irish incorporation and operation).
The fraud / forged referencesYes — there was employee fraud involving forged staff references, as detailed in the documentary and an internal Tusla report obtained by RTÉ:
Forged employment references (including the use of a fake company stamp) were submitted to Tusla’s Central Compliance Unit for staff working in SEAs.
The forgeries were linked to a suspended employee of Kare Plus Dublin South and appear to have been used for workers at another (unrelated) SEA provider.
An internal report titled “Internal Report: Discovery and Investigation of Employee Fraud” described it as “a serious employee fraud which involves collusion, forgery, misusing and compromising company’s staff sensitive and confidential information.”
The company (via then-CEO Farhan Mirza) reported the issue to Tusla in April 2025, stating it took the matter “very seriously” and that any unauthorised references should be deemed invalid. It later told RTÉ the forgeries were the work of “former rogue employees” acting without the knowledge or authority of the company or its directors. The falsified documents were submitted to Tusla by a completely separate and unrelated company.
There is an ongoing Garda investigation into the matter. rte.ie
Tusla has confirmed the provider reported the issue to Gardaí and has referred queries back to the company.Summary
No foreign company is running SEAs or implicated in the fraud in the RTÉ investigation. The provider is Irish-registered and Irish-operated, albeit under a UK-originated franchise brand and with a parent shareholder whose name hints at possible international (Gulf) ownership links.
The fraud itself was internal employee fraud (forged references), not company-directed, according to the provider’s statements. It has been reported to the authorities and is under investigation.
This fits into the broader RTÉ exposé on the high-cost, unregulated nature of SEAs, but the “foreign company” angle does not appear to apply here. If new details emerge from the Garda investigation, that could change, but based on all publicly available information from the documentary and related reporting, the company is domestic.
Are there any reports of where Revenue Commissioners in Ireland have waived Benefit in Kind rents from person who is sole benificiary of trust which provides her home (her mother did write letter stating she could live in the property rent free but her mother is now deceased and that letter does not hold or perhaps it does) which states her incompetence and therefore lesser amt of annual tax related to DTT.
Thoughts
No, there are no publicly available reports, case decisions, or Revenue precedents specifically documenting ad-hoc “waivers” of the annual tax charge on rent-free (or below-market) occupation of trust-owned property in the exact scenario you describe.
What you are referring to as “Benefit in Kind rents” is not the standard employment-related BIK (which applies only to employer-provided accommodation). Instead, Revenue treats the annual benefit of living rent-free (or at below-market rent) in a property held in a trust — where the occupant is a beneficiary but not yet absolutely entitled to the property — as a Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) charge under section 40 of the Capital Acquisitions Tax Consolidation Act 2003. Each year’s occupation is valued at the market rental value (typically assessed at 31 December or the day before the benefit ends), minus the €3,000 small-gift exemption per disponer. The tax rate can be up to 33% (after thresholds and aggregation rules). Trustees or the beneficiary may need to file a CAT return (Form IT38). Key points relevant to your situation (trust-provided home + mother’s letter + deceased settlor)
The mother’s letter stating you could live rent-free is not automatically binding for tax purposes after her death. It may serve as evidence of the original intent (e.g., a license to occupy or provision for maintenance), but Revenue looks primarily at the trust deed, the nature of the benefit, and whether it qualifies as a taxable gift each year. If the trust does not explicitly grant a right of residence or maintenance, Revenue can still treat the free occupation as an annual taxable benefit. canisgallicus.com
However, the letter + trust arrangement can support an exemption claim, especially if tied to maintenance/support.
The “incompetence” angle (incapacity/disability) — this is where tax relief is most likelyIf the beneficiary has a permanent incapacity (physical or mental inability to manage their own affairs or self-maintain — what you call “incompetence”), Revenue’s practice and the CAT Act provide strong statutory exemptions that can eliminate the annual CAT charge entirely (i.e., “lesser amt of annual tax” down to zero). These are not discretionary waivers but automatic reliefs when the conditions and evidence are met:
Section 82 CAT exemption → Full exemption for any gift or benefit (including free accommodation) that is “normal and reasonable” support/maintenance for a permanently incapacitated child (of any age). Free use of the trust property qualifies as maintenance. This applies even to adult beneficiaries. canisgallicus.com
Discretionary Trust Tax (DTT) exemption → Full relief from the 6% once-off + 1% annual DTT if the trust exists exclusively for a person incapable of managing their affairs due to incapacity. Requires medical evidence (e.g., medical reports, Disability Allowance confirmation).
Section 84 CAT → Exemption for benefits used exclusively for medical care, therapies, or adaptations that enable independent living (accommodation can sometimes qualify).
Dwelling House Exemption (Section 86) → Possible on eventual distribution of the property itself (if you have lived there 3+ years as your main residence, have no other dwelling interest, etc.), though this is less straightforward for trust-held “second” properties. canisgallicus.com
Revenue’s own guidance confirms that free occupation of a family home by a child (including in trust contexts where it is support) does not always give rise to a taxable gift, and s82 explicitly covers university-age or incapacitated cases.
revenue.ie Practical reality and what to do
No reported “waiver” cases appear in public Revenue determinations, Tax Appeals Commission decisions, or media/articles. Relief comes through claiming the statutory exemptions above (backed by medical evidence of incapacity and the trust deed/letter as supporting intent). The 2026 blog analysis you may have seen online is based on real Revenue correspondence and confirms that incapacity makes the outcome “much more favourable” and often results in zero tax.
Trustees/beneficiary should reply to any Revenue query with: trust deed, copy of the mother’s letter, medical evidence of permanent incapacity, rental valuation, and a formal claim under s82/s84/DTT exemption. File the CAT return even if claiming exemption. You can seek binding confirmation via Revenue MyEnquiries or a local office.
Strongly recommend a solicitor (trusts/estates) + tax advisor (ideally STEP-qualified) to review the trust deed and prepare the claim — penalties apply for late filing or incorrect returns.
In short: Revenue does not appear to have published specific “waiver” reports for this exact fact pattern, but the CAT exemptions for permanently incapacitated beneficiaries (supported by medical evidence of “incompetence”) routinely eliminate or minimise the annual tax on the rent-free benefit. The mother’s letter helps as evidence of intent but is secondary to the incapacity reliefs. Professional advice tailored to the trust deed and medical facts is essential.
David Frum explains the origins of the “madman theory” and why it’s a strategy born of weakness. From Nixon to Trump, he argues that bluff, bluster, and unpredictability ultimately erode power rather than enhance it.
Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech Email address Sign Up
As if activity-monitoring software installed on your work computer that snitches on you if you’re away from the keyboard for too long wasn’t enough, Meta is taking the trend to its logical — and dystopian surveillance state-level — conclusion.
As Reuters reports, the Mark Zuckerberg-led company is installing new tracking software on all of its US-based employees’ computers that tracks all of their mouse movements and keystrokes, data that will be used for training the company’s AI models.
The company is reportedly looking to develop AI agents that can complete work tasks autonomously, in perhaps one of the more conspicuousefforts to automate human workers’s jobs we’ve come across as of late.
Besides the ethical concerns of forcing employees to train their AI replacements, the news also raises thorny questions regarding data privacy. Meta, in particular, has garnered an incredibly poor reputation when it comes to protecting personal data.
According to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, the software is called “Model Capability Initiative” and will run on work-related apps and websites. It will even take occasional screenshots.
The goal is to guide Meta’s AI models to essentially replicate the way humans interact with computers, like using dropdown menus or making use of keyboard shortcuts.
“This is where all Meta employees can help our models get better simply by doing their daily work,” the memo reads, as quoted by Reuters.
After this story was published, a Meta spokesperson insisted that managers won’t be able to access the data and that it won’t be used to evaluate employee performance.
“If we’re building agents to help people complete everyday tasks using computers, our models need real examples of how people actually use them — things like mouse movements, clicking buttons, and navigating dropdown menus,” the company said in a statement. “To help, we’re launching an internal tool that will capture these kinds of inputs on certain applications to help us train our models. There are safeguards in place to protect sensitive content, and the data is not used for any other purpose.”
While tracking employees’ keystrokes and mouse movement would likely be against European law, Yale University law professor Ifeoma Ajunwa told Reuters that “there is no limit on worker surveillance” in the US on a federal level.
Beyond tracking their employees’ every move, Meta is also planning to slash ten percent of its workforce across the globe starting next month — only the first of several planned cuts later this year.
I’m a senior editor at Futurism, where I edit and write about NASA and the private space sector, as well as topics ranging from SETI and artificial intelligence to tech and medical policy.
Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and techEmail addressSign Up
As fear over an AI-driven jobs apocalypse continues to simmer, some tech leaders remain adamant that the wide proliferation of AI will lead to more employment opportunities, not fewer.
Instead of getting ready to clear their desks, the centibillionaire argued that instead, human workers’ productivity will instead go through the roof — with the minor tradeoff that you’ll be overseen by a nagging AI boss that won’t ever leave you alone.
“Your [AI] agents are harassing you, micromanaging you, and you’re busier than ever,” Huang said. “And yet our company is able to do more.”
As a result, “we’re gonna create more jobs in the end,” he argued. “There’ll be more people working at the end of this industrial revolution than at the beginning of it.”
Huang has previously argued that company leaders are thinking too small if they’re looking to trim headcounts thanks to AI.
It’s a notable departure from the widespread narrative that the AI boom could lead to major job losses, with CEOs frequently citingthe tech as they lay off thousands (whether these AI tools can actually carry out a human employee’s workload remains a subject of debate). Some have even started to brag that their AI expenses are eclipsing the money they spend on human employees.
Whether Huang’s view will offer much reassurance to sacked tech workers who are facing a challenging job market is dubious at best. We also shouldn’t discredit that Huang’s AI chip empire has been selling shovels during the ongoing AI gold rush. Of course he’s advocating software engineers to do more with his company’s hardware instead of less.
In short, if the massive waves of layoffs in the tech industry are any indication, Huang’s belief that the widespread use of AI tools will lead to a flurry of new jobs will probably continue to be challenged.
Besides, should a legion of overbearing AI bosses really be the tech industry’s end game?
I’m a senior editor at Futurism, where I edit and write about NASA and the private space sector, as well as topics ranging from SETI and artificial intelligence to tech and medical policy.
China has far more oil stashed away than any other country — giving it a strategic edge during the biggest oil shock in history, Axios’ Amy Harder writes from new U.S. government data.
Why it matters: China is a huge winner in the Iran war, due in large part to energy, including its oil stockpile.
China also owns over 70% of the global solar, wind, battery and EV supply chains.
Data: 
