John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In terms of current issues, and I will finish on this, Tusla is now the child care agency and I would have to say that if I had doubt about any employee I would have who was taking up employment elsewhere, I would be inclined to mark their cards. That is all I will say. It is a reasonable undertaking to assume that the HSE would undertake that in terms of any doubts it had because not to correct it or flag it is allowing for the same errors to be possible for the future, and we must break that culture.

Finally, since this happened, and I spoke to Ms Colley earlier on, I have received numerous phone calls from people who are currently attempting to sort out similar issues with the HSE, or with Tusla now, and some of the stories I have heard, which I am checking out and will present to the HSE or to the confidential recipient as soon as I clarify them, would not make one proud as a political figure that we preside over this type of thing in our State. I am just making that general comment because of what I have heard, but I will check it out.

As an example, in my own constituency, in terms of a particular organisation funded by the HSE, I am disappointed at the level of consultation with the parents of 11 intellectually disabled children who have now found themselves out of their homes, and we speak about the homeless here a lot, and are now being cared for in a hotel where the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, standards do not apply. Regardless of how long or how short they will be there, it is simply not right that this would happen. I will speak to Ms Colley privately about this but I am shocked at the way parents are being treated with regard to that particular issue and the provision of respite for those parents who need it. The resolution there is not being found in the way Mr. O'Brien has described it today in terms of finding the resolution, dealing with it, and the most vulnerable people being catered for.

I thank the witnesses for coming today. I know it has been a long meeting but I appreciate their attendance and, at times, their frankness in terms of the replies they gave.