Ms Aisling Byrne:

I reiterate that directing parents away from the assessment of needs report is more in the interests of the HSE; it is not in the interests of the child. Service statements are often defective in any event. Not a lot of parents know, because they are not told, that there is a yearly review of their service statements. Now, unfortunately, due to a recent court case these will again be on hold until 2023. Again, there is more backlog and more pushing onto other services. It is just not acceptable,