Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is very strong. I agree with the Minister of State. We have nine CHOs. With regard to Carlow and Kilkenny, all the districts are changing. Who is the HSE accountable to? As other Deputies have said, the system is not functioning. There is no functional system. I can speak only about my own area, Carlow–Kilkenny.

I thank the Minister of State for her work and commitment. No one has worked as hard as her as she always comes back to you and does what she can. I welcome the €74 million in the budget. The Minister of State spoke about the public consultation process and all the town meetings happening around the country. I am aware she has spoken about the disability action plan and has said she expects an update at the end of July. That involves the independent monitoring group. However, I have spoken to parents at meetings and noted that some of them had tears in their eyes because they felt there was no support at all. Their children were waiting to be assessed and could not get their assessment. I learned the CDNT was not answering the phone and that children could not get school places. We always speak about early intervention here. It is crucial for a child. Like other members, I have had parents come to me who were so upset because the system was failing them. How do we work on a system that has been so failed for so long that parents are so disheartened? Children are being left on waiting lists and not being assessed. I have major concerns about private assessment. While I welcome it, I am concerned about the loops parents seem to have to go through. Maybe we need to consider this. How we address it will be crucial.

I have major concerns. With regard to the capital plan, two years ago we were told the CDNT building would be built at Kelvin Grove, Carlow, but there is no word about that now. I realise it will happen. Again, we are announcing things and they are taking time. We need to get the new CDNT building built. I know the Minister of State was very good in this regard. Holy Angels is part of this. It is another excellent school in Carlow. We have great facilities. About three weeks ago, Joe Meany from Delta Centre in Carlow spoke before this committee. The centre is absolutely excellent, but Mr. Meany cannot get staff because it is a section 39 organisation. The biggest barrier for any service now is getting staff and retaining them. Staff are leaving the section 39 organisations to go to the HSE. We have many excellent facilities around the country, including Delta Centre and Holy Angels, and there are many great schools, including St. Laserian's; however, we must ask where all the staff in the section 39 organisations, such as Delta Centre, are going to. This is a worry. Why would you do the same work as those in another organisation, and to the same standard and with the same qualifications, if you did not get the right pay? The first thing we have to do is sort out our section 39 organisations. We have no choice. The first huge failing within the system concerns the section 39 organisations. While I am aware of what the Minister of State is calling for, there is anger among the workers, who love what they do and want to stay where they are. Like others, however, they have mortgages and bills to pay. They need proper pay for proper work, which they are not getting.

The CDNT in Carlow is very understaffed. I know some of the staff and they are absolutely excellent. I am not here to criticise any staff because many of them are at burnout level. When staff are at burnout level, who will pay the price? It will be the children and parents. It is a case of getting the CDNT staffed, recruiting occupational and speech and language therapists and sorting out all our other services, such as that provided at Delta Centre.

Perhaps the Minister of State will provide an update on the report from the monitoring group that is due to come out at the end of the month.

The committee recently met the Minister of State responsible for special education and inclusion. At the meeting, the importance of the NCSE being aware of children who require special classes was highlighted. Can the Minister of State provide an update on whether everyone is working in conjunction with one another? While we have all the various areas, I wonder whether we are all on the one page. Is there joined-up thinking?