Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach agus na finnéithe go léir. Tá brón orm as a bheith mall ach bhí mé ag éisteacht leo, although that is the promise everyone makes. In this case, I actually was. The witnesses have dealt with a comprehensive set of issues. We were talking about child poverty and deprivation. This is almost a forever conversation. We have not actually got anywhere. We have never actually looked at this and had a proper conversation about addressing it. Multiple issues will be brought up, specifically regarding the budget. Many have said it is just a failure to deal with measures, such as the cost of disability payment. Most advocates said that at least there was the one-off payment last year and a recognition of that added cost of living. That is almost forgotten now. We then wait for a task force, a network and the usual things where issues go to die in this place.

We have had no shortage of issues with child protection. When Ms Tanya Ward was before this committee, she highlighted the issue – it is a big one I have always had – that we need a proper screening scenario to catch those who are most vulnerable. I do not mean that the first step will be Tusla jumping in to take children. Rather, it is about supports being in place around the family to give them the support they require. We will then get best-case results afterwards. Ms Ward spoke about the plan – I have not received great answers to my parliamentary questions in this regard, but it is something I will chase up – relating to specialist public health nurses and the idea of screening. What is the best framework we can put in place in that regard?

We are talking about early learning, schools and having all the proper supports in place. Corpus Christi Primary School, Moyross and St. James’s Primary School, Dublin, came before the disability committee to discuss the idea of those added supports that outlier principals and staff have obtained. It was about having everything available, from disability services right through to psychological services, meeting kids where they are at in order to catch some of those issues and then involve the family and whatever else. There is also a need for far greater bespoke supports for certain families. It is about ensuring all this follows coherently, rather than what we have in place currently. We just operate in silos. CAMHS is doing one thing and the CDNTs are doing another, while Tusla is doing something else. While a lot of people are doing good work, none of it is joined together. There is no proper framework to catch the really bad scenarios. Providing general supports in order that a person does not fall will lead us to a better place. It is about improving everyone’s life. It is also about education and transitioning to employment. That will break poverty in a real way. The witnesses have just under four minutes to answer how we put the perfect framework in play. We will go round the room.