Mr. Tony O'Brien:

When such regulation came in for the nursing home sector, both public and private, it was done on a phased basis.

Although there were still some outstanding issues, there was an opportunity for the health sector to catch up with the required standards. That opportunity is not currently available as regards the disability sector and, consequently, the cost-increasing recommendations from inspections are not capable of being met within our current budget. Having regard to our obligations relating to how we use the budget provided to us within a service plan that is approved under specific headings, when costs arise from a separate set of regulations from another agency whose parent is the same Department as ours but where their requirements and our budget do not match completely, it is a significant in-year challenge for us and it is something we are discussing at the moment.