Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

If a person with an assessment statement requires services that cannot be provided because of a lack of resources, those services must be left out of the service statement. That is the reality.

Since we entered into discussion on amendments, the DLCG was quite adamant that it wanted an independent assessment of need. It is for this reason that the independent assessment of need must be governed by a statutory provision for such independence while the remaining parts of the process are not.

I have no doubt that the HSE will address this issue during the practical implementation of the legislation. In principle, there is no reason the assessment officer, having his or her statutory responsibilities, could not perform part of the liaison officer work which is not statutory and which must accord——

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