David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 73:

In page 14, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following:

"(2) A liaison officer shall be independent in the performance of his or her functions.".

This again relates to the role of the liaison officer. The functions of the liaison officer, which are outlined in the legislation, include taking account of the resources available to the executive, practicability etc. I would like the Minister of State to clarify how a liaison officer should go about his or her work while taking account of all these issues. There is no requirement for the liaison officer to carry out his or her functions in an independent manner as provided for in respect of assessment officers and clearly this is because of the constraints on the liaison officer. Even allowing for the constraints on the liaison officer as specified in the Bill, the liaison officer should be able to perform his or her functions without other pressure.

While I may not agree, I accept that he or she must take into account the resources available and what is practicable, which is contained in the legislation. Having said that, the liaison officer should have a free hand and should be able to go about his or her functions in an independent manner without anybody in the Health Service Executive putting pressure on him or her to come up with a service statement that may not be the best that is possible for the person with the disability in the time allowed. We should give the liaison officer a certain amount of independence under the constraints of the legislation.

The Minister of State may say this provision is not essential, and maybe that is correct, but it is important to clarify how liaison officers are to reconcile what is available to the Health Service Executive with the services required. Will they be given a budget at the start of the year outlining what is available and be required to work within that budget or will they need to fight for each case as it arises? I ask the Minister of State to share his thoughts on how this will work as it impacts on the independence or otherwise of the liaison officer.

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