David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 95:

In page 16, between lines 45 and 46, to insert the following:

"(e) identifying the services which are required but which are currently unavailable, resulting in unmet needs of the persons assessed, with a view to making those services available.".

This amendment relates to section 13 which deals with the maintenance of records by the executive and related matters. That section states that the executive shall keep and maintain records for a number of purposes, including identifying persons to whom assessments or services are being provided, identifying those services, specifying the aggregate needs identified in assessment reports which have not been included in the service statements and planning the provision of those assessments and services to people with disabilities. I propose to add another purpose, namely, to identify "the services which are required but which are currently unavailable, resulting in unmet needs of the persons assessed, with a view to making those services available".

It is understood that the provision of the entire range of required services may be phased in to take account of available funding and professionals. Nobody would agree that this is ideal but that, as the Minister of State continues to remind us, is the reality. However, it is imperative that a record is kept of the needs that can be met immediately, those that can be met over time and those that cannot be met for the foreseeable future. The Bill should include a guarantee of increasing service provision over time to an individual and gradually reduce the gap between the assessment report and the service statement.

This amendment charges the executive with ensuring that records be maintained to identify the services which are required but which are currently unavailable. In that way, the need for those services will not be forgotten or put on the long finger and the needs of the persons concerned will be met as soon as resources are available to provide those services.

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