John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney. I am pleased also to have this opportunity to address the issues raised by Deputies Finian McGrath and Terence Flanagan.

I want to re-affirm the Government's steadfast commitment to people with disabilities in Ireland and to the national disability strategy and its long-term goals and objectives, which we will continue to pursue in the coming years in partnership with all the key stakeholders. The co-ordination and planning of services to meet the needs of people with disabilities form a central tenet of the national disability strategy. A critical element of such co-ordination and planning is the requirement to provide financial support for the developments and implementation of services.

Since 2005, the Government has provided significant additional resources for services and supports for effecting real change in the development of services for people with disabilities. The multi-annual investment programme, which was a key component of the Government's disability strategy, had, by the end of 2008, provided for the intellectual disability services 804 new residential places, 307 new respite places and 1,863 new day places. It terms of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities, 307 new residential places and 911,626 extra home care personal assistance hours have been provided. A total of 406 places in the intellectual disability residential service have been enhanced, 61 respite places have been enhanced while 43 residential places in the physical and sensory disability services have been enhanced. In addition, almost 195 day places have had their services enhanced with the provision of additional supports to allow the organisations to deal with school leavers or other adults with significant disabilities.

The HSE and voluntary disability service providers are working together to ensure that all the existing resources available for specialist disability services are used in the most effective manner possible. In the current challenging economic environment there is a responsibility on all publicly funded services to review the way in which services are delivered and to ensure resources are used to maximum effect. This also applies to disability service providers in the statutory and the non-statutory sector, including Prosper Fingal.

The overall allocation to voluntary disability service providers in the health Vote was reduced in 2009 by 1% - similar to the 1% reduction in 2008 - as part of an overall efficiency measure within the health services. In addition, in the context of the general economic situation and the financial pressure on HSE budgets, the HSE has been required to implement a further 1% budget reduction to all voluntary agencies since the start of the year.

As Deputies are aware, Prosper Fingal has developed a wide range of service options that are both centre and community-based, including day services, training, employment placement, residential and non-residential respite, residential support, clinical, community outreach and transport services. Prosper Fingal is currently supporting 220 clients with an intellectual disability and their families.

All service providers, including Prosper Fingal, have been asked by the HSE to review all non-frontline expenditure, in particular, staff travel, expenditure on conferences and seminars, and advertising to ensure maximum value from the procurement of goods and services. There is also a requirement on all providers to review the way in which services are delivered, for example, to examine opportunities for amalgamating services or back office supports and reduction or elimination of expenditure on overtime and-or agency staffing.

I further understand that the HSE has put in place a partnership process with the umbrella groups representing the voluntary sector in the context of the difficulties presenting in delivering disability services in 2009. The purpose of the group includes ensuring that the required budget reductions are implemented in a manner designed to minimise the impact on service users. The HSE has also confirmed that while there is no specific funding in 2009 for the development of new services, there will be a requirement for all stakeholders to plan to meet the needs of individuals who require services on an emergency basis.

The HSE and non-statutory providers are working together to identify how the needs of these individuals, who require services on an emergency basis in 2009, can be responded to within available resources. The aim is to agree how service providers - statutory and non-statutory - and HSE management can plan and provide for emergency requirements at local and regional level. This will involve a collaborative approach at local health office and area level in dealing with emergency situations, development of criteria for identifying emergency needs in a consistent manner across all service providers, identification of capacity to increase provision within existing resources, reviewing existing service arrangements in the context of appropriate response and service efficiency and delivering responses to meet requirements.

I take this opportunity to emphasise the Government's commitment to people with disabilities and to the strategy and its long-term goals and objectives, which we will continue to pursue in the coming years in partnership with all the key stakeholders.

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