Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)

All I can say is that there is an extraordinarily difficult financial situation, which impacts on all Departments. People working with children and family support services are clearly aware of this, as is the director working with the front-line social workers. A serious analysis on the pressures of the system is being carried out at the moment. Work is being done to ensure we understand the system comprehensively across the country. It is not helped by the fact that the budget last year was left €16 million short, if not a lot more. One area alone in the HSE had a €27 million overrun last year in respect of children's services, which was effectively absorbed in the HSE overall budget. Separating the child and family services budget from the HSE budget for next year is a very challenging task, and we must ensure that we have the type of budget that can meet the demands.

There is no doubt that prioritisation will be necessary, because the demand on the services is such that it will be necessary for social work teams to prioritise the kind of work they are doing and the work they cannot cope with. They will have to assess risk and in most cases where they cannot provide a service that is deemed less a priority, they will have to ensure that other services are brought in to work with those families. That work is underway.

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