Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I refer to the Deputy's point on care. What these young people are receiving is not simply residential care. The reason I compared it to Great Ormond Street is that they are getting the kind of treatments and care and psychological interventions that are simply not available to them here. I assure the Deputy the social workers are in contact with the children and do visit them. The reason these services are being used is that, having assessed what is available in Ireland, the kind of specialist help these young people need, in the residential care settings such as they are being sent to, is just not available here. I assure the Deputy that as part of my work in regard to high support and special care, the question of whatever specialist services we can provide in Ireland will clearly form part of that. Right now, however, we do not have these services in the country.

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