Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I commend the Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, on drafting and introducing this Bill. It has been said many times over the last couple of days that this legislation is long overdue. Many people have been waiting for it. A Deputy who is a former social worker gave the House her first-hand experience of why this referendum is important. I have come across cases during my work as a county councillor and as a Deputy that have confirmed to me that this amendment is necessary. Sinn Féin has asked consecutive Governments to do exactly what is being done. I must give this Government credit for doing the right thing on this occasion.

Although I accept that this Bill is a step towards "cherishing all the children of the nation equally", it would be remiss of me not to consider this debate in the context of a debate that took place in the Dáil last night and the night before. Today we are debating a Bill that might enshrine the rights of children in our Constitution, but when we debated a motion relating to the Magdalene laundries, the Government refused to offer sincere apologies. It would not debate the possibility of compensation being paid to the poor women who were enslaved in the same laundries that were used by Government Departments, State agencies and even Áras an Uachtaráin. The State has been absolutely linked to the abuse of these citizens, so it is important for it to apologise some time in the near future.

When we study the text of the Bill before the House, we must realise that words are meaningless unless they are matched with the resources and political will to make them a reality. I have often noted that strategies and legislation are worthless in the absence of resources. One could paper the walls of Leinster House and Government Buildings with the fine words of the literature that the Government and all parties in this House will produce in support of this referendum. Unless those words are linked to actions and resources, they are not worth the paper they are written on.

Even though the Minister knows that children are disproportionately affected by poverty, the Government has continued to cut funding to services over the past 19 months. I refer to services that provide vital supports to families and children. The wording and sentiment of this Bill fly in the face of recent budget cuts and, if the kites that were flown over the summer are anything to go by, the measures in the forthcoming budget. The voluntary and community sector provides vital services that the State and the private sector cannot or are unwilling to provide. Large swathes of the population in certain parts of this State depend on services that the Government has attempted to shut down.

I would like to give some evidence in support of the point I am making. When Government spending fell by 2.82% between 2008 and 2012, the funding given to community-based services was disproportionately cut. If one uses the Government's own figures from the budgets of 2008 to 2012, one can see that Government funding to family support projects has been cut by 17%, funding for voluntary housing has been cut by 54%, funding for drug projects has been cut by 29% and funding for sports capital grants has been cut by 52%. The comprehensive review of expenditure holds out the prospect of further contraction in education, community employment, housing, mental health, disability and services that protect the welfare of children. The national recovery plan indicates that nearly 50% of funding to tackle drugs will be cut by 2014, reducing overall spending to €23 million down from €44 million in 2008.

In November 2011, the Government scheduled 41 State agencies for closure, of which 15 were specific to social policy, This is another example of the Government having a particular focus on undermining the community sector. The savings from this measure - a paltry €6 million - are minimal. At the same time, the Government established the biggest and most expensive quango in the history of the State, namely NAMA. It is clear that the focus of the Government's attacks is on the community sector and the communities it serves. Based on the figures available, 31% of workers in the community sector will be gone by 2015. These workers provide essential services in the communities of greatest need. How can the Government square the demise of this sector, which it will oversee if it continues to take the road it is taking, with the words in this Bill that are to be enshrined in our Constitution?

According to the evidence I have presented, the Government will be guilty of gross hypocrisy if it continues to take this approach. With this in mind, the wording of the proposed referendum rings hollow. Child poverty under this Government is increasing at a faster rate in Ireland than it is in Greece. Child poverty levels had been decreasing until 2009, but they have unfortunately started to rise again, particularly since last year's budget.

The Government, with a Labour Party Minister, has done nothing to reverse that trend. In my constituency of Laois-Offaly vulnerable young people have suffered at the hands of the Government. Respite services for young people with mental disabilities in County Laois have been cut and, in some cases, totally shut down. Fountain View House in Abbeyleix which provided an excellent respite service for adults is now closed. The 50 adults who availed of this service will now have to seek care in Mountrath where a service will only be available on alternative weeks. Here is the crunch: up to two weeks ago, that service catered solely for children and young people. Not only is the level of service being cut in two, but there is also no provision for emergency respite care where required by families of children with mental disabilities, including Down's syndrome. Many of the children affected will not now be able to avail of respite services in Mountrath but instead will be offered what is called "share a break" with unqualified adults. Does the Minister consider it safe to have children with mental disabilities dealt with by unqualified adults, as has been proposed by the HSE? It is a recipe for disaster and a case of history repeating itself under the watch of the Minister whom I take to be a sincere person and know is concerned about the welfare of children. I take the opportunity to urge her and the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, to take the lead and reverse these cuts, particularly those to services for vulnerable young people.

I salute the Minister's achievement in bringing the legislation before the House. I know it has been difficult to get it this far. I look forward to campaigning vigorously to have the referendum passed, but the political epitaph of the Government will mention hypocrisy if it does not match words with action. I appeal to it to do so.

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