Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her reply. I think the Minister appreciates how vital these services are. The reality is that without them many of those children will be completely left behind by our society. They are in areas of disadvantage and many of the children have complex needs, including special needs and issues in terms of the home environment and so on. That is the reality. I think the Minister appreciates that.

I welcome that the first payments are being issued this week. Can the Minister give a commitment that all relevant payments will be issued immediately on receipt of contracts? As Deputy Ó Laoghaire said, the contracts have been submitted by the Cork providers. More fundamentally, when will the overall independent review be completed by? The emergency funding is a stopgap. It will probably get them to September. We are being told by these providers that seven of them are in grave danger. They are at imminent risk of closure in the autumn. It is not a position we can stand over.

Please, work with the providers on these issues in a genuine spirit of co-operation and ensure that their funding is on a sustainable footing so that these crucial services are maintained into the future.

See this speech in context