Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Healy and I accept the challenge. The Deputy is correct in that we have to get on top of this matter and deal with it. We are committed to doing that. We have shown this commitment with the significant increases we have already provided to the health service this year and to disability services specifically. These increases build on the increase in 2017. I am aware that this is a major priority for my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath. We are building up services county by county to make sure there are appropriate teams in place and to reduce waiting times.

The Deputy also makes an important point about being able to access services at an early age. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, is looking at how children can access services in schools either while waiting for diagnoses or without specific diagnoses. The idea that a parent would have to wait for a diagnosis before the child could access supports such as resource hours or a special needs assistant in school is not a satisfactory situation. We will make progress on this between the reforms being taken in the Department of Education and Skills and the extra resources being put in place by the Minister of State. I very much look forward to our ongoing engagement.

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