Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. At the outset I must acknowledge the fantastic work that foster parents and social care workers do to provide support. I would not be asking this question if foster carers, care leavers and Empowering People In Care, EPIC, had not come to me and said that they had a problem, so much so that they are planning to march through the streets of Dublin in May to highlight the disparity in support. I do not know if the Minister is aware of this. A lot of the disparity comes down to geography. Normally I am not one for advocating marches or anything like that. However, the Minister and I, and anyone else who engages with children's issues and youth affairs, understand that geography plays a huge part in this. There is a huge lack of social care workers or access to them. Moreover, if a young person loses a parent and finds himself or herself in foster care 11 months before his or her 18th birthday, he or she does not get the aftercare plan or the supports others benefit from.

My biggest question is this. The Minister talked about the Tusla business plan. Have other plans been put in place to prevent children falling between the cracks?

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