Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise this issue along with Deputy Healy because of the great concern and anxiety parents experienced when they were told that HSE funding for the respite summer camp at St. Rita's, run by the Brothers of Charity, would not go ahead this year. I was contacted by families and individuals, including Lynn Simmons, Sandra Gibson and George and Barbara Kovach. Although I understand that positive progress has now been made, I would like the Minister of State to confirm that as being definite. I will not take the route of my colleague going on the airwaves blowing his coal about it. As Deputy Healy said, it was people power that stopped this happening. These families should not have been dealt with in this way. It is extremely distressing that these parents and their children had to go through such stress and uncertainty.

Representatives from the voluntary and disability sectors were before the Oireachtas Committee on Health last week.

They described the service as a house that is falling down. They said that, while scaffolding is being provided, the house could still fall and that is entirely unacceptable.

The independent voluntary disability service providers said that they operate in the absence of a Government strategy for their role in the future and in the absence of adequate funding for services. That cannot happen. The warning is that this will soon be unsustainable, and it is unsustainable. Those impacted because of their uncertain futures are the people in residential respite and recipients of day services who deserve to live full lives as citizens in the State with the support they need.

As I understand it, the Who Cares? report and the report of the independent review group both concluded that the relationship between the State and the independent voluntary sector has deteriorated and there is an urgent need to place it on a new footing. I am demanding the Minister of State does that. The HSE is not paying the full economic costs for services delivered and it cannot deliver them. I salute the Brothers of Charity and other voluntary services that do this. Organisations have exhausted their own economic reserves and board members are going to refuse to take part because they are not being treated fairly and in an upfront manner by the HSE. The Minister of State should clarify if funding has been restored and if it will continue and be ring-fenced for the next number of years.

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