Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I compliment Deputy Thomas Byrne on tabling the motion that the Dáil may reflect on the current position in respect of special education and providing education for people who need specialist education. I compliment those involved, including special educational needs organisers, SENOs, who we work with every day, whose level of knowledge has been built up over 20 years since special needs assistants were first brought in by the then Minister, Deputy Micheál Martin and the growth of the sector which has followed. However, we must look at where we are in 2019. This House has had many debates on what happened to children in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s but I challenge Dáil Éireann today to ask whether whoever is around in 50 years' time will be having a debate on us and on whether we did right in our time. All we can do is ensure that we are doing right, which is what we are doing now. There is a huge crisis right across the disability sector from cradle to grave. There is a huge challenge. The waiting lists for needs assessment are deplorable. Whoever is in this Chamber in 50 years' time will be talking about the waiting lists in 2019 and 2020, and how nothing was done about it. Assessments of needs for young kids are taking between 18 months to two years. If they are transferred into the system, it will be 24 months before any therapy comes on stream, so that means it is heading for four years. I was Chairman of the Joint Committee on Education and Skills before the 2007 general election when we were getting the international information on this, which was hugely important. We are not taking the challenges facing our young kids today seriously. I challenge the Minister that we should be doing more to ensure that everything is being done for kids with special needs, in order that Members do not need to have a debate in the future to apologise for previous Administrations. That is what will happen unless we take this seriously.

See this speech in context