Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The first question was about education. There are also challenges within that sector, but it is one in which the country is doing well. We know, for example, how well children are performing relative to their counterparts in maths and reading. The education budget this year is €11 billion and will go up again next year. It is the biggest ever education budget in the history of the State. No Government has invested more in education than this one which is made up of Fine Gael and the Independent Alliance. In practical terms, it means more teachers. We now have the lowest ever pupil-teacher ratio in primary schools. We have been able to increase capitation grants but not fully restore them. This has enabled pay restoration to take place for hard-working teachers and other staff in the education sector, while a huge school building programme is evident all over the country, as well as in universities and institutes of technology. There are now approximately 15,000 special needs assistants and more special classes than ever before, as well as a very substantial special educational needs budget of €1.7 billion. There are record numbers making it to third level, which is very encouraging and really important for our future. There are more people than ever before from non-traditional backgrounds attending higher education. We have reformed the curriculum, of which people will be aware. We have, for example, the reformed the junior cycle programme with the introduction of new subjects like physical education and computer science which are examination subjects for the first time.

On the general election date, no date has been discussed or agreed. My view is well known and was set out in writing in August 2018.

On the St. Joseph's dementia care facility, I am aware that discussions are ongoing. The objective absolutely is to ensure the centre will be sustainable into the future. The briefing material I have available tells me that rather than the funding being at a minimal level, the centre is receiving among the highest levels of funding for patients of any provider contracted by the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF. There may well be very good reasons for this, namely, the very high quality of care provided, or perhaps the acuity and needs of the patients. Rather than the funding being at the minimal level, as the Deputy suggested, it is in the top five or six organisations funded by the NTPF. There is active engagement by the HSE and the NTPF with the provider to secure the future of the service.

On mental health services, the budget will be over €1 billion in 2020 for the very first time, up from approximately €750 million a couple of years ago. We all acknowledge that there is more to providing health services than providing funding. Health services here are well funded by international standards. We have a relatively young population, but perhaps do not achieve the outcomes people are entitled to expect. However, we are seeing some positive changes when it comes to mental health services. The new forensic mental health hospital in Portrane is almost finished and will open next year. It will come in on time and on budget and enable us to close the Victorian facilities in Dundrum. The waiting lists for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, CAMHS, are falling and have fallen by about 25% in the past couple of months, which is positive. The funding provided for the National Office of Suicide Prevention and implementation of the suicide strategy is showing some results, with a 30% fall in the number of suicides. It is not all down to the funding provided by any means, but it is at least moving in the right direction. We will launch very soon the first 24/7 helpline for people suffering mental health difficulties. There are a lot of mental health services in Ireland, but sometimes they are not joined up very well.

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