David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response. Interestingly, he stated, "day service funding does not include transport". We have been told that by HSE south and the Cope Foundation. However, some transport supports are provided by the HSE or funded agencies on a discretionary basis. That is not good enough. It should not be discretionary, but mandatory. It should be an entitlement and these young people should have the services provided. It should not be discretionary or depend on whether there is money left over.

On travel training, this young woman has Down's syndrome. We cannot say that travel training is going to be of any benefit to her. She needs help, but she wants to go. A free travel pass is no good because she cannot navigate public transport herself. She needs somebody with her or she needs to be dropped from door to door.

Open Routes is interesting. I wonder whether we still need a PA, support or supervision, given that people will go on such a bus and may get off where they should not. I have looked for the report but could not find it on the Department's website. Maybe someone will sent it to me. Reading it would be interesting. The trial has been ongoing for a year and has been positive, but we need to move on.

What are Orla and her family going to do next September? She is entitled to an education. She is entitled to go on to further training and education like all other young adults of her age, but she cannot get there because no transport service is provided. Will the Minister of State address this matter? It is a further education and training issue. Sometimes, I wonder why it is under the remit of the HSE and the Department of Health when it should be under the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. Education and training is what these young people want and expect to do. It is also what their families expect them to do.

We need to invest in the centres in question and put more money into them. We are putting a great deal of money into third level, including universities and technological universities, which is the way it should be, but these young people also deserve the same positive treatment.

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