Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I want to speak with the Taoiseach about provision for children. First, I welcome the intervention by the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, in response to our Labour Party motion on services for autistic children and children with disabilities. I commend the Minister of State on committing to bring our Labour Party proposal to Cabinet. If six regional testing teams are not functional by 1 August, she has committed the State to paying for assessments of need of children who are waiting more than three months. That was a really important, timely, unexpected, but very welcome intervention by the Minister of State, supported by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O'Gorman. I ask the Taoiseach if he can commit to that for the children and parents who were listening to the debate earlier and have heard what has been said. We acknowledge there is a recruitment crisis. We have acknowledged all of that. We have acknowledged the progress that has been made, but we need to see that sort of really effective commitment being made and being honoured by Government. We owe that to Cara and Mark Darmody, and to all of those who have been so active for so long, seeking adequate and effective interventions and services for their children.

I raise another issue relating to provision for children, namely, the Barnardo's report published today, which lays bare the real impact of the cost-of-living crisis for children in Ireland. It exposes the stark reality facing so many parents across the country who are making the unthinkable decision of not to bring a sick child to the doctor because they simply cannot afford it. One parent reported being afraid to do the washing because of ESB bills. This report has confirmed what we, in the Labour Party, have been warning about for some time, that the barrage of tokenistic and untargeted measures adopted by Government were simply not enough to keep the wolf from the door for far too many. They were simply not enough for children today asking their parents if they are poor.

The week in which we see the publication of this important Barnardo's report, and in which we hear from parents who are trying to get services for autistic children, also appears to mark the beginning of the budget kite-flying season. The Taoiseach has condemned the practice of the drip-feeding and kite-flying of proposals over the years, yet he and his party colleagues have been first out of the traps, calling for tax cuts in this budget and showing fundamental disrespect for their partners in government, some of whom have been very open about their critique of this. More importantly, it is disrespectful to the people in our communities across the country who are struggling to get services and to make ends meet, as Barnardo's has told us. It is disrespectful to them to see Fine Gael Ministers and Deputies testing the waters, attempting to consolidate popular support by playing politics, mooting ideas to resonate with the core vote, and insulting households trapped in poverty.

Does the Taoiseach agree that it is impossible to maintain a position favouring tax cuts while leaving behind so many families and children in poverty? Does he agree that at a minimum, any tax relief in this budget must be accompanied by a meaningful increase in social welfare payments, a commitment to the living wage and, crucially, a commitment to invest budget services in the provision of services for children with special needs and for children who are facing such an enormous shortfall in service provision for autism and disability services across the country at the moment?

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