Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Not yet, no. I will wait until I go over that side, and then we will do it.

As the Minister of State knows, FASD - and he might not know of it but I will talk to it anyway - is foetal alcohol spectrum disorder. It is an underrecognised condition in Ireland. Compared to other jurisdictions like Canada and New Zealand, we are way behind in dealing with it and providing funding and support for sufferers and their families. There are estimates that between 4.75% and 7.2% of the population in Ireland is living with FASD. The problem is, bizarrely, that we do not know for sure because there have been no studies or research carried out here. That is the crux of the issue of why we are here.

While there are no statistics in Ireland, the agencies are working with FASD and recognising FASD as a problem that needs to be addressed. I know from talking to FASD Ireland that in some areas, staff trying to deal with very difficult children are asking them to help but the State organisations themselves are not recognising FASD. This is leading to children being left behind; children who could have more productive lives if the State was able to assist them properly. Schoolgoing children may have learning difficulties because they can find it difficult to plan, organise themselves or understand the consequences of their actions. They will have challenges such as inattention, hyperactivity, anxiety and frustration.

An individual with FASD who does not have the correct support in place can experience many challenges throughout his or her life as well. These generally develop during adolescence but can develop earlier. Such people can experience difficulties with peers, inappropriate sexual behaviour, involvement in crime, poor mental health, alcohol and drug misuse and challenges with independent living. Individuals with FASD are 19 times more likely to encounter the judicial system than a neurotypical person. That is according to a doctor and researcher at the University of Salford in the UK, Dr. David Gilbert.

I have seen some estimates that up to 30% of individuals who are in prison are sufferers of FASD. In Ireland, it is considered that this could be an even higher percentage but the reality is we do not know because we have not researched it. Recognising the condition and treating it could save the State huge amounts of funding for vital and scarce public services, so even from a bean counter's point of view it would make sense. Likewise, we do not know the prevalence throughout all our systems of health and education because we have not recognised the existence of FASD.

FASD sufferers have comorbidities that are more recognised, and the treatments for those comorbidities can be counterproductive with FASD sufferers as well. A treatment that works for ADHD, for example, could have an opposite effect on an FASD sufferer, and not being recognised, they may fall through the cracks with regard to getting adequate treatment. It could be looked at that they are not responsive but if FASD was treated rather than the comorbidity, that could have a significant alternate effect and mean a better quality of life for the patient.

I know that there has been an allocation to FASD Ireland in the Department of Health budget for this year but that has not made its way to FASD Ireland yet and we are almost two thirds of the way through the year at this stage. That is worrying because in order to plan for next year, studies have to be started and that needs to happen quickly. As the Minister of State knows, it is about providing the evidence base so we could have a funding allocation that would allow support to be put in place. Rightly, Government money cannot be spent on something that perhaps cannot be proven to work. I believe that it will be proved necessary and if the sufferers and their families are supported, the future will look better for everybody.

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