Donna McGettigan (Clare, Sinn Fein)

I already gave these cases to the Government and they were referred to the HSE, which is where we got the answers that reliance on the private sector is not working in the HSE Mid West region. While I appreciate that there are difficulties in the system, especially around the need for robust regulation of psychologists, just 7% of assessments were completed within the six-month timeframe required by law.

CORU was established under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005, and part of its remit was the regulation of psychologists. This problem has been rumbling on for years now and far too little action has been taken by Government to date. We in Sinn Féin want to see the building up of strong public services accessible to all on the basis of need. That requires action from the Government to ensure that the proper regulatory framework is introduced for psychologists. However, this is an emergency so in the short term the use of private assessment with reimbursement for parents must be expanded dramatically and as quickly as possible. I understand that even without the required regulatory framework, there is an informal list of reliable psychologists with a proven track record. Since 2021, the waiting list for assessment has gone from 500 to over 15,000. That is a shocking indictment of Government inaction. Judging by the responses I have received to representations made on behalf of constituents, it is likely to get worse. The lack of intervention to meet the needs of children is nothing short of scandalous. I ask the Minister of State to provide some hope to parents struggling daily to cope without the services they so badly need. Can he outline how this appalling state of affairs can be ended and the waiting list backlog cleared quickly? I remind him that there is a legal obligation on him to do so and plans should have been put in place long ago to recruit and train the staff required to do this. I also ask the Minister of State to ensure that clearing the backlog of assessments will not simply move the bottleneck further along, and that an adequate number of school places for children with special needs, suitable services and supports required by them will be available when they have had their assessment of need.

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