Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Deputy Kieran O'Donnell has permission to raise the matter of the provision of adult day service places at the Daughters of Charity centre for the intellectually disabled in Lisnagry, County Limerick.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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It is pronounced Lisnagry — an "i" rather than an "e" sound. I do not wish in any way to——

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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It is a learning experience to be in the Chair.

Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy received many votes in that area.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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I should not need to raise this matter again as I first raised it on 1 July 2008. The Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children with responsibility for the disability sector, Deputy John Moloney, was in the House at that time. I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Deputy Máire Hoctor, but I am disappointed she is present. The Minister of State, Deputy Moloney, should have been in the House this evening. I have made various representations on this matter. The Minister of State, Deputy Moloney, made a commitment during the debate that funding for nine adult day care places for nine school leavers at the Daughters of Charity, Lisnagry, Limerick would be dealt with within ten days, that is by 11 July 2008. Some 120 days later the funding still has not been paid. On 1 July the Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney, stated:

I understand the Health Service Executive will be able to finalise the position in respect of the commencement of developments including those required to meet the needs of school leavers with disabilities in the next 10 days. I suggest this should be sufficiently strong commitment to reassure the Deputy and all concerned.

I took the Minister of State at his word. I have made various representations on this matter. What has happened with this Government? The service provider, namely, the Daughters of Charity, went ahead and brought in agency workers to provide the service from 1 September. They sought a capital grant of €120,000 to convert a building and make it suitable for providing the adult day care facilities. Work is already under way using funds from the Daughters of Charity mainstream budget which is under pressure. Some two nurses, one supervisor and 1.5 care staff, or 4.5 staff in total, were required. The Daughters of Charity have provided the staff and the facility has been up-and-running since 1 September. Credit is due to the Daughters of Charity and not to the Government. It is a disgrace that I should have to raise this matter again in the Dáil and hold the Minister of State to account, given that such a small amount of money is required. The Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney, is not even in the Chamber.

It galls me that the parents of the children came to me as far back as late June to discuss the issue. They were concerned about who would look after their children. The Daughters of Charity were notified on 1 August, more than one month later, that they could proceed and take on the necessary staff. They still have not been told when they will be paid. They recruited the staff, but some three months or 89 days later, the funding is not in place.

In the broader context of funding for the disabled my understanding is that no payment has been made nationally under the disability development fund 2008, for which the Government provided €50 million in 2008. We are into the 11th month of the year and no funding had been paid. The service providers are providing the services from mainstream funding, not from ring-fenced funding for disability services. These service providers are worried that the Government will not provide the funding and when 2009 comes their allocation will be based on actual payments in 2008, rather than the payment to which they were entitled.

The actions of the Government relating to the disability allowance are horrendous and callous. It has taken away the disability allowance and replaced it with a domiciliary care allowance for young adults between 16 and 18 years of age. Parents can ill afford this change and it will cost them more than €13,600. I wish to hear from the Minister of State if funding for the nine school leavers to attend the Daughters of Charity centre has been paid, and if not, that it will be paid immediately.

Máire Hoctor (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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I take this matter on behalf of my colleague the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Mary Harney. I am pleased to take this opportunity to address the issue raised by the Deputy. It is particularly significant in terms of demonstrating the Government's resolute assurance to support and protect the needs of disadvantaged groups, including people with disabilities within Irish society, despite the impact of current economic restraints.

At the outset, I reaffirm the Government's confirmation and steadfast commitment to both people with disabilities in Ireland and to the national disability strategy and its long-term goals and objectives, which we will continue to pursue in the coming years in partnership with all the key stakeholders. The Government has further emphasised this pledge to people with disabilities by allocating additional funding to the continued development and enhancement of services in this area in 2009. The additional €10 million allocated to the Health Service Executive in this year's budget will provide for 125 additional therapy posts in the disability and mental health services, which will be targeted at children of school-going age. These funds will be ring-fenced for this purpose in the HSE's letter of allocation for 2009.

The commitment to the provision of additional resources in 2009 is reflective of the Government's resolution to continue to build on the significant changes and improvements which have been realised in the sector. In recent years, the Government has provided considerable resources for services and supports in effecting real change in the development of services for people with disabilities. The multi-annual investment programme, which is a key component of the Government's disability strategy, will by late 2008 have provided 980 new residential places, 313 new respite places and 2,505 new day places for the intellectual disability service. For services for people with physical and sensory disabilities, the programme will have provided 300 new residential places and 950,000 extra home care or personal assistance hours.

As part of the national disability strategy's multi-annual investment programme, the HSE has increased the number of day places for people with intellectual disability by almost 1,500 since 2005. In addition, almost 150 day places have had their services enhanced, with the provision of additional supports to deal with school leavers or other adults with significant disabilities. The increase in new and enhanced health and personal social services in recent years has ensured that young people with intellectual disabilities have appropriate services in place, which allows for a smooth transition from secondary school. In some cases, the funding enables the school leavers to access appropriate day services, in line with a person-centred plan. In many cases, this funding provides places for individuals completing rehabilitative training, thereby creating training places for other school leavers.

With regard to the specific matters raised by Deputy O'Donnell, the Minister for Health and Children understands from the HSE that funding for ten day places has been made available from 2008 development funding to the Daughters of Charity. Arrangements for the release of the funding to the Daughters of Charity are currently being finalised by the HSE. This sustained enhancement of service delivery to people with disabilities is confirmation of the Government's objective to develop the disability agenda to a level which compares to the best in the world. Working together with all stakeholders, in a true spirit of partnership, we will continue to build on what has been achieved by the Government's commitment to achieving the common goal of building a true and inclusive society for all.