Michael Noonan (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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There was some very bad news in Limerick earlier today when the management of Bawnmore, which is a facility for persons with mental handicap, called the staff together and told them they would have to let 30 go before Christmas, that another 30 jobs were on the line between January and March and that services would have to be discontinued for 100 persons who were getting services.

Bawnmore looks after severely mentally handicapped and mildly mentally handicapped adults. Some of its work is for residential patients and others are helped on a day care basis. When the Minister, Deputy Harney, was allocating funds to the HSE for 2009, sufficient money was not allocated to the Brothers of Charity, who run Bawnmore. They were allocated €27 million but need another €1.5 million to keep services going. Despite the fact this was raised in the House on a number of occasions, unfortunately, the Minister cannot see her way to assist them further.

It is a common theme with the cuts emanating from the Department of Health and Children that the most vulnerable are identified for the cuts. It is as if somebody picked out the groups that did not have strong trade union or organisational backing. We have seen the cutbacks that were originally proposed to take medical cards from persons over 70 and those which deprive 12 year old girls of lifesaving vaccines. Now, we see 100 persons with mental handicap being deprived of services because their carers will no longer be paid and will be made redundant. If one takes 60 carers out of an institution like Bawnmore, there is a serious problem.

I appeal to the Minister to reconsider the issue and to provide special funding so that mentally handicapped persons are not sent back to the care of their families, and that they can continue to avail of the excellent care they have received and are receiving in the Bawnmore centre in Limerick.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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I am grateful for the opportunity to raise this matter, which came to my attention over a week ago when the parents of adults who are residents in Bawnmore, and the service providers, the Brothers of Charity, advised me that the brothers were due €1.5 million from the HSE in respect of services. They had various discussions ongoing with the HSE but the money was not forthcoming and they needed the matter raised in the Dáil. I put the matter down on the Adjournment a number of times last week but it was not allowed. I am pleased it is allowed tonight and I am looking for a result.

We are concerned here with services for up to 100 intellectually disabled persons who are resident in the Bawnmore complex as well as throughout Limerick city and county. This involves 60 staff who care for these adults. As Deputy Noonan mentioned, today the Brothers of Charity informed more than 30 people working in full-time whole-time equivalent posts that if funding is not forthcoming from the HSE their jobs will finish at the end of December. If funding is not received, another 30 full-time carers will be let go in March. A total of 40 adults using the service will be affected from the end of December and up to 100 will be affected from March.

If 60 full-time posts are let go it will affect all services in the Brothers of Charity in Bawnmore. This is a disgrace. The Brothers of Charity do not even have a letter of intent from the HSE that this funding will be forthcoming. This is an indictment on the Government, the HSE and local Ministers. I hope and expect that in the reply we receive from the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Haughey, on behalf of the Minister for Health and Children, that not only will the funding be provided but that we will be given a date and it will provided as a matter of urgency. The parents of these young and older adults are extremely concerned. Once again, the Government is hitting the most vulnerable sections of society, this time the disabled. I expect to hear a positive response and we will not let this go.

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I will take the Adjournment on behalf of my colleague, Deputy Mary Harney, the Minister for Health and Children. From the outset, I wish to emphasise the Government's commitment to providing a high-quality service to all people with a disability. This commitment is illustrated by the substantial investment we have been making in disability services over the past number of years.

In recent times, significant additional resources have been provided for services and supports in this area. The multi-annual investment programme, which is a key component of the Government's disability strategy, will by the end of 2008 have provided for 980 new residential places; 313 new respite places, and 2,505 new day places for the intellectual disability service. It will also have provided for 300 new residential places and 950,000 extra home care and personal assistance hours for people with physical and sensory disabilities.

Funding was also provided for the targeted transfer of persons with intellectual disability and autism from psychiatric hospitals and other inappropriate placements. Since 2006, more than €550 million has been allocated to the HSE under the multi-annual investment programme, of which €425 million was for disability services and €125 million for mental health.

The Government has further emphasised this pledge to people with disabilities by allocating additional funding to the continued development and enhancement of services in 2009. In the budget for 2009, an additional €10 million was allocated to the HSE for services in the area of disability and mental health. The funding for 2009 will provide for 125 additional therapy posts in the disability and mental health services area, targeted at children of schoolgoing age. Once-off funding of €1.75 million will be provided for suicide prevention initiatives and for mental health projects supporting service users and carers.

With regard to the specific matters raised by Deputies Noonan and O'Donnell, the HSE has confirmed that the full level of funding approved by it to the Brothers of Charity for the delivery of services to people with intellectual disability in 2008 will be paid to the organisation this year subject to normal and agreed financial procedures. The budget for the Brothers of Charity in Limerick in 2008 is approximately €29 million. This represents an increase of 64% since 2002, when its budget was €17.6 million.

At present, 262 clients receive residential services from the organisation and a further 125 receive day services. In addition, the Brothers of Charity work in partnership with the HSE and other service providers in the Limerick area in the provision of early intervention services.

The Brothers of Charity services in Limerick have been in discussion with the HSE about core deficits for some time. In documents supplied to the HSE, the Brothers of Charity in Limerick refer to a deficit of €1.5 million. In 2006, the core deficit stood at €750,000. The HSE considers that the increase since 2006 is the result of the combination of a number of factors, including an increase in staff numbers above the levels approved and funded by the HSE.

At the beginning of 2008, the organisation indicated that it had approximately 50 staff over the levels approved and funded by the HSE. While the organisation has indicated the need to enhance service delivery and staffing levels to address particular difficulties, HSE policy is that, prior to employing additional staff over approved levels, all other alternatives must be explored by the relevant organisation.

In 2008 an efficiency savings target of 1% was introduced by the HSE for all voluntary organisations providing services for people with a disability. The objective of this initiative was for organisations to review all non-front line expenditure and generate savings of this order through improved practices. In this way, any core deficits should not have been impacted.

It is essential that every health service provider takes responsibility for reviewing all expenditure in a proactive way and revisits approaches to service delivery, to ensure that front line services are prioritised within available resources. The HSE does not believe that the Brothers of Charity have yet explored all other alternatives to ensure the services are delivered within the funding available to them.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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That is incorrect.

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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The HSE has given an assurance that it will continue to work with the Brothers of Charity in Limerick to review their financial position and ascertain how services can be maintained within approved funding and staffing levels and in line with the practices and costs in other similar organisations.