Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail)

When we finished yesterday evening, the Minister of State, Deputy de Valera, had said that this Bill was not hers and she did not want to accept the compliments coming her way. They were right and fitting in the light of her approach to education and the work she has been doing. We were talking about the part of the Bill that covers integration and what is often called "mainstreaming". Several speakers have mentioned its importance to the individual with a disability in allowing that person to feel that a holistic approach is being taken to his or her education. They can share a classroom environment with their families, brothers and sisters, and friends.

I also view the matter from the other perspective. It is important that pupils who do not have a disability realise their advantages. In some ways, it could assist them in their education to recognise that others do not have the same opportunities and have to work much harder and make much greater effort to achieve their ultimate goals. The principle of mainstreaming which, when initiated, was probably more to do with assisting the person with the disability, has a tremendous knock-on effect in broadening the mind and breaking down those barriers that existed for so long.

Growing up, we probably all witnessed cases where people with disabilities were seen as an embarrassment to their families. Many children were pushed into the background, in some cases being kept from public view and, if severely handicapped, sent to homes. The enlightened approach now taken to the development of policy, particularly in the area of education, has meant that that can no longer happen. That this Bill recognises that in its approach to mainstreaming is welcome. It has the potential to ensure that we never return to the dark days.

The Bill sets out a range of services that must be provided in the process of education for children with disabilities. It refers to the necessity for assessment, individual education plans and support services, enshrining that in the legislation. It also provides for the important process of mediation. Like other speakers, I welcome the establishment of the National Council for Special Education, which is an important statutory authority. It will develop and add to policy. I am sure that, at a later stage, it may provide further amendments to the legislation. It will be responsible for the delivery of the Bill's main provisions, which are welcome, as are its prescriptive nature and the way in which it prescribes individual assessments and the drawing up of individual education plans. While some of that work was already happening, it is important to ensure now that it happen as a right and that, regardless of who is delivering it at local level, there is now an obligation to do so.

To some extent the Bill places the onus on school principals to act if a child's needs are not being catered for. Several other speakers referred to its importance. At times, school principals would often prefer to have the decision made for them externally. That was probably not the best way to proceed. In most cases principals recognise that they have the greatest capacity to understand children's individual needs. It is impossible to set a matrix of guidelines and rules to cover every eventuality, since each child's needs are different, and it is important that the onus be on the principal. I am sure that the teaching unions have expressed their views on that, but no doubt the Department has succeeded in placating them on the issues as they arise.

A time limit of three months is outlined for intervention. Such limits are important to ensure this is done in an orderly fashion. The Bill requires consultation with parents and other relevant individuals. That is important since, from time to time in the past, there was not the same necessity to involve the parents. By and large that happened, but it is important to recognise that. The majority of parents whose children have special needs whom I have met put great effort into ensuring that their children get everything possible. It is important that that need be recognised. We will probably all hear about and be lobbied on the principle of early intervention and the necessity that difficulties be recognised early.

Another important element is the review process for the educational plans. No one has a monopoly of wisdom or all the bright ideas, and it does no harm for us all to go back over what we do from time to time and ensure we are doing it in a proper and efficient manner. The review of those plans is important in that regard. The Bill recognises the need for co-operation and co-ordination between the Department of Education and Science and the Department of Health and Children, and that is critical. The Bill appears to recognise the current deficiency in that regard and intends to resolve it. It is largely silent on how that will apply with the health boards; that must be addressed with regard to the co-operation between the two agencies. The Minister is more than familiar with some of the cases in our own county, where the Department of Education and Science is quite forthcoming in providing facilities for autism. She has played a major role in at least two projects, if not more, in our county, to ensure that the Department of Education and Science delivered very quickly. That is tremendously welcome, but we must do something about the role of the health boards and the assistance they will provide in that regard. The current situation is certainly unacceptable, particularly where there is a lack of professionals providing therapy such as speech and language therapy. We have talked about that and referred to two cases in Loop Head and Senator Daly's area.

There has been a general perception for some time that this problem is due to a lack of Government funding. When one scratches the surface, however, one finds that the funding is there. Some positions have not been filled because of the nature of the work involved and the difficulty in getting people to move to remote locations. This is primarily an issue for the Department of Health and Children but the Minister of State has been working to address the problem. One solution is to try to make the positions available to speech and language and occupational therapists in the health service more flexible and more balanced so that they are not constantly dealing with the same type of problem. This is important because there is so much opportunity for them to make good money in the private sector and to be flexible in terms of the way they do their work. The work done by the Department of Education and Science on this matter is enshrined in the Bill but it must work in parallel with the Department of Health and Children to ensure we are not left with an exceptionally good system delivered through education while significant deficiencies remain in the health area.

One element of the problem is that parents of children with special educational needs feel there is a greater array of services available for those living in urban areas. This is true of all services in that there is a greater concentration where the population dictates that services can be clustered. But people living in less densely populated parts of the country should not feel they are being offered an inferior service to that enjoyed by their urban counterparts. Effort is required to ensure that these geographical issues are resolved. The Hanly report mentions this geographical issue so perhaps that thinking will permeate through the Department of Health and Children and assist in the delivery of services in this area.