Síle de Valera (Clare, Fianna Fail)

We need to recognise that no one can bypass the Minister for Finance. Having served at the Cabinet table for five years, I am aware that when one is fighting for allocations, one has one's priorities and it is up to each Minister to get the allocation he or she regards as necessary to meet their departmental priorities. That is the way of Government. Under the Constitution the Minister for Finance is responsible to the Oireachtas and acts, as it were, as the Accounting Officer of the Government.

Some Senators expressed concern that the position regarding the amount of money available to implement educational plans could retard work on the plans in some way if the amendments were not accepted. The Minister for Education and Science will be in a position to fight for moneys, initially through the usual process of Estimate debates and so forth. When the allocation is made, the Minister will in turn allocate it to the areas of greatest need, including the responsibilities given to the Minister under the Bill. Elsewhere, as Senator Fitzgerald eloquently pointed out, the legislation imposes an obligation on the Minister for Finance to make adequate provision. If parents believe he has not delivered on this obligation, they will have recourse to the courts.

The amendments are not necessary given the constitutional position of the Minister for Finance, his or her obligation under the Constitution, the constitutional rights of the child under law and in light of other legislation on the Statute Book, namely, the Equality Act. These factors will strengthen the position of children who require the services provided for in the legislation. In many respects, the legislation recognises the need to deliver in the area of special needs for the first time.