Joe O'Toole (Independent)

I wish to raise a very serious issue on which I touched recently. It concerns the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act. I do not want to make a mantra out of this matter. The legislation has been passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas and signed by the President, but has not been commenced. Ordinary people do not understand the reasons legislation, even when signed by the President, is not commenced by the relevant Minister. Members on both sides of the House are receiving calls on behalf of children with special needs. The Act recognises a special need, provides for a child to be assessed, involves all the professionals and insists on resources being made available. The resources are to applied at school or other level and regular reviews are take place. None of this has been done so far. The commencement strategy has been ignored. The Minister for Education and Science has had it on her desk for nearly one year. I call on her to come to the House to explain why the legislation to support children with special needs is still lying on a shelf in the Department and has not been implemented. It is an absolute disgrace.