Geraldine Feeney (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I congratulate him on his elevation to high office and I wish him well in his tenure. "Prime Time Investigates", as I said on the Order of Business earlier, has become a valuable programme. The makers should be congratulated on the programmes they produce every Monday evening. The week before last, welfare and protection services for children were investigated, which led to this debate, and last Monday, cyber bullying, which also affects children, was investigated. I have asked for a debate on bullying.

The issues highlighted by the programme over the past two weeks are very emotive. They set everybody thinking and talking and I am delighted the House has an opportunity to debate them. The programme last Monday week highlighted the significant number of children on waiting lists who may never be seen or dealt with by a social worker. We were told they were numbers in filing cabinets. Social workers would never get around to them. I found that hard to believe and when I made inquiries, I was told that although the children may not be allocated a social worker, it does not mean they will never be seen because sometimes the social worker refers them to the services mentioned by the Minister of State and suggest to families they should self-refer to an voluntary organisation such as those mentioned by him run by the HSE.

The cases outlined in the television programme were worrying, particularly that of the foster child. When she was well enough and felt secure, she was permitted to partake in home visits to her natural parents. However, when she returned to the foster home, she was disturbed and upset. This was reported by the foster mother but she was not listened to until the child began to show more visible signs of distress. The case was examined and it transpired the young girl was being abused at home by her father, and her mother was not capable of doing anything about it. Many voluntary organisations say child physical and sexual abuse is on the increase and, in most cases, a member of the wider family is the perpetrator.

This issue is about societal values and not about health or money. Family supports in the 21st century need to be examined, as we are challenged by alcohol and drug abuse. Some parents rearing children are alcohol and drug dependent. This is a different family support from those I experienced when I was growing up. Such supports were associated with health and poverty and people providing food for families in need. These supports are not as relevant nowadays and that is why issues such as drug and alcohol abuse need to be examined.

I was delighted the Minister of State stated his office and the HSE aim to energise and involve communities in their own welfare. I am thrilled because the HSE needs to priorities services at community level. Over the past three weeks in the run up to Deputy Brian Cowen taking over as Taoiseach, he referred in a number of addresses to community values and people looking after each other like they did in the past. One must go forward, not back, but if the caring and sharing values we adopted as communities in the past could be brought to the fore again, it would not be a bad thing.

In preparing for the debate, I visited two family centres run by the Daughters of Charity, a voluntary organisation. The centres offer therapeutic and counselling services. I was full of admiration for the work they are doing. I had a sense of it not being all about money. Significant money is being invested but they would like further evaluation of the services they provide and a survey conducted of where money is spent to ascertain if it is delivering what is needed by those availing of the services. The staff I met were first class. They meet those who come knocking on their doors. A mother could arrive with a young son who is troublesome in school and help is needed. When they talk to the young boy, they realise he is acting up because his mother is not giving him attention and when they talk to the mother, they establish she has a drug or alcohol problem. When they try to get to the bottom of that issue, she says she is that way because the child's father beats her. When they talk to the father, he has a problem with his mother or father. There are generational links. If we can provide for the child, we must also provide for the wider family and that is what these voluntary groups are doing.

The Daughters of Charity stressed the importance of education for young mothers because that would help them become confident and competent. They would then look forward to meeting people but they live in disadvantaged areas. Their children attend local primary schools and are taught by the same teachers who taught them. Parents sometimes feel the teacher had a set on them as a youngster and they now have a set on their child. That is probably not the case but the mind of the young parent needs to be opened by educating him or her. This service is offered in a number of deprived areas in Dublin and it is working. Barriers are being broken down. I would like the Minister of State to examine this option as a way forward.

The Minister of State said the provision of services between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday to Friday, is not ideal. An out-of-hours service is provided in a number of areas but such a service must be expanded. The Minister of State said we have come from a low base ten years ago. The Ferns Report was debated by the previous Seanad. The OECD has recognised the advances Ireland has made but the Opposition might say they are not sufficient. Perhaps they are not but at least they are a start and we are going forward. An Ombudsman for Children, Ms Emily Logan, is in place. I have met her because I sit on the Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children which is doing great work. I heard the Minister of State speak in the past week since his appointment. A total of 1,000 new posts will be created in the Health Service Executive and the embargo will be lifted in 2008. I think the Minister of State said that 200 of those posts will be in the front-line area where they are needed. There has been a 79% increase in funding. Again, it was coming from a low base but at least it is a start.

It is incumbent on us as legislators, citizens and parents to deplore any neglect of children. We should call on all people to actively report any abuse of children we see, even at a very minor scale. As the Minister of State said, early intervention is the key. Even if it is very small, it should still be reported.

I have spoken to the Minister of State about an out-of-hours service. We need to revisit this, especially in light of the tragedies in Wexford in the past 18 months.