Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)

I will respond to this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney. I am pleased to have the opportunity to address this important issue raised by the Senator. I wish to emphasise the Government's continuing commitment to providing a high-quality service to all people with a disability. This commitment is illustrated by the substantial investment we have made in disability services in recent years. Between 1997 and 2006, additional revenue and capital funding of €851 million has been invested in health-funded support services for people with disabilities of which €549 million was provided for persons with an intellectual disability and those with autism.

To fund the requirements for service development for HSE funded services, the Government has set aside specific funds for service delivery for people with disabilities by way of the multi-annual investment programme. An additional sum of €75 million for revenue purposes was provided for disability services in each of the past two years under the programme, with a further €50 million being made available in 2008. The Minister has been assured by the HSE that while the commencement of some services had been delayed this year due to a financial review, it is now in a position to roll out the planned disability developments as outlined in its 2008 service plan.

The priority in 2008 is on continuing to enhance the assessment and support services for children with disabilities. This will also help to build the additional capacity in multidisciplinary and other support services, required under the Disability Act 2005 and the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004. As a further significant development in support of the national disability strategy, the Office for Disability and Mental Health was established by the Government in January of this year. The office brings together responsibility for different policy areas and a range of services which impact on the lives of people with a disability and mental health difficulties. The main focus of the office is to improve co-ordination and communication across Departments and Government agencies in the delivery of disability and mental health services.

As the Senator is aware, music, drama, art and dance therapy are collectively known as the creative arts therapies with music therapy being the most popular and more widely used, but drama, art and dance therapy continue to be developed in health care settings. Music therapy may be offered, on an individual or group basis, to people of all ages who have physical, learning, social or emotional difficulties. Therapists work most commonly with individuals with special needs, with the elderly and with stroke victims.

In the specific case raised by the Senator, the Department of Health and Children understands from the Health Service Executive that a music therapist was funded through the Department of Education and Science for one year under an arts grant programme. I am advised that as this funding was granted on a once-off basis, the school is now seeking alternative funding from the Health Service Executive and other sources, including national lottery funding.

While the benefits of music therapy in Scoil Íosagáin, Buncrana are recognised by many, the significant demands on resources for disability services, together with the need for the HSE to live within its overall budget for the year, means that it is unlikely that music therapy would be prioritised in this instance. The HSE did, however, submit a business case to the Department of Health and Children in April 2008 for the statutory recognition of the creative arts therapies, including music therapy. The matter is under consideration at present and the Department of Health and Children intends to explore this issue further with the HSE. I will take the Senator's request for a meeting back to the relevant section in my Department, the Department of Education and Science.