Brendan Ryan (Labour)

The Minister of State is welcome to the House. We were told this budget would contain tough measures but would protect the most vulnerable in society. What section of society is more vulnerable than people, especially children, with disabilities and their families who are struggling within an already inadequate system of education to get the education they deserve? The result of this budget is to make that struggle more difficult. Is this the protection of the most vulnerable in our society? This is just so unfair and callous that it defies belief.

Several measures contained in the budget severely affect people with disability. This group is more prone to hospital visits and will be affected by increased accident and emergency department, hospital bed and medical insurance costs. Access to mainstream education for as long as possible is essential for best outcomes in education for children with disabilities. The class size changes are a major setback in this regard as the opportunity for the one-to-one attention required and deserved will be severely reduced. In addition, equipment and resource grants for resource teachers are being abolished and the inadequate provision for special needs assistants continues. Is this the protection of the most vulnerable in our society?

The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, a progressive piece of legislation, is to be deferred further, which is a major disappointment. There is a 1% cut for voluntary disability bodies on top of the 1% cut imposed by the Health Service Executive on those bodies. With inflation running at 4.5%, how are these voluntary bodies supposed to continue with existing levels of service, never mind cope with the increased demand for such services?

The ending of the payment of disability allowance to 16 and 17 year olds in favour of the domiciliary care allowance is a further attack on some of the most vulnerable in our society. This will amount to about a €7,000 per year hit on these young people and their struggling parents.

A delegation from the National Federation of Voluntary Bodies met the Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Deputy Mary Hanafin, yesterday to discuss proposed adjustments in the qualifying age for disability allowance payments to young people with a disability. They told the Minister that the federation is opposed to the budget proposals to reduce overall payments to young people with a disability and requested her not to implement them. They emphasised the future impact of the reductions on many of the young people involved, and the implications for their families. The Minister, Deputy Hanafin, in a reply to my party colleague, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, had stated that it was in response to a submission from the federation that she was implementing the change.

The federation made 29 recommendations, including an increase in the domiciliary care allowance, but only one was taken up. According to media reports last week, Brian O'Donnell, chief executive of the federation, stated:

This was nothing less than a cynical opportunity to save money in the context of a budgetary situation. We never envisaged they would do something as cynical as this.

Brian O'Donnell, along with the rest of the country, now knows what this Government is capable of. These cuts must be reversed because they are unacceptable in a civilized society. Where has our society got to that any Government could introduce such measures? How can a Government even contemplate such measures, let alone implement them? How can a Government that claims to protect the weakest and most vulnerable in our society make such political choices? Members should note that these are political choices and the Government has consciously decided to do this. While we are moving into more difficult economic times, much of which, unfortunately, is of our own doing, our elderly and children, in particular our children with disabilities and learning challenges, should not be targeted in this abominable manner.

As I stated at the outset, the people of Ireland were told this budget would contain tough measures but that it would protect the most vulnerable in our society. The opposite is the case with regard to people with disabilities and I support this motion.