Frances Fitzgerald (Fine Gael)

I second the amendment. I have listened carefully to what the Minister of State said about accepting an accredited body. It seems he is in favour of it in general but not specifically and that he is having discussions in late summer but is not in a position to make it a priority at the moment. If he does establish it, he believes it should not be for profit. I agree because that would be dangerous. The accredited body should have an ethos of equality of access. I would like to see progress on this idea in the body of the Bill. I do not know when this Bill will be debated in the Dáil. There should be some statutory form, as suggested in these amendments. That would strengthen the Government's hand because the intention would be a statutory provision rather than being reliant on meetings with the interested parties. They are not a substitute for making absolutely sure this happens.

I have already spoken at length about the problems we have at present and I will not revisit them but it seems the Minister of State is addressing an issue as well. There is a lack of clarity because the Minister of State has indicated there is no embargo on the recruitment of social workers but there are limited funds available, which we all recognise. I take up the point made by Senator Mary White earlier with regard to the Monageer report. Of course, it is not just about resources as it is about ensuring that existing resources are managed in the best possible way. There should be a kind of case conferencing, communication and management from the top that ensures families get the sort of services they need.

That was the point I made on that particular case. There was much contact, according to the report, but the problem was the contact was not effective. Resources make up one aspect but there must also be effective work when the resources and people are in place, as well as proper management.

The Minister of State indicated that since entering office, he has tried to ensure he has the facts from each area and that he would get access to the information as quickly as possible. He has tried to see what is happening in different community care areas in order to compare responses etc., which is absolutely critical. However, we are doing this very late in the day. I cannot believe this information is still not at the fingertips of the Department, given that we have had community care and social workers in place for so long trying to work effectively with families and children who are abused. This has been a significant issue in this country and the effectiveness of the response still seems to be open to question despite more money going in. It is not just about resources; it is about their management.

With regard to setting up this agency, the Minister of State appears to be suggesting there may not be finance for the personnel to run it, which may be the reason we are not able to pursue it. That goes against the Minister's earlier statement that there is no embargo on the appointment of social workers. I know many community care teams are short at the moment and have not had personnel replaced. Senator Norris has raised this point.

Although he might not do it today, will the Minister of State tell us what precisely is the recruitment position? Is there an effective embargo in some areas because of the financial limitations and is that the reason there are cases waiting?

To return to the specifics, it seems the Minister of State is supporting the idea in principle and he would like to see a cut in assessment times. The setting up of an accredited body would probably achieve that but the Minister of State does not appear to be giving any commitment in the short or medium term to establish such a body. Is that correct?