Aideen Hayden (Labour)

I welcome the Minister to the House and support the legislation. Having been before the Houses since 2009, I am pleased the Bill is being brought to a conclusion. In common with other speakers, I acknowledge the issue of after care. Arising from my professional background as a solicitor and role as chair of the Threshold housing organisation, the issues of children in care and children leaving care have been of significant concern to me and the organisation I represent.

I am, however, pleased that after care is not addressed in the context of the legislation. After care needs more than an ad hoc response in legislation specifically dealing with special care orders. It must be addressed in a much broader and wider context that goes beyond the issue before us today.

I welcome the commitment to the child and family support agency legislation which I am assured we will hopefully deal with early in 2012. What we need is a complete overhaul of the social work system in this country, particularly in the way it interfaces with children. What we require is a much more in-depth, thought-out response to our obligations as a State dealing with children in care. I urge the Minister to make a commitment to the House that aftercare will not be shelved or put on the back-burner but will be very much at the core of discussions on the child and family support agency.

I did not contribute when we were talking about the HSE and its obligations to report to the Minister. However, one of the issues of concern is the quality of the data and information held by the HSE. It is only in a position to give what it has. I have serious concerns about the quality of data held by the HSE.

I am very much concerned about aftercare. I do not want to see it treated in an ad hoc fashion as an add-on to this piece of legislation. I want to see it as central and core to the way we treat the entire child care process in the future.