Seanad debates

Wednesday, 29 May 2013

Special Educational Needs Services Provision: Motion

 

3:45 pm

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

That is the very point and outcomes have consequences. In some cases, those consequences may change the nature of the support. In this debate, we must not just measure the commitment to a policy by the amount of moneys put into it but also measure its success. We do this in our own personal lives. We adopt a course of action and invest time in it. If it is not working to our satisfaction, then it is normal to try something else.

This report took some time to produce with much consultation. We only have it less than a month and I do not expect to have a detailed working plan back from the Department until September, given all the other pressures we are under coming into the holiday period. As soon as I have a response, I will publish it along with the recommendations I am implementing immediately, those when I have the resources to implement them and those I might dispute on which I might seek a second opinion. We are not simply going to implement all 28 recommendations. Advice is different to direction. It is for us to consider that advice carefully and respectfully and then proceed to implement it. My predecessors and specialists have given us great guidance in this area.

I acknowledge the presence of representatives of Down's Syndrome Ireland in the Gallery. I confirm what I said to one of its representatives in the Clock Tower in the Department of Education and Skills when the policy was launched and I will make arrangements to meet with them soon. I know the group was involved in briefing the Oireachtas and I got many calls from many of the representatives.

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