Rose Conway Walsh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte ar ais roimh na Seanadóirí go léir. Up to 3,850 children nationally are waiting for initial assessments of need. Children with signs of autism make up a large proportion of this figure. I speak to the parents of such children every day. They are isolated and desperate as they try to find out why their children have unexplained symptoms.

Under the Disability Act 2005, assessments of need should take place within six months. This is the first test of how children's rights are treated in this country. Once again, they are being failed. The national figure has increased in the first six months of this year. Many parents need these assessments so they can proceed to seek full diagnoses and ultimately access services.

Supports and services are very thin on the ground and often depend on where one happens to live. At least 57 children in counties Mayo and Galway are currently waiting for assessments. This is more than unacceptable - it is in breach of the legislation. These figures mask the reality that many parents have lost faith in the system and the long waiting lists. They have given up applying for assessments and have instead had to beg for or borrow the money to have assessments done privately. This is not right because it means that people who have money are able to get assessments and people who do not have money are deprived of assessments.

I ask the Leader to invite the Minister to come to the House for a full debate on the lack of supports and services for children with disabilities and their families. I am also asking for resources to be allocated in the forthcoming budget to underpin the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. I want the money that is allocated to go directly to children and others with disabilities, and their families, rather than being absorbed by agencies that are ultimately unaccountable.