Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh míle maith agat, a Chathaoirligh, agus tá fáilte romhat, a Aire-Stáit. I acknowledge that the Minister of State, who has responsibility for disabilities, has come here to take this important Commencement matter.

World Down's Syndrome Day was last Thursday and we all wore odd socks. This Commencement matter arose as a result of an engagement I had with the parent of child who has the condition on World Down's Syndrome Day. We spoke at length about the challenges that children with Down's syndrome come up against. One of the significant challenges is in terms of communication and speech. The Minister of State will be fully aware of the unique set of challenges that children with Down's syndrome in particular encounter when it comes to speaking. Every one of us, as a result of our involvement in the business of politics, appreciates the value of being able to communicate. If one is in a situation where one cannot articulate properly as a result of difficulties with speaking due to having Down's syndrome, then the basic premise of communication is compromised.

Down's syndrome children are beautiful and have a huge amount to offer. We have a responsibility to assist them and provide the necessary supports to enable them to develop their communication skills. It is one thing if one will never be able to communicate but if one can communicate with proper interventions and supports, then that is where the State needs to step in. Last week, I was informed by the parent to whom I refer that the State only provides six sessions of speech therapy a year. The child involved had six sessions of speech therapy in 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2018, there were still six sessions even though our economy has benefited enormously from a recovery and despite the fact that the Government has prioritised the issue of disability and support structures for people with disabilities. In 2019, the allocation still is six sessions.This parent, through hard work and dedication, is funding speech therapy privately for her child. The child gets two sessions a month. That works out at about 24 or 25 sessions a year. That parent uses the six sessions available from the State to complement these. We need to do more and we need to do better. Perhaps there is a mechanism whereby this can be improved. Perhaps there is a plan. The provision of speech therapy is a critical intervention for children with Down's syndrome because of the unique challenges such children face and because speech therapy has been proven over and over again to be successful and to work. All children with Down's syndrome in our society and our State should be able to reach their potential in terms of communicating. Through hard work, the parent with whom I engaged has the resources to provide speech interventions and therapy privately, but what about the parents who cannot?