Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

My colleague, Senator Maura Hopkins, cannot be here so asked me to speak on her behalf. Some of the Senators present are closer to this issue and I have listened to them, and I briefed myself on this issue this morning. I do not think that the Minister would be too happy that the closure is happening based on everything that I have read and spoken to people about this morning.

Cuisle does not offer the hotel setting that the Irish Wheelchair Association seems to want to move towards. Cuisle does offer a gym, a bar, a spa and meeting rooms. It also offers an environment that makes wheelchair users feel normal and allows them to be around people with whom they have a lot in common.

I understand, from speaking to Senator Hopkins, that the staff are putting on a brave face in front of the users of the Cuisle facility. The situation is very sad. I can understand on one level why the Irish Wheelchair Association would talk about moving towards a different type of model of care that it thinks may work better. The association seems to have given two reasons, which are the cost of refurbishing the facility and a move to a different model of care. To me, both reasons are surmountable obstacles. I do not believe there is any real desire on the part of the Irish Wheelchair Association to keep the facility open, from what I understand. I do not think that the Minister of State really wants that either based on the information to hand. As he has said, there is no pulling of funding and there is no need to politicise this matter. I think that we are all singing from the one page and hoping that the Irish Wheelchair Association will listen, as was said by Senator Rónán Mullen. It is nice for me to be able to agree with everything that he has said.