Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am particularly pleased to see the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, arriving in the Seanad Chamber. She is directly responsible for the disability sector. It is always great when the line Minister with responsibility, with knowledge, with expertise and with her finger on the pulse in terms of the policy comes to the House. I am not so sure that she has her finger on the purse but she certainly has in terms of the policy. I thank her for coming to the Senate on this important issue.

My Commencement matter today deals with the crisis in the St. John of God services. Families of the service users there are deeply concerned about the proposed change over from St. John of God Community Services to the HSE. To set some context, St. John of God Community Services provides residential and community care for over 8,000 people. That was a surprise to me. I am very familiar with the service. I am very familiar with the exceptional work the staff, the brothers of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God and their board do, and more importantly what the volunteers, parents and family members do in providing such a comprehensive holistic service. It is important that we do not lose sight of that and acknowledge that.

It is providing care for over 8,000 people with intellectual disabilities, and mental health, special educational and training needs. It employs over 3,000 people. It is a huge community. It is a workers collaborative and includes the families, volunteers and of course the order itself whose very ethos is care, humanity, dignity and respect for all the order comes in contact with. It is important that we do not lose sight of that. That vision and ethos are rich in its work.

The St. John of God service has made the case for years that the level of State funding provided is not sufficient to cover the costs of providing the appropriate care and services needed. The Minister of State will be aware that St. John of God Community Services has been in negotiation with the HSE for several years. It claims there is a shortfall in funding to meet the needs of its services and to address the deficit. The failure to find agreement on sufficient levels of funding despite three years of talks is devastating and a setback for all involved. It is causing unnecessary anxiety. I have had calls from people in Dublin, Kerry, Kildare, Wicklow, Meath and Louth who are availing of these services and are really concerned.

At the very core of this issue is the accumulated deficit in the financial operation and the sustainability of St. John of God Community Services. In the limited time available, I would like to hear a quick overview of where we are going from now. When will the Minister of State be sitting down with the chief executive and the board of St. John of God services? Hopefully she has already done so. Is there a plan or a schedule to meet them in the coming days to iron out the difficulties?

In December the Minister of State launched the Government's disability service action plan for 2024 to 2026.I have printed the press releases and the various media statements on this. The plan speaks about key priorities for the period, measures to increase the capacity of children's disability services, expanding respite services, and having extra residential places, extra home supports and personal assistants and services. There is a real need to get this going. There is a need for major financial support of, and investment in, St. John of God Community Services and others.

A total of 8,000 people are in the care of one organisation. We need to look at this again. When there is a crisis in an organisation that has this amount of responsibility, it leaves the State and everybody very exposed. I am here to listen to the Minister of State. We may need a further debate on this as time goes by. I am conscious these are sensitive times. This is a time for negotiation. The Minister of State knows the finer detail of it. I would like to take away from here today when the Minister of State will look these people in the eye and facilitate a meeting between herself, the HSE, and the board of St. John of God Community Services.