Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 224: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will deal with the following matter (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19961/10]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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It is not possible to disaggregate the amount spent on the quality of disability services from the overall total spent on disability services annually.

As the Deputy may be aware, "National Quality Standards: Residential Settings for People with Disabilities", which relate to adult services have been published by HIQA. These standards will provide a national framework for quality, safe services for persons with disabilities in a residential setting.

Given the current economic situation, to move to full statutory implementation of the standards, including regulation and inspection, presents significant challenges at this time. However, notwithstanding the difficulties of immediate statutory implementation, the Department of Health and Children, the HSE and HIQA have agreed that progressive non-statutory implementation of the standards will now commence, and that they will become the benchmark against which the HSE assesses both its own directly operated facilities and other facilities that the HSE funds. The Minister for Health and Children will shortly be bringing detailed proposals to Government with regard to the protection of vulnerable adults with disabilities who are currently in institutional care.

Children with disabilities in generic residential centres under the Child Care Act 1991 are covered by the standards and inspection regimes already applying to those centres. There are a number of other centres providing residential or respite care to children with disabilities. Children who reside in these centres are not in the care of the State, although they are cared for by the State. The majority of these centres are run by voluntary organisations funded by the HSE and are not included in the inspection regime under the Child Care Act 1991. In relation to the children with disabilities in these other residential centres, the Ryan Commission report recommends that "all services for children should be subject to regular inspections in respect of all aspects of their care". The implementation plan for the recommendations of the Ryan Commission report contains a commitment that the Health Act 2007 will be commenced to allow the independent registration and inspection of all residential centres and respite services for children with a disability by December 2010.