Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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Question 232: To ask the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the funding crisis currently facing St. Christopher's services for persons with an intellectual disability in County Longford; the steps he intends to take to address the threat to front line services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17367/12]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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As the Deputy is aware the disability budget nationally was cut by 3.7% in 2012. The Health Service Executive (HSE) National Service Plan states that at least 2% of this should not impact on services and needs to be generated from other savings and increased efficiencies. The HSE is in discussions with the National Consultative Forum on Disability, which includes representative organisations and agencies from the Disability Sector to identify and agree a framework to address the 2% savings required, with minimal impact on frontline services.

The HSE has assured me that it will endeavour to ensure that residential, day, respite and personal assistant services are protected where possible from reductions in front line services. However, some reductions in services will be unavoidable even with such efficiencies. The aim will be to tailor such reductions in a way which minimises the impact on service users and their families as much as possible.

Initiatives under consideration to generate savings include shared services, transport amalgamation, restructuring of agencies, measures to address absenteeism and the promotion of innovative models of service delivery. As a first step, the HSE has indicated a general reduction of 3.7% from the budget of disability agencies, pending the outcome of its discussions at a local level with individual agencies.

The HSE recognises the valuable contribution St. Christopher's Services makes to the provision of services to people with intellectual disabilities in the Longford area. The HSE is very much aware of the challenges service providers including St. Christopher's Services are experiencing, and the particular difficulties facing all health services in 2012.

My Department has been advised by the HSE that it will work with St. Christopher's Services to agree where these savings will be made.