Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2025-12-10
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Micheál Martin (FF), Cork South-Central

First, I reject completely the assertions made by the Deputy in respect of this. I think he is missing the fundamental point. The assessment of need framework as it currently stands is not fit for purpose, and recent High Court decisions have made it less fit for purpose. The objective of the legislation, along with a whole series of other measures, is to prioritise and increase timely access to therapies for children. That is the fundamental point: to free up therapists in providing services and treatment.
The Department of education was intimately involved with the Department of children and other Departments under the Cabinet subcommittee on disability regarding this legislative change. We made a very clear decision early on in this Government that we were going to do this, and grasp the nettle in respect of it. We can go on here for another two years, with people coming in and complaining about this list and that waiting list, and they will keep on doing that - it is great stuff, wonderful - as the lists keep going up. The system is completely not fit for purpose. We want to utilise therapists to provide services to children, and we are going to do it.
Bottom-line legislation is the first step, but there is a whole series of other measures that we are taking as well. That basically means we are creating statutory guidelines to support assessment officers in making earlier determinations of disability, reducing the need for unnecessary or repeated clinical assessments. There will be proportionate assessments based on each child's circumstances, including the use of existing diagnostic information or reports, allowing for streamlined, desk-based reviews, where appropriate; and faster delivery of assessment reports provided at the earliest possible point, without affecting anyone's right to an assessment of need and without changing the statutory timeframes set out in the Act itself.
We will be doing a wider review of the Disability Act in early 2026 to ensure it reflects modern, rights-based child and adult-focused supports. A dedicated autism diagnostic assessment panel will be established. There will be a new autism assessment and intervention pathways protocol from 5 February 2026, ensuring consistent practice across primary care, CAMHS and CDNTs, and removing the requirement for an assessment of need to access non-health supports, such as special classes and school places. We do not want children waiting to get into a special class or a school place where the need is obvious. We do not want delays. We want to get the child access to facilities and therapies immediately.
There will be 11 new in-reach teams, with four staff in each team, to provide expert clinical guidance to the assessment staff. A new single point of access model from 2026 is being established - Bernard of Gloster and the HSE have led out on this - giving families one consistent entry route to primary care, CAMHS or the children's disability network teams.
The Deputy knows that we are rolling out the education therapy service in 45 special schools from the new year, and then, for the 2026-27 academic year, all special schools will have an education therapy service.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-12-10/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:27+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-10