I am delighted to have the opportunity to provide details of the €3.2 billion 2025 allocation in the area of disability services. This is an increase of 12% on 2024 levels of funding and is reflective of incremental changes in funding for disability services, surpassing €3 billion for the first time. Since 2020, investment in this area has increased by €1.2 billion. In securing this funding, my continued overarching focus for 2025 is to maintain and enhance the provision of person-centred services, by addressing co…

Section 39 is separately accounted for. It is not included in that fund.

It is still under negotiations with the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC.

I thank Deputies for bringing forward this motion and I welcome the opportunity to speak to the House to reassure Deputies that the Government is fully committed to people with disabilities and their families. I do, of course, acknowledge that there are important challenges that we must address, many of them raised by the Deputies in their contributions, if disability services are to fully meet the needs and expectations of those at the heart of the service. I would like to thank the Minister of State, Deputy Naugh…

I welcome this motion as an opportunity to debate the important issue of early learning and childcare. It is clear from the debate so far that we all recognise the importance of early learning and childcare for children and their families as well as for society and the wider economy. In opposing the Deputies' motion and putting forward a countermotion, the Government’s objective is not to claim there are no challenges in the sector but rather to demonstrate that the Government has set out a pathway to address affor…

I thank the Deputies for raising this important issue for discussion. As Minister of State with responsibility for disabilities, I remain fully committed to the continued development and enhancement of our children’s disability services. This includes school-based therapy supports for special schools, including St. Killian’s in Cork and across the country. I met with the principal, as the Deputies outlined, and a number of parents from St. Killian’s late last year and, at that stage, we discussed providing funding …

I take it the Deputies are all asking the same question, and "Yes" is the answer. I repeat that, in regard to the provision of private therapies for children with disabilities, the Government and I remain supportive of the use of available private capacity, and the funding of same. This is only possible for schools which are part of the pilot. We will name the ten additional schools by the end of October. The funding will be provided for private capacity to be used and I commit to that.

It will be announced in October, but I can bring that forward. My understanding from meeting the principal and the delegates who came before me was that they have something ready to roll and are able to access private capacity-----

Let us be clear. If they are successful in coming through the pilot at the end of October and I am supportive of funding private therapist capacity, I will request that it is brought forward, as opposed to waiting until October.

Oh now.

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue and offering me the opportunity on behalf of the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and the Department to respond to her. To participate in the national childcare scheme, there must be a funding agreement in force between the Department of children and the early learning and childcare provider. The policy guidelines set out the rules governing the scheme, reflecting both the primary and secondary legislation. These guidelines do not stipulate how a provider should manage…

There is nobody who would wish to cast a blind eye on it. The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, has said that, when they are doing a review of Equal Start later this year, there will be that opportunity to take it on. The other side of this is that there is a role for every one of the city and county childcare committees to ensure there is best practice, and that does not need to be regulated and legislated for. Best practice is ensuring we have open and transparent admissions policies, progress policies and how groups ar…

I thank the Senator profusely for raising this issue on the floor of the Seanad. I wondered how long it would be before someone would submit a priority or oral question or raise it on the floor, so I am delighted to be here before the Senators to answer this question. I will give some background and this is important because it ensures I can return to the Department. We will, therefore, set out the background context first. As Minister of State with special responsibility for disabilities, I believe it is important…

I am not at a loss as to where we go next.

There is an opportunity here. The HSE has a list of 438 fantastic projects that need support. They are predominantly from the community and voluntary sector. Those groups are plugging the gaps and where we have pilots, they should become part and parcel of the support mechanism for the CDNTs. They should be embedded in our communities. That would also give us the opportunity to grow and enhance the universal support we talk about all the time in respect of the progressing disability services, PDS, for children and …

While I may not have been present in the Chamber, I was listening to the debate and thank everyone for their contributions. On behalf of the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, I want to thank Senators for their engagement on these important reforms. Regarding the Bill itself, the Minister thanks the Senators for their support in enhancing the Tusla early years inspectorate enforcement tools by strengthening some of Tusla's powers and placing others on a statutory footing for the first time. It is vital that Tusla has the n…

I thank the Deputy very much for raising this issue. The HSE has assisted St. Christopher’s Services to deal with its financial challenges through a cash acceleration process. It is continuing to work with the organisation to sustain its future as an important provider of disability services in the midlands. The HSE continues to link directly with the management team in St. Christopher’s Services to ensure that sufficient cash is available to meet payroll, liability and other essential payments. The HSE is in the p…

I thank the Deputy for the question on the autism innovation strategy. It is in its final stages and we hope to have it published within the next three weeks. It is not just within the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth but the autism innovation strategy takes a cross-government approach. I look forward to having it launched and to sharing it with Cara, Deputy Bacik and all Members within the next three weeks.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Like every other year, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, will be holding consultation with all the various groupings. She plans on having a consultation again this year. Like every year, she has been very open and supportive and I have no doubt she will be the same this year again.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter which was also raised earlier on as part of the questions. The Taoiseach, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, and I are meeting Cara and her parents tomorrow at 1 p.m. We will address the four points the Deputy mentioned. It is important to have on the record of the Dáil that €11.89 million has been put in place for long waiters so that no parent has to spend the money. We will pay the clinicians directly for any child who has been waiting a long time for an assessment…