I am taking this on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, both of whom are actively involved in this. I thank Deputy Stanton for raising this issue and providing me with the opportunity to update the Dáil thereon. This Government is committed to the delivery of Sláintecare and to providing increased levels of service in primary care and community settings. Significant funding in recent years, including provision of annual funding of €195 million in 2023, is enabling the …

I am very conscious of sticking to the script on this one or the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, would have words with me but I agree with what the Deputy said on capital. Capital investment is once-off investment and is the solid foundation required for the teams to work out. I could be so bold as to say I hear what the Deputy is saying on the outreach model and satellite piece that needs to be put in place, but I will stick to the script. We have a growing and ageing population and through ambitious reforms, su…

I thank the Deputy for tabling this Topical Issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The tenant (incremental) purchase scheme was introduced in January 2016 and is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses which are available for sale under the scheme. To be eligible, applicants must meet certain criteria, including minimum annual reckonable income and minimum time in receipt of social housing supports. Both the programme for G…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The requirement for a tenant or joint tenants to have been in receipt of social housing support for ten years in order to be eligible to purchase their home under the scheme has a number of benefits. It strikes an appropriate balance between the right of social housing tenants to purchase their homes and the ability of the local authority to replenish its housing stock. It supports the development of socially sustainable communities. However, as I have outlined, the Depart…

It absolutely is. I am off-script now and am not reading the Minister's reply, to be clear. Unfortunately, we do not have enough universal design+ or universal design++ coming through the local authorities to be able to support people in independent living. That must be a focus as we are building not only social and affordable housing. We need to be able to build a suite that encompasses all in society and allows them to access their own properties. I know the Deputy believes in that, as does the Minister, Deputy D…

I thank Deputy Ó Cuív for raising this matter. I am taking this on behalf of the Minister of State for Rural and Community Development. Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027, which was launched last November, was developed in collaboration with Comhairle na Tuaithe and is a collaborative, cross-government, stakeholder-led strategy. It reflects the views of stakeholders, the public and the whole of government. It sets the stage to strengthen and support the sustainable develop…

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I understand Deputy Ó Cuív’s concern regarding the mountain access project and I will bring back his commentary on it to the Minister, Deputy Humphreys. Embracing Ireland’s Outdoors commits to expanding the mountain access project with a timeline to the end of 2023. The Department wants to ensure that there is appropriate guidance before it is expanded. This guidance has been developed by the subgroup of Comhairle na Tuaithe. The subgroup has the farming organisations represented …

That is the piece which involves the farmers and the landowners. I will bring that back to the Minister, Deputy Humphreys. I understand officials from the Department of Rural and Community Development met with representatives of CDS Teo, Petersburg outdoor education and training centre and GeoPark last month regarding the mountain access project at Binn Shléibhe-Mount Gable. This meeting agreed that the Department would provide funding for an engagement officer to work with the local stakeholders and assist with an…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. As part of the progressing disability services, PDS, roadmap process, I will be meeting with Mr. Bernard Gloster tomorrow and recruitment and retention will be addressed. I refer as well to increasing the attractiveness of recruitment into those various clinician posts, examining how we can put apprenticeship models in place and how we can attract people in from abroad and create incentives to attract people to come as well. We are looking at all these measures in the roun…

I thank the Deputies for raising this important motion. I am happy to have the opportunity to discuss the issue of respite services with them. As my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, has already stated, the Government is not opposing this motion on the grounds that we share a desire to see increased respite services for people with disabilities and the loved ones who care for them. I acknowledge there is unmet need in respite. I assure the House that along with the Department of Children, Equality, D…

Right.

Yes.

That is the answer for Stranorlar. There are four beds there.

Children with complex special needs access therapy services through the children’s disability network teams, CDNTs. These services can be accessed through the assessment of needs, AON, process but children do not require an assessment of need under the Disability Act to access health services. The Government and the HSE both acknowledge the challenges in meeting the demand for these disability services and are acutely aware of how these challenges impact on children and their families. The HSE has advised that ther…

I totally understand what the Deputy is saying. When the court judgment came in March 2022, PTAs were stood down completely. They stopped. That was a decision that we made at that stage within the Department of Health. We did not challenge it. We reverted back to the original assessment of need process. The PTAs no longer exist. They had been in operation from January 2020 to when they were stood down in March 2022. The children who are in that particular bundle now have to go through the proper assessment of need …

I completely agree. In actual fact, I said the first day I became a Minister of State that we do not need 100% of a workforce but 140%, in order to ensure people can go on maternity leave. I agree with the Deputy on that. The HSE is back-filling. Funding was provided to ensure managers of the CDNTs could be back-filled. It is also very important for the HSE to implement its own policy, which is called the national access policy. That would mean that when a person goes in the front door and has their initial meeting…

The Cost of Disability in Ireland report was commissioned by the Minister for Social Protection and prepared by Indecon International Research Economists. It was published in December 2021. It provides important evidence of the additional costs that people with a disability face. The report has implications for many areas of public policy. A whole-of-government approach is required to develop appropriate responses and to ensure that everyday costs are reduced for people with disabilities and their families. The rep…

While I would love to give the Deputy a kite-flying answer, I cannot do that here tonight.

I am not adding to it; I can tell the Deputy that much for nothing. However, I will say one thing. The most cost-effective way of supporting people with disabilities is to work with them to get people back into the workforce. That is one of the most important ways we can do it. One of the things the Minister did when dealing with the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Act 2022 recently was to increase the commitment around the percentage of disabled people in the workforce from 3% to 6%. We are the sec…

As the Deputy spoke, he crossed a number of Departments. I am delighted to share with him that the Minister met with the Minister for Social Protection just before Christmas and is due to meet her again in the coming weeks. I chaired the transport group relating to disability. I hope to see some positive moves with regard to that. I am a firm believer in the mobility allowance, which was removed in 2013. Something needs to be done there. There are great findings on it. I agree with the Deputy regarding the primary …