2 days Ago
The row over the Dáil speaking time ended – for now – last week with the passing of the motion of confidence in Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy. Under the new rules now in place, TDs other than the leaders of the recognised opposition parties get to put questions directly to the Taoiseach on whatever topic they deem necessary. It’s not just the so-called “Lowry lackeys”, the Regional Independent Group (RIG) TDs supporting the Government, who will benefit from this arrangement.
Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael backbenchers, and some Independent TDs who are not backing the Coalition, are also included. It probably wasn’t a coincidence that Independent TD Carol Nolan was the first to avail of the new slot last week. She is counted as an RIG member, but not one with a government deal.
The Offaly TD was the subject of a walkout from the opposition, who were protesting at the new procedure. When the former Sinn Féin TD rose to her feet, a large number of opposition TDs from Sinn Féin, Labour, People Before Profit-Solidarity and Independent Ireland immediately left the Dáil chamber. The Social Democrats appeared not to participate in the boycott.
When Taoiseach Micheál Martin finished his answer, the protesting TDs streamed back in. It’s a pity they missed the exchange as Ms Nolan brought up the dramatic increase in demand for special education in her constituency. The response wasn’t terribly insightful, but the topic for discussion is certainly relevant to every part of the country.
During the general election, candidates from across the political divide commented on the rise of queries on special needs that came up on the doorsteps. Children’s Minister Norma Foley has now effectively admitted the special-needs assessment system for children is not fit for purpose and needs to be overhauled. The delays in assessments of need is leaving children to wait significant periods of time to get the therapies they require.
The redesign of the system the minister has in mind is to provide therapies as soon as possible, rather than waiting in the queue for a full assessment of needs. Ms Foley has the advantage of serving in the Department of Education for the past five years, so she does have exposure to the knock-on consequences within the school system. By law, children are entitled to an assessment of needs (AONs) within six months, but the most recent data from the HSE shows 14,221 AONs were overdue for completion at the end of last year.
To cut the waiting lists, the HSE allocated funding to get AONs done privately and found that the demand resulted in an overspend as almost 2,500 assessments were undertaken privately. The system is overwhelmed, but the minister now accepts these delays are actually holding off the provision of therapies. Ms Foley’s common-sense approach is welcome, but she also has to fix the system, rather than admit it’s broken.
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