Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 9 Oct 2024

Last Friday I was in Monaghan. While I was there, I met with a group of parents of children with profound special needs. Their stories were very familiar to me - all too familiar, in fact, because I hear similar in every community visit that I make. They battle the system every single day to try to secure for their children the services they need, such as assessments of need, occupational therapy appointments, speech and language therapy, resources and school places. They are looking for fair play and for someone to listen because it is clear that the Government is not listening. Some of these parents in County Monaghan came together to form Special Needs Active Parents, SNAP. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, knows the group. In fact, some of the parents are here in the Gallery with us today. They campaign for the services their children need and deserve.

Last February, my colleague Deputy Matt Carthy organised a disability forum in Monaghan, attended by our spokespersons, Deputies Pauline Tully and David Cullinane. Dozens were expected to attend, but in fact hundreds turned up. Families from across County Monaghan, and indeed some from neighbouring counties, told stories of how they and their children were denied respite care, education places and the therapies and treatments that would allow their children to live full lives. Parents should not have to bare their souls to describe the most intimate personal details of their most private family moments to a public meeting or to a politician, but this is exactly what these families are forced to do. Parents of children with special needs must fight every day in every county, but surely the Minister will agree that in County Monaghan they have had to fight harder than most. For too long Monaghan was one of the only counties without an overnight respite service for children. It is only in recent weeks, thanks to the campaign of these families, that Monaghan now has an interim respite service. However, all the indications so far show that this service, welcome as it is, comes nowhere close to meeting demand. Adult services are also severely lacking.

Monaghan remains just one of two counties that still does not have a special school. Why is that? Children in Monaghan have to travel on a bus to the Holy Family School in County Cavan, which is a great school, by all accounts, but I have met parents. I met the parent of a seven-year-old child, who told me that the child travels by bus for two hours each way every day to get to and from that school. That is not acceptable. For years, it has been plainly evident that County Monaghan needs a special school. At least one site has been offered as a potential location for the school, but the Government simply says it is reviewing the situation. The Government still has not stated the criteria for such a review or explained how some counties with a similar profile have a number of special schools, yet Monaghan has none.

Tá tuismitheoirí agus teaghlaigh i gContae Mhuineacháin i mbun feachtais le fada an lá ar son scoil speisialta. Ní féidir leo fanacht níos faide. Iarraim ar an Aire a rá leo cathain a gheobhaidh siad í. While the Government is reviewing, families are forced to continue telling their stories and forced to continue approaching politicians to beg for something that must of us should take for granted - appropriate school places for our sons and daughters. Will the Minister commit today that Monaghan will have a special school and tell those parents when they will have it, because these families have waited far too long?

I thank Deputy McDonald for raising this issue. I welcome the families from County Monaghan who have travelled here today. I did not know they were coming, but I spoke to one of the representatives last night.

Special education is a key priority for this Government. It has been underpinned by over a quarter of the entire education budget. For 2025, €2.9 billion will be spent on special education, an increase of €113 million. This will allow for, among other things, the opening of 400 new special classes in mainstream schools and 300 additional special school places. Since 2020, almost 1,700 new special classes and 11 special schools have been provided. An additional 768 special education teachers and 1,600 SNAs have also been provided. This is the highest number of SNAs allocated, bringing SNA posts nationwide to over 23,000. The investment of €62 million is the largest yet for summer programmes. There are targeted resources to help with planning and transitioning for children with special education needs. There is a dedicated special education innovation fund in recognition of the need to continually evolve and examine best practice. Additional funding to provide for enhanced training requirements for teachers and SNAs has been announced. At a national level, since 2020, almost 1,700 new special classes with 11 schools have been provided. For this school year, over 400 new special classes have been sanctioned and four new special schools opened last month in Meath, Kildare, Wexford and Limerick. Throughout the summer, the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, and the Department of Education have worked intensely with some schools to provide further capacity, and work has focused on particular areas in north Dublin.

I am more than familiar with what is going on in County Monaghan. I know all about the Holy Family School. It is an excellent facility built on the border between Cavan and Monaghan, at the time, to facilitate the needs of the people in the region. I am fully aware of that. In terms of the Monaghan special school, four new classes have been confirmed, bringing the number of special classes in the county up to 46. Deputy McDonald was very welcome in Monaghan. I am sorry to have missed her. When she was there, Deputy Carthy could have brought her to Clontibret to show her the fabulous facilities they have in the school to cater for people with special needs. Deputy Carthy also could have brought her to Lough Morn or to St. Tiarnach's in Clones to see the wonderful work they are doing in all of those units.

The Department of Education and the NCSE are working to increase special school capacity for the 2025-26 school year and beyond. Where additional school places are needed, the preference is generally to expand capacity in existing schools. However, consideration is being given to whether further new special schools in addition to the 11 schools that are established or are being established, are required in certain locations. As part of this work, the NCSE is examining known demand in areas, the distances children are travelling to special schools and the capacity in an area to expand special schools where they already exist. This work is ongoing and is expected to be substantially completed in late autumn. A number of regions are under consideration for special school provision, including Monaghan. I can assure Deputy McDonald that I will be making the case for Monaghan, and I am sure Deputy Carthy will support me.

I wish the school in Clontibret and educators beyond that all the very best in Monaghan, but Deputy Carthy brought me to meet these families. They are who we met and they could recite the stats just as well as the Minister, maybe even better than her. They are still left with the reality that there is no special school in Monaghan. The special classrooms have their place and are extremely valuable. Investment in them is important. I acknowledge that. It is not the whole story, however. That is precisely the point that these parents have made.

When they advance their need for a special school, the Minister shouts back at them about special classrooms. That is not what is needed. They need a special school. Monaghan does not have one. They told me about Navan and other locations where special schools have been opened. Do not get me wrong. Nobody begrudges these areas those schools. All of that capacity is needed but Monaghan does not have a special school.

The Minister says a review is under way that will report back in late autumn. It is 9 October so I do not know what late autumn means to her. What I want is a commitment from her as Minister, a member of this Government and, to be blunt, a constituency TD that Monaghan will have its special school with no more hiding or delays behind reviews - just a simple commitment. The parents have done the work on demand. The Minister knows this. I am sure she has seen their surveys. They have even done the work for the Department as well, so well done them.

I am well aware of the figures but there is a process here. Even the Deputy will accept that. I have been engaging regularly with the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, the NCSE and the local ETB, which I feel will also play an important role in this process. I can tell the Deputy about all of the fine buildings and investment that has gone into Monaghan in terms of education, including the new schools there. Only recently the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, turned the sod on a new Gaelscoil in Castleblayney and met with the parents from SNAP on that occasion. I have met with them, as has the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, who came specially to Monaghan to talk to them. I am meeting them again in the coming weeks.

I am committed to supporting the needs of parents of children with special needs in Monaghan, as are Deputies Niamh Smyth and Brendan Smith and Senators Joe O'Reilly and Robbie Gallagher. We are aware of it and are doing what we can but there is a process here. Deputy McDonald has been down to see them. Deputy Tóibín has been down to see them. Monaghan is a very interesting place. Everyone here wants to come there. We are well aware of what is going on. I can assure the Deputy that I am well capable of representing the people of Cavan and Monaghan.

Today I am forced to raise again our concerns about the Government’s 925-page Planning and Development Bill. It should be receiving adequate consideration tonight but we know it will not because the Government is giving us just three hours to consider 177 pages of amendments to this extremely significant legislation. These are amendments we have never had the opportunity to consider in the Dáil.

This developer-led Bill will cause real and lasting damage to our already sub-par planning system. If it is passed as it is, it will actually delay the delivery of homes and transport infrastructure and will risk our energy security. It will remove democracy from aspects of planning and concentrate power in the hands of the Minister. Three hours will not be enough time to tackle these and other flaws, nor will three minutes be enough, which is what I have now.

Instead I want to raise just one issue - something Hollywood's Mark Ruffalo has been campaigning on for years. His issue with what I might call this hulking piece of legislation is the group of new amendments on the importation of liquified natural gas, LNG. This is a domestic issue for us but it is of concern internationally and to Mr. Ruffalo because he is from Pennsylvania in the US, where fracking-sourced LNG terminals have been linked to asthma, rare childhood cancers and adverse birth outcomes. Here at home, the Government is trying to designate floating terminals as strategic infrastructure so that LNG can be imported into Ireland, circumventing normal planning processes.

We know LNG is a dirty fuel. It will increase our emissions and it is harmful to health. The cost of a new LNG facility would be added to people's gas bills at a time when households already struggle to make ends meet. Even if this goes ahead, a new terminal will not be ready for years to come. By the time we would have one built, we would already have greatly increased renewable energy capacity in place, so this is not even a question of energy security. This is about embedding harmful fuels long term into our energy system against all the evidence.

The Government has insisted that existing policy amounts to an LNG moratorium. That argument has never held water, especially not since last week's High Court decision that there is no way of enforcing the moratorium so there is no ban. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, has said he does not think commercial LNG terminals will be installed in Ireland. Respectfully, we do not legislate based on a vibe or a ministerial whim. I am quite frankly shocked at this approach by the Minister with responsibility for climate action. Green Party TDs are sitting across on Government benches now. I am the first person on this side of the House to acknowledge the progress on climate action that has been made due to their presence in government. As a lifelong environmentalist, I welcome that, but that is why I am so concerned to see that they might at the eleventh hour be on the verge of undoing that work. This is not just a problem for the Green Party; it is a problem for all of us.

Will the Government withdraw support for these dangerous LNG amendments and support the Labour Party amendments instead? Will it act on the High Court decision and introduce a cast-iron ban on LNG? Finally, does it accept that three hours is just not long enough to consider this vitally important Bill and these hugely significant new amendments?

As the Deputy rightly says, the Planning and Development Bill will voted upon in the Dáil tonight. This is after 170 hours of debate. The Bill is hugely significant and has been under work for years. It is vital in terms of streamlining our planning process. I think everybody will accept that. As the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has said, and I agree with him, the Bill will be the cornerstone of Irish planning for the coming decades. It represents the most comprehensive review of planning since the current Act was enacted in 2000. It contains important reforms to the planning system, including the introduction of mandatory timelines, a reorganisation of An Bord Pleanála, greater alignment of all tiers of planning and improvements to the judicial review process. It will bring consistency, clarity and transparency to the planning process. I support it and acknowledge the significant work of the Minister and his team and what they have done to get this Bill to this point.

Regarding LNG terminals, the purpose of the Planning and Development Act is to set the legislative framework to enable the most appropriate means of assessment of all forms of development. The LNG provision referred to largely replicates current provision in the Planning and Development Act 2000. Irrespective of Government policy, any party may propose such a facility at any time and this must be assessed if submitted. Identification of a significant and specialist development type such as an LNG terminal and-or storage facility for strategic infrastructure scale assessment does not automatically imply acceptance or prioritisation. In the same manner as gas installations are identified under annexe 1 of the Aarhus Convention, it would an omission for the planning legislative code simply to ignore this form of development. It is also noted that the November 2023 energy security package recommends that consideration be given to State ownership of a temporary facility.

The Bill represents the most comprehensive review of planning since the current Act was enacted in 2000 and contains important reforms to the planning system, including the introduction of mandatory timelines, a reorganisation of An Bord Pleanála, greater alignment of all tiers of planning and improvements to the judicial review process. The review and reform of planning legislation is a key action of Housing for All. It was underpinned by engagement led by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. This included the planning advisory forum, which played a very important role in contributing to the policy provisions outlined in the Bill.

I cannot accept the line that the planning Bill has been considered in full. As the Minister knows, I was very engaged with it on Committee and Report Stages. This is one of the most substantial pieces of legislation the Oireachtas has ever considered but we certainly do not have enough time tonight to debate the massive number of new amendments that we have not had an opportunity to debate before in the Dáil. They were introduced in the Seanad.

With respect, the Minister has not responded to my point about the High Court decision last week, nor about the very valid concerns that have been raised, not only by us in opposition but also by Friends of the Earth this morning, about the LNG terminal amendments. As Friends of the Earth has noted, the new amendments contradict official Government policy. This amounts to gaslighting. There is a contradiction between the Bill with these new amendments and agreed Government policy on LNG. That is something that has been pointed out objectively. Friends of the Earth has pointed to a public poll showing strong public opposition to the LNG terminal. These are the concerns we have not had the opportunity to debate previously in the Dáil. We have only three hours to debate those amendments and all the others tonight. The key questions, to which the Minister has not responded, remain. If the Government is not trying to bring in LNG by the back door, why is it legislating for fast-tracked LNG planning? Why is it failing to legislate for key climate conditions on gas infrastructure as outlined in its own energy security review? It just does not add up and we will not have time to get to the root of what the issue is with these amendments in tonight's deeply curtailed debate. It is really unacceptable.

I want to be very clear. This amendment is to ensure that if there is a massive energy crisis, we would have storage facilities for LNG if required. I am talking about a massive energy crisis. It has nothing to do with fracking. This Government is opposed to fracking. My former colleague, Tony McLoughlin, brought forward a Bill to ban fracking. This is planning for all eventualities. The planning Bill will help the realisation of offshore and green energy to progress. The big focus is on renewable energy, particularly offshore energy, not LNG and certainly not fracking. The Bill will speed up the process of producing more green energy.

Carers from all over County Wexford have asked me to make their position known. I have had calls from Duncannon, Duncormick, Kilmore, Rosslare, Oilgate, Enniscorthy, New Ross, Wexford town and all over County Wexford. They have asked me to represent the hurt, rage, disbelief and disappointment they feel at this Government’s choice not to reorganise and recognise their contribution and abolish the means test for carer's allowance. They feel their worth has not been acknowledged even though the Government has widened or increased the threshold - many of these carers will never make the threshold - particularly because of the false sense of expectation the Minister gave them during the referendum on carers. They sent me a document which they want me to read to the Minister. They are her words:

I know there’s more to do. There really is. And the fact is, if we vote Yes on Friday, that strengthens my hand to do more for carers.

What we need to do is sit down and fully assess the contribution that carers are making to our society and how we can support them in the work that they do, because some people cannot work because they’re caring full-time for somebody who has a disability, or maybe an elderly person, or whatever reason they need that support.

“We need to just deal with this issue once and for all,” the Minister said.

In a press release, the Minister was quoted as saying:

Fine Gael takes great pride in delivering a more modern, inclusive Ireland and these referendums are a key part of that. It is so important that our constitution reflects the Ireland of today - an Ireland that recognises that all families are different, an Ireland that places huge value on the role played by our carers.

We have never actually had a discussion in this House about that referendum that cost us €20 million but failed, and it failed dismally.

The carers believe that the Government and the Minister are speaking out of both sides of their mouths. They want the Minister to explain why she has chosen not to recognise all carers and why she thinks it is okay to disregard their worth and leave them solely dependent in many cases and make them vulnerable through dependence on others for income. Why does she reject the research on abolishing the means test? This research, commissioned by family carers who supported the Minister and her Government in the referendum, was carried out by Maynooth University. Family Carers Ireland supported the Minister. Will she respond to the carers who feel so let down?

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I can be accused of many things but speaking out of both sides of my mouth is not normally what I do. I have been engaging with carers since I became Minister for Social Protection in 2020. I must say again that family carers play a hugely important role and I have been committed to supporting them in that role. I have worked hard in recent years in enhancing the supports we have provided to them. I am well aware of the stories to which the Deputy refers. I meet carers regularly; I meet the carers' groups and the carers themselves. In each and every budget since I became Minister for Social Protection, the proposals I have delivered have come directly from talking to them and engaging with the carers and the carers' groups. Every Deputy in this House meets carers on a regular basis and I am no different. We all know well the vital work that they carry out. During my time as Minister for Social Protection I have stood up for our family carers in recognition of the incredible and often unseen work they do in our society. In this budget I am increasing the annual carer's support grant to €2,000. That is now at its highest level ever. I am extending the carer's benefit to self-employed workers. That is new and has not happened before. Self-employed people who have to give up work to look after somebody will be able to get the carer's benefit. I am making carer's allowance a qualifying payment for fuel allowance. That is another request from the groups.

I am increasing the domiciliary care allowance to €360 per month and, most importantly, I am expanding the carer's allowance means test to €625 per week for a single person and €1,250 per week for a couple. These changes will mean that I have effectively doubled the income limits for carer's allowance over the lifetime of this Government, enabling thousands more carers to qualify for a payment. I hear our carers and recognise them. It is by working with them that I have been able to ensure that our carers have access to a pension for the first time ever, and rightly so. I am pleased to say that since I made this change last year, almost 2,200 carers have benefited from that with regard to the State pension. That is the result of listening to our carers and working with them.

I understand the concern around the means test. The carer's allowance means test is an issue which carers have raised consistently over the years and it is being raised here again today. I was the first Minister in 14 years to make changes to the carer's allowance means test, in 2022. As I outlined, I have increased it.

Those were the carers’ words. I fully understand why they believe the Minister is speaking out of both sides of her mouth. It is a means test. It is on the means of someone else’s income, rather than that of the carer who is actually delivering the care. This is means-testing the income of the household. It may be means in which the carer does not even share. We are talking out of both sides of our mouths every day of the week when we talk about vulnerable women and 95% of our care is delivered by women. Yet the Minister has them in a position where if their partner or someone else in the household is over the threshold for the means test, they must beg for the money to go for a cup of coffee should the opportunity arise. Does the Minister understand why they feel so vulnerable and disregarded? Family Carers Ireland has told the Minister that, according to research by Maynooth University, those who provide care to the most vulnerable in this country save the State €20 billion per annum.

Yet the Minister continues with a means test that would give them, if they were caring for one child, €248 per week, less than €12,000 per year, to save the State €20 billion. Is it any wonder their mental health is suffering from the kind of disregard this Government shows them? It is no thanks-----

We have made considerable changes but we are on a journey. We have to do more. I accept that but we cannot do everything on the one day. We have made substantial changes to the carer's support grant. It has been increased. The carer's allowance is now a qualifying payment for the fuel allowance. Domiciliary care allowance has been increased; I have increased it by €50 during my term as Minister. I have provided the pension for carers. I talk to carers all the time. I am their voice in government and I have made their case known. I have improved their situation. Please do not come in here, Deputy, and act as if I am not aware of any of these things. I talk to people too. I talk to people every day and hear their concerns. I know the mother who sent me a text after the budget, the mother who carries her child in her arms when she comes into this House-----

Family Carers Ireland acknowledges budget 2025 brings some welcome measures to alleviate the pressure carers feel every day, such as increasing the respite grant to €2,000 per annum and increasing the disregard to €1,250, which allows more carers to get it. The Minister knows well and I am not saying she does not know, but why did she not do what she said she would do or what carers want?

Carers are the unsung heroes of our society yet budget 2025 leaves them in the shadows. One in eight people in Ireland provides unpaid care, saving the State billions, but where is their support? Waiting until July 2025 is a slap in the face for them. The increases are given, but they have to wait for ten months after the budget. Will the Minister show the compassion she needs to show? Carers welcome it but why do they have to wait until next July to get it?

It is time to fully abolish the carer's allowance means test, and we all know that. That is what they expected. I welcome the carers here today and complement all family carers and especially our councillor, Richie Molloy, in South Tipperary, who is manager of south Tipperary carers, on the work he and his organisation do.

Carers make an enormous contribution. Over 500,000 individuals are family carers, meaning one in eight people provides regular unpaid care. Family carers are the backbone of care provision, yet they often feel they are not getting recognition. They are definitely not getting it. Caring intensively over long periods without support or recognition negatively affects carers' physical and mental health, financial status and social integration. Many carers, especially those caring for children with additional needs, face long-term implications for their health, well-being and financial security. Many children who should be in school, amach faoin spéir or playing matches are caring for loved ones. That is a crying shame.

Carers are predominantly women, with those in their 50s most likely to be providing care. Some 57% of carers, as per census 2022, juggle work with caring responsibilities. That is not easy, as the Minister knows. The number of carers increased by over 50% between 2016 and 2022 and is expected to continue rising due to an ageing population and more people with life-limiting conditions.

The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, who is sitting beside the Minister, closed a lovely hospital in Carrick-on-Suir. Respite beds are not available. The Minister of State can whisper what she likes but she took away the respite and palliative care beds provided by the community.

Deputy Murphy spoke of the economic value of carers. Family Carers Ireland, a national charity, estimates €10 billion per year is the value of what carers do. That is an enormous sum.

There is a lot of interest in my county but there is nobody who knows more about Monaghan than I do - that is it as far as I am concerned. I was born and reared there and have lived there all my life. We will move on.

I believe it was after a HIQA inspection that St. Brigid's Hospital was closed but it is now being-----

I will move on to the question the Deputy asked. I know the important role family carers play and am fully committed to supporting them in that role. I meet them regularly in my Department, including at the annual carers forum. I have heard first-hand over many years of the wonderful work they do under extremely difficult circumstances; probably the most difficult is where mothers have children with disabilities. It is not easy and we all acknowledge the work they do.

At the end of August, there were 97,407 recipients of carer's allowance with recipient numbers increasing every year. The estimated cost of the scheme this year is expected to be over €1.1 billion. However, I acknowledge that no amount of money could reflect the value of care given to children or family members with profound care needs.

I was the first Minister to increase the carer's disregard in 14 years. Since my appointment as Minister for Social Protection, I have nearly doubled the income disregard for carer's allowance from €332.50 to €625 for a single carer and from €665 to €1,250 for a carer who is part of a couple. At the request of carers and their representative organisations, I also increased the capital disregard. A carer with a spouse or partner can now have capital up to €100,000 before it affects their payment. From July next year, a carer who is one of a couple can have household earnings of €65,789 per annum and receive full payment; earnings of €79,309 and receive payment equivalent to a half rate; and earnings of up to €91,269 and receive the minimum payment along with the secondary benefits. It has been increased considerably. We have come a long way but there is more to do. That is why I have set up an interdepartmental working group to look at the issue.

It is unacceptable that carers have to wait until next July, six months after everybody else, to get their increases. We can all be patronising and talk about what they do but they need the money now, not next July or August.

Fully abolishing the carer's allowance means test is recommended by research from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. That is crucial. Once-off payments are insufficient to make lasting changes or a real difference for carers. The means test is the problem. A change of government may be necessary to see that happen; I believe it will.

During Covid, the Government said €350 per week was the minimum a person would need to survive.

Even with the increase in carer's allowance, carers will only get €260 per week, so the Minister cannot have her cake and eat it. During Covid the Government said it was €350 at a minimum but now carers are expected to live on €260. That is the situation. This is about the means test and fact the Government is paying lip service, which it has said itself, and the way it misused the carers in their botched, wasteful referendums. They were threatened that if they did not go out and lobby for it their money might be caught; that was in inverted commas and not definite.

Also, St. Brigid's Hospital in Carrick-on-Suir will not open as a hospital ever again thanks to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and the Minister, Deputy Donnelly. The respite beds are so badly needed. In addition, three palliative care beds were funded by the community there and the money has not been paid back to the community.

------provided. Anyway, I will go back to what I am supposed to be answering here. To give the Deputy an example, a mother has two children aged 13 and eight and she is a carer for one of them. She currently receives carer's allowance with increases for her children that total €348 per week. That is a real example. Her weekly child support payment has increased by €8 for her older child and €4 for her younger child as a result of the budget. The total benefits to this mother post budget 2025 will be an annual increase of €2,906, so this budget has improved the situation for carers. As I said, income limits were increased in July, which is only three months ago, and this is already having a positive impact. There is a process we have to go through. The Department will engage with carers regarding the increased limits I have now announced and that work starts now. Over 90% of carers are already on the maximum rate of carer's allowance. I cannot pay carers for the work they do. That is why I have set up a working group to look at all these issues. It is going to report back before the end of the year, because this is something we want to deal with.