I propose to take Questions Nos. 161 and 163 together. Section 5 of the Child Care Act 1991, which came into effect on 1 October 1992, placed a statutory duty on health boards to make suitable accommodation available to homeless persons up to the age of 18 years.
At the time of its commencement my Department informed the health boards that the placement of youngsters in bed and breakfast accommodation was not acceptable, except in an emergency where a suitable placement was not readily available. In such cases the health boards were asked to take immediate steps to secure an appropriate hostel, residential or family placement for the child. The directive issued by the Western Health Board to its staff is fully in keeping with these instructions.
I have no immediate plans to amend these instructions, which I believe are a reasonable and pragmatic approach having regard to the current state of development of our services for homeless youth. It is, however, my intention to devote additional resources to this area, from the £15 million available this year for child care, to expand the number of hostel, residential and family placements and thereby reduce the reliance on bed and breakfast accommodation.