Vol. 471 No. 7
134 Mrs. O'Rourke asked the Minister for Health if he will review the matter of funding for Brainwave, the Irish Epilepsy Association; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there is an uneven allocation of funding for the Irish Epilepsy Association from the various health boards; if he will encourage each health board to give dedicated funding to this needy cause; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22348/96]
135 Mr. J. Walsh asked the Minister for Health if he will make an allocation of funding to Brainwave, the Irish Epilepsy Association, in the Estimates for the 1997 budget. [21518/96]
155 Mr. L. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Health if he has recently received submissions from the Irish Epilepsy Association in relation to the constantly increasing demands on this association's service; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are almost 20,000 people suffering from this condition; if he is considering substantially increasing funding through the various health boards to enable this association to make a more meaningful and adequate response to the needs of the sufferers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21636/96]
Limerick East): I propose to take Questions Nos. 134, 135 and 155 together.
The provision of funding to voluntary organisations, such as Brainwave, is a matter for the health boards. In 1996, health boards have allocated a total of £26,000 to Brainwave. As discussions in relation to overall health expenditure in 1997 are still ongoing, I am not in a position to comment at this stage on any particular area of expenditure. An officer of my Department recently held a meeting with representatives of Brainwave at which the subject of funding and other topics of concern to the association were fully explored. The matters raised are being brought to the attention of the chief executive officers of health boards.
