Seanad Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 28 Jun 2006

Vol. 184 No. 7

Adjournment Matters.

Special Educational Needs.

Mr. Daly

I thank the Cathaoirleach for giving me the opportunity to raise this important issue and I thank the Minister of State, Deputy de Valera, for coming to the Seanad to reply to my concerns. The Minister will be aware that a number of families are entitled to home tuition for children with special needs. This is an important service in the sense that it is an early intervention which is so important when dealing with the problems of children with autism and other conditions. It is also important, from the point of view of communication and integration, for the children to have this home tuition.

It was with dismay that the parents learned that the Department has decided to curtail the home tuition service which has been in operation for a number of years. Home tuition is provided in cases where there is no ongoing in-house education available in a primary school or the like. Concern was also expressed by many parents that psychological, speech therapy or occupational therapy services, to which many of these children are entitled, are not available in some regional areas. In the western area, the Department of Education and Science has decided to put in place special classes in Kilrush National School to deal with these children. That has not been completed, however, and because of the difficulties in finding psychological and speech therapy services in rural areas, the home tuition has become even more important.

Parents are concerned about this and have raised it locally in west Clare and nationally. I hope the Minister of State will be able to continue the service as currently operated. In some cases it is only for two hours a day and the parents have expressed to me their strong desire to continue with it because the tuition in the home is more important than what might be available in the organised school environment. It is critical that this service continues and that funding is providing to allow home tuition to continue for the foreseeable future.

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science (Miss de Valera)

I thank the Senator for raising this matter as it provides me with the opportunity to clarify the position of the Department of Education and Science on home tuition for the children as referred to by the Senator.

The Department of Education and Science considers that school-based education provision is the most appropriate intervention for all children, including those with special educational needs, and has discontinued the practice whereby children who are in full-time education provision would also be able to avail of home tuition grants.

The children referred to by the Senator are on the autistic spectrum and are enrolled in special schools or special class placements, or are attending mainstream schools with additional resource teaching and special needs assistant supports as appropriate. Recent years have seen a major expansion in school-based provision for children with autism. Current provision includes 162 special classes for children with autism, attached to special and mainstream schools, 15 pre-school classes, five special classes for children with Asperger's syndrome and 12 standalone facilities providing an applied behavioural analysis specific methodology. Approval has also been given for the establishment of a further two such facilities.

The newly-established National Council for Special Education, and its team of more than 70 special educational needs organisers, is also working across the country to ensure that new services are put in place where needed so that children with special needs, including those on the autistic spectrum, have access to appropriate school-based provision.

The decision to discontinue home tuition grant was on the basis that the educational needs of these pupils can be best met in their individual schools. It is open to any parent who may have a concern about the educational supports being delivered in the schools to discuss his or her concerns with the school in question.

I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to clarify the position of the Department of Education and Science in this matter.

Mr. Daly

Could the Minister of State convey to the Minister the small cost involved in the continuation of the home tuition and its importance in the early years to help children integrate in the national school?

Miss de Valera

I will convey the Senator's concerns to the Minister.

Prison Building Programme.

Mr. Bradford

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and welcome her willingness to listen to my concerns about the possible building of a new prison at Spike Island, County Cork, and the impact that will have on the tourism industry in the Cork region and on the heritage and history of Spike Island.

The island boasts a heritage and history unrivalled by any other international site of its kind. Spike Island transcends many of the most noted heritage sites in the world, such as Fort McArthur, Fort McHenry, Alcatraz, the Citadel at Halifax, Robben Island and many more. The difference, however, is that while many of these have had their historical value utilised to benefit from tourism, Spike Island is on the brink of having its heritage desecrated with the tourism benefits for the region lost forever. That may not be the Minister's desire when he proposed to build a new prison on Spike Island but that will be the effect.

Spike Island has been mentioned as far back as 635 AD. The island was chosen then as the site for a monastery by St. Carthage, who had been granted the land by a local chieftain. He stayed on the island for a year before moving on to set up the centre of major ecclesiastical importance in Lismore and he left a community of monks on the island. In the early ninth century, the island and its monastery is believed to have been attacked by the Viking raiders who entered Cork Harbour. In the 12th century, Norman raiders took ownership of the land in the name of the king and a series of grants of land and leases followed. Oliver Cromwell used the island in the mid-1600s as a holding centre for those who were being transported to Barbados. In 1792 convict labour was used in the building of Fort Westmoreland, a classic star shaped fortress built to enhance the fortification of the harbour in conjunction with Fort Camden and Fort Carlisle.

In the late 1840s, the practice of sending convicts to Australia diminished and Spike Island was used as a penal colony until 1883. There was a high mortality rate among convicts on the island, who were buried in unhallowed ground in unmarked graves on the west of island. Those graves would be disturbed by any new building. John Mitchel of the Young Irelanders was imprisoned briefly in 1848 prior to his transportation to Van Diemen's Land. Such heritage is unique and should be protected.

During the War of Independence, prisoners were held on Spike Island but in 1938 the island was handed over by the British to the Irish Army. It was renamed Fort Mitchel and the Army remained on the island until 1979. There was a military prison on the island and then the Irish Naval Service was given the land in 1994. Since then and until 1994 there was a juvenile and general prison.

The island has a penal history but also a monastic heritage. It is a unique site and should be declared a natural heritage site, before we seek for it to be declared a world heritage site like Alcatraz and Robben Island. When we speak about people's concerns and objections about the development of a prison on the island and the building of a bridge on to the island, it is fair to say that many of those who are objecting are putting forward a case for alternative prison accommodation in other parts of the general area. They are not suffering from the NIMBY syndrome. It is not that they do not want a prison, but that they want to protect Spike Island's heritage and history and they genuinely feel, as I do, that the building of a new prison and of a bridge linking it to the mainland would desecrate the island and its heritage and history. This matter needs to be examined urgently by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the Minister to ensure that an historic monument of enormous international proportions is saved, retained and developed as a vast tourist facility for east Cork, County Cork and the country.

Miss de Valera

I am deputising in this debate this evening for the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy McDowell.

I thank the Senator for giving the Minister this opportunity to clarify the intentions of the Irish Prison Service on the proposed prison development on Spike Island. The need for a new prison to alleviate the current overcrowding at Cork Prison has been well documented. More recently the Inspector of Prisons in his inspection report on Cork Prison condemned the facility and acknowledged that space at the institution is at a premium.

Officials from the Irish Prison Service, in conjunction with the Office of Public Works and professional advisers, are developing proposals for the construction of a new prison complex on Spike Island to replace the existing Cork Prison. The new facility will address the overcrowding and inadequate facilities associated with Cork Prison and will, in addition, offer significant improvements in the areas of work, training, education and medical services as well as providing predominantly single cell accommodation with in-cell sanitation facilities.

The new prison complex on Spike Island will allow the Irish Prison Service to strengthen measures to ensure drugs are not smuggled to prisoners. For example, the new complex will locate exercise yards where drugs cannot be propelled into them and new visiting facilities will eliminate the potential for passing drugs to prisoners on visits.

In addition to eliminating supply routes, the new complex will provide modern medical and other facilities to allow the Irish Prison Service to meet the commitment in its recently published Drugs Policy and Strategy, to deliver a broad range of high quality interventions to support drug abusers in attempting to conquer their addictions. Modern facilities support the staff delivering these interventions by providing them with the best tools and environment in which to carry out their work.

The commissioning of the bridge will facilitate the development of new prison facilities on the island to replace the existing outdated accommodation at Cork Prison. The OPW has been instructed to prepare the relevant planning procedures including an assessment of the environmental and related issues arising to enable the construction of a bridge to the island. The Minister has been advised by the OPW that this planning process will commence by this summer. As soon as the planning requirements are complete it is intended to commence construction of the bridge, which will take approximately 18 months to complete.

The contract for the bridge and the prison facilities will be placed following public tender and the Minister has instructed the OPW to prepare the design and other works which are required prior to the issue of the tender for the construction of the bridge. Outline plans for the island prison facilities are being developed at present and these will be finalised later this year. The Minister is not at this stage in a position to give an estimate of the amount of land required for the prison development or the costs of the project as this will be the subject of a public competition.

The Minister does not propose to change his plans for a new prison development including a bridge at Spike Island. He does, however, note the concerns raised regarding the history and heritage aspects which arise in the context of this development.

The implications, if any, on the heritage, archaeology or related aspects of the proposed developments will be addressed in detail in the course of the planning process which will be undertaken in due course. At that stage, all of the relevant material including properly balanced assessments of the various issues, including archaeology, will be made available as part of the public consultation process which it is hoped should commence later this year.

Private Bus Licences.

Mr. Morrissey

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy de Valera, for this Adjournment matter. I tabled it because no matter how many debates we have here on transport, we never seem to have enough because there are so many varied issues in the transport area.

Bus licensing is an issue the Department has been grappling with for many years. The Department is not ambitious enough about this area of activity. If there was ambition in this area, it would mean that significant numbers of people could travel by public transport at no cost to the Exchequer.

I met with some transport providers recently. One, in particular, who was unemployed five years ago, now employs 35 people. He has made a significant investment. He has mortgaged and remortgaged his house on several occasions against the advice of his accountant and others, and yet he is still in business providing a service. This is the question. Is he being encouraged and assisted by the Department? Regrettably, the answer is "No."

For example, I have read correspondence where a licence was requested. A detailed application was submitted in January last, it was acknowledged in January and there has not been a word since. On that same line 60 miles from Dublin, there is a provincial town whose people cannot be accommodated by the commuter rail system. At 7 o'clock in the morning there is only standing room.

Notwithstanding the considerable investment there will be in the commuter rail line bringing DART as far as Balbriggan, the future plans by Irish Rail can never meet the latent demand in that area, yet the Department is sitting on a licence application for six months. Were it granted, it would have the same impact as the current licences the operator holds. He is carrying 9,000 people at peak times to Dublin city every day during the year, yet it costs the taxpayer and the Government nothing by way of subvention or maintenance.

On that same route, there is a Bus Éireann bus using hired private operators at €400 per trip. Where is the transparency in the use or abuse of taxpayers money by Bus Éireann to put a private operator out of business? This is a misuse of taxpayers' money. There is not proper transparency in the CIE accounts of how its subsidy is being used on the different routes. That is one of the reasons there is not proper ticket integration at present. If there was a fair fare box, we would then know the origin and destination of every customer. This is one of the reasons CIE is lethargic in bringing that forward and co-operating with the system.

The other issue is that bus licences are granted on a yearly basis. Providing a route is a significant investment for an operator. It is a considerable investment in management, employment and capital. The operator gets a licence for one year and must reapply for another year. If the operator is to attempt to develop the route, obviously he or she needs to be given a little longer than 12 months.

This system is in operation for a few years. I asked the Minister previously to consider issuing three-year licences. If an operator went to his bank manager to borrow money for new buses for a route for 12 months, he would be asked where was his guarantee that he would have a licence for the route in two years time.

There are significant issues involved, which amaze me for the simple reason that it costs the taxpayer nothing if these private operators are brought into the system. They certainly give a good service. There are thousands of buses out there. The operators' bus fleets are new, well serviced and well maintained.

Another issue I would raise is how the private operators are treated in the context of the subvention for old age pensioners. I have read correspondence in which the Department states a final offer on how much will be returned to the operator for carrying old age pensioners. The playing pitch is neither level nor fair. The system should be restructured, particularly since it will cost the State nothing.

Miss de Valera

The overall policy framework for the future of public bus transport operations was set out in the programme for Government and included the following specific commitments: the replacement of the Road Transport Act 1932 with modernised legislation to allow, inter alia, for new services in the bus market; further progress will be made on upgrading the bus fleet, providing bus priorities both in Dublin and other cities, and in increasing the level and frequency of service and the interchangeability of commuter tickets on bus and rail; and new services will be introduced both to some new housing developments and to existing poorly served communities.

Against the background of those commitments, the Minister has committed to modernising the regulatory framework governing public transport and the provision of bus services by both public and private operators, not only in Dublin, but nationally. In particular, at the launch of Transport 21, the Minister indicated he was convinced a new approach was needed to transport in the greater Dublin area, delivered through a single authority with the power to ensure joined up thinking and delivery across all transport modes. In addition, specific commitments to the funding of bus requirements are set out in Transport 21. A total of €532 million is provided for buses to serve the greater Dublin area and a further €241 million for services in the provincial cities. This provides immediate recognition that the bus network will continue to provide a very significant element of the public transport system for the foreseeable future, particularly in the initial years of Transport 21 when major rail and other infrastructure projects are under construction.

In pursuing an agenda for change for transport services both in the greater Dublin area and in the rest of the State, the Minister has had an extensive engagement with key stakeholders, including the CIE companies, the unions and representatives of private bus operators. That process, allied with the report of the establishment team he appointed to advise on the remit, structures and human resource requirements of the proposed Dublin transport authority, will inform the determination of the appropriate structures for a new framework for the future regulation and reform of the public transport market and the legislation necessary to support that framework.

The engagement of private sector bus operators in the provision of public transport services is governed by the Road Transport Act 1932, as amended. It has long been recognised that the Act is in need of significant reform so that the legislative provisions better reflect the realities of modem public transport services. The reform programme the Minister is pursuing will address that particular need. Bus route operations by Bus Éireann and Dublin Bus are not licensed under the 1932 Act. The new legislation will address this issue and will focus on the delivery of a single licensing code that will establish a level playing field for both private and public service providers. In advance of the completion of the process for the passage of the proposed legislation, the Department will continue to promote improvements in the administration of the bus licensing service based on the principles of due process and fair procedures. In this regard, the Department continues to process applications or notifications for new or amended bus services received from both private and public bus operators under the existing regulatory regime.

As a consequence of the successful investments made in bus and rail under the national development plan, the public's expectations are changing and are more demanding than ever in respect of public transport. The proposals under development will address those demands by providing a way forward that will focus on achieving an appropriate balance between creating sufficient competitive tension to drive greater efficiency, effectiveness and value for money while, at the same time, maintaining the stability and integration of the bus network and the need to maintain social inclusion. The Minister hopes to publish legislation on public transport reform in the current year.

The Seanad adjourned at 9.35 p.m. until10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 29 June 2006.