I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary.
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
Wastewater Treatment Facilities
I also welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, to the House.
As the Minister will be aware, and I am sure it is the same in his own county, there is a huge need for investment in local wastewater infrastructure in Galway and in many counties around the country. Indeed, from analysis done by a former senior engineer in Galway County Council, Connacht has a greater need than many other areas in the context of previous investment. In some ways, that is not surprising. It presents an opportunity to focus investment where needed. For example, figures provided in 2017 show that of 1,103 wastewater treatment plants nationally, Connacht had 165, Munster had 408, Ulster - that is, the three counties in the Republic - had 146 and Leinster had 384. As a result, there is a huge need for this infrastructure in Connacht.
I am sure the Minister of State can list off many towns and villages in Mayo that have specific needs. I can do so in respect of Galway. For example, in my area in west Galway, there are Cill Rónán, Inis Oírr, Corr na Móna, Tully, Tully Cross, Cleggan, Claddaghduff, Inishbofin, Rosscahill, Carna and Cill Chiaráin. The people in all of these places could say that they have legitimate claims to schemes. There are other schemes that are in development, such as the one at Roundstone. The scheme relating to Spiddal is the subject of investment.
There has been significant investment by Irish Water in areas over the last decade, including in Oughterard, Claregalway, Milltown, Clonbur, Leenane and Letterfrack, to name a few, and that has particularly improved water quality in the Corrib and on the coast.
The programme for Government initiated a pilot scheme for wastewater investment and Galway County Council chose Clarinbridge and Craughwell for consideration under that scheme. Other local authorities chose other locations and the scheme allowed for two per county. Without wanting to take from any other county, County Galway is the second largest county and Mayo is also a considerable size, as are other counties. I think there is a clear need for greater investment in those that have greatest need, in particular the larger counties. With the level of surplus that we have at the moment, giving extra funding to local authorities for wastewater plants is something the Minister could consider. A case could also be made that Galway has four offshore islands and investment in one of those should be considered by the Minister, as well as the pilot scheme, a point I have referenced in the past.
Craughwell and Clarinbridge are substantial towns as they are. When I started first in the county council, there were plans for Craughwell, and Clarinbridge was being rolled into a larger scheme, but these did not progress. There is now a clear need to connect up the existing housing estates, schools and businesses in the community, but also to allow for whatever level of expansion is needed to provide for young people up and down the country. There is a clear need for investment and I hope that both Clarinbridge and Craughwell will be chosen in any pilot, and also that consideration will be given to one of the offshore islands as part of the investment in Galway. As I said, there is sufficient funding in the coffers at the moment to allow local authorities to progress projects.
I am taking this debate on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Although I have been in the House on a number of occasions in recent months, this is my first occasion to be here with you in the Chair, a Chathaoirligh. I congratulate you on your election and wish you success for your term, however long it may be.
On behalf of the Minister, I thank the Senator for raising this issue. As he knows, the Department builds its water services strategic policy and infrastructure delivery programmes around Project Ireland 2040, the water services policy statement 2018-2025 and the river basin management plan. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's multi-annual rural water programme, which uses Exchequer funding, is delivering improvements to water services, including wastewater, in areas of rural Ireland without public water services, as the Senator has referenced. The strategic objective of this multi-annual programme is, through its various funding measures, to improve the quality, reliability and efficiency of water services for rural dwellers where Irish Water water services are not available.
In April 2022, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, launched a new scheme for the wastewater collection and treatment needs of villages and settlements without access to public wastewater services. The principal aim of this new measure is to address environmental and public health issues in locations of need across the country on a prioritised basis. An allocation of €50 million has been committed under the national development plan for the new measure. The first round of funding is intended to follow a demonstration project model approach to allow for the development of appropriate longer-term strategies and protocols, and to better inform future funding needs for the progressive development of public wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure in villages and settlements that are currently without those services, many of which have been referred to by the Senator.
All rural local authorities were asked to submit their applications for funding for a maximum of two priority locations. The deadline was 15 September 2022 and, as Senator Kyne said, Galway County Council submitted applications for Craughwell and Clarinbridge. Since then, an independent expert panel has been tasked with evaluating each of the applications received and will make recommendations to the Minister on funding. The panel is independently chaired.
Its membership includes the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, and representatives from Uisce Éireann. In addition to providing an expert perspective, the panel brings independence, openness and transparency to the bids evaluation process. The panel has evaluated all aspects of valid applications and based on a report from the panel, a decision on funding will be made by the Minister shortly. Local authorities will then be notified of the outcome of their applications.
The rural water programme provides important funding for water services to areas of rural Ireland where Uisce Éireann water services are not available. The Government is committed to continuing to support this programme. I thank the Senator for his remarks and I will refer his remarks to the Minister for his consideration.
Before I call on Senator Kyne, I welcome the students from Kilmessan school in County Meath to the Visitors Gallery and to Leinster House. They should enjoy the last few weeks of school. In keeping with their visit to Leinster House, I decree a no homework day for them today.
I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I welcome the fact the decision on funding will be made by the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, shortly. The local authorities will be relieved to see progress on that. I also welcome the fact there is an independent panel. I note that my colleague Councillor PJ Murphy is hugely interested in the progress of these applications in Craughwell and in Clarinbridge. Will the Minister of State convey the view that with the level of surpluses we have at the moment, local authorities should get the benefit of additional funding? As I said, there is a huge list and I listed some of those in Galway West alone. There is another page relating to Galway East and the Minister of State will have some 20 or 30 in Mayo as well. In terms of improving the environment locally, and as the Minister of State knows the Clarinbridge oyster is famous, anything that can improve water quality would be beneficial in terms of the future expansion of areas around Galway city and it would take pressure off certain areas where there is a high level of growth. It should be expanded to towns and villages around the county and country.
I thank the Senator for his remarks. I am aware of the Clarinbridge issue. Councillor Martina Kinane has kept us up to date on that. We will refer the Senator's remarks back to the Minister as well as the list of other schemes he made available.
I know this is a big issue in the Senator's constituency. Hopefully that will work out.
Local Authorities
I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, to the Chamber. Since being elected to this House in April 2020, this is the fourth occasion on which I have raised the issue of the loss of the rate base of more than €1.2 million to Longford County Council due to the early closure of Lough Ree power station. In September 2020, September 2021 and September 2022 I have raised this issue in the House and we have been successful. I thank the Department for that funding and getting the funding for the following year's budget. However, this year I bring it up before the summer. I am hopeful we will have a positive reply. I also hope for a positive reply for the years 2024 to 2026.
I quote the comments from Kieran Mulvey, the Just Transition Commissioner, on this issue. It is a matter of record, and it is worth reiterating here, that he recommended "that an urgent engagement takes place with the Chief Executives of the councils concerned [namely, Longford and Offaly] with the funding Departments so that a suitable emergency arrangement can be agreed to alleviate the rate losses over the period 2021-2026." Unfortunately, every year I have to come in here looking for that funding to be put in place while the local finance section under John McKeon is trying to put together the budget for the following year.
I was a member of the local authority and it was the first local authority to increase the local property tax, LPT, by 15%. We did that in order to ring-fence funding from that to match-fund a significant number of projects and schemes that had been brought forward by Government of which we could avail. We had CLÁR, the town and village renewal scheme, urban renewal development and outdoor recreation. That match-funding is in place for these projects and schemes throughout the county.
The reality is that if we are not successful in securing this funding, we will have to look at reducing our financial output in a number of areas to balance our budget in the year ahead. We do not want to do that and we should not have to do it.
The Department needs to give us a commitment for the next three years with regard to the funding, as per the recommendation from the just transition commissioner. If we are not successful, we will have to look at reducing the number of schemes we apply for. We will have to consider the possibility of increasing our rates. That happened for this coming year, and we do not want to do it for the year ahead while a number of commercial businesses are finding things difficult in the current climate. A lot of businesses are struggling due to the reduced tourism numbers visiting our county. We want a commitment from the Department that we will secure that €1.3 million funding for 2024. We also need a commitment for the following two years to allow our finance section to budget ahead for the next number of years knowing that we will be compensated for the loss of rates. The facility was closed, and it was not of our doing. We have a progressive local authority, which is ambitious about the number of projects it wants to deliver in the county, not just in the county town. We need to have finance in place for the matched funding to deliver those projects.
Before I call the Minister of State, I welcome Councillor Patrick Murphy from west Cork, who is joining us today as a guest of Senator O'Donovan. He is welcome to the House along with his guests, Anna Mae, Caroline and Seán. I hope they enjoy Leinster House. It always looks better when the sun is shining. They are very welcome and I hope they have a great day.
I join the Acting Chair in welcoming Councillor Murphy.
I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. I thank Senator Carrigy for raising the issue. The Minister acknowledges the funding pressures on local authorities, specifically the negative impact on commercial rates income caused by the closure of Lough Ree power station in County Longford. It is recognised that Longford County Council was reliant on commercial rates from the now closed power station, which accounted for approximately 16% of commercial rate receipts for Longford in 2019. To alleviate this, the Department provided compensatory funding to Longford County Council at a cost of €1.4 million in 2021 and €1.3 million in 2022. The Minister is pleased to confirm that this arrangement will continue in 2023, with support of €1.3 million secured for this year.
As committed to in the programme for Government, the move to 100% retention of local property tax, LPT, has taken place in 2023. All equalisation funding will now be met by the Exchequer to ensure that all authorities receive, at a minimum, an amount equivalent to their baseline. This increased equalisation requirement will come to €118 million in 2023. The LPT allocation to Longford for 2023 will be €8.9 million, which will include €6.9 million of equalisation funding from the Exchequer. As the Senator is aware, all local authorities have the opportunity to increase or decrease their basic LPT rate by up to 15%. The Senator has said, and the Minister would like to acknowledge, that the elected members of Longford County Council took the decision to increase this rate by 15% for 2023 and 2024. This upward variation on what is a relatively low base will lead to almost €300,000 in extra income for 2023 alone, which will be of great assistance in the challenging financial times outlined by the Senator.
The Government is making a significant contribution of €481.3 million in 2023 to support the local government sector. A large portion of this figure, €287.2 million, will go towards assisting local authorities with the cumulative effect on pay costs arising from national pay agreements and the unwinding of the financial emergency measures in the public interest legislation. This allocation, which has seen an increase of €77.6 million on 2022, will ensure the sector has the necessary resources, in terms of people, to perform their functions and provide in excess of 1,000 essential public services to our citizens. Longford County Council received €1.6 million towards increased payroll costs for 2022, and will receive €3.1 million in 2023.
The Minister is aware of the current financial environment in which local authorities are now operating. In recognition of the ongoing pressures additional support of €60 million has been secured to assist the sector in 2023.
The purpose of this additional funding will be to assist county councils, including Longford, in meeting increasing costs, in particular the increasing energy costs involved in those services. Longford County Council has already been provisionally allocated €660,000 in this regard.
I refer to the Government support for Longford since 2020. Across all schemes and funding sources, the Minister's Department provided €30.7 million in 2020, €48.5 million in 2021 and €36 million in 2022 to Longford County Council. This includes the unprecedented level of support provided by the Government to local authorities during 2020 and 2021 in respect of the Covid-19 pandemic. A comprehensive review of the current local property tax, LPT, baselines has commenced and is expected to conclude shortly and in advance of the local authority budget process for 2024. The Department is engaging with key stakeholders and in the course of this review submissions were invited for consideration.
Regarding the Senator's question about funding for the period 2024 to 2026, the position will be examined following the conclusion of the baseline review. I have been assured that the Department will engage directly with Longford County Council in that regard.
As I stated, the funding of €1.3 million is for the current year. What I am looking for is a commitment from the Department for the years 2024 to 2026. As stated by the Department, any proposed changes to the current model would need to take into account needs and resources. I understand that the process is ongoing but this is separate from the current model. It was a separate, unique situation in both Longford and Offaly, which have taken a serious hit. We are grateful to the Department for the support we have received up to now. It has meant that we have not had to reduce our services or the number of projects we want to develop in the county. However, as I said, I think this is different from the model. I understand the review but we need a commitment that a specific sum of €1.2 million will be provided separate from the standard yearly Government allocations to the local authority. That is the commitment I need for our local authority so we can plan our services for the year ahead. As I said, I know from our director of finance, John McKeon, that the budgetary process has begun already.
We fully agree that Longford is different as regards this funding issue. That is why €4 million in extra funding was allocated over the past three years. As I said, the review of the current LPT baseline is under way. The Senator's call and requests for multi-annual funding will be looked at in the context of what comes out of the review. There will be very direct engagement with Longford County Council about this particular ask.
Retained Fire Service
I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I also extend a welcome to Councillor Patrick Murphy and his friends on their day in Leinster House.
I recently attended an event commemorating the brave service of members of Monaghan Auxiliary Fire Service in the immediate aftermath of the terrible events of the Monaghan bombing on 17 May 1974. The immediate response of those members to a very dangerous, precarious and unknown situation cannot be underestimated. In the past 50 years, firefighters across the length and breadth of the country have responded to thousands of dangerous and unknown situations with professionalism and courage. Unfortunately, right now, our retained fire service is struggling to maintain adequate numbers to allow for safe operations, with crew numbers declining in all counties. This, in turn, is leading to even greater pressure being brought to bear on firefighters retained in the service.
People will be surprised to learn that a whole-time retained firefighter earns approximately €700 per month, which equates to 99 cent per hour. For this, they must be on call 24-7, 360 days a year, stay within 3 km of the station at all times, attend the station within five minutes of a call and attend eight weeks of compulsory training in the first year to qualify as a firefighter. There are also many other restrictions in addition to those. All the retained firefighters are asking for is a fair salary for a very difficult and dangerous job, which involves huge commitment to the local community. Surely it is time to review the role of the whole-time fire firefighter as a professional role within the local authority that deserves proper pay and a decent work-life balance.
I understand that negotiations with the LGMA have broken down, which is unfortunate, and strike action has been served on the relevant parties. I ask that everything be done to ensure the strike does not happen, because if it does, the safety of the community will be put at risk. We cannot allow that to happen. All these people are looking for is fair pay for the important job they do.
First, I acknowledge the fact that in recent years there has been considerable spending on infrastructure and equipment. Everyone across the board wants to acknowledge that. However, the €5,000 retainer fee is derisory. I know a young fellow who was looking for a loan. The credit union does not take into account the call out-fee, which, as my colleague said, works out at approximately 99 cent per hour. The pension for firefighters is also derisory. Many employers do not want to take firefighters on in a full-time job because it is a nuisance. They will be called out in the middle of a job or task and must rush out immediately to the fire station. It is also not conducive to female firefighters, which is indicated by the small number of female firefighters across the country. The time and demands on their lives are impossible to meet. In many instances they are first responders. I can give an example. When I had a major seizure on 27 October in Rathfarnham, the first people who came to my rescue were members of the fire brigade from Rathfarnham. They probably saved my life.
Why spend approximately €60,000 on training and recruiting new officers when some will be gone in three or four years? We spend €60,000 on bringing them up to the standard required and then they leave because they cannot cope with the hours and difficulties they face as firefighters. Firefighters in rural Ireland, in Castletownbere, Bantry, Skibbereen, Schull, Dunmanway or Clonakilty, cannot live on the wage, so they must have another job. That is the reality. I am aware that the unions worked out a deal that will expire next year and the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, said they are caught in that. I accept that, but now is the time to plan for next year and to give a commitment to firefighters across the board that they will get better conditions, better pay - the pay is derisory - a better pension and a better way of life. To conclude, these men and women have to go out to deal with emergencies, including suicides. I know of an incident where a man had to be extracted from a slurry tank having fallen in. Firefighters emptied the slurry tank. They do all those kinds of difficult jobs that are hard to deal with. Will the Minister of State seriously look at the situation? I hope he will give us some hope before we leave here today.
Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir O’Donovan. Before the Minister of State speaks I echo all that has been said on this important Commencement matter. I have heard firefighters in my area, Ennistymon, articulate exactly the same set of concerns and frustrations. Both Senators articulated the case extremely well.
I thank the Acting Chairperson and join with him and Senators Gallagher and O'Donovan in paying tribute to our fire services and its members. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, who is aware of the challenges associated with the recruitment and retention of retained fire personnel being experienced by some local authorities. That is why the Minister directed the management board of the national directorate for fire and emergency management, NDFEM, to review the delivery and sustainability of the local authority retained fire services, with particular emphasis on the recruitment and retention of staff. Following substantial engagement with retained firefighters, staff representatives, fire service senior management and local authority employers and indepth research and analysis of the current model, a review was published in December 2022 entitled Retained Fire Services in Ireland - A Review of Recruitment and Retention and the Future Sustainability of Service Delivery. The findings of the review report endorsed many of the ideas in the remarks made by Senators Gallagher and O'Donovan. In summary, the work-life balance of retained firefighters needs to be addressed to ensure the sustainability of retained fire services as an attractive employment option. All parties accept the findings of the report as a fair reflection of the current state of retained fire service provision and agree with the need to pursue the implementation of the recommendations made, to ensure the sustainability of retained fire services.
Work is under way through the agreed structures to begin implementing the recommendations set out in this report and that will include active engagement with staff representatives in the retained fire services.
The report recommendations aim to enhance the model of service delivery by maintaining the strength of retained fire services, while addressing the issues acting as a barrier to recruitment and retention, which have been raised by Senators Gallagher and O'Donovan. The significant challenge in delivering change is balancing the organisational requirement and ability to respond with the life needs of each individual retained firefighter. Two plenary sessions of facilitation discussions on the priority industrial relations, IR, issues have already taken place between management and representatives of SIPTU, chaired by a third party intermediary. The key deliverable, agreed by both sides, was a revised composite agreement to standardise future employment terms and conditions across all local authorities reflecting the retained review recommendations.
During the most recent discussions held between management and SIPTU, substantial progress was made in addressing the work-life balance concerns of retained firefighters, as acknowledged by SIPTU. A positive conclusion to the process, to the satisfaction of all parties, has not been possible to date and, accordingly, SIPTU representatives have indicated the intention of retained firefighters to commence a period of escalating industrial action from 6 June. Management remains available to recommence discussions with a view to resolving outstanding IR matters and the Minister encourages all parties to use the agreed IR processes set out in the Building Momentum pay agreement to bring matters to a satisfactory conclusion as soon as possible.
Should a period of industrial action commence on 6 June, local authorities will put in place appropriate contingency measures to ensure the ongoing provision of essential services is maintained. SIPTU has confirmed that the response to emergency calls and normal health and safety measures will not be compromised during any period of industrial action. A national fire safety awareness campaign will run over traditional and social media and will reinforce home fire safety messaging to the public. However, the Government encourages all parties to continue to engage constructively in resolving the outstanding IR issues within the established forum and the structures set out under the Building Momentum public service agreement. I assure Senators Gallagher and O'Donovan and the Acting Chairman that I will bring their concerns directly to the Minister this evening and draw his attention to this debate.
Given the importance of the issue, I will use the Chair's discretion and give my colleagues a minute each to respond.
I appreciate the latitude shown by the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach.
I thank the Minister of State for his response. He mentioned the review. I very much welcome the review and its findings have been accepted and endorsed by the relevant parties. I attended a demonstration in Dublin six months ago by fire service personnel from all over the country, including County Monaghan. Six months have passed and unfortunately we seem to be at an impasse. I spoke to some firefighters yesterday who told me that training courses they were meant to undertake had been cancelled because of the upcoming industrial action. There is a safety issue here as regards communities. I ask the Minister of State to stress to the Minister the importance of trying to find a resolution to this dispute. I ask that the Minister contact both parties again with a view to encouraging them to go back to the table to find a resolution that will be acceptable to all parties. It is important that our communities can feel safe in the knowledge that, in the event of an emergency, the fire service personnel will be on the end of the line when they need them, as they always have been.
I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach for his indulgence.
The commitment and dedication of firefighters in unparalleled. Firefighting is a vocation rather than just a job because if a person did not have the appetite for that job, he or she would not be doing it. They would want to be, as we say in west Cork, as tough as táthfhéithleann. One example that worried me recently was when a young councillor colleague, not my friend who is here today, told me of a case of young man who went for a job in a local authority. He had all sorts of qualifications, had perfect references, was able to drive machinery and would have been a perfect candidate. It appeared to him after the interview that he was going to get the job. When it emerged that he was a member of the fire brigade in a certain town, the job suddenly vanished.
The local authority in question, Cork County Council, did not want a man employed by it to be a firefighter because it would impede his normal working duties. That is an appalling scenario.
I thank the Acting Chair for his indulgence. I also thank my colleague, Senator Gallagher, who allowed me to share his time. He was in pole position and allowed me to come in with him, which I appreciate. I hope we will have positive news before the year is out. None of the guys and girls I know want to go on strike. They do not want that. It is the last option available to them.
I endorse what the Senators have said. These people are our family, friends and neighbours. Every time of year, they are available to put themselves in danger to save us. That is particularly true with the gorse fires at this time of year. Senator O'Donovan is right that they do not want to be on strike. I will reflect to the Minister when I meet him the strong feeling of the House.
Disability Services
I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, for coming to the Chamber. I am asking my question today from a place of utter frustration. We are all only too aware that there is massive under-resourcing and understaffing in our disability and mental health services at the moment. The northside of Dublin has the longest waiting periods in the country for an initial assessment. It is second only to Cork in terms of the waiting times for speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and psychology services. That, of course, has a worrying impact on children and their families, but it also has a knock-on impact on the education system. In the context of that shocking shortage of service, what is the Department of Education doing to respond to and cope with that situation? I do not believe it is good enough to stand back and say it is a problem for the HSE or the Department of Health because it is also a problem for the Department of Education.
I will tell the Minister of State about a 13-year-old boy named Tristan Shannon from Drumcondra. Tristan has multiple challenges. He has autism, ADHD and speech and language difficulties. He has attended local health services, first Summerhill and now the Central Remedial Clinic, CRC, since he was a small boy. With the support of his parents and his school, Scoil Chiaráin, he is going to make the transition to secondary school this September. It is a fantastic achievement for him. The effort to find that place last year was not without a lot of heartache but the family did eventually find that place. The family is now facing a fresh hurdle. They are trying to secure the necessary assistive technology for Tristan to be able to participate fully in school. In the parlance of the Department, he needs to be able to access the school curriculum. When we think about it, that should be a fairly basic request. There is a crazy situation whereby to get the assistive technology he requires, there must be reports generated within the children's disability network team, CDNT, either by a psychologist or an occupational therapist who, in turn, sends that report to the special educational needs organiser, SENO, who, in turn, sends it to the Department of Education. Because the local CDNT, the CRC, does not have the resources or wherewithal to produce that report, Tristan is being prevented from securing the assistive technology he very much needs.
We have engaged with the HSE locally about this issue. Its response is either to get the report done privately or to get a resource teacher within his school to conduct what is called a detailed assessment of speed of handwriting, DASH. The school could go away and spend a few hundred euro to get the software to conduct the test, but who is going to complete the report? Circular No. 0010/2013 clearly stipulates that the report must come from a relevant professional, such as an educational psychologist, occupational therapist or speech and language therapist.
There is a logjam here. What is the Department of Education going to do? We know there are horrendous resourcing issues within the system. There are thousands of children looking to access services. Indeed, Tristan himself has been waiting for many months for the services he needs from the CRC. My question for the Minister of State concerns the basic issue of assistive technology.
To be honest, that issue should be easily fixable. Tristan has made enormous progress in his life. He started off in an autism class and made the transition to a mainstream class, albeit with an adapted curriculum. He has made great progress, however. We need this child to be able to go on and thrive within a secondary school. It is simply not good enough. It is simply unacceptable that this small issue of securing the assistive technology is held up because the health services cannot produce a report. I look forward to hearing the Minister of State's response today.
I thank the Senator very much for raising this matter. It is right that she is here to advocate on behalf of Tristan. I certainly want to do everything to help children like Tristan achieve what they can achieve. I am not the Minister with responsibility for this area, although that responsibility lies with the Department of Education. The answer may not give the Senator all the information she needs but I will certainly take up directly within the Department the issue she raised. I realise its importance and that it needs to be dealt with. Children need to be able to achieve their full potential. The answer that will be given is a general answer and is not specific, obviously, to Tristan.
Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for the Government. This year, the Department will spend in excess of €2 billion or more than 25% of our budget on a wide range of schemes and support for children with special educational needs.
The assistive technology scheme the Senator mentioned is provided by the Department to supplement the overall approach to providing funding for schools for digital technology and equipment to support children for educational purposes. As part of this overall approach, the Department announced in April last year the digital strategy for schools to 2027 and associated grant funding for all recognised primary and post-primary schools for digital technology infrastructure. The strategy will advance the embedding of digital technologies across teaching, learning and assessment, building on the work under previous strategies. It aims to further support the school system in order that all students across our schools have the opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills they need to navigate an ever-evolving digital world successfully. As part of the strategy, an ICT grant will be provided to schools, with €200 million annually committed to this. This approach facilitates multi-annual planning by schools to enable them to plan effectively for all of their children. The Department also funds broadband connectivity to all recognised primary, special, and post-primary schools.
I see assistive technology as a critical enabler for those, like Tristan, with special educational needs to gain the maximum benefit from a modern technologically focused education system. The Department has secured an extra €2 million in funding this year for the scheme. This is up 60% on last year, so progress has been made. The increased allocation supports the Department's commitment to ensure the full range of resources, not just teachers and special needs assistants, SNAs, who are also very important, are available to support children who need it most.
The assistve technology scheme is provided by the Department to supplement the overall approach to providing funding to schools for digital technology and equipment to support children for education purposes. All equipment provided under this scheme supports children who require essential specialist equipment to access the school curriculum. All children have particular educational needs and, accordingly, it is acknowledged that all children could potentially benefit from or achieve a degree of improvement in their performance through the provision of technological support or equipment, such as personal computers.
The equipment provided under this scheme, however, is specialist equipment of a nature beyond that normally be provided to pupils by schools through general funding, funding which had previously been provided to schools through information and communication technology, ICT provision or through normal school resources or funds. Schools should as part of multi-annual planning have a digital learning plan which takes account of the needs of their students' context and circumstances. In cases where students cannot take part in the curriculum without such assistive technology, it is important to ensure the equipment is appropriate to the individualised needs of the students. In the case of students who are blind or visually impaired or students who are deaf or hard of hearing, the equipment and its appropriate usage are generally identified by the relevant visiting teacher.
I can confirm the Department is currently reviewing the scheme to ensure it is working as effectively as possible and that the resources are allocated appropriately. Certainly, what the Senator said leads me personally to have great concerns, which I will be forwarding to the Department. The review would be completed by the autumn. The process will have a consultative element and relevant stakeholders will be invited to participate.
I thank the Minister of State. I do not doubt the bona fides of what he said in terms of his personal concern for this child. To be frank, however, the response we got today indicates a Department with its head in the clouds. The Department is reliant on a health system to generate reports, which simply is not capable of doing it the moment.
There may be other parts of the country where CDNTs are able to generate these reports, but the CDNT I am dealing with says it cannot do so because of resourcing issues.
There is nothing in the response that will provide any consolation or solace to Tristan's family or to the school. I spoke to the school principal this morning. The principal is very clearly of the view that Tristan requires assistive technology. It is wonderful to hear of the increase in the budgetary allocation in general to schools and we need to see so much more of it, but the educational professionals working with this child believe that he needs assistive technology. He simply cannot access or even apply for that because the CDNT cannot generate a report. It is absolutely disgraceful that the Department of Education is not stepping up and responding to the logjam within the health system. Something needs to be done.
It is reassuring to hear that a review is under way but we are now at the second last day of May and we are hearing that a review is to be completed by autumn. I find that very hard to believe. I do not believe the Department of Education will generate a review that actually means children like Tristan will get the assistive technology come September or October. We need to see much more concrete commitments if the Department is going to act proactively to ensure the children who need this technology can get it for the new school year.
I thank the Senator. I will say two things. The money has been increased. This should help more children access the technology, and the review will have some impact.
On the particular case raised by the Senator, I am very happy to take it up within the Department with the Secretary General, and let her know the position in this regard, namely, that the child cannot even ask for this because of the situation that obtains in the Senator's area. I will certainly follow this up.
Before we suspend, I wish Tristan the very best. Hopefully, he will get the resources he requires in September. What is happening is completely unacceptable.
Cuireadh an Seanad ar fionraí ar 1.47 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 2 p.m.
Sitting suspended at 1.47 p.m. and resumed at 2 p.m