Gormley pledges support over autism services

THE Green Party has upped the pressure on Minister for Education Mary Hanafin after meeting parents embroiled in a battle with her over services for autistic children.

In private talks with members of Irish Autism Action yesterday, Green leader John Gormley, pledged support for the parents’ efforts to secure specialist ABA (applied behaviour analysis) schooling for their children.

Mr Gormley, accompanied by deputy leader Mary White and the party’s government programme manager Donall Geoghegan, agreed to seek a meeting with Ms Hanafin to discuss the issue directly.

The grouping said their party colleague, Paul Gogarty, who chairs the Oireachtas education committee, but was absent due to a family illness, would bring the issue to the committee.

Parent Adrienne Murphy described the talks as heartening. “Even though they’re in government, the Greens recognise the flaws and because they’re in government, they’re in a good position to influence change,” she said.

The stance taken by the junior coalition party will increase the pressure on the embattled minister to agree an expansion of ABA schools against stated policy which is to use mixed teaching methods with autistic children.

A party spokesman denied it would cause tensions between the parties. “It’s about dialogue. Words like pressure and pushing are deeply unhelpful.”

A spokeswoman for the minister said no formal request had been received for a direct meeting with Mr Gormley, but Ms Hanafin was keeping her cabinet colleagues up to date with discussions between her department and Irish Autism Action.

The Taoiseach also came under fire when Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny highlighted the case of a new autism unit provided by Ms Hanafin’s department within a mainstream school that could not open because staffing had to be sanctioned by the HSE, which has a recruitment freeze.

“If government is about any type of leadership, surely the Taoiseach should be in a position to have this row sorted out today,” he said.