Concern at use of disability funding
Inclusion Ireland has said many of its members are questioning where the upwards of €200 million in additional funds allocated to disability since 2006 has been spent.
Requests have been made by Dáil deputies to the HSE and the Department of Finance and no responses have been received after six months.
Inclusion Ireland said it has repeatedly called for the multi-annual funding under the 2004 Disability Strategy to be ring-fenced.
“People fear that the money was under-spent in the disability sector. We have asked for figures but we haven’t received them,” said an Inclusion Ireland spokeswoman.
Fine Gael has questioned why the Department of Health produced two different sets of figures on additional disability funding when requested earlier this year. This additional funding is generally used for residential, respite and day care places and home support services for people with intellectual, physical and sensory disabilities or autism.
A parliamentary response on May 7 said €210m had been allocated to the HSE as part of multi -annual disability funding, while a response on May 13 said it was €260m.
“How can these figures differ by €50m in less than one week? This is a very considerable difference. But of greatest concern is that the HSE won’t tell me where the money is being spent,” said party disability spokesman David Stanton.
“Perhaps they cannot provide this information because they do not know. Where has all this money for public services gone? Why is this information not readily available?”
Last night, the Department of Health said over €425m has been allocated to the HSE on a cumulative basis since 2006 under the Multi Annual Investment Programme for disability services.
The Irish Examiner yesterday requested details from the HSE of disability funding and expenditure between 2006 and 2009. They were not supplied.
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