Minister must come clean on disability funding as 2,000 wait for care
Minister must come clean on disability funding as 2,000 wait for care - The Labour Party
- Private placements rose by 289% since 2020, while HSE and voluntary providers together recorded 134 fewer places.
Labour health spokesperson Marie Sherlock TD has today demanded that Government come clean on disability funding, following reports that the HSE will approve no new residential placements requiring additional funding for the remainder of the year. With approximately 2,000 children and adults awaiting residential care nationwide, she challenged Ministers to explain why disability services are operating under budget while families cannot secure support.
Deputy Sherlock said:
“Internal HSE documents we have seen indicate that disability is the only part of the HSE operating under budget. With so many people waiting for essential care, the Minister must explain why. How can Government justify an underspend when families cannot get a residential placement or adequate respite?
“The Minister must come clean about whether the HSE is taking money intended for disability services to cover overspending elsewhere. Is this robbing Peter to pay Paul, with families paying the price?
“It is nonsense to suggest that disability services cannot afford additional placements without explaining what has happened to the funding already allocated. The Minister must set out how much remains unspent, why services have not delivered that care and whether the HSE has redirected or withheld any funding to meet pressures elsewhere.
“The HSE memo says it has commissioned 182 residential placements nationally this year. Yet approximately 2,000 children and adults still await a place. Families deserve an explanation for the gap between the support they need and what Government has delivered.
“The memo also identifies failures to complete approval processes. The HSE must address those failures, but they do not answer the central question about funding. Parents caring for a loved one cannot put their needs on hold while Ministers avoid that question.
“My parliamentary questions show how provision has changed. Private residential placements rose from 549 in December 2020 to 1,586 in September 2026, an increase of 289%. Meanwhile, HSE and Section 38/39 providers together recorded 134 fewer placements.
“Government has allowed reliance on private provision to grow while HSE and voluntary sector capacity has fallen. Families now face further uncertainty about whether support will arrive before they can no longer provide care themselves.“The Minister must publish a full account of disability spending, explain the underspend and disclose any movement of funding to other services. Funding allocated for disability care must deliver disability care.”