We live in a republic and in a republic we cherish our most vulnerable except, it seems, people with intellectual disabilities in a post-Covid scenario where the health services are coming back. Inclusion Ireland has produced a report and analysis of a survey of all families and users and the statistics are quite startling. Effectively, families are burned out and service users are totally regressing. There is no date for a return to services in the vast majority of scenarios and there is little or no respite.

Last night, I met Philip. He is 29. I spoke with him at length. He told me about all of his troubles. I spoke with his sister, Lauren. They spent their days painting, driving into the Retro cinema in Leopardstown, where he has been to so often he has got VIP status. They were cooking also. However, he has regressed terribly.

I spoke with Claire Hendrick, chair of Carmona, St. John of God's, in Glenageary, which represents 500 families. Her daughter, Leah, is 20. Leah wants a life again. Every day she is regressing because of the lack of day services. Life has no purpose for her. She is getting up every day to do nothing. It is devastating to watch. Most importantly, Zoom will never work for Leah.

I spoke to Breda. Her son, Darragh, is 28 and attends St. Michael's House. She said, "I'm on my last legs".

John Clarke, whose son Stephen is 20, says his health is deteriorating and that he is developing habits that are regressing his health. He believes he and thousands of others are part of a forgotten community.

I spoke to Nóirín Walsh about Pádraig, her son, who believes he is going inward and regressing totally.

I spoke to Kathleen Clifford about her son Alan. She asks why the funding for day services has been taken away and transferred to other services. She feels that is discriminatory.

I do not make these comments in a political way. These people are our people. They deserve, under the Republic, to be treated with dignity and respect. They deserve to have their services brought back. They are the most vulnerable and they are regressing. We are opening all pubs on 20 July. I look forward to going for a pint, as I am sure the Tánaiste does also, but by the next phase of reopening these service providers deserve to know when their services will be restored.

To get back to Philip, the Tánaiste has met Philip. He knows one of his parents quite well. He is watching now. He asked me to say the following:

Please ask when can I get back to work. Please ask Leo, the boss, when I can see my friends again. I really want to know.

I ask the Tánaiste to please answer Philip.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. All of us in this House will have had many similar stories related to us by our constituents and many queries coming through our constituency offices which are very similar. As I believe everyone in the House will appreciate, many normal health, education and disability services had to be suspended, discontinued or curtailed during the pandemic period. The Government is working very hard to restore those service to what they should be and what they used to be, albeit within the health guidelines. That includes getting the schools open in full at the end of August. It includes getting colleges back. It includes restoring normal health services including health screening and includes getting services for people with disabilities back up and running. It is difficult. It is not always straightforward. It has to be done safely and in co-operation with staff and with the best medical advice but I can absolutely assure the Deputy that this is a very high priority for Government and for the line Ministers in question. We will not waste any time or tolerate any delay in getting those services back up and running as soon as is possible.

I will not turn this into a political issue. It is too sensitive. It was actually quite upsetting last night. I spent hours talking to people. I could have spent weeks talking to them. They are being let down. The families are run off their feet. Every one of the service users has regressed. The progress they have made has stopped. In many cases they now have new issues. I looked at the Minister's statement last night. In fairness, Ailbhe Conneely, on RTÉ's "Morning Ireland", told a very good story on it. The Minister of State's statement was too bland. She is delighted that services will begin in August. There is no plan in most cases to begin any services in August. I will tell the Tánaiste why that is the case. In order to do that they will need more staff. The staff that have gone to residential care will have to come back to day services. We will need many more staff. We will also need a capital budget to change the buildings, purchase new buildings or take over new buildings in order to adhere to social distancing requirements. I am asking the Tánaiste if we will get dates by 20 July for the thousands of families that are affected. Is there a capital budget in place to change all the buildings to make them fit for purpose to provide these services? Where will the Tánaiste get all the staff to ensure these services can commence again? Will those who are working in residential services be brought back in to provide the day care services?

I am reluctant to give the Deputy a date because if I give him one it is a date I want to stand over. The worst thing one can do in a circumstance like this, other than failing to provide the service, is to give a date that one cannot then deliver. That would raise people's hopes and they would be let down even more and I do not want to do that today. I can assure the House that this is a priority for the new Ministers involved in education, health and disability. Works will have to be carried out to some buildings and a capital budget will be provided for that but even then the work has to be done and that will take time. Also, staff will need to be redeployed back to services and, in some cases, new staff hired, and all of that will take some time. Not all services will be restored at the same time and on the same day. In some places they may come back sooner than in others. I totally understand, appreciate and agree with the sentiments expressed by the Deputy that families are at their wits' end and that people who had been making good progress are now regressing. That is of enormous concern to all of us. We are very keen to get those services back as soon as is possible.