I want to raise a very important matter that was brought to my attention again at my clinic in Scott's Hotel on Saturday by a deputation of parents of children with special needs, our special children who are now young adults.

The question is about the lack of adult respite services in County Kerry. How is it acceptable that there is only one adult respite house in Kerry to service the whole of Kerry and part of Cork? Parents in certain places are having to travel a round trip of over two hours to drop off their sons and daughters and collect them in the evening before dropping them to their day services. Last year, parents were told there were more than 80 people waiting on a list to get into respite houses. Members of the group I met on Saturday have been waiting more than two years without any services. This is totally unacceptable. Most of these young adults availed of children's respite service for years but as they turn 18 and 19 years of age, there is nothing for them at the most vulnerable time in their lives when they are leaving school and moving into adult day care services. They are growing up and becoming young adults. It is causing a lot of distress to these parents.

I want to explain this to the Taoiseach in a very human way. When I was with this group, this deputation, on Saturday, and I know every Member of the House will understand what I mean, I could see a tiredness in their eyes and a weariness in them. All they are looking for is respite. They are more than willing to and capable of keeping their special child at home in their own environment. They want to do that and they will do that in the best way. As long as they are breathing they will do it, but what they want is respite. I am very grateful for the respite services that we got in north Kerry and for the great people on the ground locally. I recognise and thank every political contribution that was made in this regard, but we should all be pulling together. Killarney and its environs comprise a very big area. We have very special children there - I say children but I should say young adults, of course - who are turning 18 and 19 years of age. We want to be able to offer their families the respite they need. I am making this heartfelt plea to the Taoiseach and the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, who I know met with representatives of this group in the past. I very much recognise and appreciate her work in this field but I want to see delivery of this service in the Killarney area for these very nice families. All they want is a thing called fair play.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I acknowledge how essential respite is for people with disabilities and their families. It gives people the break they need and, in many cases, keeps people going. They would not be able to keep going if it were not for respite and I know how important that is to people. The need for increased respite, including in south Kerry and west Cork, is acknowledged by the Government. The need for additional respite across the country is reflected in the HSE service plans for 2021 and 2022 and will be in the new service plan for 2023.

The last few years have seen significantly increased funding for additional respite. This has resulted in the expansion of both centre-based and alternative respite. The Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, will meet with community healthcare organisation, CHO, 4 on 9 February. Respite will be on the agenda, in particular the potential for facilities in south Kerry, which I know the Deputy will welcome.

Last year, an additional €9 million was provided for ten respite services for children and adults, as well as for alternative models of respite, including three additional specialist-based services, one for Prader-Willi syndrome and two to provide high-support respite for children and young adults with complex support needs. Funding for a further seven respite centres will provide approximately 10,000 more nights to 245 children and adults in a full year.

As for the plan for 2023, which the Minister of State is working on, she has secured additional funding in the budget that will provide for a range of additional services and individual packages nationally. The details are yet to be worked out; they will be in the service plan for 2023. As I said, the Minister of State will meet with the Deputy's local CHO on 9 February to bring things forward.

I warmly thank the Taoiseach for his reply. If the Minister of State and the Government deliver respite services for the people of the Killarney electoral area and all that side of the country, I will be the first person to thank them most sincerely for it.

I will use the short amount of time I have left to say a word about St. Mary of the Angels, which provides an excellent service at St. Francis Special School in Beaufort. The staff provide a great service to our special young people with intellectual or physical disabilities. I remind the Taoiseach that a political decision was taken in 2011 regarding congregated settings. I do not want to fight about this but I will remind the Taoiseach of what this facility is. It is a wonderful facility. It was a farm donated by the Doyle family to be used as a centre for young people with special needs. There is a church, a heated pool and some lovely walks there. It is a safe environment that has everything going for it. Rather than closing it by stealth, which is what is happening because congregated settings are no longer wanted, I plead with the Taoiseach to look at reviewing the policy along with the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, and other Ministers. They need to consider whether we got it wrong in 2011 and should look at allowing a place like that to flourish and be there for future families. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for his indulgence.

I think decongregation is the right approach. If anything, it has been happening too slowly. When congregated settings or institutions in my constituency have closed, I have seen how it can cause disruption and a lot of difficulty and nervousness among residents and families initially. When you meet them a year or two later, after they have moved into a house in a housing estate where they are integrated with the neighbourhood around them, it is amazing to see how people who were afraid about what might happen to them if they were decongregated really come on and flourish when they are in a house in the community and have a chance to interact with the neighbourhood. However, I acknowledge that one size does not always fit all. Sometimes there are centres that work very well where people are happy. We need to be open to that possibility.