On behalf of the Labour Party, I express my sympathies with the families of those involved in the car crash in County Donegal yesterday evening.

Yesterday the HSE CEO, Bernard Gloster, revealed that the waiting list for assessments of need will get worse before it gets better. It is quite clear now that there are over 15,000 children waiting for an assessment of need and a prediction for 25,000 children by the end of this year. This is an absolute scandal and a failure of the State under the obligation of law to carry out these assessments of need within six months. It is quite clear that the failure of assessments of need to take place has serious knock-on effects for children, particularly in the area of school places and resources for such schools. This year some parents took to sleeping outside the Department of Education and Leinster House, doing their very best to secure extra school places. How is it possible to plan for increased resources, supports and classes if we do not know the needs of the students?

Mr. Gloster said yesterday that outside the assessment of need, significant challenges are faced particularly with essential therapies and interventions. I acknowledge that extra classes have been made available this year, which is to be welcomed. My questions are as follows. Will extra capacity be provided to the HSE? If so, what is it? Will legislation be reformed to complete assessments of need more quickly? How does the Government plan on opening extra classes and providing resources for schools if we do not know the needs?

I thank the Deputy. There are quite a few questions there and I will do my best to touch on each of them. Before I do so, I join him in offering our condolences to the family in Donegal who have just received such terrible news. The most terrible of news is sometimes unexpected. Earlier, I neglected to agree with Deputy O'Flynn in offering condolences on the death of Brother Kevin, a man who did such good work throughout Dublin, as I saw myself. He was an amazing man and may he rest in peace.

Hear, hear.

The Deputy has raised some really serious issues. First, the Government will continue to put in place additional funding and support to help those families who are waiting for the additional needs assessments that we know are really important. Second, actions are being taken by the Government to increase the classes, the therapists and the teachers who are needed to be in those classes. Third, we need to consider, which of course we will do in conjunction with the committee of which the Deputy is a member, how we are conducting these assessments of additional needs and how it could be done in a way that deals with the issue of speed of access.

I know at first hand the huge frustration, anxiety and worry that many families experience as they wait for that assessment and the deep effect it has on their lives and those of the young girls and boys they are looking after as parents. They are the actions that we are taking as a Government and this is a high priority for us in terms of making a difference.