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Cregg House Cuts - A Repeat of Government Policy

The debacle at Cregg House is not an isolated incident. SligoToday.ie can reveal that another facility providing a similar service in Longford has also had its budget drastically cut.

However the outcome of a special emergency meeting yesterday evening (Thursday) between Minister Kathleen Lynch and representatives of St. Christopher's Service (Longford) is currently awaited.

St.Christopher's Services, founded by parents and friends provides a comprehensive, efficient and innovative service to people with intellectual difficulties.

It is a high quality, community-based service, based on identified individualised needs, enabling service users to reach their full potential.

Minister Lynch, who has responsibility for Disability, Older People, Equality & Mental Health had agreed to meet the representatives to discuss a 3.7% cut in funding which will affect respite and day care services at the facility. The cut is in the region of €500,000.

The Chief executive of St. Christopher's Services in Longford Pat O'Toole lead a deputation to meet Minister Kathleen Lynch in the Dail yesterday afternoon.

The group were successful in securing a meeting with the Minister following a major public meeting last month where parents and service users expressed their outrage at a 3.7% cut.

St. Christopher's supports people with intellectual disabilities and has almost 200 staff and 185 service-users around the county.

Mr. O'Toole says they have tried to see where they could make up this cut of almost half a million euro and it's not possible without reducing vital services such as respite and day-care.

Prior to yesterdays meeting he hoped that Minister Lynch will work with them to reduce the cut from 3.7% down to at least 1.7% and ideally not to implement a cut at all.

Following this SligoToday.ie report there should be no difficulty for local Government representatives which include Minister of State, John Perry TD, Tony McLoughlin TD, Senators Susan O'Keeffe, Michael Comiskey and Imelda Henry arranging a meeting with a junior minister.

No official statement, since the Cregg House story broke four days ago, has been made by any of these Government politicians apart from Minister Perry saying that 'it was “critically important” the services remained.'

There were unconfirmed reports that they were 'working behind the scenes' in 'secret talks'.

It is now known that a precedent has already been set by the holding of yesterdays junior ministerial discussion so arranging such a meeting is simply a standard procedure and if arranged for Cregg House should not be the subject of grandiose self-indulging political statements.

Meanwhile the online support grows with 1,169 'Likes' on the official Facebook page.

See NO CUTS to Cregg - where you too can give your support.


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