Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

A person with an intellectual disability receives the princely sum of €184 per week in disability allowance. It is now proposed under regulations that were never debated in either House that the Government will take €90 per week from such people and that it will look for the full retrospective amount since these regulations came into being. How is it that such a miserable, penny pinching, disgraceful decision was never debated in these Houses? We are talking about people who must deal with very difficult decisions in their lives and who are now receiving threatening letters from the institutions they are in to get this money back. It is the most shameful decision the Government has ever taken.

I would be grateful to the Leader if she would speak directly to the Minister about this issue. It is striking fear into many vulnerable people in the community and the issue was never debated in these Houses. It is a disgrace and it should be changed, even at the last minute before these Houses are dissolved.

Over the Easter recess, the Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, established the Irish Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence. This initiative, which has been in the offing for some years, has been greatly welcomed. However, the Rape Crisis Network, Women's Aid and many other women's organisations are legitimately pointing out that the remit of this agency relates specifically to domestic violence against women and does not deal with the issues of trafficking, pornography and other forms of exploitation against women.

Will the Leader communicate with the Minister of State concerned to see if he could meet the various non-governmental organisations and find an agreement? They have considerable experience in this area. They have worked in the field for the past 30 or 40 years and have made great advances for women, especially in the area of domestic violence. It is wrong that a major announcement such as this does not have the full imprimatur of the groups concerned.