In the Dáil, Matt Carthy asked Simon Harris why he did not follow up on a promise he made back in June to meet with local families in Monaghan.

During an hour-long meeting, the Sinn Féin leader discussed the crisis in services for children with additional needs in County Monaghan.

Cllr Brendan Fay was frustrated when he learned at the last meeting of Cavan County Council that the Minister had not replied to two items of correspondence.

Councillor Fay is disgusted at how the Minister did not have "the respect or integrity" to respond to two letters sent to her by Cavan County Council. 

The service had been suspended from July through to the end of September "due to paediatric nursing shortages within Cavan General Hospital", the HSE explained.

The consequences of a fractured school transport system is felt more acutely in the special needs community.

Six members of the Special Needs Active Parents campaign group travelled to Dublin yesterday for a meeting in the Dail.

The daily €4 transport charge would amount to about €900 over a year for parents in the Northern Sound region.