Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The witnesses are all very welcome. I congratulate them on all their work. It is very clear from all the responses and the opening statements that there is a clear commitment to inclusivity and to pushing the boundaries of what we have been doing up to now and to making things better. This has come across very clearly. It is the modus operandi of this committee as well. We are all in here every week willing to be wrong, to have our minds changed, to be pushed a little bit further and to educate ourselves.

To pose a question to the representatives from the WRC first, we constantly hear of very positive work coming out of it. The public sector duty was mentioned and what IHREC is supposed to be doing. What collaboration and work, if any, has the WRC been doing with IHREC in relation to the public sector duty? I would argue that many institutions, organisations and public bodies do not uphold their obligations. I would also argue that IHREC, which has been operating since 2015, has done nothing to test this public sector duty. A case has not been taken in this regard. Any questions I direct to IHREC result in the response that it is setting up an online database. The reports sent from local authorities or other public sector bodies are just there on the website. The commission states it commits to the public sector duty, but there is no real scrutiny in this regard. Where is the WRC on this issue? Can it have a position on it? Does it have a remit to do so? What would help in this regard?

I ask this because if it were possible to help people with disabilities by pointing to a certain county council that has failed in its public sector duty to uphold what it was supposed to be doing, then we might see more cases at the WRC and see more people with disabilities taking such cases after prejudice had been directed against them. Many people have come to me in respect of the fight to get reasonable accommodations in our local authorities. They have been told to do a business case for a reasonable accommodation and then been turned down because they were told their business case was not up to scratch. They do not then get their reasonable accommodation and have to fight everything. Not being able to go to work with the reasonable accommodations means they end up being exhausted.

There is a gap here. Perhaps this is an issue the WRC can highlight. I can imagine that perhaps people have to go to it, but perhaps there can be a collaboration here between the WRC and IHREC in relation to this matter. It is important that we start to move on something we have had in place since 2015 because it is a bit like a chicken-and-egg situation. If we do not hear about something or it does not happen, well, which comes first? Someone has to be bold enough to take such a case, but doing so can be very frightening.

Turning to the witnesses from SOLAS, regarding the work it does developing courses, what work does it do with day centres, such as those run by Rehab and the Irish Wheelchair Association? I refer to establishing accredited courses. Fantastic day centres do run courses but these are not accredited. How can we start enabling these people who are in day centres and enrolled in courses to be educated in the places where they are comfortable? Is any work going on to link up SOLAS and the day centres? The State is providing enough funding for both. If we are looking to help a cohort of people with disabilities, this is where they are. I would love to know, therefore, if work is going on in this respect.

Out of pure curiosity for the public-----