Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the witnesses very much. I am very taken by Ms McGovern's contribution. I come from a background of being a privacy lawyer. One of the aspects of the general data protection regulation, GDPR, was privacy by design; everything has to be privacy by design. What I am taking from this morning's meeting is that we should have ability by design. Everything we do should consider the limitations in how we are providing a service, how we can overcome those limitations and make sure we have people advising who experience the limitations and are in a position to comment on that.

I thank all the witnesses for their contributions and wish all of them a very happy International Women's Week. I am the Fine Gael spokesperson on disability and I must confess that I have taken the witnesses' opening statements as a to-do list. I would welcome further engagement on that outside of this meeting by way of follow-up.

To give the witnesses a brief outline of my actions as I have been sitting here listening to them and having read their statements in preparation for today's meeting, I noted that clarification was required from the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, on the provisions, the cards and the additional points the witnesses made. I have sent a request to her office.

Yesterday, for International Women's Day, I raised a Commencement matter in the Seanad on intimate partner violence and the increasing rates of domestic violence because all the January reports show that. The Minister, Deputy Roderic O'Gorman, stated in reply that they were currently conducting an audit of the services and that included an assurance of diversity in the provision of domestic violence supports. My focus, I confess, was very much on trans and non-binary women. I have been thinking that it did not occur to me to specifically ask about disability. As I was sitting here, I emailed the Minister for Justice asking whether she has engaged on this and saying that, if not, she needs to engage directly with those people who are contributing and speaking so passionately this morning. I asked her to make sure that she hears their perspectives. Rather than me representing the witnesses they should get to speak for themselves.

My home constituency is Dublin South Central so I am particularly taken by Ms McGovern's statement that Ballyfermot-Chapelizod has the highest proportion of people with disabilities living in an urban setting. I would like to hear more on that.

I have been advocating with various Ministers in various forms on hidden disabilities and the lack of provision for that also. I have particularly advocated on the shortcomings in the primary medical certificate, the criteria for entitlement to that and what flows from that with regard to disabled drivers, disabled passengers and how there is a limitation in that respect. One particular advocate, Gráinne Leach, whom I know personally is on to me regularly. I see one of the witnesses nodding. Gráinne sent me an email this morning saying she had already been on to them to make sure that her position was outlined. She is without one of her arms but does not qualify under the criteria, yet lives a life that is very limiting and does not have access to any funding that flows from that.

My statement for International Women's Day yesterday in the Seanad was dedicated to the draft assisted human reproduction Bill. I am a member of the AHR coalition. I see significant shortcomings in and have concerns around the draft Bill and I raised a number of them yesterday. Among these are making sure that persons with a disability have a say in influencing and making sure that the provisions within the Bill also meet their needs because there are other groups where they do not. I would welcome hearing more from Ms Bonnie and engaging with her; if Ms Bonnie is not already in the coalition, I urge her to make that contact. I would be happy to do that.

Lastly, I was taken by the reference to "institutions". We have a picture in our head of what that looks like, but what we do not have and what did not come home to me was the fact that one's own home can be an institution in how one is treated within it. I have had much engagement with Colin McAndrew of Global Citizens. Mr. McAndrew talks about the urban built environment and the experience and accessibility within that. I would welcome hearing more about what we could do, how we can assist and how, as legislators, we should respond.

Apologies, there was a great deal there. I still have an even longer to-do list to go.