Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I also welcome our distinguished visitors. I have long admired the work that Ray McCord has done over the years. I wish him well and hope he has a fruitful day here in Leinster House.

Yesterday, the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, NCBI, changed its name to Vision Ireland. It has made that name change after 91 or 92 years of existence to reflect changing environment when it comes to people with sight loss. The latest census alarmingly showed a 400% increase in the number of people who identified as having sight loss. Over 300,000 people in this country now identify as having some form of sight loss. Only a small percentage of those are actually blind. The NCBI has done great work over the years. Its whole concept is now replaced with a focus on people who suffer some form of vision failure. Some people have significant vision failure and other people have just vision failure. The problem is that we have no strategy to eliminate preventable sight loss. Some 80% of sight loss could be prevented with proper early detection. We need a strategy to eliminate preventable blindness. It really needs to be addressed especially with the ageing population we have. Unfortunately, some people will lose their sight or some of their sight, but much of that can be eliminated. People's quality of life can be maintained if it is dealt with on time. I call for a debate on the need for a strategy for the elimination of preventable sight loss.

I wish the NCBI, which is now Vision Ireland, all the very best for the future. I commend it on the work it has done over the years for the many thousands of people who have completely or partially lost their sight. I have no doubt about its future as an organisation and that the work it does on behalf of people will continue. Hopefully, with Vision Ireland working along with the HSE and Government, we can ensure that as many people as possible do not completely or partially lose their sight unnecessarily.