Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We are sitting as a joint sub-committee on petitions to record the decisions of the committee.

The joint sub-committee has received a total of 138 petitions to date since the launch of the petitions system. The secretariat has been examining them to establish their admissibility and how best to progress them for consideration by the joint sub-committee. Up to 127 of the petitions received have been brought before the joint sub-committee on at least one occasion. Of these, 59 were considered, a decision agreed upon and closed, 42 were inadmissible and 27 are still under consideration.

There is just one petition before us today and it is an issue which has been raised before in several petitions. As members will recall, we discussed these earlier this year and the committee agreed the secretariat would contact the relevant organisations seeking submissions. The secretariat is preparing a briefing note and the aim is to revisit this issue in this session with a view to making recommendations.

The petition in question is No. P00007/15, primary medical certificate criteria, from Mr. Leon Delaney. Once again, we have a petitioner questioning the harshness of the eligibility criteria being applied to applicants as a result of the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers (Tax Concessions) Regulations 1994, SI 353/1994.

During the joint sub-committee’s consideration of petitions Nos. P00020/14 and P00014/13 on 5 November 2014, it was agreed to write to the various relevant umbrella disability representative groups seeking submissions on the matter in advance of inviting the Minister for Finance to appear before the committee. These submissions have been received and a briefing note has been prepared by the secretariat.

I will now open it up to members for their consideration.