Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I support the amendments which do not deal with the primary medical certificate issue raised by the Chairman. It is very difficult for a public representative to have to tell a constituent who believes he or she falls into the category of disabled person and therefore eligible for the scheme that there is nothing that he or she can do for him or her because of the rigidity of the scheme. The entire area needs to be reviewed. The amendments are worthy of support. The wording of the provision should be changed from "chiefly engaged in the care and transport of" to "engaged in the care and transport of". That would be a fair definition. Claw-back mechanisms could be introduced to deal with organisations which ceased to be so engaged. It is important that we support organisations involved in the transport and care of people with permanent disabilities.