John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will come back to the Deputy in a moment. I want to be fair to the witnesses we had here a couple of weeks ago. I will make a couple of comments and they can be referred to specifically. I reflected on it before I came in. Something the witnesses all said collectively was that they felt lucky about where they have got to. Despite all the programmes and policies we have in place, they all felt lucky to have worked through the system and for their entitlements. They all came by different pathways but there was an element of luck. That was the way they felt about it and, in that way, there is something wrong with the system in that there are not clearer, more identifiable pathways onto which those people or their advocates can see them. They all referred to it as luck. I was very taken with it. The witnesses have quite rightly explained a significant range of programmes that are available but the people who are to avail of them do not see it as easily as that. Information and education are issues.

I will address a couple of specifics that the individuals referred to, in no particular order. One lady spoke about what she was able to do because she had a personal assistant. She was a little bit older and had the personal assistant for some time, but she made the point that if she was a younger person, she would not have access in the same way that she does. She recognised the old system versus the new system and was quite specific in it. We had one person who spoke about special needs assistants and their support in primary, secondary and third level. There was no continuity of support. There was a significant drop-off in second level and they were quite impressed with the level of support they got in third level.

We heard about the special schools and the fact that, in many of them, there is no pathway either to do the leaving certificate or applied leaving certificate, and what that means for those people in the future. Mr. Mulkerrins alluded to the fact that careers guidance in those special schools is not done in the normal way, as it would be done in a regular school. These were highlighted. Everyone expressed concern about the loss of the medical card or the travel pass. They all said to us in different ways that, while they might have a job, they still have their disability and the associated costs that go with it.

While they might have a job, the people concerned still have disabilities and face associated costs. We need to look at more than just means testing. One of the delegates is visually impaired. Some of the equipment covered by the medical card scheme is relatively expensive and she faced a huge personal burden. When the transition is considered in the round, people with disabilities face additional costs in getting to work. There is a feeling of nervousness and vulnerability in losing the medical card and free travel.

There was much talk about the disability allowance and illness benefit. I understand there are approximately 2,500 in receipt of partial capacity benefit. It was rightly set out that the person was assessed. My experience of partial capacity benefit is that many persons who are availing of it and have re-entered the workforce do not have a regular weekly salary because many do not work full time. The partial capacity benefit does not recognise whether a person has worked in a given week. Such persons are on a reduced payment, in comparison to the previous benefit of which they availed. We should look at the benefit specifically for those who are beginning to go back to work where the nature of the work is part time or casual or for a few hours a week. That is the stepping stone for them, but partial capacity benefit is only for a set amount, irrespective of what a person earns in a given week. I suggest a system be put in place to provides the full benefit if a person has not worked in a given week for a specified period of time. For many, it is a transition.

My colleagues will speak briefly about this issue, but they are the main points. I am taken by the reports and the actions proposed for the future, but I emphasise that the delegates who were here a couple of weeks ago all said they were lucky. They had all transitioned and were making progress in their lives. However, there was a feeling there was no clear stepping stone or that another person could follow exactly what they had done. There was a feeling those who had transitioned had met the right person at the right time or had been on the right programme at the right time. I was taken when I heard the delegates say that they had got lucky.