Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 27 June 2018

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality

Update on Disability Issues: Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality

9:00 am

Photo of Finian McGrathFinian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yes, the best cigars in the world. There are disabilities in Cuba, which is a country that has been hammered by an embargo. It has been hammered by its next-door neighbour - America - for 60 years. When I met the Cuban Minister who deals with disabilities, she brought me around. It is interesting that there were no people on trolleys in this supposedly poor country. They had a plan of the kind spoken about by Deputy Ó Laoghaire. There is a plan for every child with a disability in Cuba from the day he or she is born to the day he or she dies. I saw the services that are bring provided in a country that has a low budget. Cuba prioritises health, disability and education when it is debating these matters. It is a lesson for us all. We can learn from it. If a poor country can do it, we can do it. My objective, if I get enough time in the job, is to develop a cradle-to-grave approach to this whole issue.

I will work with the various Departments on the important issue of driving tests and theory tests for deaf people. I intervened to assist the Irish Deaf Society when it was in financial difficulty recently. Like the members of this committee, those involved in the society were very supportive when the Irish Sign Language Bill 2016 was going through these Houses. As Deputy Ó Laoghaire has indicated, now that the legislation has been passed we need to ensure services of an appropriate quality and standard are available. There should be no issues with lack of standards in services.

The Deputy made a very good point about being able to send text messages to alert the emergency services. It will have to be addressed. The inclusion of emergency communications in the proposed EU accessibility directive is being examined as part of the negotiations on the proposed directive. When that directive has been agreed and transposed, it will be put on a legislative footing in Ireland. It is important for the ongoing work on this issue to continue.

Deputy Ó Laoghaire also mentioned the use of Irish sign language by the Garda Síochána. He suggested that all gardaí should have basic training in the use of Irish Sign Language and I agree that this would be very important. I suggest that this should be done in Templemore, but I would take it a step further. Every member of the Garda Síochána should receive Irish Sign Language training at the Garda College, but this should apply to other public servants as well. They should get some level of training in the use of Irish Sign Language. I expect that people involved in the Irish Deaf Society would be glad to facilitate the training and upskilling of people in this area.

I am disappointed to hear that no progress has been made in respect of the special school in Cork. I will meet Deputy Ó Laoghaire and the other members of the delegation to discuss the issues in relation to the school in question.

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