Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. Martina Maloney is a former manager and she is extremely helpful and proactive. She is one of the best and most dedicated public officials with whom I have had the pleasure of working. Her wealth of experience, that of the chairperson and the work they do are highly valuable. I am here to be fair to everybody and I acknowledge the expertise and the good work throughout the country, but I have an issue of concern and I hope NOAC can examine it. It is about oversight of the way people with disabilities are being dealt with across local government.

It continues to be my concern, and I emphasise that this is no reflection on any individual or local authority, that we are not showing due respect for people with disabilities when we deal with their problems. For example, a case was brought to my attention this week. The letter is written to the mother of a disabled child and the person who has the disability is referred to in the third person throughout the letter as "the disabled person" rather than "your son" or "your daughter". That is disgraceful. It makes me very angry that people who fight for rights for their children are treated disrespectfully. That is the reason I raise it here. It made me angry yesterday because when I arrived here there were two rows of people in wheelchairs outside the door of Leinster House who are not getting the home care packages they need. That is not the concern of the witnesses but it is my concern. They were outside in the rain. It is absolutely unacceptable that people with disabilities who need care and attention are not being treated properly. Their rights are being disrespected.

The difficulty with the case I have on hand, and this person cannot be recognised from what I intend to say, is that the person has a visual impairment, complex physical and intellectual difficulties and requires percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy, PEG, feeding and frequent suctioning. The person has nursing care at night but requires 24-hour care. The HSE wrote to the council on behalf of that person asking that the person be given a special bath and hoist because of the significant disabilities. Where the council refers to the person in the third person, it absolutely ignores the person's needs. The last line states that the application is hereby refused. It treats the person with great disrespect. This is just one case, but it should not be happening.

I ask that the NOAC, as a matter of urgency, examine the language that is used in letters to people with disabilities. If it is disrespectful, the council should be dealt with severely. One cannot treat people like that. Second, if somebody has complex disability needs and has a HSE report from a physiotherapist and doctors stating that the person needs something, it is not good enough for the council, which owns the house, to tell the mother that the council does not install such hoists, to hell with the application and it is closed. Incidentally, in the last line, it tells the mother that if she wishes to appeal the decision she can do so within 21 days and it provides the address to which the appeal should be made. That is wrong and I totally reject it. Much of the work the NOAC does is constructive, but one thing it could do, as a matter of urgency, is examine the letters that are sent by the councils, meet with the officers who deal with them, who I presume are the chief executive officers, and work out a language that is respectful, understanding and takes special care with people with disabilities.

I accept that often the local authority may not have the money to do the work required. It is the Government's job to ensure the money is provided. However, within that, there must be far greater emphasis on the rights of people with disabilities and their families. Never again do I wish to visit a house and hear that a family with a huge issue is being completely ignored and left in a dreadful situation which must be dealt with now. I am not disrespecting the people who wrote that letter, but they must be trained in appropriate language. There must be a far more respectful and empathetic relationship. That is very important.

The other point I wish to make relates to NOAC's reports. I am not nit-picking but we do not have a particular report to discuss with the witnesses today. If I understand it correctly, the NOAC has indicated its report will be available later this year. Perhaps the information I have is incorrect.