Mr. James Cawley:

On the assistive technology, if we look at it from a public body perspective, Article 9 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities addresses accessibility. We often think about accessibility in the context of doors and steps but sometimes we do not think about accessibility in terms of websites, information, consultations and so on. That is vitally important. We must ensure as a society that all of these are made accessible under Article 9 and the public sector duty.

We would recognise, as do many people who are disabled, that assistive technology is as important as personal assistance. There absolutely should be provision to fund assistive technology to enable people who are disabled. Again, it goes back to the key method about the person deciding. For example, it is more important for me to be able to live independently than it is to have assistive technology, if that makes sense. The personal assistance service, the assistive technology and so on allow for the pieces of the jigsaw to be tied together.