Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am anxious to get everybody in so I invite Deputy Higgins to ask her questions after which we will go back to the witnesses to respond to the points made.

I thank the Chair. I was panicking because I could see the clock ticking and I very much wanted to contribute to this discussion. I was in the committee room earlier to hear the witnesses. It was great to be able to be there to see how ISL worked in a practical way. We have heard contributions on exactly that. If rooms were set up with that in mind, that would all happen a little more naturally and would be a little easier for everybody involved.

I enjoyed today's discussion. I particularly commend Mr. McGrath, Ms Fitzgerald-Graham and Ms Grehan on the points they made. I was struck by what Mr. McGrath spoke about regarding the focus on full participation. It is not just about consultation but full participation when it comes to decision-making on how things are run and how they are done. I heard loud and clear his point about the funding that will be necessary to make that happen.

There has been a lot of discussion, especially in the second half of this meeting, on work experience and the need for meaningful professional positions to be made available to people of all abilities. I was involved in such a scheme in my previous role when I worked for PayPal, which collaborated with the Trinity Centre for People with Intellectual Disabilities. As Mr. McGrath said, it was a work experience programme that turned into meaningful jobs at the end. We need to see more of that.

I was quite struck by what Ms Fitzgerald-Graham spoke about in respect of the Washington experience, RISE and what had happened there. That is something we should strive to achieve. In my constituency, Stewarts, where I was over the summer, do a fantastic job in supporting people when it comes to inclusion. It was great to hear so many stories about their clients who are in the working world and who are making meaningful contributions in the professional world, as well as in every other walk of life. We need more of that. Ms Fitzgerald-Graham's contribution was particularly positive. She talked about everything from a possibility, as opposed to a barrier, perspective. We need more of that kind of language because that is what we want to do. We want to enable people to thrive and to fulfil their full potential.

Ms Grehan spoke about an issue relating to the deaf community in particular. I was struck by one thing that would never have occurred to me, which were the expenses and additional expenditure involved for a member of the deaf community to run for election. What can we do to support them? The situation does not seem fair or right. I was also struck by the figure of 55%. Ms Grehan spoke about 55% of people from the deaf community having difficulty contacting local representatives. I would love to learn a little more about that. She spoke about literacy sometimes being an issue within the community. Is that why people are not able to email local representatives? What are the barriers and how can we break them down? It is important that we do so.

I was also struck by what Ms Grehan said about the television show, which was such a success for so many years. I intend to write to RTÉ to ask why it is not being aired any more and what plans there are to bring in a replacement that would engage with people from the Irish deaf community.