Mr. Robbie Sinnott:

Deputy Wynne also asked about the DPO Coalition. The DPO Coalition's primary remit is to produce a shadow report into the UNCRPD. That report is very much under way. It does not quite have a representative role. That is not ultimately what it is about. Clearly, however, there is a space for information sharing. Since it is one of the funded members of the DPCN, it is an avenue for national DPOs to join the top table, so to speak. The DPO Coalition still accounts for a minority of the controlling members of DPCN. For the DPO Coalition, ultimately the shadow report is what it is about. We do not know if it will be around after the publication of the shadow report. Representation should be direct. All DPO Coalition members would welcome direct engagement regarding their own specific constituencies. There is no point in me trying to represent the specific needs of disabled women or wheelchair users, even though at least half of our members are women or wheelchair users. That is not our focus, however. It is important that direct engagement takes place, possibly using the New Zealand model.

I was asked for other examples of where the State has marginalised and ignored people. Between March and July of this year, we sent 20 or 25 emails to the disability policy unit of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, citing examples of how we were being ignored. Not one of those emails was responded to or acknowledged in any way. The Department had actually asked us to send them in. That applies across the board, including in areas such as health and transport. We have an email from the National Transport Authority stating that the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities does not apply to it. It stated that it was waiting for the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to come back and guide it on how to do it and in the meantime, the convention does not apply to it. I could supply the committee with a copy of that email.