Ms Isolde Ó Brolcháin Carmody:

I wish to add to what Mr. Sinnott was saying about voting rights and give an example of how Governments responded in the past to cases of structural inequality for disabled people. Mr. Sinnott was successful in his case and there are now templates with Braille and large print at polling stations. However, there is none at my polling station because my polling station is my home. Once again, the response was to do the bare minimum of what was required under the ruling.

Another example is that of someone I knew who took a case to the Equality Authority, when we still had one, over the age cut-off for the motorised transport grant. Loads of us are waiting with bated breath to turn 66 when our disability magically disappears and we become just an older person and no longer a disabled person. I cannot wait to reach that point. Returning to my point, it was shown that the motorised transport grant and the cut-off at the age of 66 was discrimination based on age. The Government withdrew the motorised transport grant, supposedly to reconfigure it. I think that was eight years ago and there has still been no replacement for that service. Those of us living in rural Ireland are disproportionately affected by that.

If we were to bring in an online voting system, which is good practice in respect of accessibility, we would need good broadband in every home. We do not have that. I am speaking via a mobile Internet connection because that is the only broadband I can access. Technology must be provided to disabled people who need it. I am attending this meeting using an iPad paid for by my local arts office as part of my artistic work. I cannot function without it and no funding is provided to get appropriate technology. Matters such as this cannot be dealt with piecemeal or one scheme at a time. Everything that is done must be sweeping, cross-departmental and from the ground up.