Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of the witnesses for taking time out of their busy lives to attend. In particular, I am delighted that representatives from the National Learning Network in Bantry could join us. I am aware of the incredible work the organisation does in west Cork and the significant difference its work makes not only in the lives of students but also in the broader community.

As previous speakers noted, statistics show that Ireland has a disgracefully low employment rate for people with disabilities. Today's discussion and the previous session on this topic illustrate the realities for disabled people whose rights are being restricted and eroded continuously.

I will touch on the conversation about the disability allowance. Senator Conway argued that this benefit has to be reduced at a certain point. I do not believe that is necessarily the case. We know that having a disability creates added costs, which are estimated to be between €10,000 and €12,000 a year. I am sure everybody knows that the cost is higher than that. Time and again, we hear people express the fear that they will lose the allowance. The Senator also mentioned the medical card. It is acknowledged that this is a serious barrier which must be removed. We know there is an added cost, so people should be able to keep their disability allowance.

Central to this debate is the appreciation that all people are entitled to meaningful employment as a foundation for independent living. People have the right to live independently. Iwill first ask Mr. Flanagan a few questions to help us understand the underlying issues. His observations on Ireland's report on the UNCRPD contains an incredible amount of insight and examples that address that area. It mentions that the State excludes disabled people from certain careers, for example, in the Defence Forces, the Garda Síochána and the National Ambulance Service. This exclusion feeds into the notion and expectation that disabled people occupy jobs and not careers. I ask Mr. Flanagan to elaborate on that point and the implications of that kind of exclusion. What should the Government do differently?

Mr. Flanagan highlighted that time efficiency is the greatest barrier, one that is often cited as a reason for a disabled person not getting a job. I ask him to discuss that a little in order that members can fully understand it as an obstacle. Does it have to do with misunderstanding and assumptions? I ask Mr. Flanagan to elaborate.

The importance of personal assistance support and the challenge in accessing it come up very often at this committee. I ask Mr. Flanagan to give us an overview of the personal assistance system and how difficult it is to get funding for personal assistants and to recruit them.

Mr. Murphy discussed the importance of building links with local employers in west Cork to create employment opportunities. Will he outline how those relationships were developed? Did the National Learning Network have to overcome or address any assumptions or obstacles on the part of businesses and companies? If so, how were they overcome? What advice would Mr. Murphy give to other organisations or individuals seeking employment?

The ILMI outlined that the lack of public transport, especially in rural areas, is a significant barrier. The committee has heard about this issue previously. Can we get a sense, perhaps from lived experience, of how this barrier impacts on people? Will Mr. Porter give us some more information on his experience of the training course and outline how it helped him?

The action plan for apprenticeship has increased inclusion as a main objective, as does the further and training strategies of SOLAS. Mr. McGrath mentioned that only 2.5% of current apprentices have a self-declared disability and the current percentage in further education and training is unclear. Will he elaborate on the practical measures SOLAS is currently engaged in to increase the number of disabled people who can undertake an apprenticeship and-or further education and training courses this year?