Ms Maria N? Fhlatharta:

People might have been surprised at the emphasis on violence against disabled women in the submissions from us and from ILMI. The simple fact is that supporting care and social protection are key reasons we experience much higher rates of violence in our community. If we do not have the financial independence to leave certain situations or we have been forced into being financially dependent on an abuser, then we become vulnerable. If we have no choice and are forced into the take it or leave it mentality with regard to care, that also creates vulnerability. It is not our bodies or minds that are vulnerable but the structures in the State which actively disempower us. Ms Hassett will address a couple of matters related to that and consultation, because we have input on that.

To answer Deputy Hourigan's question directly, flexible working is one issue. Ultimately, all of this has to come together in order for us to live full lives where we can have everything, work, have families and be supported in doing so on our own terms. What we are seeing right now in the legislation tabled on flexible work conditions is significantly weaker than what we were already entitled to as disabled people, as a reasonable accommodation. The legal standard set out for me to request to work from home as a reasonable accommodation because of my disability is much higher. Now, we are seeing employers say that they may have to give a written refusal. A broader idea of flexible working has been presented which waters down something that was already a key right for disabled people. It was not necessarily honoured all the time, but it existed. We now see discussions about flexible working and working from home that ultimately create more rigid systems than we should have been entitled to already as disabled people.

We see, again and again, the idea that we have to fit these rigid definitions of what we need to look like as a worker or to be as a disabled person accessing work. When supported employment systems are implemented, they are often capped. People might have access to a certain level of work or a job.

However, it is never going to be meaningful if there is no access to progress up the ladder within that. These are significant issues that come up.

When it comes to having a whole-life picture, of which work is one part, flexibility is absolutely essential. If we continue to create systems that are fragmented and bitty and in which people have to fit into one box to have access, we will never be able to create a system that will really empower disabled people to engage meaningfully with the workplace if that is something they want to do. I am almost discouraged that having moved through the pandemic and towards more flexible working conditions over the past two years, there is now massive pressure to get people back into the office. We are even seeing organisations that supposedly have a disability rights focus being really resistant to creating those flexible working conditions. As we roll back on absolutely everything employers were happy to roll out for non-disabled people over the course of the pandemic, I am less hopeful than I previously was. We have shown we can do all of this remotely and flexibly over the past two years, which gave more of a balance than we ever had before. Right now, however, we are seeing a return to conferences not offering hybrid options, workplaces demanding that people go into the office and a return to nine-to-five working.

The important point was made that no Departments have offered a four-day work week arrangement. We have been told there will be an increased participation of people with disabilities within the Civil Service to 6% of the total workforce, but that is less then half of the representative number. Let us be very clear about that, taking into account that the incidence of disability is counted very narrowly in the census and very widely in terms of who is counted as a disabled employee in the Civil Service. I am not optimistic in this regard. I think the Civil Service is a particularly stark example of where action is just not being taken in this regard, and it is reflected in all kinds of employment all over the island.

My colleague, Ms Hassett, might comment quickly on the consultation.