Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. I welcome what Mr. Joyce indicated in his opening statement about how many of the unions in his organisation were displaying more awareness of autism and addressing it. Sometimes, ignorance breeds fear. Mr. Joyce spoke about passport systems. Will he expand on that point? At our earlier session, we discussed assistive technology and how it should follow a child from primary school to college and on into work, being updated as needed. That does not always happen, though. At previous meetings, witnesses spoke about having reasonable accommodations in their workplaces but having to reapply if they changed workplaces. Would the passport scheme apply to just one place where there was a change of role or would it follow people if they changed employers? Mr. Joyce stated: "Section 16 of the Employment Equality Act obliges employers to provide 'reasonable accommodations' to employees." Sometimes, employers prefer to avoid employing autistic people or disabled people in general because, despite there only being a requirement to make "reasonable" accommodations, they believe that employing someone without a disability is easier. Obviously, they are missing out on a great deal of talent by doing this. We must try to get through to employers about the talents that autistic people have and what they could bring to places of employment.

I have a few questions about how Specialisterne Ireland works. Is it a nationwide body? It has increased the number of people it has helped down the years, with 200 availing of assistance this year. Are there others seeking assistance whom Specialisterne Ireland is not in a position to help due to a lack of resources? Mr. Brabazon indicated that the funding was not multi-annual but that it needed to be.

Candidates apply to Specialisterne Ireland for assistance. Do companies approach it seeking people or does it reach out to companies to take on people? Regarding those it has helped to gain employment, is that employment sustainable? Do people stay in it long term or is there a large turnover of staff? Has Mr. Brabazon data on this?