Ms Saoirse Smith:

I am sorry for being late; the traffic was very bad this morning. I am a civil servant. I also do comedy outside my normal 9 to 5. The major issue I face in doing comedy is the lack of accessibility to buildings. I have to crawl up stairs to go to my gigs, which is degrading in itself. It is disgusting and exhausting. Many members might be thinking why I do not find an accessible venue. One, why should I? Two, it is very difficult to do. The majority of Dublin is not accessible. I cannot get into nearly all the buildings on the new pedestrianised Capel Street. That is no use to me. There needs to be new rules to make buildings accessible for people like me. There needs to be new legislation that allows buildings to be renovated, whether they are historical or not. My answer to everything, when people say a building is historical or whatever, is since when are buildings more important than people? They are just buildings. They are not important. If Áras an Uachtaráin can be accessible, why cannot other buildings be accessible? Leinster House is accessible. There needs to be a major change and constant communication with people in the disabled community on what we need. It is one thing to give us lip service and say members are hearing and listening to us but we need them to do something about it. That is the main thing. It is very frustrating that nothing is being done and I am still struggling to find somewhere all the time.

Another issue I constantly face, and it is coming up again soon, is the constant fear of losing my medical card. I do not mind saying I am currently earning €466 a week. I can earn up to a maximum of approximately €500 a week. In my next increment at work, I will be over the income bracket, which means I am in fear of losing my medical card and everything else. I need my medical card. It pays for my chair, which can be a couple of grand at most, my cushion, any adaptions and accessories I need, including electric wheels which I am currently trying to get, any procedures, and doctors' visits, which I currently and regularly go to. That is a constant fear. I had to have a conversation with my employer about possibly doing fewer hours so I do not lose my medical card, which I should not have to do. It should not be means-tested. It should be done on a case-by-case basis. There should not be a constant fear of losing absolutely everything. It is a constant fear that I will lose my medical card. I cannot afford all the procedures and everything I get done on a regular basis. I just physically cannot. It is just impossible.

On the past couple of occasions, and when I go to work, I have had issues with public transport. I have been late more than ten times in the past month at 8 a.m. People in Dublin Bus have been rude to my mother. When she asks why the bus is not working, the response is it is just that bus that is not working but all the rest of them are. That is not a good response. It is unacceptable. I am constantly late for work and constantly have to send emails to my boss to say, "I am really sorry. I am going to be late because the ramps are not working". I am getting rude remarks from drivers who say it is not their problem, but it means I am stuck for 20 minutes waiting for a bus, possibly in the rain or in the heat, which is horrendous for a wheelchair user. It is just a constant fear.

I reiterate what my colleague said about housing. My boyfriend and I are currently looking for housing through the housing assistance payment, HAP. Every house or place we visited has baths. I cannot use a bath. I need a shower. All new developments have baths but more accessible things need to be put in.

I will remark on what our Taoiseach said, who made a very ableist comment that Sinn Féin's politics were for slow learners. His response to that was appalling. His original remark was tactless and he needs to properly apologise. Even if that remark was made God knows how many years ago, it was not appropriate then and is not appropriate now. He sets a precedent for this Government. He has to be better than everyone else when it comes to disabilities. If that is his attitude, then that is the attitude of the rest of the Government, in my eyes. He needs to change that.