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

Do the witnesses feel that DPOs and disabled people are being consulted with regularly? We hear from different DPOs here that they feel the are not and sometimes it is a box-ticking exercise and the consultation is done to say “We have done it” but their recommendations are not taken on board by different organisations and Departments. Others feel that the wrong bodies are being consulted with in that, according to the UNCRPD, it should be DPOs or disabled people themselves and not service providers, for example. Will that all be addressed as part of the review? Is there more to be done there? What is the best way to identify them? There are many different DPOs – some quite small and some large. Some have suggested a register but the Department does not think the register is a good idea. What do the witnesses think of that?