Ms Eileen Daly:

I thank the committee for inviting me here today. I am going to speak about what I feel the future of the personal assistant service should look like and why I feel it is the best way forward. For me, the key difference that a personal assistant service makes to my quality of life and that of my peers is that it expands beyond everyday care tasks. While providing me with essential services such as personal care is absolutely essential because I cannot physically do it for myself, a PA service allows us to participate as equal citizens in society.

To put it crudely, my personal assistant is an extension of me and my arms and legs. She empowers and enables me to carry out those tasks I cannot physically do. As a person with a disability, having control of my budget and the knowledge and understanding of from where money comes and how it can be spent and the fact that I am responsible for paying my staff is liberating and empowering, although it assumes a certain level of responsibility. Not everybody wants this or can deal with it, but for those of us who do, it is the way forward. It expands my quality of life beyond the home and enabled me to take up education and go to university before pursuing a number of postgraduate studies. Thankfully, it also allowed me to take up employment. I have many personal assistant hours, but without them, my full participation in society would not be possible. I work every day in the further and higher education sector. Therefore, I work to ensure people with disabilities and others are given equal access to education in their day to day- lives. Part of it involves assisting them to progress to employment.

I refer to the different policies and legislative measures in place. The one that comes to mind is the comprehensive employment strategy. Many people need a personal assistant to access employment. Some do not, but a range of supports could be made available. Some are available such as assistive technology and so on, but when some people with disabilities leave education, they cannot take up employment because they do not have the supports they need. If they had access to a personal assistant service, it would allow them to take up part-time or full-time employment, if they wished. That would have a knock-on effect on the Exchequer and the economy, which would be a win-win. Personal assistants are employed and pay taxes; I am employed and pay tax, which removes me from the benefits trap. If this opportunity was afforded to others, many of them would take it to enter employment. However, it is also important to remember the needs of families. Direct payments allow families to have more autonomy and control over the way they manage their budgets for children and young people with disabilities. People's needs change throughout their lives. The needs of a child differ from those of a teenager and evolve in adulthood. It is paramount to have a personal assistant service from the point of view of accountability and transparency and measures need to be built in to ensure this is upheld. Flexibility is required. Research to which Mr. Collumb alluded shows that when people with disabilities and their families are given ownership and control of their own budgets, it is more economical for everyone and has many benefits for society as a whole.