Ms Léan Kennedy:

I thank the Deputy. With regard to illegal parking and the issues it causes for clients and members of the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, enforcement is the issue. It can vary regionally and county by county. During the day, in most areas, it is a matter for the local authority traffic warden to implement fines and to do the work of being vigilant about illegal parking. In the evening, it falls to the Garda. Enforcement depends on the time of day, which means that people with a disability have to think about who to contact and to whom to submit a complaint, depending on who is enforcing the rules.

I will give an example of the issues and experiences of our clients. I know of a blind woman who uses a guide dog and lives in a town. When she gets off her bus coming home from work, she is forced into the middle of the road, in the midst of cyclists, because there are cars parked beside the bus stop. Those cars are being parked there because the drivers have decided it is the best place to park when they are shopping in the local Aldi. This is the type of issue people are having. We need to make sure that the rules are tightened and enforced more appropriately around e-scooter use, parking bays and all of that so we can stop this type of behaviour. It really does put people with disabilities at considerable risk.