Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent)
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I was very struck by many aspects of the testimony we heard but particularly the client who was unable to travel. There is the wider issue where no appeals are possible currently because of the inappropriateness of the assessment system. I was also struck that a client in a local Citizens Information Services office lost an appeal because the person was unable to travel the five hours to attend the assessment in Dublin. The lack of funding and transport upfront is getting in the way of people being able to appeal or seek that access.

I was also struck by Dr. Lajoie's comment about the number of people who do not take appeals. We know many appeals are successful when they take them. I sit on the disability matters committee as well and there is a frustrated sense sometimes that refusals were happening at an early point almost to wear down people with bureaucracy, with people feeling daunted by a delay in access. They say that justice delayed is justice denied and there seems to be an element of that in people with a disability accessing entitlements.

In that regard I also pick up on the comment made about the importance of the local centres. In addition to the really good information on the Citizens Information website, will the witnesses speak to having local offices? There was mention of the two offices in Kerry and the different offices in different counties. People can access these offices in order to help them to navigate what can sometimes seem like quite a hostile and forbidding bureaucratic system. Will they comment on that local support?

There are one or two other issues. We have talked about the interim period in which there is no appeals mechanism or individualised service. There have been two developments in the past couple of years. One is the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD, and the effect on rights of people with a disability, and the fact that people have individual rights to participation in society, for example. There is a little bit more of a robust legal right now that the convention has been ratified. Will the witnesses comment on the extent to which people are becoming aware of that and how they think those new or strengthened rights tools might be used?

I was really struck by the number of areas where the need for greater financial inclusion was identified for people with a disability. Perhaps adding to that we could consider the case of the woman who was asked to transfer the vehicle and financial independence. Will the witnesses comment on that matter of financial independence as well as financial support and inclusion?

There was also the cost of disability report that has finally been published. Is that something MABS has engaged with? Are some of the proposals in today's presentation related to the issues that arose in that cost of disability report from Indecon? I thank the witnesses.