Finian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In May 2016, I had the great honour of being appointed Minister of State with responsibility for disability issues, the first such Minister of State to sit at the Cabinet table. Not only did I consider it an honour but I also viewed it as a challenge. I set myself three goals: to reform, to invest and to put the person with the disability at the centre of our thinking and planning.

I wish to take the opportunity to highlight one of those areas, namely investment, without which we will struggle to reform. In my three years as Minister of State with responsibility for disability issues, I have secured additional funding of more than €500 million for disability issues. This is a figure one will not hear from the Opposition or in our national media. This has not been easy in the context of many other competing priorities across government. The Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities that will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives. I am pleased to have been able both to build on significant existing resources and to obtain additional funding for disability services in the 2020 budget. With these additional moneys, the overall budget for disability services in 2020 will be in excess of €2 billion. The increased level of funding in 2020 will enable us to continue to provide residential services to more than 8,600 people with disabilities at more than 1,240 locations.

On taking office, one of my priorities was to ensure that all young adults leaving school or Rehab training would have access to supports and services that met their needs at one of the most crucial transition points in their lives. Additional funding of €13 million will provide supports and day services to approximately 1,600 young people with disabilities who leave school and training programmes next year. I recognise the critical importance of respite for the loved ones and families of those with a disability. I am pleased to confirm that an additional €5 million will be provided in 2020 to build the capacity of our respite services in order that we can better respond to the changing needs of service users and their families. In the coming weeks, I will open our 12th respite house in Naas, County Kildare. Specifically, this funding will provide intensive support packages for children and young people in response to the changing needs of service users and their families. This initiative will include intensive in-home visiting support, planned overnight, specialist behavioural support and extended day-weekend and day-based activities for families. Sláintecare is centred on providing services and supports at the lowest level of complexity. An additional €5 million in this budget is provided for emergency protocols to support people with disabilities who have high support needs. This includes funding for emergency placements and the provision of intensive in-home support and respite packages, which are intended to delay the need for residential care for vulnerable service users.

An additional €2 million will be provided in 2020 to support implementation of the autism plan, which includes a range of measures to improve services for people with autism and their families. A 100% Christmas bonus will be paid to those on invalidity pension, blind pension, disability allowance, carer's allowance, carer's benefit and domiciliary care allowance, to name but a few. The carer's support grant of €1,700, which we restored, will be paid in 2020 to more than 126,000 users. In addition, the number of hours per week that carers can work outside the home will be increased from 15 to 18.5 from January 2020. More than 1,200 carers are expected to benefit from this. The blind welfare allowance will be exempt from the means assessment for social welfare schemes. Some 12,000 housing adaptation grants will be provided at a cost of €59 million to help people with disabilities.

The budget is about being person-centred, ensuring that the person with the disability and, where appropriate, his or her carer are to the forefront of our thinking and planning. This budget, the fourth in which I have been involved as Minister of State, has demonstrated my commitment in this regard.

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