Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on and support the motion and I thank the Independents 4 Change for putting it forward. The motion will help to provide disabled people with the freedom to have the same choices everybody else has in housing, transportation, education and employment. For many disabled people, independent living can be achieved through a personal assistance service. Currently, there is no legal right to personal assistance in Ireland. There are no standardised procedures or application processes and due to the lack of legislative protection those in receipt of this support have no security regarding the continuation of the service.

In December 2017, I and my colleagues in the Rural Independent Group tabled a motion on home care packages. In the motion we called for the home care package scheme to be established in law to give everybody an automatic right to the service. We are still waiting, and many more are waiting. We talk about the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but in west Cork there is no transport service for people over 18 years of age. If their parents cannot take them to the service providers, they must stay at home. If that is what we call ticking boxes and getting things right, we are doing a very bad job for certain people with disabilities. We cannot pick out one sector and say it is resolved when another sector is suffering. People are suffering. In west Cork, volunteers and community organisations in Bandon, Goleen and Ballydehob are volunteering to provide this service. The State has turned its back on the people with disabilities who are over 18 years of age.

I have been talking about this for long enough, but nothing has been done. Money is being squandered throughout west Cork by the health service on transport, but nothing is happening on the ground. Ms Sarah Dullea was refused a public transport service by Bus Éireann. She is a wheelchair user and a beauty therapist in Dunmanway. That lady had to go through hell to get her rights. That is the situation in the State today. The rights of people with disabilities must be examined further in this country. If not, they will be let down.

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