Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I raise the very deep sense of abandonment felt by citizens with disabilities, their families, carers and service providers. The Government has yet to allocate the necessary additional funding for disability day services to enable them to deal with the impact of Covid-19. We are now six months into this pandemic. The disability services submitted their funding requirements to the HSE in mid-June. I understand the HSE collated and verified these submissions in July.

The submission set out the additional funding required to enable those services to meet their additional costs to operate during this pandemic for the remainder of 2020 and the projected costs for 2021. I cannot overstate the deep sense of abandonment and frustration that citizens with disabilities and their carers and support services feel. It is to their very great credit that these organisations and families have battled on through the crisis, despite the huge challenge and the collapse in revenue for them. Will the Taoiseach commit to the additional ring-fenced funding that is required? The Disability Federation of Ireland estimates approximately €120 million will be a necessary part of the winter plan to allow disability day services to resume for these citizens.

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