Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion this morning. I commend Deputy Cairns and the Social Democrats on bringing this motion forward. I also welcome the people in the Gallery. I remember being here in 2018 when we ratified the UNCRPD, although the optional protocol was kind of left out of it.

I listened to all the speakers today. From my own experience, unfortunately, a disability is just a label for people because this is not about what condition a person has; it is about what rights a person should have. That is the difference. We are not giving resources to those people who need extra sources and, therefore, they are labelled, tagged and tucked into a corner.

I spoke in the previous Dáil about a gentleman in his 60s who is a double amputee. Like one of the other speakers said earlier, people often have to come here to the Dáil to get something. This gentleman had an electric wheelchair but it was broken. The HSE said it did not have a budget to fix it. We actually went on local radio to raise awareness and a fabricating company in west Cork said it would fix it. The HSE said it would not stand over it because of insurance. That man spent six months in a reclining chair before we had to come in here and raise the issue with a particular Minister before things were done. That is not the way to do business for people who want fairness, respect and equality all in one go.

I wish to mention a good friend of mine who was involved in politics on the other side for many years, who through her own life experiences started up a summer camp. That will be 30 years ago this year. It started with three or four children and they now have more than 250 children and nearly 400 volunteers. They run a summer camp every year in Midleton. Ms Margaret Trundle deserves a massive amount of praise for her work with friends and families of people with intellectual difficulties.

Going back to this motion, unfortunately, we are in the Chamber again discussing people with disabilities. As the Minister of State mentioned earlier, it is about having a bit of joined-up thinking and engaging with all the services but also with local authorities. Another gentleman in his 60s, who asked not to be named or identified because of embarrassment, is in receipt of the housing assistance payment, HAP. We sometimes hear Government members say we have great increases in disability allowance or the invalidity pension or whatever but this gentleman pointed something out.

I will read what he said:

Cork County Council obliges me to notify them of any changes of my circumstances. Whereas my bank statements have shown the council that I nonetheless did experience a pertinent material change in circumstances in the last annual budget the Government increased my weekly disability allowance by €5. When the council scalded me by phone for not advising them earlier of this change of circumstances I said I was unaware that central Government welfare increases counted. Taking account of the €5 increase in my disability allowance, the council increased my official weekly rent contribution by exactly €5.

That is giving with one hand and taking with the other. Now, with inflation going up, these people are going backwards.

I have spoken to many people and have listened to them. When I was on the town council we brought in service users to discuss mobility. When we did our streetscape, and it is not finished yet believe it or not, the section we completed won a European mobility award. That was because we listened to everybody and took account of what everybody needs. That is how it should be and that is what this motion is about. It is based on the needs of people. However, it is not even just the needs, it is the fairness that is missing here that is really annoying. I look at the Gallery and I see each of the people there. It is all about being treated with respect. In this day and age, why should any of those people have to beg for what should be an initial right? Everything should be given to them on the basis of their needs, not on the basis of their means. I support the motion.

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