Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As the Minister said, all the members of the Disabled Drivers Medical Board of Appeal resigned at the end of last year after expressing repeated concerns that the criteria for access to the scheme were way too stringent. The Minister said he is in the process of putting a new board in place but there are mounting numbers of people awaiting appeal and they are being left in limbo with nowhere to turn. The transport working group met in January and the Minister of State at the Department of Health with responsibility for disability, Deputy Rabbitte, stated that the review of transport supports for disabled people was a priority and that the working group's focus since that would be to scope the provision of transport supports across Departments and public bodies, with a view to assessing gaps and anomalies. I know there are many gaps and anomalies but surely this has taken far too long. How often has that working group met, how many people has it engaged with and has it engaged with the people who made up the Disabled Drivers Medical Board of Appeal for their expertise? Ireland is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and there is an onus on us to provide access to transportation on an equal basis to enable people with disabilities to live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life.

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