Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I take the Minister's point but in the majority of the examples that one could give of people with other conditions, the individuals in question will already have a qualifying payment. Many people will be on disability allowance or invalidity allowance because of their condition and will be entitled to free travel in any event. I am not sure we are talking about a large number of additional people receiving free travel.

I appreciate this would be a significant departure. However, given that free travel was provided to people with certain conditions many decades ago, prior to the introduction of the qualifying payments, it is not an unreasonable proposal.

The Minister stated she was hoping she would have the report shortly. "Shortly" can mean many things in these Houses. Can the Minister give us a better sense of what precisely it means in this case?

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