Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It will be in the third quarter of the year. It is at an advanced stage. I am happy to hear the views of the Deputy on the matter because we want to get this right. For the first time, I will be considering tiered payments for disability. It is the right way to go. It is clear that a person with a profound disability needs more support than a person who may be able to work. We have the reasonable accommodation fund. I am doing a consultation on that as well. It provides help to employers, allows people who have disabilities to get into the workforce and assists with adapting the workplace to suit their needs.

There is a lot of work going on at the minute. We are also looking at consultation on the wage subsidy scheme because that is an important financial support for employers who hire people with disabilities. We are taking a number of different approaches and at the end of the day, we want to see people who are on disability payments getting the best support possible, as well as the supports to help them to maybe do part-time work because, as we know, it is good for them to get out into the workforce. I will leave it at that.

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