Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I wish to make some summing up remarks on the debate we have just had. Many of the contributions from the various Deputies centred on the issue of the Green Paper. It is clear that a wide variety of Deputies in this House are pleased about the fact that the Green Paper has been scrapped, thanks to the pressure the Government was put under by the disability campaigners first and foremost. However, I think some of the contributions from the Opposition to the debate on this issue were a bit on what I would describe as the soft side.

For example, I am not sure if many disability activists would agree with Sinn Féin's Deputy Ó Laoghaire that the Government was not fully aware of the harmful effects that the proposals contained in the Green Paper would have. I think the Government was given a benefit of the doubt there that was not deserved. I believe the Government and senior civil servants were well aware of what the Green Paper meant. I would not give them the benefit of the doubt at all.

There was significant discussion on what I believe will now emerge as a key if not perhaps the key issue confronting us on disability more broadly, which is the question of means-testing and a living payment. In the debate, claims were made which do not tally with the reality of life for people with disabilities. The Minister made the point that there had been a €29 weekly increase in payments over the past three budgets. However, other Deputies referred to the Indecon report on the cost of living with disability, which in today's terms is between €10,000 and €14,000 per annum. Minor incremental increases like that do not come near to dealing with that reality. We need to shift the debate on to the idea of a real living income for people with disability rather than minimal increases at budget at times.

Having said all that, I want to concentrate my closing remarks on the Government's contribution to the debate. It seems that the Government will not oppose the motion; it has not proposed any kind of a countermotion. It has not indicated that Government Members will not vote for the motion so I presume that they will vote for it or will allow it in some way to go through. I regard that as a cynical ploy to avoid being seen in a poor light. Government Deputies should be clear - I am making sure that they are clear from my comments here - that if they vote for this motion or allow it to go through, they will be held to account on the commitments that are contained within the motion.

I will mention just two. The motion calls for the immediate ratification of the UNCRPD optional protocol. The Government has not even named a date for its ratification. If this motion goes through today, it can expect the pressure on that front to increase. The motion calls for an end to means testing of disability payments and their replacement with an income that genuinely covers the cost of disability. If this motion passes, the Government should immediately factor that into the early planning arrangements for the budget in the autumn. Government Deputies can expect to feel real pressure from disability activists campaigning on the idea of a living income should they fail to do that.

See this speech in context