Martin Daly (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)

Equal voices, equal actions, equal futures. I welcome the publication of the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030, which is shaped by people who live with disability. This is a landmark moment. This is the first national strategy since Ireland ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It commits this Government to a whole-of-government response to equality, participation and choice not merely as aspirations, but as rights that must be achieved.

However, we must be honest about the gap between the strategy and its five pillars and the lived experience, especially in rural constituencies such as my own constituency of Roscommon-Galway. This year, 17 new school leavers across six towns are entering adult day services with the Brothers of Charity service in Roscommon. Funding was provided for a vehicle but there is no ongoing funding for staff to operate it. The hours required to transport individuals are deducted from the service day itself. When that day is already limited to six hours, every minute lost is significant. I am very appreciative of the extraordinary work of providers like the Brothers of Charity and Ability West and their staff, who do everything possible to stretch limited resources to meet the needs of families. However, even with their dedication, the current funding model forces services to shorten the day and families to structure their lives around it. Working days are cut short, careers are put on hold and household incomes are reduced not by choice, but because the service model does not align with the realities of modern work and family life. This is not a marginal issue. It is a structural barrier to participation. It limits the opportunities of disabled people to learn, socialise and build independence. It also constrains their families' ability to participate fully in the workforce and in society.

The national strategy is ambitious and rightly so. Its commitment to a mainstream first approach and to individualised supports is exactly what is required. However, that mission must be matched with sustained and predictable investment. We must ensure a service day that is long enough to meet need, fund staffing so that transport does not erode the day itself and deliver fairness for rural service users, who cannot be disadvantaged simply because of their geography. If we achieve that, this strategy will not be a mere statement of intent but a turning point that delivers genuine equality of participation and that fulfils the promise we made under the UN convention.

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