Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I raise this very serious matter because it has been described as a bolt out of the blue by various representatives of people with disabilities. I am very concerned at the direction the Department of Health is taking in the area of disability. There has been a recent history of direct attack on funding of disability services and supports for people with disability. Last year the Minister for Health blamed the troika for taking €10 million out of the budget and reducing personal assistance, the home helps. While we accept that there is a difficulty because the mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant do not comply with the equal status legislation we cannot accept its arbitrary removal with nothing to replace it.

There were no consultations or discussions with representatives of the disability groups and no contact with the individuals in receipt of the mobility allowance or applicants for the motorised transport grant. This is having a devastating impact on people and their quality of life. These people normally live on disability benefit or allowance of approximately €190 per week. The mobility allowance, means-tested, at a maximum €208 a month meant that these people had some independence. They could get out and about and go to dental or doctors' appointments and live a reasonably independent life. This will stop them dead in their tracks. Is there no way of carrying out the review as was committed to and promised? We do not know where that particular review is but we do know that the grants have been scrapped and they will have a huge impact on the quality of life of individuals who depend on this mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant.

The Government talks about ring-fencing but this issue was known for some time. The Ombudsman formally notified the Department in April 2011 that it was in breach of the Equality Act and that certain measures had to be taken to change and bring it into compliance. Even in the Ombudsman's press release yesterday she states that it is "most regrettable" that the Department of Health failed to find a solution to address the problem surrounding the mobility allowance scheme and the motorised transport grant scheme and that the Government has now chosen to discontinue them. The Ombudsman says it is "most regrettable" but I can assure the Minister of State that people who depend on the mobility grants find it very regrettable because this is a direct attack on people with disabilities. The grants enabled them to live independent lives in their communities and function and play a meaningful role in society.

This decision must be reversed, a scheme must be put in place that complies with the Equal Status Act but at the same time does not discriminate and does not mean that people with disabilities will find it harder to have independence and a good quality of life. This is a shameful decision. I know the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, agonised over it. She said she did but the people who will agonise most will be those who find that in four months' time the mobility allowance is gone completely and those who apply for it or for the motorised transport grant will find that they have been discontinued. This decision must be reversed and some method of review brought about to ensure that these schemes comply with the equal status legislation.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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People with disabilities can be forgiven for asking what is it about this Government and its absolute disregard for the needs of people with disability. It was under this Government that disabled people had to camp outside Government Buildings in order to stop the cuts to support for personal assistants. One might think that a lesson would be learned from that experience but no, in the most crass and ham-fisted way the Government has ended the mobility allowance scheme and the motorised transport grant. This is a very cruel cut. No other word applies. The Government can talk all it likes about the money being ring-fenced but that is no good to the person who has the mobility allowance now and will not have it in four months' time. People affected by this cut have been in contact with my office today, as I expect is the case across the board.

One of my constituents who called me is a double amputee. I have met him on several occasions. He said these are not easy schemes to qualify for in any event. He put it starkly, "I ended up having to lose two legs before I qualified". In addition to that severe disability this man is also visually impaired. His home help hours have already been cut from nine and a half hours to eight and a half hours per week. He requires 11 items of medication and his monthly prescription charge has risen from €5.50 to €16.50. All of these cuts were imposed by this Government, not by its predecessors.

The Department of Health has known since at least 2008 that the schemes as applied were discriminatory and the Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, has pointed out that they were in breach of the Equal Status Act since 2000. The Fianna Fáil-Green Party Government failed to act. That is acknowledged. What of the so-called democratic revolution that this Government has spoken about and heralded since the general election of February 2011? Lo and behold Fine Gael and Labour have acted no differently from their predecessors. They have neither extended nor replaced these schemes. This is a cruel cut for people with disabilities, especially those who reside in rural Ireland who cannot avail of public transport because in vast swathes of rural Ireland, including the two counties that I represent there is no public transport. The Government has axed these schemes and not replaced them and tells us that there is a review. Why not continue the payments as they are until the review concludes and a fair replacement scheme is decided upon? The Government has winged it this far.

By failing to take this logical course of action the Government leads us to only one conclusion, that this is another cutback by another name. I will quote from the programme for Government just to remind the Minister of State that it stated:

We will ensure that the quality of life for people with disabilities is enhanced and that resources allocated reach the people who need them... We will also facilitate people with disabilities in achieving a greater level of participation in employment, training and education.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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As this is an important issue, I hope the Acting Chairman will indulge us by giving us some extra time to debate it.

I am pleased to take the opportunity to outline the Government's position on the matter raised by Deputies Billy Kelleher and Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, namely, the mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant. The Government is very conscious of the needs of people with a disability who require transport supports from the State. Up to 4,700 people receive a mobility allowance, while 300 people a year receive a motorised transport grant. The Government is also conscious of the position of the Ombudsman that the schemes are illegal in the context of the Equal Status Acts.

Following detailed consideration of issues surrounding the mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant, the Government has decided it is no longer possible to allow the two schemes to continue as they currently operate and to devise an alternative solution or solutions which will meet people's needs. Independently chaired, a review group will seek an alternative method for ensuring the needs of persons affected can be provided for in a manner that does not run counter to the Equal Status Acts. It is important to note the Government's decision is in no way intended to save costs. The funding involved in the two schemes, €10.6 million, remains committed to meeting the priority transport and mobility needs of people with a disability. It is also important to note that, despite the fact that the Government's decision ends both schemes to new applicants with immediate effect, the payment of the mobility allowance to those currently in receipt of it will continue for another four months.

The Ombudsman recommended that the Department of Health revise both schemes to make them compliant with the Equal Status Acts by removing the age limit and using a broader definition of disability in respect of eligibility for both schemes. It has proved extremely difficult to resolve this matter. Several policy options have been considered in detail. These have raised significant issues, including the feasibility of extending eligibility under the schemes. However, the cost of such an extension could be as much as €100 million per annum in the case of mobility allowance and €200 million over a three year period in the case of the motorised transport grant. Another issue that emerged was if the eligibility criteria were expanded and the current budget of €10.6 million was retained, the resultant payments to the people eligible would be so reduced as to make them almost meaningless. Any additional cost incurred by an expansion of the schemes would have to be met from current expenditure and result in a reduction of front-line specialist disability, older people and mental health services for people who need them.

The Government has come to the conclusion that an extension of either scheme would create serious financial pressure on the health budget in the current climate and be unsustainable. A project group has been established to examine both schemes and will recommend a solution or solutions which will address priority mobility and transport needs of those who require supports. The terms of reference are being finalised and agreed with the group. However, it has been agreed that the group will work in a number of stages, commencing as a priority with a review of the issues around the mobility allowance and motorised transport grant. The group will continue its work once this first phase is over and examine wider issues around transport for persons with disabilities. As part of the review, the Health Service Executive will examine the circumstances of all those currently benefiting from the schemes to ensure the identified solutions will encompass their priority mobility needs. In addition, the Minister for Health has instructed the HSE to contact each individual in receipt of the payments to notify them of this decision.

Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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When I hear the Department of Health stating it will ring-fence money, it strikes fear into me. Last year we were given a commitment that mental health funding would be ring-fenced, but it was not. Instead, it was snaffled and included in the overall health budget. The €15 million set aside for the roll-out of free general practitioner care services for those participating in the long-term illness scheme was also snaffled and included in the overall budget. Accordingly, I do not have much confidence in the Department claiming that it has ring-fenced this funding.

The Ministers and the Department spent two years examining the difficulties these two schemes had encountered in complying with the Equal Status Acts. The schemes are now scrapped and we are setting up an independent review group. While the best brains in the Department could not come up with a solution in two years, the Minister is now asking an independent review group to come up with one in four months. What should have happened was that the schemes should have been allowed to continue for the time being while an independent review group was established to come up with solutions to the problems. This would, at least, allow those in receipt of the mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant to continue drawing them down. However, the Government has arbitrarily cut these grants. It is a heartless cut. The Minister knows this will have a devastating impact on the quality of life of those individuals who rely on these allowances, as well as on the independence to which they are entitled and deserve.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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In her response the Minister of State stated the Government had decided to devise an alternative solution or solutions. Has it taken it two years to make this judgment? She also stated, “A review group will seek an alternative method for ensuring the needs of persons affected can be provided for in a manner that does not run counter to the Equal Status Acts.” She knew this was a issue before taking office. I do not understand why, two years after taking office, the Government has decided to cut off these grants for new applicants and tell those in receipt of them that they will cease in four months. Why does it not wait until the completion of the review before ending these schemes? Surely, that would be the reasonable approach to take. Why were the schemes neither extended nor replaced in the past two years?

I am a Deputy who represents a rural constituency that is ill-served by public transport. Many disabled people in counties Cavan and Monaghan cannot avail of free public transport because there is no public transport network in their areas. This is no exaggeration but a fact. There is no solace for them whatsoever with the shutting down of the schemes.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Deputy Billy Kelleher asked what should have happened. The matter should have been dealt with long ago. This would have given us a degree of space in dealing with the issue.

Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Government was officially notified last week.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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The Deputies opposite had 13 years in government in which to fix it.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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What has the Government done in the two years it has had to deal with it?

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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In the 18 months we have been examining the matter we have come up with every possible configuration. For instance, we examined how we could allow the 4,700 in receipt of the allowance to retain the moneys and cut off the scheme for new entrants. We were informed that that would be illegal. We asked if the scheme could be redesigned to make it fit for purpose for the individual to meet his or her needs. Again, we were told it would be illegal for the simple reason that the definition of “disability” was very broad in the Disability Act. One could not possibly state only one category of people could receive the allowance, while others who would qualify for payments under the scheme under the Disability Act could not.

This is not an action the Government wanted to take. If we could have found a solution to this problem, we would have found it. It is not for the want of trying that we have not come to a solution. We came up with every possible configuration, but it was not possible to implement any of them. We are aware of the hardship and concerns the shutting down of the schemes will bring. That is why we are determined to come up with a solution. We are not just putting the review group in place. It has been in place for the past two weeks. Two weeks ago at the Joint Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions we laid out exactly what our difficulties were in this regard. This has not come as a bolt out of the blue for anyone.

There is a difficulty for us if we are to comply with the Equal Status Act. I do not believe there is anyone in the House who would suggest that we should change the Equal Status Act, because that would bring about unintended consequences. Equally, I do not imagine there is anyone in the House who would wish or expect us to narrow the terms of the Disability Act. However, the difficulty is the broadness of the definition of "disability" in the Disability Act. Further, under the Equal Status Act, if we were to allow everyone who would qualify under the new terms into the scheme, it would cost between €170 million and €300 million, and we simply do not have that type of money. How do we find that type of money? I understand the argument questioning why we cannot find the money, but we have a particular budget and we must ensure the services we are obliged to deliver in health, including those to people with disabilities, are protected as well. We are examining the matter; it is not something we have given up on. We will find a solution to this.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Has the Minister of State set a timeframe for the review group's work?

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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The review group is a rather wide-ranging group which includes people with a specific interest in transport for people with disabilities. There is a difficulty if we limit it to that. If we were to devise a transport scheme for people with disabilities and we defined a disability, then we would be asked about the rest of the people and then the Equal Status Act would come into play. It is rather complex. The people on the committee have a particular interest in transport for people with disabilities. They are as convinced as we are that we need to devise a transport scheme for all and rural transport to the fore in our minds.

I do not go along with the cliché to the effect that we should take this as an opportunity. However, the only way we can address this is to devise a transport scheme that will serve us better in the future. That does not take away from the difficulty. I am mindful of the fact that there are people who depend on this allowance, and providing a transport scheme will not alleviate the impending hardship.

We are considering all aspects of the issue. If it were possible to find a solution to the issue, we would have found it. This is not something the Government wanted to do. As Deputy Kelleher correctly stated, we have agonised over this, but we will continue to be completely engaged to ensure we find a solution. We have asked the review committee to come back within three months. We are not starting from a blank page.

The difficulty is that we do not map anything. Let us suppose we were to map what is available in terms of transport in this country, including the school transport scheme, rural transport - limited as it is - and organisations such as the Irish Wheelchair Association, which has a transport fleet, and Vantastic. If we were to map all of these services we should be able to provide a transport service for everyone. That does not take away from the hardship that will be imposed on people in terms of income, and we are mindful of that.