Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leader for facilitating this debate. I would have preferred to have it when the Minister was here. I did call for the debate two weeks ago but unfortunately it was not put on the schedule. Time is passing while the working group is meeting, so it is important to debate the issue here. I would have preferred to have a Minister present but I am quite prepared to go ahead with the debate without a Minister. However, I would ask that the transcripts of today's debate be sent to the working group for its consideration, if that is in order.

The mobility allowance issue has been flagged for the past 12 years and the Ombudsman ruled that it was illegal. In recent years, it has been brought to the attention of various Departments but nothing was done. Suddenly, we have now been told that the allowance is finishing in four months.

I appreciate that the working group has been established under the stewardship of Ms Sylda Langford who is a very able person. I know she will do the best she can. A lot of disability groups' representatives, including a person with a disability, are working with her. That is fantastic because at least the needs of people with disabilities will be discussed in full.

The mobility allowance should be retained as an individualised payment to people with disabilities. I am speaking specifically about those who are confined to a wheelchair. The Ombudsman has said that the mobility allowance should be available to people with all types of disability, including psychological, intellectual, mental and physical.

The working group should consider ideas and proposals concerning the relatively small number of people involved. We are talking about almost 5,000 people who are in receipt of this allowance. It is costing approximately ¤10 million per year, which is a relatively small amount. If we were to go down the road suggested by the Ombudsman and open the allowance to everybody with a disability we could be talking about a figure of between ¤200 million to ¤300 million per year. Such an outlay would not be sustainable at the moment due to funding restraints.

There are many experts and legal advisers in the working group so surely with all that expertise it can come up with a method to retain an individualised payment to people who are confined to wheelchairs. There has been much talk about access to transport for people with disabilities, which is fantastic. That is the way to go, but right now an undue hardship is being imposed on approximately 5,000 people. Life is hard enough for people who are wheelchair bound. They must face challenges every day which we cannot comprehend. One would have to be confined to a wheelchair to know what life is like for them. Such people may be able to walk a few steps but they cannot live without their wheelchair. I am referring to those suffering from muscular dystrophy and other complaints. In order to live life to the full they do need a wheelchair, so it is incumbent upon us to ensure that they can live independently and without unnecessary challenges.

The Minister for Health, Deputy James Reilly, and the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, have assured us that funding will continue for four months for recipients of the mobility allowance while a new scheme is being devised. I appreciate that all applications received for the motorised transport grant will be processed but I am worried that the introduction of accessible transport will deflect from individualised payments.

I know the problems that people living in rural areas can encounter. I can cite a few examples where accessible public transport will not work. I know of a young girl who has a severe disability. She cannot walk or talk and can only communicate with her eyes. Her parents bought a bus that has been adapted to suit their daughter's needs. They paid for that vehicle with the mobility allowance. That young girl had to go to Limerick from Kerry five times in one month for a fitting for a specialised wheelchair. Who would be able to transport that girl if that family did not have the specially adapted bus? Would transport be available, with a driver, to take her and her parents to Limerick when necessary?

Another case concerns a man in his 20s who is intellectually outstanding, but requires a motorised wheelchair. He goes out at night with his friends to the pictures or for a drink. With the end of the mobility allowance, who will be there at 1.30 a.m. to take this young man home? His friends cannot take him out because their cars are not adapted for motorised wheelchairs, so he is dependent on specialised transport. He will have to pay for a taxi to get home.

I could cite other examples. I know one woman with a disability who uses the motorised transport grant to drive. She takes her children to school in the morning, picks them up and takes them to after-school activities. She needs individual transport and cannot book a van or bus to take the children to football or swimming.

The individual payment must be retained for people with disabilities, especially in rural areas where accessible transport is not available. I will be making my own submission to the working group because I am unable to say everything I want to here in five minutes. I hope that other speakers will also have constructive ideas that we can present to the working group.