Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This motion is great in principle. Listening to the experience of those living with disabilities in Ireland has increased our knowledge. I have recently been doing extensive work on well-being spaces in conjunction with the University of Limerick, TCD and UCD. The research is telling us that when a space is inclusive of all, it benefits everybody and not just those living with a disability. The intention is to create positive spaces and disability proof communities. We have been ably helped by disability activists who have done the guerrilla campaign work involving putting stickers around the city last September with the logo, "Hey, this Block my Way" and pointing out the dangers of obstruction of public spaces. The Make Way day was another such initiative and it is planned to make it an annual event.

However, I am a bit confused as to why Fine Gael has tabled this motion as it does not call for anything that is not already supposedly being done. It would have been better to use the time to introduce legislation to deal with elements of disability rights in housing. I do not understand the impetus behind what can sometimes feel like a self-congratulatory debate about progress on true equality, which in reality has been slow and scant. For example, Inclusion Ireland said of budget 2018 that it did "little to drive the much needed reform of disability services, or to deliver key measures to make positive change in lives of persons with disabilities." I do not see the need for the motion at this time and I fail to see how it does anything more than pay lip-service to existing strategies.What does it add to it? How can we have any confidence when implementation of so many of the plans included in the strategy is already behind time?

The period covered by the national housing strategy for people with a disability was extended from 2016 to 2020. Why is there a difference between what is included in the strategy and the motion?

There are housing and disability steering groups in each city and county council area to facilitate integrated and timely responses to meeting the housing needs of people with disabilities. Perhaps the Government needs to have more faith in these groups.

The motion states the Government has made significant advances since coming into the office in promoting equality among all citizens, including people with a disability. I can think of a few advances, but I am not sure they are very significant. Perhaps this might be explained.

The motion notes the commitment to ratifying by March the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This involves the stroke of a pen but, as with all things, it is what will follow that really counts. I refer to the implementation and tweaking required in order that we can live up to the standards set out in the convention.

The motion recognises the significant contributions made by the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, since he took office in advancing workable solutions on issues that affect the daily lives of people with a disability. I like the Minister of State and believe he is a very affable chap, but I am not sure the use of his name in a Private Members' motion is good.

Will Fine Gael Senators include transport accessibility in their sentiments? I certainly do not believe it is included. Senators James Reilly and Martin Conway alluded to the need for it. Earlier in the month the transport committee heard about the disgraceful treatment of people with disabilities by public transport providers. Bray-based Paralympian and broadcaster Padraic Moran recalled a trip he had made to Greystones. The DART on which he was travelling had to get out of the way because the train to Rosslare was coming, meaning that the door started to close. He had to stick his leg out the door to keep it open. He said it took the driver five minutes to come and check why the doors were not closing. He ended up with an injured ankle, but, for him, it was better than ending up on a siding at a DART station. The panic buttons at the station had been disarmed.

Bus Éireann claims that, by its own admission, 74% of its buses are wheelchair-accessible. Each wheelchair-accessible coach has one wheelchair space, which must be booked 48 hours in advance using the reservation system. Therefore, there can be no last-minute trips and no trips with more than one person in a wheelchair. There are many stories in that regard. Contributions have been made towards achieving social equality to include those with disabilities, but I question whether they were significant.

Last year I participated in a walk-around with a group in Crumlin, Dublin 12, in the constituency of Dublin South-Central. The proportion of those with disabilities in that constituency is a few per cent above the average. The walk-around included people in wheelchairs and people with mobility trolleys and prams. Also participating was an individual with impaired sight. This individual came away with scratches all over his face, having stumbled several times. I left with my back almost broken from trying to push a wheelchair out of gullies. We lost the individual with the mobility scooter because he had to travel to a location several streets away to find dips to go over. I understand the infrastructure is slowly being addressed. The walk-around really indicated to me, as an able-bodied person, what it was like for a person with a disability to go to a shop or gain access to any service.

I asked Dublin City Council about sandwich boards. There are so many of them and probably only one has a licence in the entire city of Dublin. They present a significant difficulty for people, especially those with sight or mobility issues. This is a policing matter. It is a question of whether the council has the facilities to address it. We need to think differently to tackle it.

I am happy to support the amendments tabled by my colleagues Senators Frances Black and John Dolan. Their language strengthens the motion. There is nothing wrong with the sentiments expressed in the motion, as tabled, but I just wish it went further. I wish it addressed the issue of housing adaptation grants. There is a backlog of several years, in addition to serious under-funding. This needs to be addressed also.