Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As the Acting Chairperson and Minister of State know, this is disability week and tomorrow is International Day of People with Disability. It is an opportunity to celebrate how far we have come in the world in terms of people with disabilities and what has been achieved, as well as to celebrate their successes and the massive contribution they make to society. It is also an opportunity to reflect on how much more needs to be done. Some 10% of our population have disabilities and they and their families make a huge contribution to and are of benefit to our society. There are many inequalities in Ireland, however, such as in respect of transport.

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. She will appreciate where I am coming from. Transport is critically important for people with disabilities, not just in terms of connectivity but giving them the opportunity to access employment and so forth. There is significant disparity in access to transport for people with disabilities in rural Ireland compared to urban Ireland. While everything is not right in urban Ireland in terms of access to transport people for with disabilities, it is far from right for people who live in rural Ireland. There may only be three or four options a day, depending on the town and village in which people live, to connect to a more urban area for work. There are many towns and villages in this country where there is no connectivity at all. Even getting to work is an issue and sometimes does not happen.

In terms of employment, as far as I am concerned this country is a laggard when it comes to employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Unfortunately, nearly 80% of the blind and visually impaired community in this country are unemployed and rely on State support, which is totally unacceptable. I commend the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, NCBI, which has produced a well-thought-out employment strategy to improve access to employment for people who are blind or visually impaired.

The reason I have tabled this Commencement matter is because of Ireland's commitment to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, UNCRPD. It was a great day in 2018 when the last Government ratified that convention because it meant that Ireland, along with the world, was recognising the important contribution people with disabilities make. Unfortunately, the optional protocol still has not been implemented. When does the Government intend to ratify the optional protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities? Can she give us a timeframe? Can she explain why, almost four years on from Ireland's ratification of the convention, we still have not implemented the optional protocol?