Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will speak to amendment No. 13 before speaking to the wider section. This amendment seeks a report on a report but it is the mechanism we have when we have concerns relating to reports and we want to know what will happen with them. The Indecon report is very long-awaited and I sit on the committee dealing with disability matters. The Minister is aware that we have been pressing strongly for this. It has now been published and given there was such a long period of waiting for the report, we had given a collective statement in June. It was a cross-party statement from the committee urging for the report to be published in time for it to be properly reflected in this Social Protection Bill and, of course, the other areas of legislation it affects, including financial areas.

The report has been published but this has, effectively, been done too late to have a proper impact in respect of the budget, which is regrettable. It is absolutely vital we use the findings of the Indecon report, including the impact of the cost of disability and the actions that might need to be taken to address issues of inequality and deprivation arising from the cost of disability. We must have measures that directly reference and follow through on the Indecon report in the next social protection budget.

As I stated, if the report had been published over the summer, as we requested, it would have been really good to be able to point to five, six, seven or 20 pieces of this budget that were implemented because of the Indecon report. I am sure one or two actions might have been done as the Department looked at the report before it was published more generally. It would have been really good for us to have that conversation about addressing the concerns around the cost of disability through our social protection system. It would not done only through the social protection system but it would be an important plank.

I am sure the committee dealing with disability matters will correspond with the Minister about this. I would like the Minister to assure me that there will be engagement and we can expect measures arising from the Indecon report in the budget for 2023 that we will debate towards the end of 2022. Who knows, it may even happen in a supplementary budget before that.