Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for the response on behalf of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, which is not his Department. The response does not directly address my request that there would be a digital accessibility grant. Such a grant was proposed by the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, NCBI, last year to the former Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy English.

I understand that the regulation has yet to be transposed into Irish law and that international standards have already been developed. Those international standards have been accepted by the EU and form part of the regulation that will be transposed. So many businesses are going online and we are offering them grants and support for digital upgrades. In that context, why not go that step further and include a requirement to ensure that the international standards on accessibility accepted by the EU and which form part of the regulation are applied to all new businesses? This will provide new markets, new space and most importantly, equity, for people who are visually impaired.