Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Mar aon le Seanadóirí eile, ní raibh mé chun labhairt ar an mBille anseo. Tháinig mé toisc gur iarr an Seanadóir Seery Kearney orm a bheith anseo agus ár dtacaíocht a thabhairt don Bhille. Ach nuair a bhí mé ag éisteacht leis na Seanadóirí eile, cheapas go raibh rud éigin le rá agam.

I wanted to pay tribute to Senator Clonan, my neighbour in Blackrock, for the work he has done, not just on this Bill but on this issue, in highlighting it, sharing his real-world experience of it with everybody in the House and the Government, and pushing it to the forefront. In mentioning Blackrock, I am also conscious of all the people here. I see Ms Emma Weld-Moore from Neurodiversity Ireland in Blackrock. She recently attended a public meeting there with Dan Carson, a new young local election candidate. The amount of interest in that meeting was testament to how these issues and the whole spectrum of them enormously affect everyone. I sometimes think we sound like we are speaking in a vacuum but there is not an extended family in this country that is not affected by disability. Everybody has something they deserve help with.

I wanted to say one thing in respect of this Bill, the section, and what Senator Clonan said about this being a small, short Bill that will achieve a great deal. The Minister of State will see the people in the Public Gallery. All of us know of the people in the areas where we live who are so committed to improving the simple things that can be done to make lives easier and more accessible for everyone and to bring that inclusion to everyone. When we see that commitment in our communities, the least the Government can do is match that commitment. What is in the Bill is an opportunity for the Government to put its money where its mouth is, to match that commitment and to put in place clear lines to give effect, for example, to service statements and other things like that. This is so that when people, such as those who have come here, including people who are liaising with Senator Clonan and who contact us all, come with an issue, there will actually be a mechanism in the Government, and the State will be there to match that commitment and deliver for those people in the way we know we can.

One of the matters I am particularly alive to is the amendment to section 11 of the Disability Act 2005. We must make sure there are not blockages or bureaucracy that stops things being done, and that there is not a situation where the left hand, within the Civil Service or the provision of State services in the HSE or whatever it is, is not talking to the right hand. Let them all come together.Let us get it done because we know we can do better for people who need the assistance of the State. Let us do better. I commend the Bill to the House and offer my support.