Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein)
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Tá fáilte roimh an Aire agus táim buíoch de as ucht teacht isteach. Is cuairteoir rialta é sa Teach agus táimid thar a bheith buíoch de faoi sin.

I am grateful the Minister is back in the House and acknowledge that he is here on a regular basis.

To put matters in context, we in Sinn Féin have proposed the establishment of a national disability strategy implementation and monitoring unit, which would set annual targets in order to ensure full delivery of such a strategy. We believe that taking a rights-based approach to policy implementation and change should not be disregarded during a recession. We are committed to protecting income supports and necessary public and social services for people with disabilities.

The gains made in previous years for people with disabilities have been under attack from the Government through its programme of cutbacks. These vulnerable persons are paying for the disastrous policies and practices of the Government, banks and big business which led to the economic collapse. People with disabilities have had their incomes cut. Services are under increasing strain and funding for the voluntary organisations providing services and advocacy services for people with disabilities has also been cut.

The Government should lead by example. The number of public servants has been reduced significantly. My question could be asked of a number of Ministers because it seeks to discover how many people with disabilities work in each Department. What is the Government target for an increase in the level of representation of people with disabilities? Nice policy documents are all very well, but the Government and Departments should be proactive in employing people with disabilities to ensure they are given a chance to be gainfully employed. This would set a good example for other employers. I ask the Minister to provide an indication of the Government's policy on this issue, state the number of people with disabilities employed in each Department and a timescale for improving on that number.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for raising this issue. I will relieve him of any mystery by saying my good friend and colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, is primarily responsible as the co-ordinating Minister across Departments. I am replying to this debate because she is abroad on Government business. I know this is an area in which she has substantial commitment. I will deal with some of the issues raised by the Senator who may take some added value from this information.

The national disability strategy was launched in September 2004 and its implementation continues to be the focus of Government policy for the sector. Key elements of the strategy include the Disability Act 2005, the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, the Citizens Information Act 2007 and the sectoral plans of key Departments which set out how they will deliver services for people with disabilities. However, a specific implementation plan for the strategy had not previously been developed, but this issue is now being addressed by the Government. The programme for Government states:

The Government will publish, following wide consultation, a realistic implementation plan for the National Disability Strategy, including sectoral plans with achievable timescales and targets within available resources, and ensure whole of government involvement and monitoring of the Strategy, in partnership with the disability sector.

The implementation plan is developing well, with the identification by Departments of actions, time lines and key performance indicators, KPIs. Discussions are ongoing between the disability stakeholders' group and Departments in an effort to reach agreement on the suite of actions contained in the plan. Once all parties are agreed on the plan, it will be published as soon as possible thereafter.

The aim of the implementation plan is, through engaging with the disability sector and building on the traditional problem solving and constructive approach of the community and voluntary sector, to make progress to achieve our common interests. More targeted, innovative and flexible services, designed and delivered on the basis of the evidence drawn from systematic evaluation, will help to ensure available resources are used to deliver services that meet the needs of the community as efficiently and effectively as possible. Acknowledging the current economic climate and diminished resources available across government, the implementation plan will seek to ensure available resources are used to the best effect in ensuring the living standards and access to essential services for people with disabilities are maintained.

The implementation group comprises the senior officials group on disability which represents all relevant Departments and agencies across government. A broad representation of disability organisations and the National Disability Authority has also been appointed to the group, as have a number of individuals with disabilities who have been appointed in a personal capacity to bring their lived experience to the group.

In order to achieve further consultation with people with disabilities who are the users of the services provided by public bodies, the Minister of State has also set up a disability forum under the stewardship of the National Disability Authority. The first meeting of the disability forum was held on 19 June 2012. A report on the views expressed forms part of the considerations of the implementation group on the actions included in the implementation plan. As before, the National Disability Authority is helping Departments in setting performance indicators and outcomes for the plan's targets. One-on-one meetings with Departments were held during 2012 to assist them in identifying actions to be included in the implementation plan. Work by the authority on disability indicators has been signed off on by the senior officials group on disability and the disability stakeholder group.

With regard to employment in Departments, the Disability Act 2005 provides that public bodies shall, as far as practicable, take all reasonable steps to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities. It also provides a framework for monitoring the employment target, currently set at 3% in all public bodies, through departmental monitoring committees. The role of the monitoring committees is to monitor and, in consultation with the National Disability Authority, encourage compliance with the Act by all of the public bodies within the remits of the relevant Ministers. The authority has an overall monitoring and reporting role under the Act. The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has overall responsibility under the Act for setting and monitoring the targets for Departments and other bodies staffed by civil servants. Other Ministers are responsible for public bodies accountable to them. Each Department and public body is accountable for its own performance under the Act in promoting and supporting the employment of people with disabilities and meeting the target.

The National Disability Authority publishes an annual report in compliance with Part 5 of the Disability Act since this became a legal obligation in 2006. The most recent report, published in 2012, is based on data provided for 2011. It shows that for the first time the proportion of staff with disabilities reported across the public service as a whole reached 3.1%. Departments averaged an employment figure of 4.2%. For a number of years all Departments had successfully achieved or surpassed the 3% target. However, in 2011 the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, the newly established Department with a very small complement of staff, was just below the target at 2.4%. It was the only Department not to achieve the target in 2011; all other Departments achieved compliance, with percentages ranging from 3.2% to 6.6%.
The Deputy will appreciate that with the significant number of civil servants leaving through early retirement schemes and the current recruitment embargo, it is a significant achievement for Departments to reach and maintain the target for the employment of people with disabilities in recent years. The data for the numbers of employees in Departments for 2012 are being collated and will not be available until the autumn. However, the percentages achieved by individual Departments, according to the report on 2011 data, are as follows: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, 3.2%; Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, 3.2%; Department of Children and Youth Affairs, 2.4%; Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, 5%. One of the my two Departments, the Department of Defence, has a figure of 4%, with the figure for civilian employees at 5.4%. The figures for the Department of Education and Skills is 3.4%; the Department of Finance, 3.9%; the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 3.5%; the Department of Health, 6%; and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, 6.6%. My second Department, the Department of Justice and Equality, has a figure of 5.4%. The figure for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is 6.5%; the Department of Social Protection, 4.2%; the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, 4.1%; the Department of the Taoiseach, 4.7%; and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, 5.1%. The total average figure is 4.2%. I am very pleased that the two Departments in which I have the privilege to be Minister have rightly and substantially exceeded the 3% target and it is my objective that we will continue to do so.

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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That was an extremely long and comprehensive reply, with which I am sure the Senator is very pleased.

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein)
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I am and, for a change, I will not give out to the Minister.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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As the Senator rarely gives out to me, I must be doing something right on occasion.

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein)
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It was a very encouraging reply and the figures are very encouraging. A review will take place of the numbers who have left the public service and we look forward to getting the figures in the autumn. Does the Minister believe the Government will relax the embargo in cases where it is important to increase the percentage, for example, in the Department of Children and Youth Affairs where it is below the average figure? Will he ask the Government to relax the embargo in certain cases to ensure we reach the target of 3%?

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I do not want to give my good friend and colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brendon Howlin, apoplexy by suggesting the embargo be relaxed. Obviously, we must stick to the strict financial parameters within which we are operating, but within these parameters, as the Senator kindly acknowledged, the overall objective is being achieved. There are some Departments, including the Department of Children and Youth Affairs which I mentioned where it has not been fully achieved. Let us wait to see the figures for 2012 and if all Departments have managed to achieve that objective. Obviously, I am conscious that staff are retiring and of the need to keep an eye on this area to ensure we meet our objectives.