Tom Clonan (Independent)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. My Commencement matter relates to the back-to-work enterprise allowance, which has been dramatically reduced for persons with disabilities or disabled citizens. I wish to put a human face on this. The text of my Commencement matter refers to supports for people with a disability establishing businesses.This matter is drawn from one of hundreds of representations I received since my election from people in the disabled community. It comes from a man called Donal Coade who was a general manager for SuperValu and Tesco for 25 years. Let us imagine what that environment was like, with fast-moving consumer goods and human resources management. In 2011, Donal was diagnosed with a potentially fatal brain tumour. He had a craniotomy, which is when part of the skull is removed surgically. He had a titanium mesh inserted following the removal of the tumour. It is such a struggle to survive in those circumstances, because life goes on when people have a disability or when they suddenly have an acquired brain injury. People still have to pay the mortgage. They still have to squander whatever meagre resources they have on groceries and feed the kids. Life does not stop; it continues.

Unfortunately for Donal, the titanium mesh did not take well and he had some scarring on the brain that caused repeated seizures. The mesh was duly removed and for a period of years he had no skull, just a covering of skin, and he had to live and cope with that. The seizures continued and he had up to seven per week. Eventually, a solution was achieved through the insertion of a vagus nerve stimulator, VNS. I am telling this story to explain the challenges, obstacles and thresholds people with disabilities must survive and endure just to make it from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. The VNS is inserted into the chest cavity, connected to the heart and then through the voice box connects to the brain itself. The vagus nerve is one of the largest nerves in the body. It goes from the brain right down into the gut. With a magnet on one of Donal's wrists they managed, after a number of years of tuning the device, to get rid of the seizures.

Then Covid hit in 2020. What did Donal do, as person confronting considerable challenges? He has hemiplegia and so is unable to use one side of his body because of these complications, but he decided to set up a hands-free sanitiser dispensing business. It is extremely successful. He used his experience of disability and so-called impairment to devise a device that can be used throughout Covid. It is robust, self-servicing and self-contained. The business is successful. He became eligible for the back to work enterprise allowance but his disability allowance of €208 per week was taken away from him. According to the Cost of Disability in Ireland report, that figure is not even sufficient to meet the extra costs per household incurred simply by having a disability. The back to work enterprise allowance is reduced by 50% after one year and 75% after two years so unfortunately Donal now finds himself in a situation where, as he cannot write and must employ somebody to scribe his business communications, he has to survive on €156 a week. The purpose of this matter is to ask the Minister of State to consider urging the Department of Social Protection not to put obstacles in the paths who have disabilities, or disabled citizens. They are exemplars for what our citizens should be when it comes to ingenuity, endurance and resilience and we should support them every step of the way. We are not talking about huge sums here.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for outlining Donal's story. The Senator might send me on the details so we can pursue it. It definitely sounds like it would be worth pursuing. I have a general response on the general query.

The Department of Social Protection provides a wide range of employment-related supports, for all jobseekers, including people with a disability. The back to work enterprise allowance offers support to people receiving certain social welfare payments, including disability allowance, to develop a business while retaining a reducing proportion of their qualifying social welfare payment for two years. The payment is 100% of the person's social welfare entitlement in year 1 and 75% in year 2. The scheme alleviates some of the risk involved with a new venture and provides an element of financial security along with business mentoring and supports.

In addition, the enterprise support grant of up to €2,500 provides financial support to back to work enterprise allowance recipients to assist with initial business start-up costs, for example to purchase business related equipment, advertising or website development costs.A person moving from a long-term disability payment to take up a job or self-employment can retain entitlement to free travel for a period of five years. They may also retain their electricity or gas allowance for the duration of the payment. Where a person with a disability requires a more accessible workplace or adapted equipment, the Department offers support through the workplace equipment adaptation grant under the reasonable accommodation fund.

In circumstances where a self-employed person decides to employ an additional person from the live register on a full-time basis, they may be eligible for support under the JobsPlus scheme. Under the scheme, an employer can receive a grant of €7,500 or €10,000 over a two-year period. The scheme will be expanded from January 2023 to people receiving disability allowance in order that they can take up a JobsPlus-supported job. Where a person's entitlement to the back to work enterprise allowance is exhausted and the person is operating at reduced levels of business activity, there may be alternative income supports available and the individual should engage with their local Intreo centre. I will do so, on behalf of the Senator, in respect of Mr. Coady.

Disability allowance is structured to support recipients who wish to avail of opportunities to pursue employment. When an individual commences employment, he or she can avail of an income disregard of €140 per week. In addition, 50% of earnings between €140 and €375 are disregarded for the purpose of the means test. Earnings above €375 are assessed at 100%. As part of budget 2023, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, has increased the earnings disregard for disability allowance by €25 per week from €140 to €165.

The partial capacity benefit scheme allows a person in receipt of invalidity pension or illness benefit to enter or return to employment or self-employment and continue to receive a partial or full payment, depending on his or her capacity for work. There are no restrictions on the earnings the individual can generate from employment while on this scheme or on the number of hours worked.

In the wider context, local enterprise offices, LEOs, are the first-stop shop for advice and guidance, financial assistance and other supports for anyone, including people with disabilities, intending to start or grow a business. LEOs can provide additional support to entrepreneurs with disabilities such as mentoring or accommodations to assist with the completion of grant application forms or training courses such as start your own business.

I thank the Senator raising this issue and for his ongoing advocacy for disability. This is my first time to acknowledge that publicly. If he sends me the details of his Commencement matter, I will certainly pursue them with the Minister for Social Protection.

Tom Clonan (Independent)
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I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive response and his kind offer to assist in this matter. I am trying to make a more general point about citizens with disabilities. Equality does not mean treating people the same. It means treating people differently recognising and celebrating difference. We cannot treat disabled citizens in the same way we would treat other citizens who are able-bodied and who do not face the same obstacles. We must recognise the deficits in the disability allowance and the current supports. Extra supports need to be put in place.

We have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons of Disabilities and that ratification should be used to able-proof all of our legislation and supports from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for people in the workplace. However, we need to scaffold and support our citizens with disabilities in a radically different way than we have thus far. I appreciate the Minister of State's comments and have utmost good faith in his goodwill with regard to these issues.

Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, back to the House. She has always been a regular visitor.