Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 321: To ask the Minister for Finance the outcome of the car tax concessions review referred to in Parliamentary Question No. 106 of 2 June 2004; and his views on whether a person with autism who presents a danger to themselves and another person while being carried in a car due to an inability to remain still, and having outgrown a conventional baby seat, warrants the granting of car tax exemption in order to pay for the necessary adaptations. [30232/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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A special interdepartmental review group reviewed the operation of the disabled drivers scheme. The terms of reference of the group were to examine the operation of the existing scheme, including the difficulties experienced by the various groups and individuals involved with it, both on an administrative and user level, and to consider the feasibility of alternative schemes, with a view to assisting the Minister for Finance in determining the future direction of the scheme.

The group's report, published on my Department's website in July 2004, sets out in detail the genesis and development of the scheme. It examines the current benefits, the qualifying medical criteria, the Exchequer costs, relationship with other schemes and similar schemes in other countries. The report also makes a number of recommendations, both immediate and long-term, encompassing the operation of the appeals process and options for the future development of the scheme.

Following on from the report's immediate recommendations concerning the appeals process, amendments to the regulations governing the scheme have been made by my predecessor, and subsequently by me, in April and again in September, to improve the operation of the appeals process. These amendments included providing for an expansion of the panel of medical practitioners serving on the medical board of appeal from three to 15 — this will substantially reduce the waiting time for appellants.

In respect of the long-term recommendations, given the scale and scope of the scheme, further changes can only be made after careful consideration. For this reason, the Government decided in June 2004 that the Minister for Finance will consider the recommendations in the report of the interdepartmental review group in the context of the annual budgetary process having regard to the existing and prospective cost of the scheme. The Government is committed to supporting and reinforcing equal participation in society by people with disabilities. Disability was one of the priority areas in which I substantially increased investment in last year's budget.