Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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869. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to set out the status of the implementation of part 5 of the Disability Act 2005, specifically as it relates to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24563/16]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, Part 5 of the Disability Act 2005 sets out the legal obligations of public service bodies as follows:

- To promote and support the employment of people with disabilities

- To comply with any statutory Code of Practice

- To meet a target of 3% of employees with disabilities

- To report every year on achievement of these obligations

In its latest published report for 2014, the National Disability Authority (NDA) reported that the proportion of staff with disabilities in the public service exceeded the 3% target for the fourth successive year. In the Civil Service, the area of the public service for which I have direct responsibility, 4.3% of staff employed in Government Departments were reported as having a disability. In relation to other areas of the public service, each Minister is responsible for reporting on the target set in the Disability Act 2005 for the employment of persons with disabilities in public bodies under his or her aegis.

In addition, a number of Departments and Offices in the Civil Service are participants in the Willing Able and Mentoring (WAM) Programme which is a graduate work experience programme aimed at persons with disabilities.

Recruitment to the Public sector may be conducted by various employing organisations. However, as the Deputy will be aware, the Public Appointments Services (PAS) is an independent statutory body which provides professional recruitment and selection services when requested to the civil and public service under licence from the Commission for Public Service Appointments (CPSA). As a public body established under the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act, 2004, PAS is also obliged, under section 34(1)(b) of that Act, to ensure that "standards of probity, merit, equity and fairness" apply to all of its recruitment and selection processes.

Competitions advertised by PAS are open to all applicants including people with disabilities who fulfil the eligibility requirements set out at that time. PAS carefully considers all requests for reasonable accommodation to assist candidates with disabilities. In considering such requests, PAS is conscious of the rights of people with disabilities and of the obligations on PAS to observe those rights and to act in accordance with the provisions of the relevant equality legislation.

To assist PAS in considering requests for reasonable accommodations in a fair and balanced way, candidates are asked to submit evidence in support of their request. PAS will consider letters or reports from relevant professionals which clearly indicate the severity and the type of accommodation(s) that may be relevant to the person. For example, candidates may be afforded extra time and/or alternative formats if assessment tests are part of the selection process.

The Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities (CES) was launched by the Government on 2 October 2015.

The Government has already taken a number of key decisions as recommended in the Strategy:

- the public service employment target for people with disabilities will be increased on a phased basis as set out in the Strategy from 3% to 6%.

- special public service competitions for people with disabilities will be arranged and we will open up alternative recruitment channels for people with disabilities.

These and other recommendations of the Strategy are being considered by a cross-party group chaired by Mr Fergus Finlay and my Department is a member of the Group.