Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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600. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to explore introducing legislation to ensure a right to personal assistance to ensure disabled persons who need supports to live independent lives can do so as per Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44797/20]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The area of disability services is a priority area for this Government. The HSE provides a range of assisted living services, including Personal Assistant (PA) services to support individuals to live independent lives. Significant resources have been invested by the health sector in disability services, and the Government has ensured that an additional €100 million is being provided for new disability measures this year under Budget 2021. These measures will include an additional 80,000 personal assistant hours. The 2020 national service plan committed the HSE to deliver 1.67m hours of Personal Assistant Hours to over 2,550 people.

The Programme for Government agreed to deliver further Personal Assistance hours to people with disabilities..

The Programme for Government also commits to the development of an implementation plan to co-ordinate implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This would include examining how best to ensure that people with disabilities can access the support services, including personal assistance, that they require to participate in their community.

There are no plans for additional legislation governing the rights, entitlements and operations associated with the PA service at this time.