Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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333. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on and response to a key conclusion (details supplied) in the Cost of Disability in Ireland - Research Report. [5798/22]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The Cost of Disability in Ireland report was commissioned by the Minister for Social Protection and prepared by Indecon International Research Economists. It was published in December 2021. It provides important evidence of the additional costs that people with a disability face in their day-to-day lives.

The Programme for Government contains a commitment to use research into the cost of disability to properly inform the direction of future policy. As the evidence in the Cost of Disability in Ireland report has implications for many areas of public policy, a whole-of-government approach is required to develop appropriate and timely responses and to ensure that everyday costs are reduced for people with disabilities and their families.

For this reason, the coordination of this whole-of-government response is being carried out under the National Disability Inclusion Strategy (NDIS). The NDIS is one of two national policy frameworks through which the rights of people with disabilities in Ireland are progressively realised. In addition to advancing key actions under the NDIS, my Department supports the implementation and monitoring of the NDIS by coordinating the National Disability Inclusion Strategy Steering Group (NDISSG). The Group is chaired by my colleague Minister Anne Rabbitte T.D., and is attended by representatives of Departments, Agencies and the Disability Stakeholder Group.

The Cost of Disability in Ireland report was considered by the NDISSG in December 2021, within 24 hours of publication. Indecon International Research Economists presented the findings of their research to the NDISSG and it was agreed that at the next NDISSG, which will take place in March, the Group will discuss the approaches to be adopted to act on the findings and conclusions of the report. The Group will examine meaningful action to reduce day to day costs for people with disabilities in Ireland. Aligning the findings and recommendations of the Cost of Disability in Ireland report to the NDIS will ensure that recommendations can be properly considered at whole of government level and that progress against actions taken will be monitored by the NDISSG and the Disability Stakeholder Group.

Although the report provides an estimated additional cost range for people with a disability, the exact additional costs for any individual person with a disability will vary considerably depending on, for example, the age of the individual, the severity of disability, the nature of the disability and the household type. Through the NDIS, we will explore cross-Government ways in which the different dimensions of additional costs can be addressed fairly, equitably and sustainably.