Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1609. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide a breakdown, by Department or office, of the percentage of employees who have disclosed a disability for the past ten years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20201/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has been implementing its Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Strategy, since 2022. The strategy provides clear actions and a framework through which we build on a shared ambition to be an organisation that is welcoming and inclusive for all staff, customers and service users.

Part 5 of the Disability Act 2005 requires the preparation of a statutory report on the employment of people with disabilities in the public sector. This report is compiled annually by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform and, from information provided by all public bodies staffed by civil servants and gives details of the number of people with a disability employed in the Civil Service submitted to the National Disability Authority (NDA). My Department follows the Civil Service Code of Practice on the employment of people with disabilities. My Department’s Disability Liaison Officer (DLO) is available to assist and support staff with disabilities and their line managers by providing information, guidance, and support, as well as assisting in the provision of reasonable accommodations.

The information requested by the Deputy is set out in the below table. I am pleased to note the considerable progress made by my Department in attracting, retaining and measuring the percentage of employees with a disability. My Department gathers this information on an annual basis by conducting an anonymous and voluntary census of all staff. The table provides the percentage of staff working in the Department of Justice from 2015 to 2023 who, as part of the annual census, identified as having a disability. The data gathered in the 2024 census, is currently being collated and is not yet available.