Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of the State to the House. I very much welcome the opportunity to contribute. I wish I had the opportunity to sign to Senator Clonan's Bill but I was not asked to sign it. Members were reading out the list of colleagues who are signatories to this Bill, but I was not asked to sign it. I absolutely would have signed it and when it came in on Second Stage, we supported it. I hope this Bill will assist the Minister of State to make her job a little easier because we need investment in and delivery of services. The Minister of State works every day of the week on supporting staff to deliver. I do not disagree with anything any of the previous speakers because we are all here for the same cause. Every child deserves access to services and the best opportunities to thrive and not just survive. There are so many families who contact me day in and day out who are just exhausted. I do not know how many letters I have written or phone calls I have made relating to an assessment of need or getting an appointment for occupational therapy or speech or language or whatever the case may be.It is a small thing for us to do, as elected representatives, but when there is a result it is huge. Its a sign of a broken system when people have to go to their elected representatives to get a service. I hope the Taoiseach stands by his word and ratifies the optional protocol. We need that and it has been called for endlessly at the disability matters committee, of which I am a member.

I welcome the Bill and the opportunity to speak on it. As Senator Hoey said, it is a small Bill with big ambition that will make big changes. We all have that same ambition for every child and person with disabilities in this country.

I have just left a meeting of the transport committee where I listened to Senator Higgins talking about access to transport. We have huge problems with transport in this country but it was nearly two hours into the committee meeting before disability or accessibility was mentioned. I question the National Transport Authority's interest in developing and creating an accessible service and I have said that on many occasions.

I wish the Minister of State luck in bringing this Bill through the Houses. It is about delivery. With or without this Bill, we all want to see the delivery of services, the protection of children, investment in the services and the 800 staff needed being put in place. It was a big win for the Minister of State when she ensured that there was no recruitment ban in the disability services sector. That was hard fought. There is no recruitment ban in this area and people are being hired. That was a win for the Minister of State and the children who need those services.