Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue for discussion. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, and the Minister, Deputy O’Gorman. The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is leading discussions across Government to develop actions that will improve the lives of people with disabilities, including in the areas of transport and employment, to ensure they can live full lives of their own choosing. The Minister of State with responsibility for disability, Deputy Rabbitte, chaired meetings of the transport working group from January 2022 up to its conclusion in December 2022. The group's work has now concluded and the final report was published in February 2023. The report sets out the contributions made by members for the enhancement of transport and mobility supports for people with disabilities. A number of schemes were considered by the working group, including the mobility allowance and the motorised transport grant, which the Government decided to close to new applicants in 2013 on foot of the Ombudsman's reports in 2011 and 2012 regarding the legal status of both schemes in the context of the Equal Status Acts.

The introduction of a replacement scheme is complex. It has not been possible to deliver one to date, despite work undertaken by the Department of Health prior to the transfer of responsibility for these schemes to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. Since the closure of the schemes, there have been ongoing efforts to consider alternative supports that would align with the Equal Status Acts, not least at a senior officials group convened by the Taoiseach specifically to consider what whole-of-government action can be taken to improve transport supports for people with disabilities. There is agreement across this group, and the Departments represented on it, that a holistic, joined-up approach to transport supports for disabled people is vital.

These considerations will continue in the context of the development of the national disability strategy. As we have heard through our consultation process, transport, and personal mobility more broadly, is a fundamental enabler of independence for everyone. Reliable and accessible transport facilitates us to work, socialise and pursue an education. For people with disabilities, transport and personal mobility are acute concerns and their adequate provision can make all the difference in ensuring autonomy, choice and control over one’s day-to-day life, as well as one’s future.

The interconnected nature of these supports is why, in line with the UNCRPD, the Government is taking a determinedly mainstream-first approach to the delivery of the next national disability strategy. In that sense, the next strategy will see transport and mobility for disabled people addressed in a mainstream and co-ordinated fashion in a dedicated pillar. The next national disability strategy will take ambitious action to improve access to transport and mobility for disabled people, acknowledging the importance of such supports in ensuring that disabled people have access, on an equal basis with others, to the full range of opportunities in our society. It is incumbent upon all public bodies to address disability as a matter of everyday function and to understand the role we all play in bringing about genuine inclusivity for people with disabilities.