Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 1 Dec 1998

Vol. 497 No. 5

Private Members' Business. - Facilities for the Disabled: Motion.

Mrs. T. Ahearn

I move:

That Dáil Éireann

(a) noting that Thursday 3rd December is European Day of Disabilities;

(b) conscious of the fact that an estimated 140,000 people with physical and sensory disability have yet to achieve full social, economic and educational integration as equal, independent and participative members within the general community;

(c) aware from Govemment—commissioned reports that this sector has been historically underfunded;

(d) believing that there is an urgent need to address the legitimate demands of people with physical and sensory disability for a range of appropriate services, in particular day resource centres, aids and appliances and personal assistance services;

(e) conscious that the Government and Dáil Éireann have welcomed the publication of a number of critical reports in this area, notably Towards an Independent Future and the Strategy for Equality, which between them contain several hundred recommendations about the rights of people with disabilities;

(f) aware that the Programme for Government and Partnership 2000 both accord significant priority to the needs and rights of people with a disability;

(g) conscious that people with disabilities, their families, their carers and their advocates are concerned that these commitments will not be honoured in full;

(h) believing that the current strong state of the Exchequer finances provides a unique and unanswerable opportunity to advance this programme;

calls on the Government to provide additional capital and revenue funding to meet the target for implementation of the five year programme set out in the report, Towards an Independent Future, and in particular to provide £21.1 million in revenue funding in this year's budget; a commitment for the annual revenue funding and the essential capital funding to ensure full implementation of all recommendations in both major reports mentioned and to provide the essential allowances, resources and supports for carers.

I wish to share my time with Deputies Shatter, Shortall, McManus and Sargent.

I cannot see the point of moving the motion when the Minister is not here to listen to the debate.

Acting Chairman (Mr. Foley)

I thought he had arrived. We will wait.

Mrs. T. Ahearn

It is not unusual to move a motion in this House knowing it will be defeated. Neither is it unusual to move a motion knowing it will be successful. Win or lose, the outcome is usually very clear. Somehow the situation this evening is different. We do not know whether we have won, lost, or even if it is a draw. The Government has tabled an amendment to this motion which one would need a Ph. D. in communications to decipher. Does the Government intend to give an additional £22.4 million in revenue funding in this year's budget? If so, we on the Opposition benches will welcome it whole-heartedly as a victory for people with sensory and physical disability. It will be no more than they deserve. They have already achieved one small victory today. The Minister has announced that, as a result of Opposition pressure, he will give £4 million in capital funding in a Supplementary Estimate for aids and appliances. This is welcome, but it does not for one minute detract from the real and pressing need for ongoing revenue funding. We must wait for the Minister to solve the riddle and tell us whether the £22.4 million mentioned in the Government amendment is real or imaginary, whether it relates to the past or the future, to capital funding or to revenue funding. Unfortunately, knowing this Minister's sleight of hand, my instinct tells me this is not really additional money, but we will wait and see.

One sentence from the chairperson's foreword to the report Towards an Independent Future sets the scene for tonight's debate on the motion sponsored by Fine Gael, the Labour Party, Democratic Left, the Green Party and the majority of Independent Deputies. Dr. Ruth Barrington writes on behalf of the review group: "The main thrust of our report is the development of services to enable people with a physical or sensory disability to live as independently as possible in the community". The key issues in the submissions to the review group highlight the deficiencies in the system which should be addressed to achieve the objective outlined above, that of enabling, and independence for, people with disabilities.

The submissions to the review group highlighted the lack of comprehensive data on the numbers and services needed; the inadequate access to information on service provision; the disparities in eligibility criteria between and within health board areas; the inadequate statutory financial funding for individuals; the uncertain funding for voluntary organisations; the shortfalls in service relating to therapy, day care, counselling and home support; the uneven geographic distribution of services; the inadequate transport services; the inadequate co-ordination of services; and poor consumer choice. This is quite a litany of disaster, by anyone's judgment. The recommendations in the report are designed to overcome these inadequacies, uncertainties and shortfalls.

One of the most critical recommendations of the report is the establishment of a database. This would allow all the agencies, statutory and voluntary, to ascertain the scale of the problem and to allow for proper planning and financial provision to be made to address the real needs of those thousands of people who lack even the most basic support services.

During the debate last month on people with a mental handicap all Members had access to information on the scale of the problems and the need for services through the Intellectual Disability Database. There is no such database available to identify the needs of those with a physical or sensory handicap. Without this information, gathered by the voluntary agencies, we have no idea of the number of our citizens who have a physical or sensory handicap.

The Irish Wheelchair Association has done valuable work in establishing that 2,667 of its members do not benefit from day activity or development. Of these, 1,248 are physically isolated — prisoners in their own homes. Some 1,153 people require aids and appliances and 1,375 people require personal assistance with basic needs such as dressing and feeding.

How many thousands more who are not members of the IWA require services? Other voluntary agencies working in this sector have carried out equally valuable work in assessing the needs of their members and the people who avail of their services, but in the absence of a national database how can we be sure we will provide the necessary supports to vindicate the rights of all our citizens to achieve full economic, social and educational integration as equal, independent and participative members within the general community?

Paragraph 10.1.1 of Towards an Independent Future states:

In this report, we have made recommendations on the level of services required by people with disabilities based on our assessment of clear gaps in the current provision. With the establishment of a comprehensive database, more detailed long-term planning at both national and regional levels should be undertaken.

Information is vital for co-ordination. In addition to ongoing and consistent funding, the establishment of a database must be a priority. The lack of information highlights a wider deficiency — lack of awareness by those not directly involved with people with sensory of physical handicap of the fact that such problems exist.

We in this House have access to reports, legislation and information. We meet our constituents regularly. We have knowledge of the scale of the difficulties faced by those who have physical or sensory disability. However, we have been and are complacent. That is why debates such as this are so useful. Through this debate, we should seek not only the necessary funding to implement the recommendations of the review group but also to raise public awareness.

To understand the scale of the problems faced by people who are physically disabled we could consider putting our own house in order. This building is the seat of the national parliament and as such should be open and accessible to all our citizens. However, we might ask whether it is. Leinster House is not exactly a wheelchair friendly place today, but it is hundred times more wheelchair friendly than it used to be. The corridors of this House used to be hills and valleys of stairs, steps and narrow doorways. Some of them remain so.

The situation improved only when Brian Crowley was elected to the Seanad. Overnight the hills and valleys were smoothed out to allow an elected Member have access. We all became aware of the scale of the problem faced when Brian Crowley arrived. We all welcomed the changes in the landscape because they made life easier for us too — there were less stairs to climb. In other words, they increased our comfort. However, what would have been the implications for Senator Crowley if the stairs had not been taken away and the floors not levelled and sloped? Senator Crowley would have been prevented from carrying out his electoral mandate. He would not have had easy and independent access to the Chamber of the Upper House. He would not have been able to do his job. What an outrage that would have caused. However, changes were made, and while I am sure they were not ideal, they did allow Senator Crowley to access the building, to carry on with his work and to do all that we take for granted every day. Nobody who was physically disabled could have worked here otherwise. One might ask how we could have filled the 3 per cent quota. How could anybody who became incapacitated have coped with the physical reality of this House? How many citizens were unable to attend a debate in the House or to take a tour of the building simply because the corridors did not allow them to use a wheelchair?

All Members have advocated independence and inclusion for people with physical disability. How could these people have an independent and inclusive life in Leinster House? We have nothing to be proud of, even at the most basic level, and we must be reminded of this.

The barriers which we consciously or unconsciously place in the way of people with disability are often more disabling to them than their conditions. The Government programme, An Action Programme for the Millennium, states:

Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats in Government are committed to radical change to ensure that the needs and aspirations of people with disabilities, their families, their carers and their advocates are comprehensively addressed. We are committed to ensuring that disability is placed where it belongs, on the agenda of every Government Department and every public body. Our policy is based on the core principle of promoting empowerment through appropriate, accessible and responsive services.

These are fine words with which we agree.

When Fianna Fáil was in Opposition in 1996, the current Minister of State, Deputy Mary Wallace, produced an excellent and comprehensive policy document on disability entitled Meeting the Challenge of Equality. It states that there is no economic reason for Dublin Bus to continue investing in non-accessible buses. One wonders if the Minister for Public Enterprise is aware of the content of that policy document and of the programme for Government.

In reply to a parliamentary question on 4 November 1997 the Minister said: "I am personally committed to ensuring that, within my area of responsibility, meeting the requirements of people with disabilities continues to be accorded a high priority by service providers". On 11 November 1998 the same Minister announced that for the first time the Exchequer was providing direct capital funding for public transport. Of the £56 million being provided, £17 million was allocated for 100 additional buses in Dublin. In addition, 50 new buses were approved for purchase as part of the reallocation of the Luas EU assistance.

One hundred and fifty new buses is a better deal for commuters. Good news travels fast when the Minister for Public Enterprise makes an announcement. It should be good news for everybody since the Government is committed to the core principles of promoting empowerment through appropriate, accessible and responsive services. However, that is not the case. Good news may travel but wheelchair users will not, at least not on the 150 new buses funded by the taxpayers.

The Minister for Public Enterprise told my colleague, Deputy Olivia Mitchell, in reply to a parliamentary question, that it was her policy that all transport providers should, as far as possible, make their services and facilities accessible to people with disabilities. She went on to say that the new buses are urgently required to meet traffic congestion problems in Dublin. None of the new buses is wheelchair accessible. The Minister told the House that there are low floor buses which might be suitable and which will be in use in London shortly. Dublin Bus is seeking to obtain one such bus for trials in Dublin.

The Minister for Public Enterprise gave Dublin Bus the money for new buses but, in spite of her stated commitment with regard to disability, she did not ask or demand that Dublin Bus buy low floor buses. She did not introduce regulations requiring all public service bus operators to include only low floor accessible buses in their fleet replacement programmes. No wonder people with physical or sensory disabilities are cynical; no wonder they are angry.

The Government had the opportunity to live up to its commitments. It had the opportunity to make a difference to the lives of the people in the Public Gallery tonight and to the lives of their carers and their families. I hope the Government is sincere and that its amendment to the motion is not cynical. I await the Minister's explanation of the riddle.

Mrs. Owen

On a point of order, I must point out that as the Minister was late coming to the House Deputy Ahearn was obliged to wait and as a result lost about four minutes of her allotted time.

Ms Shortall

This is a debate about political will. The Opposition parties and a number of Independent Deputies have placed a motion before the House which calls on the Government to use a relatively small proportion of the massive Exchequer surplus to ensure that people with a physical or sensory disability have the necessary supports to lead a dignified life. For the first time in the history of the State, the Government has the resources available to make a substantial difference to the lives of thousands of families. It must demonstrate that it has the political will to make that necessary investment.

For too long people with disabilities have been excluded and marginalised in society. Historically, the response to their needs has been characterised by a belief in charity rather than a belief in rights. If the Government fails to accept the thrust of this motion and fails to grasp the opportunity of tomorrow's budget, many people will be forced to continue to depend on charity.

The financial content of the motion seeks to put back on track the five year investment programme outlined in Towards an Independent Future. People with a physical disability, their families and their advocates have a genuine and legitimate fear that the targets in that five year plan will not be reached. As we approach the mid-point of the plan, there is already a major deficit, a deficit which the motion seeks to redress by demanding the investment of £21 million of Exchequer funds in this year's budget and seeking a commitment that future Exchequer and capital funding will be made available.

Investment of that amount was proposed in Towards an Independent Future but it is in this area that slippage has occurred in the past two years. While everybody welcomes special capital allocations for appliances and once-of expenses, annual expenditure by the Exchequer is essential, as was outlined in the five year plan. There has been huge slippage and, in order to put the plan back on track to meet its targets, it is essential that £21 million be allocated in this year's budget.

The disability sector has also historically been chronically underfunded. This is made clear in the document, Strategy for Equality, which states in paragraph 15: "It is clear that few resources have been invested in the development of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities". The report goes on to warn that there might be insufficient funds to meet the huge range of service needs of this group over the next few years. The first statement is a statement of fact. All Members and parties in the House have been remiss in their failure to recognise the necessity of putting proper funding in place to enable all members of society to live a full and dignified life. However, there is now a new situation where money is at last available to the Government.

The principle of equality demands that all citizens have an equal right to participate in the social, economic and cultural life of this country. At present, despite some advances in recent years, the vindication of the principle of equality still remains a huge political challenge. The Government is in a unique position to respond to this challenge. It can either treat the needs of people with a disability as a priority and provide the necessary funding to make significant changes in their daily lives or it can tell these people to wait and take their place in the queue.

The motion details three areas of need in this sector — day resource centres, aids and appliances and personal assistant services. In 1996, the Irish Wheelchair Association identified 2,667 people who would benefit from day services. This is just one organisation working in the sector and does not indicate the total outstanding day care needs. What is shocking about the Irish Wheelchair Association's finding is that more than 1,200 of these people did not leave their homes on a regular basis. These figures show how marginalised people with a disability can become in a society that does not value their rights or invest in their wellbeing.

Due to a lack of services and a wholly inadequate transport system, thousands of people across the country are effectively prisoners in their homes. The isolation that many of these people endure is appalling. Fine words about equality ring hollow when this is the daily reality for thousands of people throughout the State. Day care places fulfil two fundamental roles for people with a physical disability. They enable the person with the disability to socialise, to feel part of society, to have a role and a purpose. They also provide respite for family members or friends who care for the person with a disability. The five year plan, Towards an Independent Future, contains a requirement to invest more than £3 million each year in day places. In overall budgetary terms this represents a drop in the ocean but the effect this investment has on the quality of life of thousands of people is inestimable.

In common with day care services, the role of personal assistants in the lives of people with a physical or sensory disability is critical. The valuable work of home care attendants, benefits the person with the disability and provides respite for carers and family members. The personal assistant service is concerned with making the philosophy of independent living a reality. This service has been critical in enabling people with a disability to access further education and work opportunities. If we are serious about dignity and equality these services must be expanded and access must be readily available for all people with a disability.

The motion refers also to the need to invest in aids and appliances. A sum of £1 million each year over five years is suggested in Towards an Independent Future. Aids and appliances can transform the quality of life, particularly in the home, of people with a disability. There is no Deputy in the House who does not know the value of an appropriate wheelchair, a bed hoist or even an access ramp to a person with a disability.

We are all aware of the struggle which people have to avail of these necessary aids and the frustration of voluntary organisations who have to cope with the reality of waiting lists and what seem like interminable delays. All these investments make a real difference to people's lives. None of them would overburden the coffers of the Minister for Finance, Deputy McCreevy. However, due to the slippage in funding that has occurred for people with physical disability, services that provide a minimum of dignity and independence to thousands of people are being affected. These services are being held back due to a lack of political will to invest the necessary funding to make good the development plan in Towards an Independent Future. This is the stark reality.

In common with the recent motion on services to people with a mental handicap, this motion seeks to treat people with a disability as a priority. Our economy has never performed so well and the revenue flowing into the Department of Finance is unprecedented. This year there will be a current budget surplus of £1.3 billion. I call on Deputies on all sides to support this motion to ensure people with disabilities will be given their right to participate as full and equal members of society.

Ms McManus

I welcome the cross-party co-operation on this Bill. Each of us has only one life to live. As part of that life we expect to have a wide variety of experiences: to exercise certain freedoms and to build many personal and social connections. Access to school, work, recreation, security and, most importantly, to independence are taken for granted. These expectations, we consider, are ours to be realised as of right. Yet those who have to live with disability do not have the same choices or the same opportunity to realise their potential in the way we do. If equality is to mean anything, it must address their needs. To do so, political commitment is required as well as the financing to back that commitment.

This motion is vitally important. It establishes the yardstick by which each of us can be judged on that commitment. It sets out clearly and realistically how this Government can give the necessary focus on equality for those with disability. It sets out modest realisable funding requirements that this Government could meet comfortably. It sets a challenge to every member of Fianna Fáil, to members of the Progressive Democrats and to the three independent Deputies — Deputies Fox, Gildea and Healy-Rae — as to where each of those stand.

This motion does what the Government motion avoids doing, it faces up to the responsibilities of supporting people with disabilities in line with the leading thinking of today's world. In recent years there has been a welcome shift in our understanding of disability. Even if the thinking is not always followed by action, it produced the two reports: Towards an Independent Future and a Strategy for Equality. It produced centres of independent living and the introduction of personal assistant schemes. It has generated a campaigning spirit among those with disability that defines their role not as dependants but as decision makers. All of this has produced an enormous range of recommendations and proposals. If we are to look at a synopsis of what needs to be done, I can think of no better example than the policy document produced by Fianna Fáil as recently as 1996. It contains a number of significant statements, for example: "People with disabilities form one of the most marginalised and excluded groups within our society" and "Action on issues of concern to people with disabilities and their families should be prioritised and placed at the centre of official policy". "There must be a dramatic movement away from the provision of most services for people with disabilities through health agencies. The current situation serves to medicalise social issues and promote marginalisation". Finally, there is a declaration of where the Fianna Fáil Party stands on the needs of people with a disability if returned to power: "Significant extra Government expenditure is required. Fianna Fáil believes that disability should become one of the priorities in Government social spending and accepts that this will require difficult budgetary choices".

Fianna Fáil is back in power and now is the time for difficult budgetary choices. Now is the time to live up to the fine words. It is pay back time for people with a disability, many of whom voted for Fianna Fáil because they believed what they were told. So far the record is dismal. That is why this motion offers a chance to redeem the policy commitments made so easily in Opposition and forgotten about so quickly in Government. There is something deeply undermining public confidence when the rhetoric of a party is so out of kilter with the reality. We have a Minister of State who has responsibility for people with disabilities. She is responsible not only for her own actions but for how other Ministers respond to the needs of those with a disability.

I wish to highlight the issue of mobility. People are restricted not only by their disability but by the legion of obstacles put in their way by society at large: footpaths too high, shop doors too narrow, steps too steep, cinemas inaccessible, schools and offices without lifts and, more importantly, public transport is not accessible to those who happen to use wheelchairs. According to its policy document Fianna Fáil said: "Government should work with statutory and non-statutory bodies to ensure that the whole of the travel chain become accessible".

In recent weeks we have seen the Minister, Deputy O'Rourke, cheerfully — she always appears cheerful — trample all over that policy document. She announced the procurement of 100 buses for Dublin to help with the traffic log—jam but not one of those will help the permanent log—jam experienced by those with disabilities. The wheelchair—bound will still be in the log—jam when the rest of us are able to avail of public transport. Those with disabilities will, therefore, be further disenfranchised by a Government which had no compunction in sending a message of hope while in Opposition and abandoning it on entering office.

There are those among the population whose stories are remarkable and it is amazing what they have achieved despite the obstacles they encountered. I wish to record the views of one such person who has a remarkable story to tell in terms of how he managed to overcome his disability. I will now read part of the letter he sent to me:

I personally am a wheelchair user with muscular dystrophy. I have a doctorate in structural engineering. With that level of qualification, I have to work hard as an ordinary full-time engineer in ESB International. Yet, most disabled people I know or have come in contact with seem to place me on some kind of pedestal. As far as these people are concerned, in my ordinary job, I've made it. Mind you, I remain where I am because I am one of the 40 or so lucky ones who is able to avail of the ‘permanent' shoestring Personal Assistance Service operated by the Irish Wheelchair Association.

I am not all right Jack.

Why should my ‘lofty' position be denied to the rest of the disabled fraternity? There are currently 1,375 people nationwide who require Personal Assistance service. Of these, 200 require the all—encompassing Personal Assistance Service and the remainder require 12 hours of support per week from a Care Attendant type service at the cost of £8 million. As a witness of the injustice perpetrated through denial of equity to the physically disabled over the years, I cannot bear to see the injustice of bread—line wages paid to the few Personal Assistants who are charitable (not charity again!) enough to effectively give up a year or two of their lives so that we don't have to give up ours.

The man who sent me this letter ends with the following plea to Opposition Members which, obviously, he wishes us to forward to the Government:

Persuade the Government to invest in us, just as I am investing in my adopted son's and wife—to—be's full-time education. I don't see investing in the future as a cost, so why can't you persuade your parliamentary colleagues to be of like mind when it comes to the physically disabled members of the family called Ireland. It is never too late — please convince us and persuade Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats to put money where their mouths were before the general election.

Mr. Gormley

The Green Party is appalled that the needs of 140,000 citizens with sensory and physical disabilities are not being adequately resourced despite the country's seemingly booming economy. It cannot be right that people with a disability, be it physical or sensory, and their carers should be obliged, as happened last week, to make their way to Dublin to protest at the gates of Leinster House in order to make their demands heard. Carers receive as little as £70 for what is in some cases a 168 hour week. They only obtain that money following a demeaning and intrusive means test.

There can be no excuse for the chronic underfunding of services for those with mental or physical disabilities. The isolation and poverty experienced by people with disabilities could easily be remedied by the provision of additional funding for personal assistants and carers.

Children with autism or similar severe learning disabilities are being disadvantaged educationally in breach of their constitutional right to education. According to the Education (No. 2) Bill, 1997, education, which should be a right for autistic and severely mentally handicapped children, is instead available to them only "as far as practicable and having regard to resources". Should the weakest in our society not be placed at the top of the list when it comes to educational and emotional development?

Our primary schools provide the forum for the first significant interaction our young citizens have with the institutions of the State. It is an encounter which does little to reassure children with mental or physical disabilities that this State with its "tiger" Government sees their needs as anything but burdensome. The education and development of children and young people with physical, mental or sensory disabilities means everything to those families which are struggling with limited resources to make their children's lives and opportunities the best possible.

Deputy McManus referred to Fianna Fáil's pre-election promise to make the travel chain accessible. However, the Minister for Public Enterprise recently revealed what she described as a major boost to the Dublin Bus fleet. Unfortunately, few if any of the new buses will be able to accommodate passengers in wheelchairs. That is a disgrace. It means that a large section of the population is being subjected to State-funded infrastructural discrimination and is unable to go about its daily business. The Government is keeping wheelchair users in their homes or making them dependent on the grace or favour of others. If those Deputies who were elected as Independents support the Government amendment, which is based on the sleight of hand of the party of professional accountants, they will have cause to think long and hard about their role in the Dáil.

There is a need to provide funding in order to make information services available to those with physical and sensory disabilities. There is an urgent need to inject capital funding to make the centres providing such information physically accessible to all citizens. The information held there should be made available in formats which ensure that people with sensory disabilities can obtain the same level of information and advice as every other citizen.

This motion represents an opportunity to remedy years of neglect in this sector and to give those in our society who are in real need the capital investment they urgently require. The programme of work facing a caring, sensitive and responsive Government and a Minister with a more positive attitude towards and interest in the workings of his Department is clearly set out in the two reports to which the motion refers, Towards an Independent Future and Strategy for Equality. These reports contain several hundred recommendations which the pro—Government Independents would do well to study and which the Government would do well to implement. I support the motion.

Mrs. Owen

I support this motion which has been tabled jointly by the Members of the Opposition and by a number of Independent Deputies. It is appalling that people with disabilities face hardship at a time when the Minister for Finance is collecting enormous amounts of money and when there has been talk of between £500 million and £700 million being made available through extra taxes. During the period when the country underwent a serious economic crisis, it was not always possible to provide facilities or funding for people with mental and physical disabilities and the many other people who require extra care. However, there is no excuse why the Minister cannot provide the money to make life marginally better for those who suffer with disabilities.

I gained a small sense of how difficult life can be for people with disabilities when my mother, who died last year, became disabled and was obliged to use a wheelchair. Many places became inaccessible to her and if we wanted to take her somewhere we had to make special arrangements.

A number of years ago a group of people in Malahide, the town where I live, decided to take action in order to make certain areas more accessible to wheelchairs. I assisted their campaign by sitting in a wheelchair and allowing them to push me around Malahide. I was shocked and appalled by my experience — it stimulated me to encourage the local council, of which I was a member, to take action — because I discovered how difficult it is for those in wheelchairs to make their way past street furniture, kerbs, steps, litter bins and carelessly parked cars. The most ordinary things in life are denied to people with disabilities and sensory disabilities.

On reading the amendment one could be forgiven for thinking that the Minister intends to make a major announcement during the debate because he gives the false impression that an additional £22 million will be made available. I await his contribution to discover if that is the case, but I suspect it is not. I hope that after the vote on this motion the Government will be shamed into making some of the additional tax revenue it has collected available to the 140,000 people who must cope with disabilities while the Minister cannot find it in his heart to make available to them the extra funding collected from the health levy. I hope we will be in a position to thank the Minister tomorrow if he sees fit to make that money available.

I am not optimistic about what the Minister will say. He is trying to fool the people listening to the debate.

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Cowen)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That" and substitute the following:

Dáil Éireann recognises the need for the further development of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities and approves both the Government's commitment to put in place an enhanced level of service provision in line with the commitments outlined in the programme for Government and Partnership 2000 and the actions taken by the Government to date in meeting these commitments which include the provision of additional funding of £22.4 million.

It is unfortunate that we have to listen to such comments from a Deputy who was her party's number two in government and did not do much when she had the opportunity. The white flag has been raised by the Opposition. It does not want to compare its record with that of the Government on any of these issues as it knows it does not have a leg to stand on. The line being taken is that this is the first opportunity to do something about them. The leader of the Labour Party adopted this line in the debate on the Private Members' motion on learning disabilities. As Minister for Finance he announced three budgets involving the expenditure of £40 billion across all line Departments. In adopting this line of argument he is insulting people's intelligence.

There is another problem that it appears no one wants to address. A sum of £2 billion is being paid out each year in interest repayments. If this could be reduced to £1.7 billion, there would be an additional £300 million available to deal with issues such as these. The idea that the national debt should be reduced is being decried. Interest repayments are crippling the country and have deprived us of untold billions. Up to ten years ago budgets meant nothing and we thought we could spend our way out of trouble but all we did was put ourselves in deeper trouble and mortgaged the futures of hundreds of thousands of people, especially those about whom we are speaking.

Mrs. Owen

What about the document produced in opposition by the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Wallace?

Mr. Cowen

I listened in silence for 40 minutes to contributions from the opposite side of the House. I am as concerned as Deputy Owen about these issues which I want to deal with properly. If interest payments of £40 million a week could be reduced, there would be more money available to deal with them.

The Opposition made no attempt to defend its record in government or compare it with that of the Government over the past 18 months. It does people with disabilities a disservice in suggesting there is a golden opportunity to address these issues. It is a facile argument. The objective is not professional accountancy, as the Green Party suggests, but to ensure the Minister for Health and Children will have much more money at his or her disposal to provide the required services.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on issues related to the provision of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities and to outline the Government's plan to meet the needs of this group. The Government fully supports the principle that people with disabilities are entitled to all the rights and privileges which go with citizenship and that any and every barrier to the enjoyment of these rights and privileges should be removed. These barriers have been identified by the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities in its report, A Strategy for Equality. In drawing up its recommendations the commission adopted three guiding principles — equality, maximising participation and enabling independence and choice. The overall thrust of health policy for people with disabilities is to provide the supports necessary to enable each individual to live in the community with the maximum possible degree of independence.

Ensuring equality, participation and independence for people with disabilities involves much more than health services appropriate to their needs. People with disabilities are tired of what they call "the health model of disability". They wish to be treated the same as their fellow citizens by having services delivered to them by the mainstream agencies, that is, the agency that provides the service for the rest of the community. This is one of the objectives set out by the commission in its report. The pursuit of this objective is a fundamental element of the Government's policy on people with disabilities. As it involves a wide range of services crossing numerous boundaries of Government Departments, the Government decided on day one to appoint one person to co-ordinate efforts to achieve this objective. That person is the Minister for State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Mary Wallace, who has responsibility for all matters related to disability. The appointment of a Minister of State with special responsibility for disability issues is a clear indication of the Government's determination to tackle not just health issues but all issues affecting people with disabilities.

A specific commitment is given in the programme for Government to the implementation of the commission's report. The practical steps needed to develop services within my area of responsibility are outlined in the report of the review group on health and personal social services for people with physical and sensory disabilities, Towards an Independent Future. A commitment to implement the recommendations of this report is given in Partnership 2000 which states that "resources will be allocated, within overall expenditure parameters, for the development of services for people with disabilities in line with the Report of the Review Group". A commitment was also given in the Department's strategy statement, 1998-2001, which undertakes to pursue the development of services for people with disabilities in line with the report's recommendations.

There are no definitive statistics for the number of people with physical and sensory disabilities. Based on population trends in other countries it has been variously estimated that the number here could be anywhere between 100,000 and 200,000. Not every person with a physical or sensory disability is in need of a health service. The report, Towards an Independent Future, highlighted the lack of reliable information on the numbers and service needs of people with physical and sensory disabilities and recommended the establishment by the Department, health boards and voluntary bodies of a database on the health service needs of people with physical and sensory disabilities. As a first step the review group recommended the establishment by the Department of a database development committee to prepare detailed proposals for the development of the database. Nominations for membership have now been made and the committee will begin its work next month. A joint database pilot project has been undertaken in three health boards and this will provide a valuable impetus to the work of the committee.

Once established the database will provide reliable and up-to-date information for a number of separate but related purposes. It will provide epidemiological information at national level to describe the prevalence and, where possible, annual incidence of the various types of disability and to provide a baseline from which trends can be monitored over time; provide the factual information necessary for the orderly planning of service developments at national, regional and sub-regional level, including prioritising service needs and assisting in decisions on the allocation of resources; enable individual health boards and other service providers to maintain, at their discretion, data for their own purposes such as the development of group or individual care plans; and it will provide a valuable resource for the purposes of research.

One of the basic recommendations of the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities is the establishment of a national disability authority. Progress is continuing on the implementation of the report of the establishment group on the new national disability authority. As the House is aware, the establishment group is currently analysing and discussing the practical implementation of the report, Building a Future Together, which was approved by the Government earlier this year. All relevant Government Departments and agencies are fully engaged in this process.

The final stages in the preparation of the national disability authority Bill have been reached. I give credit to my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Wallace, for her contribution to achieving this progress. Her determination to see matters through has meant that the impetus for change will not be lost. Credit is also due to the staff of the NRB. Without their valuable input and co-operation over the past three decades or so, we would not have reached the stage we are at now — improving, advancing and reshaping the State's apparatus for the delivery of services for people with disabilities.

I fully recognise the importance of their contribution. I take this opportunity to thank all the staff at the NRB. The imminent dissolution of the NRB signals not the end of its influence but a milestone in the beginning of a whole new emphasis for the delivery of services for people with disabilities. The proposed reconfiguration of institutional responsibilities for these services will ensure a more targeted and inclusive approach.

The planned changes should be effected early next year. The knock-on effect of the transfer and the mainstreaming of vocational training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities within the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment will free up my Department to concentrate fully on its primary role which is to provide rehabilitative training and care services, and appropriate work opportunities for people with disabilities. The aim will be to equip and enable them where possible to advance through the training continuum to other mainstream activities.

Currently some £18 million is provided through the Operational Programme for Human Resources, from the European Social Fund, on an annual basis towards the cost of vocational training for people with disabilities. This funding supports vocational training services and the very important work of many service providers. A sum of £33 million pounds has been provided through the same operational programme from the European Regional Development fund over the five year period 1994-95. This funding has been made available towards the purchase of new centres, the upgrading of existing centres and for equipment.

One of the difficulties in developing services for people with physical and sensory disabilities is the very wide range and variety of disabilities included in that category. This makes the development of the services rather complex. From time to time a certain group will mount a campaign for the development of a particular service. Respite care and personal assistance services are examples. While these and other services are of vital importance and are among the priority areas for development, they cannot be treated in isolation. What is involved is a wide range of interlocking and complementary services, designed to provide the person with a disability with a flexible range of services. Many individuals with disabilities may require a combination of several services to meet their needs.

To clarify the complex issues involved and to provide a blueprint for the development of the services my predecessor, Dr. John O'Connell established on 30 June 1992 the Review Group on Health and Personal Social Services for People with Physical and Sensory Disabilities. The terms of reference of the group were :

To examine the current provision of health care services to people with physical and sensory disabilities and to consider how they should be developed to meet more effectively their needs and specifically to make recommendations for service developments in accordance with the commitment contained in Section IV, Paragraph 33 of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress.

The Minister requested the group to prepare an interim report on the most urgent service needs so that these could be considered in the context of developments under the Programme for Economic and Social Progress in 1993. The interim report was submitted to the Minister in December 1992. On foot of the interim report, additional revenue funding of £1.5 million was made available in 1993 for the development of the services and a pattern established whereby additional development funding is provided every year.

The final report of the review group, Towards an Independent Future, was published in December 1996. It set out the requirements for the development of the services over a five year period. I am committed to the implementation of the report.

We are very fortunate to have a culture of concern for the welfare of our fellow citizens. This is manifested by the considerable number of people who work tirelessly both in a voluntary capacity and on a professional basis with voluntary agencies in providing a wide range of supports and services to their fellow citizens. The effect of this is most evident in the health sector where many voluntary agencies provide services which have, over time, become a vital part of our overall scheme of health care delivery. This was fully recognised by the review group in looking at the organisation of services. The group recommended the structured involvement of the voluntary agencies in planning and co-ordinating the services and in fixing priorities for the allocation of funding for the development of the services.

The review group's recommendation was that the chief executive officer of each health board should establish a regional co-ordinating committee for services for people with physical and sensory disabilities. Membership of the committee would comprise officers of the health board, major voluntary sector services providers, representatives of service users, that is, people with disabilities and the National Rehabilitation Board.

These committees have now been established in every health board. My Department is currently pursuing a review of the operation of the committees in consultation with the health boards and the voluntary organisations concerned. The purpose of the review is to identify best practice, to encourage a cross-fertilisation of ideas across the regions, to come up with solutions to any teething problems which may have arisen and to contribute to the development of overall national policy.

Voluntary service cannot be mentioned without referring to the invaluable contribution made by carers. It is estimated that there are about 100,000 carers in lreland, 25,000 of whom provide care on a full-time basis. Although the majority of these care for an elderly person, a sizeable proportion provide care for people with disabilities.

People with disabilities living at home require assistance with the tasks of daily living and often the responsibility for the care rests with one person principally. The review group report acknowledges the need to expand and develop different levels of home support services for people with disabilities and their carers. The crucial role of the carer is taken into account in the planning of services with, for instance, the strong emphasis placed on the development of respite care services, which benefit both the person with a disability and the carer. The provision of this and other support services with the object of enabling the person with a disability to remain in the home serve the dual purpose of promoting independent living for the person with a disability and of taking as much pressure as possible off the carer.

There has been a long running campaign by the Centre for Independent Living for a personal assistance service funded by an independent living fund. A personal assistant provides assistance at the discretion and direction of a person with a disability with everyday tasks, such as personal care, household tasks etc., which the person is unable to do for him or herself. A full PA service is defined by the Centre for Independent Living as a need for at least 20 hours service per week. One person can require up to 105 hours, necessitating the employment of three PA's and can cost in excess of £20,000 per annum. The independent living fund is no more than a model for funding a PA service. The important thing is that the service itself be provided to those needing it — the precise manner of funding it is a detail. The PA service is one of a range of support services designed to enable people with disabilities to live in the community with the maximum degree of independence. The range includes home helps, home care attendants, respite care, day care etc. and the objective of policy is to develop the range of services as a whole. The amount of funding to be devoted to the development of this service will be decided in each health board area in accordance with locally perceived priorities. Out of £3 million provided for development of services in 1998, £113,000 was allocated by the boards to personal assistance services.

On the question of funding, the review group report set out the requirements for the development of the services over a five year period. It specified numbers of additional places in services such as long-term residential and respite care and day care and numbers of additional staff, such as therapists and nurses. The review group estimated the cost of implementing its recommendations at £50 million over the five year period.

A major proportion of the services for people with disabilities are provided by agencies in the voluntary sector. Very often the provision of services was in response to demands for services from their own members. Some of these could be funded out of fundraising income but not all. A situation developed over a period of years where services were not fully funded by the State. In recent years with falling income from fundraising most agencies have been running services at a loss and thereby building up debts. One of the basic recommendations of the review group is that existing services be put on a firm financial footing to provide a sound basis for future development. In 1998, £2.4 million has been provided in my Department's Estimates towards the elimination of this underfunding by the State. In addition, in 1997, a Supplementary Estimate of £5 million was provided to eliminate the accumulated deficits of these agencies.

One of the areas singled out by people with disabilities and their advocates is aids and appliances for people with physical and sensory disabilities. Shortly after taking office this Government took an early opportunity to alleviate this problem when, on 27 October 1997, decided, with the agreement of my colleague, the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, Deputy Ahern, to make £4.325 million available out of savings on his Department's Vote for aids, appliances and equipment for people with physical and sensory disabilities. It is estimated that more than 10,000 people with disabilities benefited. A further £1 million in capital funding was made available to health boards in 1998 for aids and appliances. Notwithstanding this funding, it was brought to my attention recently that there are still substantial waiting lists in health boards for aids and appliances and, as I announced earlier, I have decided to allocate a further £4 million to help eliminate these waiting lists. This will be distributed on a regional basis through health boards to specific organisations. The Irish Wheelchair Association will receive £1.5 million; Cerebral Palsy Ireland will receive £500,000; the Rehab group will receive £500,000; the Central Remedial Clinic will receive £500,000; the National Rehabilitation Hospital will receive £100,000; £500,000 will be allocated for sensory disabilities; and £400,000 will be allocated for other organisations.

I expect the agencies will work closely with the health boards to ensure primacy is given to those already identified as waiting for aids and appliances. It is important that there continues to be a high level of co-operation between statutory and voluntary bodies to ensure services are provided in an orderly and planned way.

This year a total of £8.4 million was allocated to the maintenance and development of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities. Of this, £2.4 million was devoted to eliminating core underfunding of existing services and nine of the main voluntary agencies in the sector received grants for this purpose. A further £3 million was for capital projects, £1 million of which was invested in aids and appliances. The balance of £3 million was allocated to health boards for further development of the services. Almost half of this funding was used to create 50 new posts in health boards such as speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers and public health nurses.

In terms of new structures put in place to facilitate the co-ordination of existing services and to make the development of services more effective and the allocation of substantial additional funding, this Government's commitment to improving the quality of life of people with physical and sensory disabilities is clearly demonstrated. Following the publication of the report, Towards an Independent Future, in December 1996, the previous Government provided a total of £3.688 million in 1997. Since taking office my Government has to date provided a total of £22.4 million for these services. No matter how you parse and analyse those figures, the performance of the present Government in pursuing the development of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities cannot be faulted in comparison with the previous Administration.

Mrs. Owen

The Minister's amendment implies he is giving an additional amount.

Mr. O'Shea

I wish to share my time with Deputies Joe Higgins, Clune, Kenny and Connaughton.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

Is that agreed? Agreed.

Mr. O'Shea

The motion before the House is an important one, particularly on the eve of budget day, when the Government will have at its disposal an unprecedented budgetary surplus. The Government can choose to bank this surplus or to invest it in key areas of social and economic need which have been neglected for a long time. One such area of extreme need is that of physical and sensory disability.

In the limited time available, I wish to address the huge inadequacies which exist in the support structures for people with physical and sensory disabilities. In particular, I wish to look at the shortfalls in the provision of carers and personal assistants for people with disabilities.

In acknowledging the need to build an inclusive society, the needs of people with a disability should be fully considered in terms of empowerment in the context of the tomorrow's budget. As we become a more affluent society, it is important to ensure that those who require care are looked after in the most adaptable and comfortable way possible. To this end, the area of home care needs to be supported and expanded. The key deficits in the lives of people with disabilities are those of mobility, integration and communication. These are basic rights of all citizens. We are not talking about charity; we are talking about rights and human dignity.

Care in the home is generally the most desirable form of care from the point of view of the person requiring the care and family members. For many, the thought of entering a home can be a source of great distress. Family members often feel compromised because the lack of financial resources prevents them from being able to leave work and act as a carer.

The current punitive means test for the carer's allowance does nothing to alleviate this dilemma. The income disregard for the carer's allowance is only £150. While wages are still relatively low, the punitive means test does not make it practical for a person to leave a job and become a carer as he or she would end up substantially worse off.

Most carers provide a 24 hour service in their homes. A ten hour break from this routine, as provided, in fairness, by the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, is still highly insufficient. We need further reform which would allow carers to take holidays each year without a threat to their payment. There is also a need to increase the availability of respite care through employing home care assistants as well as places in the community.

As it stands, many people with physical and sensory disabilities require part-time or full-time assistance in the form of a personal assistant. Many personal assistants are employed under the community employment programme, which this Government proposes to cut. The work which these personal assistants do is invaluable and they should be funded through the social economy initiative under the Partnership 2000 programme.

The temporary and short-term nature of CE neither benefits the person with the disability nor the personal assistant. By mainstreaming their work and providing specific training for personal assistants, substantial inroads could be made in the area of services for people with physical and sensory disabilities.

Tomorrow is an important day. It is a day to reward those who have waited the longest for basic services. I sincerely hope that wait is over for those with physical and sensory disabilities.

Mr. Higgins

(Dublin West): In the short time available to me, I extend my solidarity and that of the Socialist Party to those in our society who are struggling with physical and sensory disabilities, the organisations which represent them, and families and carers who must carry such a major portion of responsibility for their loved ones.

The Irish Wheelchair Association, in one of the briefing documents which I studied for this debate, lays out clearly what is called for in practical terms. From its expert knowledge in the area, it states that 2,667 people must be accommodated in day care and day activity centres. Of those, 1,248 are not getting out of their homes. It is unacceptable that people should be isolated and helpless simply due to a lack of funding.

The association also outlined the people who need aids and appliances. Again we are talking about small amounts of money — £5 million for aids and appliances in the short-term. They further outline the number of people who need assistance in their homes with dressing, toiletry, feeding and so on. There is no question that the tolerance and compassion of carers has been abused and used by successive Governments beyond any reasonable expectation.

The compassion of carers is bottomless but their physical reserves of energy and their emotional reserves are not. Many people are crying out for modest assistance such as respite care or a break at weekends. Even those modest improvements would be a great help in their quality of life. Yet our society denigrates not only those with disabilities but those who are employed as home helps by the health boards to care for them in a small way. Only two weeks ago in the Dáil I exposed the Southern Health Board as paying £2 per hour to home helps for the huge range of strenuous tasks they do in assisting people who are not able to look after themselves. What an insult to those workers and to the people for whom they care. Other boards are somewhat more generous but do not show any understanding of the needs of the disabled or those who look after them.

The terms of this motion outline the least that can be done in the short-term. It is tiresome to hear the Government and parties of previous Governments pretending to argue across the floor over spending and to see them looking at their various policy documents. All Governments and political parties which have been in Government recently bear full responsibility for the dereliction of duty to those with disabilities, their carers and their families.

In the last budget this Government handed back a fortune to speculators and the very wealthy by cutting capital gains tax. A previous Government handed back between £0.5 billion and £1 billion to the super wealthy, tax dodgers, criminals and so on in an amnesty — funding which is desperately needed and would be well utilised by those about whom we are talking. Other powerful institutions, such as the banks, have been exposed as defrauding the taxpayer and the taxation system of a fortune which could have gone to caring for people in need.

Ms Clune

I welcome the motion and the fact that it received cross party support on this side of the House, including support from an independent Deputy. This motion is about equality and addressing inequalities. The key principle underlining the recommendations in the reports, A Strategy for Equality and Towards an Independent Future, is equality. People with physical and sensory disabilities must be recognised and treated as equal to all other citizens. Now is the time for positive action to address inequalities and to give people the opportunity and facilities to direct their lives and to participate in education, employment, sport and cultural activities, all of which are taken for granted by those without a disability.

I am glad the issue of aids and appliances was addressed by the Minister. I welcome the provision of £4 million to meet an unmet need in this area. Will this, as the Minister said, eliminate the waiting list? My information is that a similar amount granted in this area alleviated 10 per cent only of the application for such aids. This figure will not meet the requirements of many who are on waiting lists for an appliance to ease the burden to themselves, their families and their carers. We are talking about expensive equipment. A motorised wheelchair can cost up to £4,000 or more and the grant available towards this necessary equipment is £500.

Disability resource centres operating support services for people with disability on a national network have been recommended. They will provide information to people with disabilities, will give them necessary advice, guidance and support and will help them assess their entitlements to services. The majority of these resource centres exist through the community employment programme. According to a figure from the Irish Wheelchair Association, more than 1,248 people rarely get out of their houses — they are prisoners in their own homes.

The situation in Cork is a national disgrace. At present nearly 100 people with physical disability are waiting for a place at a resource centre. There is no significant resource centre in the city and the Irish Wheelchair Association depends on a single unit dwelling to provide a day resource centre. This building is not suitable for the needs of the community as it can only accommodate six wheelchairs at any one time. The capital cost for this building is £200,000. This matter was not mentioned by the Minister but I hope he has given it some consideration. Perhaps there will be better news for us in Cork in tomorrow's budget.

Personal assistants were mentioned and we cannot underestimate their value to somebody who is confined to a wheelchair and is unable to take care of himself. Personal assistants open up education and employment opportunities and facilitates disabled people in taking their place in society, which is right and just.

Two weeks ago a number of people travelled from all corners of the country to the Dáil to voice their concerns about the lack of funding. I would like to let their voices be heard tonight by quoting from a briefing document I received.

Tax cuts are no use to me, I need services to dress and feed me and to take me to the toilet. It is degrading and unfair to be always dependent on family and friends to assist with personal matters. With the right wheelchair I could be so independent. If it was not for the few people who have to call to the house I would never get to talk to anyone.

That is what we are talking about — the need to address inequality and to provide equality for the 140,000 people with physical and sensory disabilities.

Mr. Kenny

I am glad to contribute to this brief debate. It is impossible to deal with a problem when one does not know its scale. It is beyond my understanding that the Department of Health and Children is not in a position to have an accurate account of the scale, nature and categories of this problem.

There are an estimated 140,000 people with physical or sensory disabilities. Christmas will come tomorrow for many people but in the confusion of millions of pounds being bandied around the Chamber, there will be thousands left on the sidelines and forgotten about. This is a case of pride versus competence. Recently, I met a lorry driver who was involved in a crash a number of years ago and is paralysed from the neck down. He came to me with his personal assistant. He is a grown man who has to be brought to the toilet, changed, fed and dressed and he needs somebody to get him out of and into bed. Yet in his eyes he had a burning ambition to play his part, as he now can, in modern society. All these people want is a recognition of their right to do that and assistance from the State to help them. It is not beyond the competence of Government to help when it has £1 billion at the disposal of the Minister for Finance.

The Wheelchair Association organised a very effective lobby outside the gates of the House a number of weeks ago. That was only a lobby but we should look behind it at those who got up at 4 a.m. with or without their personal assistants and travelled here on a wet and dreary November day to make their protest outside the gates of a democratic parliament. I hope the Government was listening.

The Centre for Independent Living, the Irish Wheelchair Association, the Cheshire Homes and other such organisations take great pride in their work. The Government must recognise this and provide appropriate facilities for the physically handicapped. Last week the Muintir Mhaigh Eo Association in Dublin raised £50,000 for the Cheshire Home at its annual function.

I would like to see the Government cracking the whip. For disabled people there should be access to all public buildings, post offices, local authority offices and the offices of the Revenue Commissioners. The distance between train platforms and carriages should also be improved. After much pressure over recent years, one space is available for wheelchair users in the dining carriage of trains, but other users must wait between carriages until it becomes free, which is dangerous.

The Barony of Erris, which is as big geographically as County Louth, would like to provide a centre with appropriate facilities so that disabled people could meet on social occasions. I have received letters from people who cannot get in or out of a bath or shower because they have no handrails. The walls of their houses must be knocked down to make them accessible to wheelchairs. I pay tribute to the large number of committed people who work in the area of physical and sensory disability.

I do not want the Minister to preside over a Department which does not know the scale of this problem and is, therefore, not in a position to deal with it. The opportunity to resolve this issue rarely comes around and I would like the Government to avail of it. I know the Minister is competent to deal with it, but he must have the political will to use the money provided by the taxpayer to deal with the legitimate needs of approximately 140,000 disabled people. The Minister will give these people confidence and courage to live their lives if he decides to resolve this problem and not to waste any more time.

Mr. Connaughton

This is the time to make a case for a better deal for the physically handicapped. I have not seen a better opportunity in my 21 years in this House. We are experiencing the greatest economic activity for many years. Our growth rate is increasing so quickly we have almost outstripped every other economy in the world.

We should spare a thought for the people who contributed and continue to contribute to our economy, such as those who were disabled due to accidents or those born with a physical handicap. I know many disabled people who are confident, tenacious, brave and resilient, yet there is a limit to what they can do for themselves.

I was fortunate in recent months to be associated with a branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association in Tuam which is trying to provide a day care service for wheelchair users and their families within a 20 mile radius of the town. This ambitious project will cost a great deal of money. It is proposed to use buses to bring wheelchair users to this purpose built centre every day. The group has applied for planning permission to build this centre, but it has a long way to go before the project is completed. The people of Tuam and other areas around the country must get an equal share of the booming economy.

Wheelchair users will be able to avail of this facility at least five days a week. Meals, recreational activities and personal care will be provided and a modern library will be established, which is extremely important. Many physically handicapped people have the ability to take up jobs under certain conditions and the proposed day care centre in Tuam will give them the opportunity to do so.

Personal assistants are important for independent living. As a member of the Committee on Finance and General Affairs in the last Government, I heard submissions from several hundred people and groups, including the Centre for Independent Living. It convinced me that the personal assistant scheme is important for those who use it and for creating employment. This scheme has worked extremely well in America. My research shows that it is an excellent service. However, it has not been placed on a sound footing. A person who uses this service cannot be sure it will be available next year. That is not good enough.

The day care centre in Tuam will cost between £400,000 and £500,000. I make no apologies to any Government for insisting that the committee in Tuam is entitled to its fair share of the economic cake. It has spent every day for the past ten years organising flag days and other fund-raising activities. If ever a group was entitled to a substantial slice of the budget, this is it.

Debate adjourned.