I support the motion before the House. It is appalling that people with physical disabilities face hardship in their daily lives at a time when the Minister for Finance's coffers are bulging. I hope we will see a positive response to our motion today. It is not acceptable that people with physical disabilities are inhibited in obtaining work, travelling and in getting on with their daily lives. There should be services to enable people with physical or sensory disabilities to live as independently as possible in the community. There was a successful personal assistant scheme in operation in Limerick. I pay tribute to the Centre for Independent Living in Newcastlewest for the work it has done in that area. However, I do not accept it should be provided on the basis of a FÁS scheme. A personal assistant can give people with physical disabilities the opportunity to have a quality of life almost comparable to that of people without a disability. Excellent people are employed on these FÁS schemes and they get great satisfaction from their work as personal assistants. Many of them build up a relationship with the physically handicapped, which is of enormous benefit to them.
We should congratulate the Irish Wheelchair Association for the work it is doing. It has shown that 2,667 people do not benefit from day centre activities and that 1,248 are physically isolated from society. That is not acceptable in this day and age. Some 1,150 people require aids and appliances and 1,375 require personal assistance with basic needs such as dressing and feeding.
Last night Deputy Theresa Ahearn said the Minister for Public Enterprise gave Bus Átha Cliath money to extend its fleet. However, despite the Government's stated commitment to improve facilities for the disabled, she did not ensure that the buses would be wheelchair friendly. When taxi licences were given out, the Department insisted they should be wheelchair friendly. It is amazing the same criteria does not apply in the public sector.
Cystic fibrosis was not mentioned during the debate, although it is the most commonly inherited genetic disease in Ireland. It occurs when a child inherits one defective gene from each parent. I want to specifically deal with domiciliary physiotherapy, which is where a physiotherapist visits the house of a person with cystic fibrosis to administer physiotherapy. This is important because it helps a person with cystic fibrosis to remain in reasonable health and to fight off infections.
The Cystic Fibrosis Association of Ireland, not the health boards, provides this service. An integrated service, which includes physiotherapy, should be provided by the health boards to ensure equity, accountability and quality. This service is not adequately supported by the health boards, with the exception of the Mid-Western Health Board which is drawing up proposals to ensure an integrated approach to physiotherapy management. This is important in the treatment of cystic fibrosis. The service is especially needed when a person is ill or requires assistance. People with cystic fibrosis learn new techniques during these physiotherapy sessions. It is essential, therefore, that health board services are made more accessible to people with cystic fibrosis.