Dáil to debate access to transport for people with a disability

Denis Naughten TD has confirmed that, along with his colleagues in the Regional Group, he will move a Dáil motion this week calling on the Government to provide funding to establish a comprehensive set of transport supports for people with a disability as a matter of priority.

“Nine years ago, in 2013, the Government suspended the Mobility Allowance and Motorised Transport Grant for new applicants and promised to put in place an alternative fair and equal replacement scheme, but this has never happened,” said Denis Naughten.

“And since June 2020 we have had ongoing issues with the Disabled Drivers Scheme, a scheme which has always been totally inadequate to meet the genuine needs of people with a disability.

“The frustration with this scheme was exposed by the blanket resignation at the end of last year of the appeals board for primary medical certificates for disabled drivers and passengers,” continued Mr. Naughten

“The reality is that because of the withdrawal of the Mobility Allowance and Motorised Transport Grant and the ongoing difficulties with the Disabled Drivers Scheme, people with a disability are effectively marooned in their own homes.

“The ongoing failure by Government to provide adequate transport supports for people with a disability was also exposed in the recent Ombudsman Report ‘Grounded – Unequal access for people with disabilities to personal transport schemes’ which highlights the years of inaction by the Government to address support for people with disabilities.

“It is impossible for people with disabilities to be able to lead full and active lives within our communities throughout this country without access to public and personal transport.

“It is just not good enough that we now have three support schemes that allow people with a disability to live independently and get around, effectively suspended, for the majority of people with a disability who cannot access alternative transport.

“We are told that a review of transport services for people with a disability commenced in March 2020 under the auspices of the National Disability Inclusion Strategy, but we’ve no idea how long it will take to complete or if Government will even act on the recommendations that come from the review.

“And in the meantime, people with a disability are unable to take up employment or even engage within their own local community due to the lack of very basic independence,” concluded Denis Naughten.

The Dáil will debate the Regional Group private members motion on Wednesday morning.

ENDS.

Editor’s note:

Copy of Dáil motion

That Dáil Éireann:

recognises that:

Ireland is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which places an onus on signatories to ‘provide access to transportation on an equal basis to enable persons with disabilities to live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life’;
people with disabilities should be able to lead full and active lives within our communities;
people with disabilities need access to public and personal transport;
many people with disabilities are confined to home unable to engage on an equal basis in employment or in their community as they are unable to access government support to help with their personal transport needs;

notes that:

the recent Ombudsman Report ‘Grounded – Unequal access for people with disabilities to personal transport schemes’ highlights the years of inaction by the Government to address supports for people with disabilities;
the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers scheme continues to reinforce the inequitable eligibility criteria in primary legislation and continues to exclude many people in need of access to supports for personal transport;
since the discontinuation of the Mobility Allowance and Motorised Transport Grant for new applicants in 2013 and the government has yet to provide a fair and equal replacement scheme.
the Indecon Cost of Disability in Ireland research report estimates that households spend on average an additional €9,027 on costs of items specifically related to disability, special versions of products, and transport and mobility. Transport cost tends to be an extra living cost that people with disabilities are unable to afford;

calls on the Government to:

provide funding to finalise and introduce a comprehensive Transport Support Scheme (to replace the Mobility Allowance and Motorised Transport Grant) as a matter of priority
reinstate and amend the Primary Medical Cert (PMC) process which presently is not fit for purpose;
address the issues in relation to the eligibility criteria for the schemes with immediate effect;
improve access to public transport for people with disabilities;
invest in transport infrastructure that considers and supports accessibility, mobility, and inclusion for people with a disability;

Deputies Cathal Berry, Seán Canney, Peter Fitzpatrick, Noel Grealish, Michael Lowry, Verona Murphy, Denis Naughten, Matt Shanahan, Peadar Tóibín