I propose to take Questions Nos. 37, 69, 86 and 117 together.
The Government recognises the additional costs that disabled people can face in their daily lives and is committed improving outcomes for disabled people by introducing permanent measures. That is why the Programme for Government includes a commitment to introduce a permanent annual cost of disability payment.
In addition, the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030, which was developed with significant input from disability groups and advocates, includes a commitment to a Strategic Focus Network Summit on the Cost of Disability, emphasising the cross-government nature of the issue.
A public consultation process on how a cost of disability payment can best be delivered was launched on Friday, February 20th and ran for just over six weeks until Tuesday April 7th.
The over 1,100 submissions helped inform the agenda for the Strategic Focus Network Summit on the Cost of Disability, which I hosted in the Aviva Stadium on the 13th of May. It was attended by 150 people in person, with approximately the same number joining online.
The Summit was also attended by members of the Oireachtas together with senior Government Ministers including the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, the Minister of State for Disability and the Minister of State at the Department of Transport. This attendance indicates that the delivery of a solution will involve a range of Departments and agencies.
This whole of government approach is important as addressing these costs is not simply a matter of income supports alone. Improvements in the delivery of, and access to, key services are also needed.
At the Summit, we heard about the lived experience of disabled people and about the unavoidable costs which they incur and the impact this has on their daily lives. On 16 July, I presented a briefing paper on the Summit to the Strategy's Delivery and Monitoring Committee which is chaired by the Taoiseach, and attended by other Government Ministers as well as Disabled Person's Organisations and representatives of Civil Society Groups.
In addition, a specific workshop on disability matters was hosted as part of the National Economic Dialogue and I hosted the Pre-Budget Forum on 1 July where we had a session on issues relating to disability and caring.
All of these engagements together with submissions to the consultation process and the output of the Strategic Focus Network are informing the approach that we, across Government, will take in Budget 2027.
Options in relation to a cost of disability payment are being considered in the context of the Budget process. No decisions have yet been taken. As such it is not possible to indicate what the eligibility criteria will be. The cost of a new payment will be determined by the number of people who qualify as well as the level of the payment. As the number of people who will qualify for the payment has not yet been determined it is not possible to provide an estimate of the cost at different levels of payment.
I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
