The budget last October left disabled people €1,400 per annum worse off in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. For months, disabled people and their advocates have painstakingly and painfully told their stories. They tell us the choices they make daily. They are forced to choose between heating, eating and charging their vital mobility devices. Their appeals to the Government to deliver a cost-of-disability payment immediately have fallen on deaf ears. The Government says it needs to figure out what a cost-of-disability payment should be. The previous Government did a report five years ago. The Government's own report tells it exactly what is needed. Disabled people cannot wait. They need a permanent payment, and they need that now. Telling them repeatedly to wait is unfair. It is cruel. Will the Taoiseach listen to the voices of disabled people? Will he hear their call and give them that payment now?

In the most recent budget, we gave the largest ever single year increase in disability services. It went up 20%, which was €628 million. That is what happened with disability services in that budget. In addition to that, there have been significant increases to core payments and domiciliary care increases. One-off payments for all were removed because they could not continue forever. We cannot do €3 billion in one-off payments on a continuing basis.

I asked about a permanent payment.

It is rhetorical, Deputy. It is not a back and forth.

He misunderstood, deliberately so I suspect.

I do not care. It is not a back and forth.

Work is ongoing on the cost-of-disability payment. There was a good summit recently. We have to engage with the sector before it is designed. The Deputy should not pretend it can be done at the stroke of a pen. It cannot, and she knows that well.

The Taoiseach has had the report for five years.