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Seanad
‹ An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

NCBI pre-budget briefing

Summary

Senator Conway drew attention to the National Council for the Blind Ireland’s briefing in Buswells Hotel and raised free travel access for some visually impaired people; Senator Norris agreed and the need for reform was acknowledged.

Across in Buswells Hotel, as we speak, the National Council for the Blind Ireland, NCBI, is holding a pre-budget briefing to outline issues and challenges that blind and visually-impaired people in this country face daily, and their aspirations and hopes about what the upcoming budget will do to help to alleviate some of the many different challenges and issues. One clear example is where somebody who has a visual impairment, who is not deemed to be legally blind but is medically unable to drive a car, does not get a free travel pass simply because he or she does not meet the criteria of being legally blind.

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David P.B. Norris Senator David Norris Independent

They definitely should.

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Absolutely. This affects approximately 200 people in the country and needs to be taken on board and rectified. There is a range of other issues and challenges. Great work is being done by the National Council for the Blind. I encourage Members who have not already gone across to Buswells Hotel to engage with them to consider doing so. The briefing is taking place until 3.30 p.m.

I will not comment on the health dispute. Senator Colm Burke outlined the situation. It is reasonable for any Government to expect the unions to use the apparatus of the Labour Court. Ultimately, disputes in this country are resolved in the Labour Court. I cannot understand why Paul Bell and his union colleagues refuse to go into the Labour Court. The HSE is willing to go there this afternoon and tomorrow morning. Why is the union not prepared to do that? I would like it to give a definitive answer to that because it is appalling.

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