Disability Matters: Statements Seanad Éireann — 2026-04-22 ============================================================ Martin Conway (IND), Administrative Panel The Minister of State is welcome to the House. I know from my experience how committed she is to this portfolio, how she wanted this portfolio and how she is going to make a success of the portfolio. She is not in office that long. We need to give her an opportunity to activate her intentions, which are fantastic. I also pay tribute to the former Minister of State with responsibility for disability, Senator Rabbitte, who we are lucky is now a Member of this House. She did amazing work when she was in that Department. Her door was always open. She always listened and she did everything she could. She made a difference, which is something anyone can be proud of when they do it. That said, I find myself in agreement with Senator Clonan. You could not have any disagreement with him and the manner in which he articulated the micro challenges on a daily and hourly basis of having a loved one with a disability. There are over 50,000 adults living at home. It is horrendous when you think of it. My experiences dealing with people in the Houses of the Oireachtas have always been positive. I think everybody is supportive of equality and equality of opportunity and ensuring we live in an equal society. However, being supportive of it and making it happen are two different things. Over my 15 years here I always decided to turn the other cheek when something happened, because I considered it an absolute privilege to serve as a Member of the Oireachtas. It was my job to portray the most positive image for other people with disabilities. You can be a Member of the Oireachtas with a disability and operate as one. It has not always been easy. People tend to maybe unintentionally overlook it, but it happens from time to time. I remember a number of years ago there was a conference in Dublin Castle hosted by the Oireachtas on equality, diversity and disability. All of the speakers were notable people who had achievements in their own right, but the one person who was not asked to speak at the event was me, someone living and working as a politician and an Oireachtas Member. To be fair to the then Ceann Comhairle, he was horrified when he realised I was not asked to speak. Those are the simple things that make a difference and affect people. We have a major problem with the lack of access to employment for people with disabilities. I am one of the lucky ones. With less than 20% eyesight, I can do a job that I love and can be good at a job that I love. The fact that I have been elected and re-elected three times in succession means I must be doing the job reasonably well. However, there are many more like me the length and breadth of the country who cannot and do not get the opportunity to follow their dreams and work in a job that gives them fulfilment, gives them an income and gives them equality, where they pay their taxes and are full members of society. The objective of the Minister of State and the Government should be to ensure that every person with a disability can maximise their ability and can work, can socialise, and can be involved in culture, arts and sport. I listened to her opening statement and I know this can only be achieved with a whole-of-government approach. The Cabinet handbook has to be disability-proofed; I do not think it is. Everything about every Department and every Minister's portfolio needs to reflect disability, access and equality. We will not get everything right. The Minister of State will not get everything right, but she should give it a damn good shot and I have every confidence that she will. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-04-22/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:50+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-04-22