Disability (Amendment) Bill 2026: Second Stage
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-23
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Emer Higgins (FG), Dublin Mid-West

Tá fáilte rompu.
As Minister of State with responsibility for disability, I am pleased to conclude this Second Stage debate on the Disability (Amendment) Bill 2026. I thank all Deputies for their contributions and their insights, which the Minister, Norma Foley, and I will reflect on as this legislation moves through the next Stage. I also want to take this opportunity to respond to some of the points that have been raised during the debate.
As the Minister outlined, the Bill makes very specific and targeted changes to Part 2 of the Disability Act 2005, which sets out the assessment of need process. Since the principle Act was commenced over 20 years ago, demand for assessments of need has continued to grow, particularly in recent years. There are a number of reasons for this. Our population has grown. There is greater awareness of disability and developmental needs and greater awareness among families of the assessment of need process and the supports available to help children reach their full potential. That is positive but it has also placed very significant additional pressure on a system that was not designed to deal with the level of demand we now see.
The scale of this increase has been significant. Between 2022 and 2025, applications for assessments of need doubled. In the first six months of this year alone, 7,100 applications were made to the HSE. The simple reality is that demand has grown beyond the capacity of the current system to process applications in a timely way, and that has contributed to an unacceptable backlog of overdue applications. When we talk about a backlog, it is really important that we not lose sight of what that means. It means that behind every application is a child or a young person and their family, who have a very reasonable expectation that their application will be processed within the statutory timeframe. Unfortunately, however, that is not the reality for many families today, so there is a clear need to improve how the current system operates.
That is the context in which we bring forward this Bill. It is intended to modernise and strengthen the assessment of need process in order that it can operate more effectively and consistently in the face of growing demand. The changes are specific but important.
The first is to support a more needs-based approach to assessment. The Bill updates a number of terms used within the legislation to place greater emphasis on the restrictions a person experiences in their daily life and the needs arising from those restrictions, rather than focusing solely on disability as a diagnosis. That is an important shift because it brings our legislation more closely into line with Ireland's commitments under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, CRPD. It also reflects the wider direction in which we are moving across disability, health and education services. Increasingly, the focus is on the individual and on what the person needs in order to participate fully in everyday life.
As this next part was queried by a number of Deputies earlier, I want to be very clear in saying that these changes do not alter a person's rights or entitlements under the Disability Act. What they do is better reflect the broader move towards understanding and responding to a person's individual needs. This change is only one part of improving the process. We also need to look at how the assessment of need process operates in practice and at the people responsible for delivering it.
In that regard, I acknowledge the important work carried out every day by HSE assessment officers and liaison officers. They play a vital role supporting children and families through what can be a complex process. They do that work against a backdrop of significant demand and pressure on the system. Given the scale of that demand, it is important that there are greater clarity and consistency about how the assessment of need process operates in practice for staff delivering it and for families engaging with it. That is why a key element of this Bill is the introduction of statutory guidelines for assessment officers. These guidelines will provide a clear framework for the assessment of need process and support a more consistent approach across the country. They will standardise key aspects of the process across all six health regions and provide greater clarity for assessment officers in carrying out their responsibilities. That consistency also matters for families and children. The experience of applying for assessment of need should not vary significantly depending on where a family needs or where an application is being processed. By providing for the publication of these guidelines by the HSE, the Bill will also give families a clearer understanding of the process, what they can expect from it and how their application will progress.
The Bill also deals with an issue that has become increasingly relevant as the number of applications has grown. Those are applications that are no longer being actively processed. This was raised by a number of Deputies in today's debate so I will elaborate. There can be many reasons that an application is no longer actively progressed. Family circumstances may have changed. They may decide they do not wish to continue with the process. They may simply just not be in a position to engage with it at that particular time. In many cases families may have relocated abroad or returned to their country of origin and are no longer in a position to continue with an assessment of need application in Ireland. The Bill therefore provides a clear basis for the withdrawal and closure of applications but importantly, as Deputy Toole referenced, it allows an application to be reinstated within 12 months. That is important because it is providing flexibility for families. I agree with Deputies who said that a decision to not continue with an assessment at one point in time should not create an unnecessary barrier if circumstances subsequently change. That is why the reinstatement provision is there. It provides a straightforward way back into the process and that is particularly relevant. At the same time, where an application is no longer active, such as where a family has moved abroad, the HSE needs to be able to reflect that accurately in the management of the overall caseload. That is important given the scale of the backlog we are dealing with. I appreciate that a number of Deputies raised concerns about provisions on deemed withdrawal, and I hope that explains the safeguards in place. As the Minister, Deputy Foley, outlined, the related regulations will set out the conditions that must be met before an application can be deemed to be withdrawn, and they provide for a clear and accessible process for reinstating an application if it is required.
I also want to be clear about what these provisions do not do. They do not remove the right to apply for an assessment of need. They do not remove the statutory timeframe. They do not change the underlying rights provided for in the principal Act. It is really important in understanding the scope of the Bill that we are clear on that. We are making targeted changes to improve the operation of the existing process. We are not suggesting that those changes on their own will address every issue within the Act or the Act more broadly. There are wider questions about the legislation that need to be considered and that work is under way through the broader review of the Disability Act 2005. That review gives us the opportunity to look at the Act as a whole more than 20 years after it was introduced to consider what further changes are required. A great deal has changed in that time and in Ireland's obligations following the ratification of the UNCRPD. This review will allow us to consider those issues properly and to ensure that our legislative framework reflects where we need to go next. Phase 1 of that consultation is open, and it will remain open until 9 October. I encourage people to take the opportunity to contribute. We are particularly interested in hearing from disabled people themselves, families, carers, representative organisations and DPOs.
A further point is important in the context of today's debate. We can improve the legislation around assessment of need, and we can improve the process. We need to do both. Neither of those things on their own answers the wider issue facing families, which is access to supports and services. That was raised by so many Deputies. An assessment of need has an important role but you do not need an assessment of need to access services. Many children are already receiving supports through primary care services, CDNTs or CAMHS while awaiting assessment of need. It is important to state that. It is also equally important that we do not underestimate what an assessment of need means to families. For many parents, it is about much more than completing a statutory process. It can provide clarity about their child's needs. It can provide formal recognition of those needs. After what can sometimes seem like a long period of uncertainty, that recognition matters. When families are waiting beyond the statutory timeframe, of course there is frustration and anxiety. That is why our response has to go further than addressing the assessment of need process alone. The real objective has to be a system where identifying a child's need leads to the right support being available at the right time. That requires progress across disability and health services, and across education. That is what we are committed to doing.
We are continuing to recruit additional staff to our CDNTs. Many Deputies have asked about that. The HSE single point of access model will be rolled out to make the route into services clearer for families, and the autism assessment and intervention pathway protocol will be implemented to support a more consistent and timely approach to autism assessment. There is also a really important piece of work happening in education. We are working with colleagues in the Department of education on a more needs-led approach to educational provision. This is where all the different strands of work come together. The assessment of need process needs to work better. The wider legislative framework needs to be reviewed. Ultimately, families will judge processes by their experience of the system and whether their child can get the support they need. That is the wider programme of reform of which this Bill is a part. I do not want to overstate what this legislation will achieve but I point out that this wider programme of reform is so important to ensure that we progress this issue for families and their children.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-23/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-23