Novartis Ireland Limited

Lobbying Organisation Novartis Ireland Limited

Date published 20 Sep, 2016

Relevant Matter Public policy or programme

Public Policy Area Health

Period 1 May, 2016 to 31 Aug, 2016

Specific Details Support MS & Employment initiative so that people with MS can be productive members of the workforce

Intended results Support and enable an employee with MS, to continue as a productive member of the workforce

Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity Susanne O'Reilly

Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?) No

Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign? No

Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client? No

Lobbying activity

The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.

Event / Reception (1)

MS Ireland, supported by Novartis, launched employment resources for people with MS and their employers. Mary Mitchell O’Connor, Minister of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, officially launched the resources. The Toolkit for Employers was adapted from ‘Working out MS in the Workplace: A Practical Toolkit for Employers’ by the European Multiple Sclerosis Platform (EMSP). This Toolkit was developed as part of the European Employment Pact, a pledge to support people with Multiple Sclerosis in the workplace, part of the “Paving the Path to Participation (PPP)” project which aims to stimulate policy change that will support maximum participation of people with MS in the European labour market. MS is associated with an annual societal cost of €429 million and the largest component of this relates to productivity losses from leaving work. Less than half of people with MS in Ireland are in paid employment.

Designated public officials lobbied

The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them. As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.

Mary Mitchell O'Connor Minister (Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation)