National Federation of Voluntary Service Providers Supporting People with Intellectual Disability (National Federation of Voluntary Service Providers Supporting People with Intellectual Disability)

Lobbying Organisation National Federation of Voluntary Service Providers Supporting People with Intellectual Disability

Date published 31 Aug, 2020

Relevant Matter Matters involving public funds

Public Policy Area Health

Period 1 May, 2020 to 31 Aug, 2020

Specific Details Budget 2021 in terms of funding for disability services; Section 39 pay parity; Capacity Review of Disability Services, Time to Move on From Congregated Settings, Dialogue for Forum of Catherine Day IRG

Intended results To introduce the National Federation of Voluntary Service Providers as an umbrella group to the Ministers, to lobby for appropriate multiannual funding investment of €211million over 5 years, to call for the publication of the Capacity Review of Disability Services and for it to guide investment, pay parity for S39, progress on Time to Move on from Congregated Settings, the early establishment of the Oireachtas Committee on the UNCRPD, and calling for the 1% funding to be reversed

Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity Alison Harnett, Jillian Sexton together with Board members

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.

Meeting (2-5)

A meeting with Minister Anne Rabbitte and a second meeting with Minister Anne Rabbitte together with Minister Roderic O'Gorman to introduce the work of the National Federation and lobby for appropriate funding, reversal of 1% funding cut, addressing the defecits, Section 39 pay parity, implementation of UNCPRD including TTMO and publication of Capacity Review of DIsability Services. Also shared the experience of COVID from disability service providers, including the successful measures taken to keep infection rates low amongst the people we support in spite of having been identified as a high risk category by NPHET.

Email (1)

EMail to Minister Anne Rabbitte Seeking confirmation of the reversal of the 1% funding cut to disability services 24/7/2020

Email (1)

Email to Minister Stephen Donnelly seeking confirmation of the 1% funding cut reversal, to seek an opportunity to meet with him and discuss the programme of work within disability services over the coming term of the Government and to bring him through the work that our member organisations have been engaged in over the course of the Covid-19 crisis

Informal communication (6-10)

Text messages to Ministers Anne Rabbitte and Stephen Donnelly in the context of the Programme for Government negotiations to stress the importance of the messages that we had engaged on during the General Election campaign and to ensure that disability concerns were reflected. Text message to Minister Anne Rabbitte in context of children returning to special schools and an issue in relation to bus escorts being experienced by an organisation

Social Media (6-10)

Tweets to Ministers Simon Harris, Leo Varadkar, TD's Michael Martin, Mary Lou McDonald, Alan Kelly, to advocate for appropriate funding, including in particular for adults with ID and their elderly parents

Letter (1)

Letter, together with members of Oireachtas Disability Group of C&V organisations to ask all TDs and Senators to work to ensure that alarming reports in the @irishexaminer of a possible cut to the disability budget in the Programme for Government would not materialise.

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.

Anne Rabbitte Minister of State (Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth)

Roderic O'Gorman Minister (Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth)

Stephen Donnelly Minister (Department of Health)

Leo Varadkar Taoiseach (Department of the Taoiseach)

Micheál Martin Taoiseach (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Eamon Ryan TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Mary Lou McDonald TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Simon Harris Minister (Department of Health)

Alan Kelly TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)