COLUMN: 'Chairman Martin won me over when he bought me my favourite crisps!'

Hi everybody, it’s your great friend Cara back again with some more amazing stories from Leinster House! I’ve had another incredible week and will now bring you my “no spin” news again! Put on your seatbelt, you’re going to need it!

There was only one story in town – Poster-gate, or as I call it, Paschal-gate! Minister Paschal Donohoe walked into the Dáil Chamber to answer questions from the Opposition like a gunslinger from the old wild west - but he had no guns!

He looked ready for a fight, but also looked very nervous.

Opposite him stood Mary-Lou, Pearse Doherty and all of the opposition TDs. You could nearly lip-read Mary Lou saying “This town ain’t big enough for the two of us!”

When the fighting started, they couldn’t land a big blow on Minister Donohoe! He ducked and dived like Muhammed Ali in his prime! So how did the action end?

Well, this is the poem that I said on Tipp FM last week that sums it all up:

-Paschal came out smoking, and Mary Lou wasn’t joking!

-She was pecking and poking, pouring water on his smoking!

-I couldn’t believe what I saw, but I think it all ended in a DRAW!

So, I was talking to my confidential sources in Leinster House and here is the gossip: Minister Donohoe will survive as long as nothing else surfaces. But if anything new does come out, he could be cooked for Fine Gael’s breakfast, lunch and dinner!

Now, onto the next big news! At the start of January, I submitted a formal public petition to the Dáil to have my issues examined.

There are three things that I want them to do –

(1) To grant immediate financial relief for every person that has to pay for a service or therapy that is the State’s responsibility to pay for;

(2) To create a fully external complaints system for the HSE, which is presently totally unaccountable for what they are doing; and

(3) A full review of Carers Allowance and how carers in general are being treated.

I was absolutely thrilled when I got a letter from the Oireachtas Committee on Public Petitions to say that my petition had been received and was being processed.

So, this week’s journey to Leinster House was to have a big meeting with the Chairperson of that very important Committee.

And wait until you hear this – who was the Chairperson only our great Tipperary TD, Martin Browne! Wow, I didn’t know he had such an important job!

It was fantastic to have a big meeting with Martin. To be honest, he won me over when he bought me my favourite crisps!

We talked about all of the issues and I told him that my mammy was only getting €1.34 per hour as a very hard-working carer.

Martin said that she should be getting at least the minimum working wage for the incredible work that she does and that the State is presently not properly supporting her. He is so right!

Anyway, we have a lot of work to do before my petition can get to a hearing. But if any party or TD doesn’t support it, you’ll be the first to hear it right here in The Nationalist!

And Deputy Browne gets this week’s first grade – because of everything that he has done this week for families who live in the disability world, he gets a very good “Grade B”! Well done Martin, keep up the great work!

Now to the part where I get mad! I also met with my friend Fine Gael Senator Micheál Carrigy, the Chairperson of the Oireachtas Committee on Autism.

OMG!

He told us that the committee had heard from an expert the previous day called Dr Áine Ruddy from Sligo University. A detailed study on the costs of autism was done, and she told the committee about her findings.

Here comes the shock!

She told them that the annual cost per child for families with autistic children came to over €28,000 as a result of paying for private autism services, lost income and informal care!

€28,000 PER AUTISTIC CHILD! €28,000!

And, she said that severely autistic children like my two brothers would cost even more!

I got so mad when I heard this! The “dog on the street” knows that every family who has a disability in their home is paying an absolute fortune for that.

It is so wrong. Family Carers Ireland and AsIAm are loudly saying that the Government must stop assessing the MEANS of a family, but to assess the NEEDS of the family instead. Families are going into poverty because of a disability in the home – it is so wrong and I AM SO MAD ABOUT THIS!

So, in relation to my grading, Senator Carrigy and the Committee on Autism get a good “Grade C” for highlighting these issues and for their work as they head towards a final report over the next few months.

But the Government in general is simply not doing enough for families with disabilities and Dr Ruddy’s evidence is awful for them.

Sorry Mr Government, but this week ye are getting a very bad “Grade E” for this. It’s time for the socks to be pulled up!

Anyway, next week I’m off for a massive meeting with the Minister for Education, Norma Foley. I’ve never met her before so I can’t wait for that.

And you’ll hear about it first right here in Ireland’s number one newspaper The Nationalist! Hold on tight everyone, this rodeo is only just beginning!

See you next week! Your pal, Cara.