People will no longer lose their Disability Allowance for accepting stipends association with PhD scholarships , under a new law signed by the Minister for Social Protection.
"We need to continuously work to remove barriers facing people with disabilities," Minister Heather Humphreys said.
We need to continuously work to remove barriers facing people with disabilities. That's a big priority of mine as Minister. DCU student @Cather_i_ne raised with me an unfairness in the system. Today it has been removed. It’s appropriate to call this legislation 'Catherine’s law’. pic.twitter.com/U6QobizWw8
— Heather Humphreys (@HHumphreysFG) March 12, 2021
The law is named after Catherine Gallagher, who has a BA in Journalism and a Masters in Political Communications from Dublin City University where she came top of her class.
She was subsequently offered a PhD scholarship but her delight was short lived.
Ms Gallagher learned that if she were to accept the €16,000 stipend that comes with the scholarship, she would lose her Disability Allowance, Travel Pass and most likely her medical card.
The grant is seen to help alleviate the costs incurred of doing a PhD, including campus accommodation, in the region of €10,500 a year.
Ms Gallagher said it is a very modest stipend to cover the cost of rent, travel, equipment.
She began a campaign to raise awareness of her plight and called on various Government departments to remove what she described as a barrier to education by forcing her to turn down the scholarship in order to hold onto her allowances.
The new law allows her to accept the scholarship and keep the Disability Allowance.
Ms Gallagher said she wanted to thank the public for their support in what has been "an emotional and tiring time".
"While I am very open about my disability and I am involved in disability advocacy, I found this very difficult to share. This is because this story pertains to my finances, money, and potentially being on the poverty line. That part of my life is private, and should have been private," Ms Gallagher said.
"Between sharing my experience, along with my experience in media and political communication, I am glad that a solution is found. It is unheard of for legislation to be passed by ministerial order this quickly," she added.
"I hope that Catherine's Law can now be included in the finalised UNCRPD state report to the UN. I highlighted in my correspondence and articles that there were no provisions outlined to ensure disabled people could progress to postgrad education, especially to PhD level.
"I hope in my efforts, along with my local representatives, that a gap has been bridged," she said.
"I look forward to my studies now with more peace of mind," she said.
