The Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) has warned of “chronic shortfalls” in the provision of transport, social housing and personal assistance services for people with physical disabilities which are preventing them from living independently with dignity and respect.
Speaking at the launch of the IWA pre-budget submission for 2020, advocacy officer Joan Carthy criticised the Government for choosing virtual connectivity over the physical connectivity needs of people with disabilities.
“The Government has been able to find €3 billion to fund a national broadband plan to connect people virtually, yet it still will not connect people with disabilities physically to their communities for a fraction of the cost,” said Ms Carthy. “People with disabilities are so disconnected and if €3 billion can be found so you can very simply look up information but they can’t find the funding to help people with disabilities to just have some equal opportunities, there’s something very wrong with society.”
The IWA has also called for 7 per cent of all social housing to be accessible to wheelchair users, warning that more than 5,000 people with disabilities are waiting for housing.
Read more at Irish Times
