Taoiseach Micheál Martin has declined to commit to a specific amount for a new Cost of Disability payment, despite describing it as a “key target” for the Government.
Mr Martin was speaking to reporters on Wednesday ahead of the Cost of Disability Strategic Focus Network Summit, hosted by Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, which received over 1,000 submissions from disability organisations, reports Breaking News.
Before delivering the opening address at the event, the Taoiseach said the Government hoped to “crystallise all the various issues” in relation to a Cost of Disability payment so that Mr Calleary could “come to us later in the year” with formal proposals.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio ahead of the summit, Minister Calleary said the estimated annual cost of living with a disability was between €15,200 and €15,500, reports Breaking News.
Asked whether the proposed payment would meet that cost, Mr Martin said: “We’re not committing to any specific amount.”
“I think what’s key is that we would establish the principle, and indeed a mechanism, to try and bring this to the point of action.”
We certainly would like to be in a position to begin in concrete terms in the next budget,” reports Breaking News.
Mr Martin also pointed to wider disability-related spending already in place, including mobility supports, respite care and education provision, as part of the Government’s broader approach to disability policy.
The Disability Federation of Ireland said following last year’s budget that while it welcomed additional investment in disability services, the Government had removed one-off payments that had made Budget 2025 “bearable” for many people with disabilities, reports Breaking News.
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