An activist has hit out at the lack of supports available for people with disabilities in Ireland.
Benard Mulvany is the co-founder of Access For All Ireland. The group will take part in a demonstration as part of the Cost of Living Coalition on April 1, which wants to highlight government inaction on inflation.
Bernard, who has a daughter with a disability, said the community often find themselves locked out of areas such as housing due to inaccessibility and inadequate supports. The group also works in solidarity with pensioners and carers struggling to make ends meet.
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Bernard told Dublin Live: "It’s very frustrating that we got some supports during Christmas but they barely addressed the issue. We all knew once January hit that people would be back to square one and people are now screaming out for help."
He also said that the government's failure to provide accessible homes for those with disabilities is putting a strain of families. Bernard explained that although 15 per cent of the world's population is classed as having a disability, they are often the last to be heard in society.
He added: "A lot of people with disabilities end up living in the family home and the state uses that to their advantage. You have elderly parents who can barely look after themselves and they have a disabled adult child who can’t really look after themselves either, with no independence. It’s like this perfect storm of inequality swirling around."
Many of the group's members have opened up about the challenges they are facing amid inflation. Bernard said that one member struck a chord when she revealed at a demonstration she only had enough money left over for milk and eggs at the end of each week.
Bernard said that people became particularly frustrated in the early stages of lockdown, when workers who lost their jobs were awarded €350 per week under PUP. The weekly maximum rate for the disability allowance stands at €220 as of 2023.
Bernard explained: "People are getting so many bills for fuel and heat - you need a warm home when you have a disability in particular. The government are making so much money off the back of people's poverty and misery."
Access for All Ireland is encouraging as many people as possible to take to the streets on April 1 to call for change. The demonstration will take place outside Dail Eireann at 1pm.
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