Louth IWA members speak out at Pre-Budget launch

Choosing between eating or heating is an impossible choice many people with disabilities face every winter in Ireland, and Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA), including its members from Louth, is calling on the Government to address the cost of disability in the upcoming budget.

Members and staff from the Association, including a group from Louth, gathered outside Leinster House on Tuesday to hand over its 2026 Pre-Budget submission.

In its Submission, IWA is urging the Government to introduce a realistic Cost of Disability payment. The call comes as 92% of IWA members surveyed reported that they incur extra costs related to their disability. These span across equipment, heating, medical and transport, as people with disabilities often have to rely on costly taxis to get them to and from appointments.

Dundalk member John Morgan was among the IWA contingent at Leinster House.  He said: I have bad circulation, and one of the biggest expenses is having to put on the heating. I know you get the heating allowance, but that is never enough.”

He added: “Where we live, after 6pm you can’t get a bus. If I want to see a show advertised in town, you are talking €25 for a taxi there and back, so you are housebound, a prisoner, whatever you want to call it.  After 6pm you have no social life.

“It’s a hard life.  I don’t think people realise it.  It affects you in all sorts of ways.  I hate saying it, but for someone who was able-bodied and now disabled, it’s a different life.”

Simon Cusack from Ardee IWA (pictured below) said: “The funding is there, why can’t they give it? They are spending money on what? A bicycle shed that costs the price of a house, come on, where are they going?

“We are not looking for millions.  We just want a big of respect.  We want more access to buildings, transport, and thing to make our lives easier.  We don’t want obstacles, we have enough.”

IWA’s Advocacy Manager Joan Carthy emphasised that "disability poverty doesn’t happen by accident". She said: “It’s the result of a system that fails to recognise and respond to the real costs of living with a disability. “This budget must be the turning point. We need choice, not charity.”

The submission draws from consultation with over 700 people with disabilities nationwide and makes urgent recommendations, including:

• A minimum increase of €78 in the weekly Disability Allowance (from €244 to €322)
• A Cost of Disability Payment to reflect the extra living costs incurred by people with disabilities
• Pay parity for Section 39 workers, who deliver vital disability services

Read also: Schools in Louth to receive €1.8m in minor works and ICT funding

Another IWA member, Evan Power, Laois, shared how his heating bills reach up to €700 a month during the winter months. After paying his bills, he’s left with just €30 to live on during the summer but in the winter, he could be left with nothing.

“I’m very good at budgeting and manage my money well, but the truth is, once I pay my bills, I have €30 left over each week. Being in a wheelchair with limited mobility means it’s harder to stay warm as my movement is limited, so in the lead up to and during the winter months, I’m totally focused on ensuring I’ve enough money to pay my heating bill, which can go up to €700 a month,” states Evan.

IWA is also calling for:

• Investment in Personal Assistant services, accessible housing, and transport
• Resources to fully implement the National Disability Strategy Plan, once issued

With a new Programme for Government and a National Disability Strategy due to be launched, Budget 2026 is an opportunity for a meaningful move towards equality and true inclusion.

“People with disabilities want to contribute, belong and live independently—but the cost of doing so is being ignored. Some members have told to us that they are having to choose between heating their homes or eating. Over half of our members state they do not have enough Personal Assistant hours, until pay parity and sectoral funding are sorted, this will continue,” said Joan Carthy. 

“We have had good engagement with the Minister for Disability and the Department, but this is the Government’s chance to take action through funding and strategic planning for the future of people with disabilities in Ireland.”

Other Key Points reported in IWA’s Survey include:

• 89% reported that the Housing Adaptation Grant didn't cover the costs of the adaptation
• 70% incur medical related costs
• 69% incur transport related costs
• 66% incur equipment costs
• 65% incur additional heating related costs 

Among the politicians to took time out to attend Tuesday’s event were Louth Deputies Ruairi O’Murchu, Joanna Byrne, Ged Nash and Senator Alison Comyn