The Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA), Disability Federation of Ireland (DFI) and Access for All announced a national protest calling on the government to introduce an emergency €400 winter payment for people with disabilities, following what they call “the government’s refusal to act despite mounting evidence of winter hardship.”
The organisations said that thousands of people with disabilities across Ireland are “being forced to choose between eating or heating their homes.”
“The issue is also having a huge impact on families caring for a child with a disability. The removal of supports had become part of people’s household finances, like the energy credits and the cost of Disability Support Payment. The removal of these has taken a huge financial and emotional toll on the many carers. The coalition is now calling on people with disabilities, their families and the wider public to march in solidarity on Saturday, February 28th.
Speaking on behalf of the coalition, Joan Carthy of Irish Wheelchair Association said “last month, a direct question was put to the Taoiseach on whether the Government would introduce an emergency winter payment to prevent people with disabilities suffering through the winter. The answer was a clear no. We are already seeing health deteriorate and debt increase because people cannot afford to keep their homes warm.”
Wheelchair user, Susan Power, described the daily reality many disabled people now face: “I am sitting home most days cold. I’m lucky if I can put the heating on for a few hours in the evening. Every day I am having to make choices, whether we will eat a dinner or whether we will be warm for a day. When you are sitting still in a wheelchair, you feel the cold even more. The €400 emergency winter payment would mean I could actually use heat efficiently.”
The coalition will lead a protest on Saturday, February 28th, starting at 1 pm at the Garden of Remembrance, Dublin, before marching to the Customs House, where people living with these realities will speak about the impact of winter hardship on their health and independence.