To: TDs and Government
Support a €400 emergency winter payment for disabled people
Immediately introduce an emergency winter payment of €400 for disabled people to offset higher living costs.
Why is this important?
More than 1 in 5 people in Ireland report having a disability or disabling condition or difficulty, and most people will experience some form of disability at some point in their lives.
Disabled people face some of the greatest barriers to full participation in Irish society. They are at significantly greater risk than non-disabled people of experiencing poverty, social exclusion, and unemployment, as well as barriers in transport, housing, education, and other areas.
For example, 2 in 5 people with a disability are unable to afford essentials like heating or new clothes, more than double the national average. 1 in 5 people with a disability live in consistent poverty, nearly four times the national average. Ireland also has one of the widest disability employment gaps in the OECD: less than a third of people with disabilities in Ireland are in employment, compared to an EU average of just over half.
People with disabilities face a higher cost of living. In the context of rapidly escalating costs in energy, food, and housing, disabled people are particularly vulnerable to cost pressures, especially as they are more likely to spend more of their time at home.
The need for a cost of disability payment was identified as far back as 2004. That principle was reaffirmed in the State-commissioned Indecon report, published in 2021. The 2025 Programme for Government committed to the introduction of a permanent Annual Cost of Disability Support Payment with a view to incrementally increasing this payment. However, such payment was not included in Budget 2026. In fact, The Disability Federation of Ireland estimated that Budget 2026 would make disabled people €1,400 worse off in 2026 when compared to 2025.
The need for a cost of disability payment was identified as far back as 2004. That principle was reaffirmed in the State-commissioned Indecon report, published in 2021. The 2025 Programme for Government committed to the introduction of a permanent Annual Cost of Disability Support Payment with a view to incrementally increasing this payment. However, such payment was not included in Budget 2026. In fact, The Disability Federation of Ireland estimated that Budget 2026 would make disabled people €1,400 worse off in 2026 when compared to 2025.